He laughs. “I’ve never seen Jace so happy. I’m so glad he brought you home to meet us.”

“Thank you, that means a lot,” I reply sincerely, although his words prompt an uncomfortable twinge. “I’ve loved spending time with you all.”

The song comes to an end. We stop and applaud with everyone else.

“I’m going to head to the restroom,” I tell Mr. Dawson. “I’ll see you back at the table.”

There’s no line for the bathroom, so I quickly slip in and lean my forehead against the door once I’ve locked it. Jace’s father’s words have caused the gloom I woke up with to resurface. I know that I will never see any of his family again after Jace and I leave tomorrow, and that bothers me a lot more than I expected it to. A lot more than I can afford it to.

Someone knocks on the door, breaking me out of my depressing thoughts. I quickly use the restroom and force the worries out of my mind. I head back into the main area of the barn and immediately run into Gretchen. She’s standing with two other girls next to the buffet.

“Hi, Vivienne.” Gretchen greets me reluctantly. It’s clear she’s no more eager to interact with me than I am with her.

“Hey, Gretchen,” I respond.

“I’m Carrie,” one of the girls interjects.

“And I’m Melissa,” the other adds.

Neither of them mention Jace, instead asking about how I like Lincoln and where I went to high school. I give them my prepared answers and then finally make up an excuse to leave after a few minutes. I glance back behind me on my way back to the table to see Melissa and Carrie have gathered around Gretchen. The three of them are speaking intently, leaving me with the uncomfortable inclination she asked them to find out more about me.

I reach the table to find Jace is the only one still sitting at it. He’s typing something on his phone, and looks up when I approach.

“I saw you socializing,” he tells me when I reach the table.

“It felt more like an interrogation.” I laugh lightly as I sit down. Jace’s eyebrows rise. “It’s fine,” I quickly add.

“You sure?”

I nod.

“Do you want some champagne?” Jace asks, nodding to the glasses sitting on the table. “They just brought these.”

“No thanks, I’m not a fan of anything carbonated,” I reply.

“Really?”

“It tickles my throat.”

Jace laughs.

A familiar melody begins to play. I glance over at the band in surprise, then at Jace’s grinning face.

“Did you do this?” I ask, shocked.

Other emotions threaten to overwhelm me, but I beat them back as I focus on the beginning strains of my favorite song reverberating throughout the barn.

“Maybe,” Jace replies. “Dance with me?” He stands and holds out a hand. I take it, and we wind our way among the assortment of tables and out onto the dance floor.