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“I only speak the truth,” Liv muttered, concentrating on her food.

Sam rolled his eyes. Liv hadn’t been friends with Cat for years, and he suspected that could be down to him being too open with his twin sister about Cat’s mood swings. Their relationship pattern didn’t help either. Cat had finished things about five times, but it was never for that long before she backtracked. Though, thinking about it, he realized she never apologized for her behavior. It was more as if she were doing him a favor by asking him back. And he supposed it felt as if she was.

In time, Sam had realized he should be less candid about Cat around his sister. It had been difficult when they were so close. Often Liv would know what was going on, even if he didn’t verbalize it. And as much as he told Liv off for any little comments regarding his relationship, deep down he knew that she only wanted what was best for him. Not that she was correct in her opinion of Cat, however. It was hard to explain to people on the outside that when it was good, it was really nice. He felt settled, and safe. As if cocooned in a frayed but familiar blanket.

Swallowing another mouthful of stew, he gave Liv a grudging look. “This is really good.”

Liv flashed him a grin. “I know.”

He shook his head, unable to suppress a smile.

Liv sipped her water. “How’s Maya getting on at the ski resort?”

Even hearing her name made his pulse pick up. “Fine, I think. We don’t see that much of each other.” Except for the other day in the steam room, where we saw a whole lot of each other.

“Is she back at the resort?” Tara asked. “I didn’t realize. Ben must be ecstatic.”

“And Sam,” Liv replied, raising her eyebrows at him.

Sam paused chewing to look at her. “What do you mean?”

Liv shrugged. “You don’t have to cover the kids’ class any longer.” She eyed him as she lifted her glass. “What else would I mean?”

Sam narrowed his eyes, but Liv just met his gaze in a steadfast, innocent manner. He’d never admitted to her that he and Maya had been on the brink of starting something, because it had been over before it began. Then, once it had ended, he didn’t feel able to talk about it without being negative about Maya, and that wouldn’t have been fair to Liv.

Shifting his gaze onto Tara, he nodded toward the empty chair. “Where’s Angus?”

“He’s out with his friends. I deliberately didn’t invite him.”

Sam’s pulse stepped up a notch. “Why not?”

Tara glanced up. “Don’t panic, not for any bad reason.”

His shoulders relaxed. For a moment he’d thought she was going to say things with Angus were heading south.

“I wanted the two of you to myself,” Tara continued. “To discuss something.”

Sam glanced at Liv and could tell she too was none the wiser.

Tara smiled. “I’ve asked Angus to move in here with me. But I wanted to check that you were both okay with it.”

She’d hardly got the last few words out when Liv squealed and threw her arms around her. Tara laughed, glancing over to assess Sam’s reaction.

He smiled, pleased for his mum, but concerned all the same. What if Angus left? The stakes were higher if they were living together. If he were honest with himself, that was why he’d fallen short of buying a place with Cat. She’d suggested it, but he’d put off the decision. Which was dumb, because she pretty much lived at his place rather than at her parents’, but somehow not making it official felt as if he were keeping himself safe.

His mum was looking at him as Liv settled back into her seat. Taking his hand, she gave it a squeeze. “Are you okay, love?”

Guilt needled him that he was raining on her parade. He forced his smile wider, nodding. “I’m really happy for you guys.”

Tara raised her eyebrows. “But?”

Sam glanced at Liv, who gave him a reassuring smile. He cleared his throat, feeling like the ultimate party pooper killjoy Grinch Who Stole Christmas. “Is it a good idea? Do you think you guys are . . . steady enough?”

Tara gave him another squeeze. “We are, sweetheart. But you know what? If anything ever did go wrong, I’d be okay.”

She held his gaze, and for a moment he felt as if he might well up.

He swallowed, and Liv took hold of his other hand across the table. Then he realized that his mum and sister were holding hands too so that the Hollands were like three sides of a triangle.