Of course she was. Even a house full of guests didn’t shake Christy’s schedule.

“Coming.” Alix tucked her suitcase away. “So is there room in here for one more polar explorer?”

“You’re sleeping in the bed. I’m sleeping here.” Holly scrambled down and tugged an inflatable mattress from under the bed. “And Uncle Zac is sleeping in the living room.”

Sleeping? He was staying the night?

Oh the horror. She made a note not to go wandering once the lights were out. The last thing she needed was to bump into him in the dark.

She headed down to the kitchen, heard a rumble of male voices and found Zac deep in conversation with Seb. The fact that they stopped talking when she walked into the room did nothing to calm her nerves.

And then she saw Christy’s anxious expression and resolved not to do or say anything that would make things worse for her friend.

Also, she had no intention of allowing Zac to know she was rattled.

Indifference. Yes, that was it. She needed to seem indifferent.

“Hi, Seb.” Smiling warmly, she walked across the room and kissed him on the cheek. She was always mildly aware that she was overcompensating. “How are things?”

“Good. You?”

“Great. Never better.” They were both lying, she thought, as she took the champagne Christy handed her. If things were good, why was she the one taking Holly to Lapland?

Christy still hadn’t told her the details, and Alix hadn’t probed, even though it had taken effort on her part.

“This is a treat,” Christy said. “I haven’t had champagne in ages.” She offered Zac a glass and then gasped as she took a proper look at Holly. “What happened to your new dress?”

“It got in the way when I was climbing.”

Blame the dress. Good one. Alix tried not to smile.

“Oh Holly,” Christy said with a sigh. “Never mind. I’ll mend it.”

“Don’t mend it. I hate dresses.”

Christy chose to ignore that and instead turned back to Zac. “Where were we? Oh yes, champagne!”

He shook his head. “Thanks, but I’ll stick with beer.” His refusal felt like a criticism, but Alix refused to let him get to her. Let him think she was a frivolous, champagne-drinking party animal. Who cared?

“More for us.” Christy handed a glass to Alix and then raised her own. “To you! Congratulations on your award, you clever thing. Alix has just come back from New York,” she added, for the benefit of Zac.

“Fantastic.” Seb’s smile was strained. “Well done, Alix.”

Zac gave a nod, and Alix took a large mouthful of champagne.

He obviously wasn’t impressed by awards, but she didn’t need his approval.

She knew very little about what he did, except that he was a scientist who spent a large part of the year working as an expedition guide in the wild polar regions. Christy had shown Alix a photo once of Zac standing at the helm of a boat, legs braced, life jacket adding to the already significant bulk of his shoulders, framed by ice and snow. Tonight those shoulders were covered in a warm cable-knit sweater. What else he was wearing she couldn’t have said because she didn’t allow her gaze to linger.