The entire square lit up—thousands of lights blinking on at once, turning the gray December evening into something magical.
Everyone cheered.
Grant found Riley in the crowd, and their eyes met.
She smiled, and he couldn’t help but smile back, his heartrate speeding up.
I'm in so much trouble.
After the test run, volunteers started packing up. Grant helped load boxes into trucks, coil extension cords, break down ladders.
Riley worked beside him, quiet but present, both of them exhausted and cold and covered in pine needles.
"That was fun," she said as they loaded the last box.
"You're delirious from the cold."
"Maybe. But it was still fun."
Grant closed the truck bed. "You want a ride home?"
"I drove, remember?"
"Right. Yeah."
They stood there, neither moving.
"So," Riley said. "Sunday dinner tomorrow."
"Tomorrow."
"You're really coming?"
"I said I would."
"You can still back out."
"Do you want me to?"
"No." The word came out too fast. "I mean—it would be weird if you didn't. Since we're supposed to be dating."
"Right. Dating."
The word hung between them, loaded with everything they weren't saying.
"I should go," Riley said finally. "It's late."
"Yeah. Okay."
She started toward her car, then stopped and turned back. "Grant?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks. For today. For making this—" She gestured vaguely. "Less terrible than it could be."
"Anytime."
She drove away, and Grant stood in the empty square, surrounded by lights and decorations and the growing certainty that he was falling for Riley Monroe all over again.
