Hearing Emma’s footsteps on the stairs, he shook off those memories to put himself in the right frame of mind to spend this evening with her. It was high time he got back to the land of the living after the debacle with Heather.

Emma came into the room, and Grayson could only stare at how lovely she looked in a simple black turtleneck sweater that she’d paired with sexy jeans and boots. Her hair was down around her shoulders, and she’d done something to her big blue eyes with makeup that made them stand out. “You said casual, right?”

“I did, and you look great.”

“So do you,” she said with a shy smile.

He liked that she was shy, that she hadn’t dated in years, that nothing about her was fake or fabricated. And he really liked when the spark of attraction from last night flared between them once again, still vibrant and vivid after they’d both had a day to reconsider. He hadn’t changed his mind, and judging from the way she looked at him, she hadn’t either.

“I should leave a note for Molly so she doesn’t worry,” Emma said. “I didn’t know what to say to her about my plans for tonight, so I didn’t say anything.”

“You could’ve told her where you were going.”

“I didn’t know if you’d want me to.”

“One thing you’ll quickly learn about this family—and this town—is there’re very few secrets.”

Emma smiled and dashed off a quick note to Molly, leaving it on the counter where his aunt was sure to see it.

Over her shoulder, he saw that she’d written, Went to get dinner with Grayson. See you in the morning. Emma.

“You’re planning on an all-nighter?” he asked.

“What?” He hated that she looked and sounded stricken by his comment. “No, of course not. I was just assuming they’ll be asleep when we get home.”

“I was teasing, Emma. Sorry.”

She laughed. “Wow, call me out of practice. I missed that completely.”

He chuckled at her adorable befuddlement, also loving that she was out of practice when it came to men and dating. What a breath of fresh air she was. In the mudroom, he held her coat and waited for her to zip up and put on gloves. “Ready?” he asked, extending his hand to her.

She took hold of his hand. “Ready.”

He led her out into the night, excited to spend time with her, to simply be with her.

Chapter 2

Let us always meet each other with smile,

for the smile is the beginning of love.

—Mother Teresa

As they pulled out of Lincoln and Molly’s driveway, it began to snow, going from a light dusting to a steady snowfall in the few minutes it took to warm up the car.