Nicole spent most of her time pretending to be someone else, but with Milly she didn’t have to pretend.

Her whole world became the boathouse, the lake, the forest, Milly and her family. Everything else had ceased to exist.

When she thought about her old life—and she tried not to— she pushed it aside like crumbs under a rug, hiding it from sight.

“Won’t your agent be wondering where you are?” Milly asked her one morning after they’d managed to jog for a full thirty minutes. They were two weeks into their running routine, and this time Milly was barely out of breath.

“I told her I needed a break. I probably did her a favor. I’m not exactly hot stuff, thanks to Justin trashing my reputation.”

“Does she know you’re pregnant?”

“My agent?” Nicole felt the same little lurch of panic that she felt every time she thought about the baby. And thinking about the baby meant thinking about Justin, and she didn’t want to think about him. It also meant thinking about her future, and she had no idea what that was going to look like. She knew she had decisions to make, but she wasn’t ready to make them. She kept telling herself that there was plenty of time. “I’ve worked without a break since I was nineteen, one project after another and sometimes several at the same time. I’ve earned a rest.”

She ignored the fact that the supposed rest had been forced on her by circumstances. That if it hadn’t been for Justin, and the pregnancy, she’d probably still be working every waking hour and most of the sleeping ones too. It was her life.

And now her life was on hold.

Milly checked the fitness tracker Nicole had bought her as a gift. “Time to head home.”

“Not yet. Ten more minutes of running.”

She’d made a point of pushing her friend a little harder each day, and this time Milly didn’t try to fight her on it. Nicole tried not to feel smug as Milly took off down the forest track, her movements strong and sure.

“Look at you!”

Nicole lengthened her stride so that she could catch her, and then Milly stopped dead and Nicole almost crashed into her.

“What the—”

“There’s a man up ahead.” Milly turned and tugged the brim of Nicole’s hat farther over her eyes. “Stay behind me. I will say a bright and happy Hello as we jog past. You keep running.”

Nicole’s limbs felt shaky. “You’re sure I shouldn’t hide behind a tree?”

“I’m sure.” And a moment later Milly said, “Oh, panic over. It’s Joel. Phew.”

“Joel?” Nicole groaned. Wasn’t that just typical? “In that case I’m definitely hiding behind a tree. I made such a fool of myself last time he saw me.”

“You’re overreacting.”