It takes five minutes of silent imitation for Claire to finally guess it. The Dawson boys spend every second of them laughing uproariously. Soon after that, the game entirely dissolves into banter and jokes. Mrs. Dawson intercedes, instructing everyone to get to bed when she realizes how late it has gotten.

“I think you missed your calling in the theater, Viv,” Jace teases as he heads for the stairs.

“Take notes. Your swimming impression looked like a spastic octopus,” I retort.

“Funny. I thought the same when you were dancing in the car.”

I stick out my tongue at him, and Jace winks in response.

Mike walks past me over to the stairs. “I am seriously going to miss this entertainment,” he says, chuckling as he gestures between me and Jace.

Saturday morning, I wake up feeling melancholy. This is my last full day in Nebraska, something I never expected to feel so sad about. I employ my usual strategy to escape emotions I don’t feel like facing; I roll out of bed and pull on my running clothes.

I can hear Ellen in the kitchen when I pass it, but I bypass the room and head straight outside, transitioning into a brisk pace as soon as my sneakers touch the grass.

The air is cool, but the sun is warm on my face as I pass the parked cars. I survey the farm fondly as I run past the barn and head down the long dirt driveway. I reach the end of the packed dirt and stand there for a moment, surveying the swaying stalks filling the fields that surround me. Finally, I turn around.

I enter the warm house just as Claire comes down the stairs dressed in a fluffy robe and slippers.

“Hi, Vivienne,” she greets me happily.

“Morning, Claire,” I respond, smiling as I watch her skip into the kitchen. I follow her to find everyone else gathered in the room, helping themselves to eggs and coffee.

After breakfast, Jace and I go for another horseback ride. When we return to the house, everyone is running around getting ready for the wedding. I take a quick shower and slip into my new red dress. I pad barefoot to the bathroom to dry and style my hair, and also add a light layer of makeup before returning to my room to put on a pair of black tights. I look through the bag of shoes I brought, grateful for the variety I packed despite Jace’s teasing. Finally, I decide on a pair of black suede heels.

“Viv, are you almost ready?” Claire asks from outside the door.

“I’m ready,” I reply. “I’ll be right out.”

“Okay, Mike is still getting dressed, but the rest of us are ready.”

I glance in the full-length mirror on the back of the door, pleased with the results. I grab my long black wool jacket and step out into the hallway. My heels rap against the wooden floorboards as I emerge in the front hallway.