Hoping his face didn’t show the depth of his emotions, he smiled and waved at the cameras while Catie did the same. When she was asked to pose on her own, he happily stepped aside and just admired her, his chest all puffed up because this incredible woman was with him.

Fears for what this meant or not, he was already having the best night of his life by the time they sauntered on inside the old theater with its baroque touches, extravagant and flamboyant. Not a place you’d find in a city, but it had survived in this little town—thanks to the fact it pulled double duty as the town hall, a wedding chapel, the graduation hall, and the same for any other event that required the space for more than twenty or thirty people.

Leon, hovering just inside, out of sight of the cameras, all but pounced on Danny the instant they entered. His eyes, usually a calm hazel, were as bright as floodlights, the pale brown of his hair a messy tumble against freckled skin. “I love you, man!”

Staggering back from the force of his friend’s hug, Danny said, “Whoa, dude!”

But Leon was too happy to care that he was strangling Danny. Squeezing him tight, he smacked a kiss on Danny’s cheek. “I love you. I love you.”

The two of them had met playing school rugby. Leon looked every inch the big, beefy rugby-player stereotype and had the gruff mannerisms of a back-country farmer. He did not go around making declarations of love to anyone—Danny would be surprised if he’d so much as whispered the words to a girlfriend.

Finally releasing Danny, Leon turned to Catie, who was just slipping away her phone. He stuck out his hand. “Thank you.”

Catie accepted his hand. “No, thank you for allowing in this gate-crasher. I’m so looking forward to the play—I read your post about Chaos Bones on your website, and it sounds amazing.”

Danny’s mouth all but dropped open. Because it sure as hell looked like Leon was blushing. Blushing. “Suck-up,” he said to Catie.

Shooting him a smug grin, Catie tucked her arm into Leon’s. “So, tell me more about how you put this production together.”

When Leon sent Danny a worried look, Danny just rolled his eyes, then walked to fall into step to Catie’s left. He knew what Leon didn’t—that Catie was genuinely interested. It was one of the things he’d always liked about her. She was devoted to her dream, but she made time to listen to the dreams of others.

So he wasn’t the least surprised when Leon ended up expounding exponentially on the project, a beaming human ball of joy.

“Danny.”

Turning at that husky female voice, he said, “Hey, Mara.”