in the back of his hand flexed as he adjusted the collar of his shirt.
Head in the game. Head in the game. Head in the game.
“Next week will be a madhouse preparing for the gala,” he said. “Do you feel prepared?”
“Yes, I do. I think we’ve done most of what we can to ensure it’s a great event. All we can hope for is a good turnout. I, for one, am looking forward to the chance to wear a dress that’s been hanging in the back of my closet for two years with the tag still attached.”
“I’m looking forward to seeing you in that dress.”
I blushed but didn’t break eye contact. “We worked well together tonight. You know, despite everything.”
“We did.”
“No weirdness.”
“No weirdness,” he agreed. “Who knew we could be so professional?”
I sipped my martini. “Not me.”
He chuckled.
I gazed around the restaurant at the winking lights tucked into garland strewn over the backs of bench seats. The windows were frosted for dramatic effect and a ten-foot tree sat in the middle of the restaurant beside the fireplace. Usually, I hated being out and about during the holidays, but sitting there with Ethan felt cozy and right.
He swirled his drink. “So, tell me. How do you usually spend Christmas day, Kathryn?”
“Honestly? I spend it alone in my apartment.”
Ethan frowned. “What? You’re alone on Christmas?”
I laughed. “Don’t worry over it. I like to be alone. I have a nice leisurely morning, and in the afternoon, I usually go and visit my best friend. Although I haven’t heard from her all week. I think… I think I might have dropped the ball and been a bad friend.”
“What would make you think you were a bad friend?”
I sighed. “I’ve been going to Miriam to help me solve my problems but I haven’t been the shoulder for her to lean on that I think she may have needed these past few years. Her life has changed dramatically and I…” I paused and gave my head a shake as guilt crept up my throat. “I could have been there for her, but instead, I let the change spook me and I stayed away. I should have shown up more for her.”
“Do you know what I love most about Christmas?”
I eyed him across the table. “What?”
“It’s the season to forgive,” he said simply. “Tell your friend that you’re sorry. Tell her you’re there for her. Make amends. It’s never too late. I find it hard to believe a friend like this Miriam of yours wouldn’t want to forgive you.”
I pinched the stem of my martini glass and turned it in slow circles on the table. “Perhaps I’m too stubborn for my own good.”
Ethan’s laughter surprised me.
I shot him a scowl. “No need to laugh so hard at me. It wasn’t a punchline.”
“I’m sorry,” he wheezed, “but that’s the most self-aware thing I’ve ever heard you say.”
A smile tugged at my lips. I tried to fight it, but it was no use, and soon, we were both chortling into our drinks while I tried to act all tough and unfazed by my own revelation.
Perhaps I was too stubborn. And perhaps he was right. An apology was just what the doctor ordered. There was still time to make things right with Miriam and show her that I knew she deserved better than what I’d been giving her.
Chapter 26
Ethan
Kathryn and I spilled out of the restaurant around one in the morning after breaking our agreement and having more than one little old drink. We were three deep, perhaps four, and feeling that familiar tingly feeling of an evening well spent in a cozy room.
The Vancouver chill met us like a slap on the face and it sobered us up some as we went for a stroll down to the edge of the market. Some fifty or so feet below, the cold water slapped gently against the rocky shore.
Kathryn crammed her hands in her pockets and her chin into the collar of her scarf and shivered. “Well, I’m glad I took a cab here. I’m in no shape to drive.”
I couldn’t say the same. My car was parked a block away at a meter. I’d have to top it off to keep it there overnight and come back tomorrow morning sometime to pick it up. “Three martinis will do that to a girl.”
I couldn’t see her mouth because it was hidden in her scarf, but I could tell from the slight crinkling around her eyes that she was smiling. “I think