“Yeah, I read through your records, Chase. And correct me if I’m wrong, but every time you completed treatment, you found yourself back a few months later. This time you’re doing it my way, and sobriety is only half of the equation to getting healthy.”

“I answered all your stupid questions in the workbook. Aren’t we going to do, like, outpatient therapy?”

“My kind of therapy is not outpatient, Chase.”

Chase rolled her eyes. “You mean I have to stay here with you? How long?”

“Until I’ve determined you’re ready to face the real world again.”

Chase turned and hurled the shell toward the water, looking as much like a toddler as, well, a toddler.

Conrad watched all this with veiled amusement and perhaps a bit of alarm. But really, the man had to be used to tantrums and grandstanding. She’d seen the women he dated, and while she would never judge a book by its cover, she wasn’t blind. His taste ran to young, complicated, and a little spoiled.

Which meant he had a large dating pool in Tinseltown.

“This is total bullshit. Con has a movie to make. When does it start? Next week? End of the month?” Chase advanced on Conrad, moving close to him as if that would put him on her side.

He took a step back, holding up a hand. “Hold on, Chase. There’s been some delay on the shooting schedule, so just focus on getting yourself—”

“I’m fine. Can’t you see that? Look at me. I’ve been doing yoga and eating stupid vegetables. I mean, that’s what all this is for, right? I need to get back to my life. I need to get back to work. My mother’s breathing down my neck, and we need to sell this place before we have to file bankruptcy. So please, for the love of God, let me move forward.”

Olivia almost gave her a slow clap for her performance. If she’d sunk down on her knees, clasping the sand and proclaiming “God as my witness, I shall never be drunk again,” Olivia might have. But her relationship with Chase was tenuous at best.

“You will move forward,” Conrad said, slinging an arm around Chase in a brotherly fashion. “Come on, Chase, Livy is the best.”

Chase gave her a withering look. “At what? Sucking the fun out of everything?”

That made Conrad laugh.

So that’s what he thought of her? Of course he did. He’d always been the one who reached too close to the sun. And she’d been the one standing behind him holding the sunscreen.

“Olivia’s fun. Sometimes,” Conrad said, giving Olivia a wink.

Olivia gave him a flat look. “My job is not to be fun. My job is to help you change. To do that, we have to start at square one.”

Chase snorted.

Olivia ignored her. “You’re healthy. That’s good. Because now we have to work on the other part. So pack your bags. We’ll grab toiletries and necessities when we get to the cabin, but you’ll need at least two weeks’ worth of clothing. Oh, and bring a jacket.”