And it took one morning to realize he'd never gotten over her at all.
The plan to win her back? It was working. Just not the way he'd intended.
She was leaving after New Year's. Going back to the city, back to her life, back to a future that didn't include him.
Unless he gave her a reason to stay.
But how could he do that when she was so determined to keep this fake? When she was already building walls, already trying to convince herself that what just happened didn't mean anything?
Grant stood and started cleaning up the loft, putting tools away, straightening plans. Normal work. Normal routine.
Except nothing felt normal anymore.
Grant stared at the barn ceiling.
He was in so much trouble.
Because Riley Monroe had just walked out, thinking what they'd shared was temporary, meaningless, just physical.
And Grant had let her go without saying a single word about how wrong she was.
But maybe that was okay.
Maybe actions would speak louder than words.
Riley thought this was a one-time thing? Fine. Grant would show her exactly how wrong she was.
Not by confessing. Not by pressuring her. But by being present. By showing up. By making every moment they had count.
She wanted to keep it fake? He'd give her fake dating that felt so real she wouldn't be able to tell the difference.
Grant climbed down from the loft and headed back to the house. He had work to do before tonight's tree lighting ceremony. The farm didn't run itself, and he'd already lost a good chunk of the morning…
Not that he regretted a single second of it.
By six that evening,Grant was showered, changed, and trying not to think about the fact that he'd see Riley again in less than an hour.
The tree lighting was one of Pine Valley's biggest holiday events—the whole town showed up, there'd be hot chocolate and caroling, and Grant would have to stand next to Riley and pretend like this morning hadn't happened.
Pretend his hands didn't remember the curve of her waist. Pretend he couldn't still taste her on his lips.
Just fake dating. Keep it together.
His phone buzzed.
Riley: Are you still picking me up tonight?
Grant stared at the message. Driving together would mean time alone in the truck. Time to talk, or not talk, or deal with the weird tension that was definitely going to be there after this morning.
But it also meant more time with her.
Grant: Yep. 6:30?
Riley: Perfect. See you soon.
The drive to Riley's house was quiet. Grant kept his eyes on the road, hyper-aware of Riley in the passenger seat, the space between them feeling both too small and too vast.
"So," Riley said finally. "About this morning?—"
