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“Come in!” he calls. “It’s pretty warm. There must be a spring underneath.”

I’ve never heard of a hot spring around here, but I definitely need to cool a few things off before we return to the car. “Turn around.”

“You’re not planning to strip, right?” he asks. “It’s the middle of the day.”

“I know I’m irresistible, but I’m sure as hell not jumping in fully dressed. I’ll freeze to death walking back. Just turn around.”

He does what he’s told with a really unnecessary roll of his eyes. I strip to my bra and panties and jump before I lose my courage.

I plunge below, discovering water so cold I am momentarily paralyzed by it. I’m pretty sure it’s only a desire to beat him senseless that propels me back to the surface.

“Motherfucker,” I gasp as I emerge.

My eyes aren’t even open before I hear him start laughing.

“You fucking liar.”

He keeps laughing as I scramble for the sun-warmed rocks, pulling myself out half-naked and too cold to care whether or not he sees. I hear him swimming toward the rocks as I reach the top. I use his clothes to dry off before I struggle into my own.

He’s still laughing, the bastard.

“I’m sorry,” he calls, beginning to climb out. “I bet you feel better, though, don’t you?”

“Not as good as I’m about to feel,” I reply, gathering his clothes and pitching them into the water.

I lay back on the rock and bask in the sun, laughing to myself as he jumps in after his stuff. This is a moment that never would have happened with Rob. In part, because Rob wouldn’t have jumped in the first place, and he certainly wouldn’t have lied about the temperature. But I wouldn’t have thrown his clothes in, either. We never had that kind of relationship, and I sort of wish we had.

Moments later I feel Brendan’s shadow looming over me, and before my eyes are open he’s wringing out his soaked clothes on my face and chest.

“Now we’re even,” he says with a grin as he lies down beside me.

I laugh, and he does, and I silently marvel at how content I feel. Yes, we had a good hike, and we’ve got good weather, but I have a feeling I could be doing anything with him, in any weather, and I’d feel the same way.

“This has been a perfect day,” I tell him.

“You’re like a different person here,” he says.

I squint at him. “How so?”

“You’re like you were when I first met you. You were a little firecracker back then. Game for anything. Happy. It all seemed to end when you got together with Rob.”

I sigh. “I should have known we’d have to discuss it eventually.”

“Discuss what?”

“The break-up,” I reply, glancing at him. “What else?”

He stiffens and slowly sits up. “What break-up?” He looks shocked. And very unhappy.

“I thought you knew. I’m surprised you seem so upset—wasn’t it your dearest wish that he find someone better?”

“I’m not upset, and I didn’t think he’d find someone better, I just…” He shakes his head, as if he can’t get his mind around this. “Why?”

There are so many reasons, but I focus on the ones that don’t involve him. “We haven’t been getting along for a while. And then he drops this bomb about Christina—”

“Christina?” he asks. “Are you trying to tell me he’s been hooking up with Christina over there?”

“He says all they’ve done is kiss. But for six weeks he never once mentioned her name until it came out by accident, when he’d mentioned pretty much every other employee. So I find it hard to believe things are entirely innocent.”