Her phone gave one short buzz, indicating a text message. She was so afraid it would be from him, and that it would be ugly, she was afraid to look at it.

But it wasn’t Axel. Karoline had just sent her a picture of the girls.

We’re at Universal Studios having a great time. Please don’t worry about anything!

As direct and no-nonsense as her sister could be, there really was no one with a better heart.

Thank you for being there for me, she wrote back. I’m done with Axel. Moving on.

For real?

Yes. It’s over. I don’t know what I’ve been hanging on to.

That’s my baby sister. Forget him. You’re going to be just fine on your own, Karoline texted back and added a smiley face for good measure.

Harper doubted her sister would be so happy if she knew exactly how this change of heart had finally come to pass.

After Tobias pulled into his driveway and parked, he didn’t immediately get out. He sat there, staring straight ahead, seeing nothing. He felt as though he’d just survived some kind of life-altering event, which was weird. He’d slept with a woman. So what? He didn’t think sex—even for a man like him who’d gone thirteen years without it—was supposed to leave him feeling shell-shocked.

But making love to Harper hadn’t been like making love to Tonya or the woman he’d picked up that one night in Santa Barbara. Those encounters had been enjoyable, of course, but he hadn’t been quite as vulnerable. He’d had to let down his defenses in order to get that intimate with Harper—being with her had somehow demanded it—and that had made it almost a transcendent experience.

He scrubbed a hand over his face and focused on his surroundings. He didn’t know how long he’d been sitting there, but there was nothing to be gained from wasting more time. Eventually, he’d forget about this morning—forget about her.

But he knew it wouldn’t be easy.

“She told you from the beginning it couldn’t last,” he berated himself as he pulled the keys from the ignition. “What more did you expect?”

He’d expected four more days. Maybe that was the loss he was mourning.