Some people might question that, or laugh at it, or something. Abbie didn’t. She was always taking classes, learning things—she liked to learn, loved it, had made Will less afraid of it. He used to think he was stupid, before Abbie had all but dragged him through their final exams and told him again and again, “Smart isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, Will, but learning is something else.”

So at his announcement, she just raised her eyebrows and asked, “Hm. How’s your French toast?”

“Glorious,” he said. “Life-changing. Life-affirming, some might say.”

“Yeah? Who might say that?”

“People.”

“Women?”

He smiled, slow and delighted. “Are you fishing for information, Abigail?”

She sniffed. “I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean, William. I’m just saying, women are my preferred sources for trusted opinions.”

Will deflated. “Ah.” Never mind. Obviously, she wasn’t going to swing into a jealous rage over his theoretical French toast–eating girlfriends after half a day of tentative flirting on his part and confused glares on hers. Yet again, he felt a warning flare in his gut, a little voice shouting that Jase was right and his plan was more sly and pointless than smart and brilliant—but the voice was quickly smothered by a blanket of nervous hope. So many feelings, all of them messy, none of them as interesting as Abbie.

Shifting closer, he peered at her embroidery hoop. “Can I see?”

Abbie had always embroidered, as easily as people doodled. Probably had something to do with her mother and grandmother being seamstresses. She hesitated for a moment, which was odd. Then she sighed and turned her hoop around, and he saw a silky blue ocean dotted with little pink fish and lit up by a golden sun. Over the yellow thread, she’d stitched the words “A WARM AWAKENING.”

He smiled. Abbie’s art always made him smile. Then he blinked and realised something. “Oh. It’s … I sent you that, didn’t I?”

She avoided his gaze as she answered. “I think so.”

“You think so?” He laughed. “How many people do you have sending you artwork over Instagram?” But then it occurred to him that she might have a lot of people doing that. He could very easily be one of hundreds of desperate individuals sending Abbie the things they loved just to make her smile and remind her of their existence.

Suddenly he felt a terrible mood coming on.

Until she rolled her eyes and said, “Fine, yes, you sent it to me. You have good taste. Sometimes I embroider the things you send. You know, when I’m running out of ideas.”

Will’s mental sun burst out from behind the clouds and burned his storm away. “Do you, now?”

“Don’t let it go to your head, Reid.”

“I would never.” But he was grinning, so that was an obvious lie.