“They didn’t mean sixteen-year-old novices, you dork.” Bridget was clearly not ready to let things lie.

“And they had all the gear there. What was I supposed to do? Not put my hand up?”

“Yes!” his sisters responded in unison.

Lucy was fascinated by the interplay between the siblings. As her parents’ sole child, the closest she had to siblings were Chloe and Jules. Oh, dear, she thought. Does that mean Will is kind of like a brother to me? She dismissed the thought immediately; the last thing she felt towards Will was sisterly love.

And she was sure that, right before they’d been alerted to Bradley’s stupid decision to ride the half-pipe and try a snowboarding trick he’d never done before, Will had been about to say how he felt about her.

They pulled up in front of the cabin and Will switched off the car’s engine, unbuckled his seatbelt, and turned around in his seat, pinning each of his cousins with a look that said, “don’t mess with me”.

“Remember, we went, we saw ice sculptures—‘Ooh, ahh, they were amazing’—we had hot chocolate and watched the snowboarders. That’s it. Got it?”

“I didn’t have hot chocolate,” said Bradley. The little blighter, Lucy thought. He’s going to get a right bollocking if he’s not careful.

“Bradley, I swear to god, I love you, man, but I will end you,” said Will.

Briony smirked at that, followed by Bridget, and Lucy couldn’t help but join in. In moments, all the women in the car were sniggering while Will, shaking his head, blew out a breath of frustration, and Bradley conceded with raised hands and said, “Okay, okay I get it.”

The cousins got out of the car and as Lucy opened her door, Will set a hand on her arm. “Lucy, wait for sec?” Two car doors slammed, and Lucy watched as the cousins made their way to the front door. When they were inside, he continued. “I just wanted to talk to you before we went back inside to the craziness.”

Lucy gulped. Somehow, she knew that this conversation would be a turning point for her and Will. Either they’d keep their distance for the next few days, making polite conversation until it was time leave, or …

Or, what?

Or this could be the very moment that brought them together.

“Do you happen to know what time it is in Melbourne?” The question caught her off guard. She’d been expecting something a little more romantic, more heartfelt than a lesson in time zones.

“Uh, well, this time of year Melbourne’s eleven hours ahead of London and London is seven hours ahead of Colorado, so—” she glanced at the clock on the dash and did a quick calculation in her head “—it’s 1:00pm in Melbourne.”

“Okay.”

“And you’re asking because …”

“I’m calling Jules.”

“Oh, right.” This conversation was not, in any way whatsoever, going how Lucy had imagined.

“She had no right to give you a hard time and I want to see what’s up with her.” His face bore the mark of frustration and perhaps a little anger. Lucy was used to mediating between Chloe and Jules, but this was new territory for her, and she couldn’t help thinking that it was somehow her fault.