“Oh, yeah,” said Chloe, “Sorry about that, Matt. I should have warned you ahead of time that Jules has a history of horse-riding accidents.”

“That’s not fair. Cabo wasn’t my fault, and neither was this. There was a snake.” Jules felt bad enough that Matt had gone horseback riding even though it had scared him—and for her, to make her Christmas special.

“Hey, it’s all good. The wrist is nearly a hundred per cent, and to answer your question,” he turned back to Jules. “No to the snowmobiling, but I’ve got the quad bike, remember, and my motorbike license.”

“He’ll be fine,” added Will. Neither of their assurances did anything to ease Jules’s concerns. Will could be pretty hardcore when he went snowmobiling, He was way too much of a daredevil for her liking.

*

“You’ve ridden before, right?” Chloe asked Archer. She was perched on the couch next to him, her legs tucked underneath her, a mug of tea in one hand and a piece of Christmas cake in the other—her idea of bliss.

“It’s been a while—I had to ride one in A Forgotten Promise—but I suspect it’s a bit like riding a bike.”

“See?” Will asked the room. “We’re all set.”

“You did your own stunts in that?” asked Matt.

“Some of them, but only the ones that wouldn’t kill me if I cocked them up,” Archer replied, grinning.

“I’ve seen that movie, like, four times,” said Matt.

“That’s four more than me,” announced Chloe. She took a bite of cake and when everyone except Archer eyed her incredulously, she spoke with her mouth full. “What?” A quick glance at Archer revealed an amused expression. She swallowed. “My friends seem aghast, Archer. Maybe when you go snowmobiling, I should get started on watching your back catalogue,” she deadpanned.

At that, he threw back his head and laughed heartily. Then he drew her close and gave her a smack of a kiss. “And that, Ms Sims, is one of the many reasons I love you. You will never allow me to wallow in my own importance.”

Chloe shrugged, threw a somewhat smug look at her besties, and went back to her cake. Archer stood. “Right! Snowsuits, I presume?”

“Yeah, whatever you’d wear skiing or snowboarding. Matt, I’ve something you can wear, if you need it.”

“All good, mate. Brought my own.” Chloe caught the surprised look on Jules’s face. Matt clearly did too. “So much you don’t know yet,” he said to Jules. He gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek before leaving with the other guys to get ready. Chloe watched Jules watching him go, a dreamy expression on her face.

She loved seeing two of her closest friends together—Jules, the anti-love poster child, and lovely Matt, who deserved far better than that lying cow of a woman, Kirsten. It wasn’t that she and Ash had conspired as much as hoped that Jules and Matt would like each other. And they did and they are in love and yay, yay, yay.