“That sounds lovely!” chimed Lucy with far more enthusiasm than she felt.
“That was really sweet, Jules,” added Chloe. She could just imagine Callie gushing over that.
“Yeah, they thought it was awesome,” Jules humble-bragged. She had a sudden thought. “Hey, Chloe, what’s with Ash and Davo, and how come you never said they used to be a couple? Or wait, did you tell me?” Jules added, second-guessing herself.
“Actually, no, I didn’t. That was for Ash to tell you if she wanted to.” Jules nodded solemnly as she remembered how hard Ash had pretended to be cheerful throughout the day, even though Jules had caught her looking wistful on several occasions. “So, how are those two? Have they worked it out yet?” asked Chloe.
“That they still love each other?”
“Yeah,” Chloe replied.
“Well, Ash definitely has. And it seems like he’s pining for her, too, but they spent the whole day in ‘just friends’ mode.” She raised one finger in half-assed air quotes.
“They’ll get there eventually. I hope.”
“Yeah.” The conversation was getting far too morose for Jules. “Hey, so Matt got me the most awesome present,” she said, to brighten the mood. “I mean, so thoughtful. He’s taking me horseback riding in wine country on the weekend. Ash and I are going to his vineyard for a couple of days.”
“Oh, I knew you’d love that.”
“So, you’ve been conspiring?”
“Maybe. I just wanted you to have a good Christmas.”
“Hey, Chlo, I know. You’ve done so much. And Ash; she’s a doll. You’ve both made my first summertime Christmas amazing.” First. Jules wondered if there would be more.
Chloe shrugged half-heartedly. It felt good to know that her plans for Jules were working out, despite Jules’s best efforts to mess them up.
“Just keep an eye on Matt, though. He’s never ridden a horse before. We don’t want a repeat of Cabo.”
“Yeah, yeah. I will,” Jules replied, but Chloe doubted her warning had sunk in.
“It was a little weird waking up to hot weather and eating salads and cold shrimp on Christmas Day,” continued Jules, “but it was a fun day. We played Celebrity Heads after lunch and, of course, there were all these Australian celebs who I had no idea about. Anyway, I can’t remember the last time I laughed like that—probably when the three of us were together in New York.”
At any other time, it was just the sort of comment that would have sent a warm shot of nostalgia through Lucy, but even though she was glad the playful bickering had died down, she was still stinging from Jules’s callous disapproval of her and Will, and she sat in silence.
“And the wine! Matt the winemaker really knows his stuff!” Jules giggled. “His pinot is one of the best I’ve ever had.”
And watching Jules get all gooey eyed over this Matt fellow when she’d just scolded her about Will was making Lucy cross. She wanted to change the subject. “So, what about you, Chloe?” she asked, deliberately redirecting the conversation. “How are Mum and Dad?”
“Honestly, Lucy, your parents are the best. They’ve been so nice to me. And your mum is the most amazing cook. I can’t even tell you how good it smells in here.” She didn’t need to; Lucy knew exactly how it would smell in her parents’ kitchen. “They even got me a Christmas stocking!” added Chloe.
Lucy couldn’t help but laugh at Chloe’s childlike delight. “Mum said she would. Was it filled with all sorts of silly nonsense? That’s what she usually does.”
“Oh, yeah, like, stickers and coloured pens and I even got a rubber duck—you know, like for the bath—and this gorgeous little fluffy sheep. Oh, and so much chocolate. I feel like I’ve been eating nonstop since I got here.”
Lucy imagined her mum fussing over Chloe and wished she could switch places—just for a moment, only long enough to hug her and wish her a happy Christmas. Then she’d want to pop straight back to Colorado. To Will. Honestly, how was she going to get Jules onside? Or perhaps it was Jules who needed to make things right between them.
“I’ll pass you over when we’re done,” said Chloe.
“Sorry?” Lucy hadn’t quite caught that.
“When we’re done talking, I’ll pass my phone over to your mum and dad.”
“Oh, yes, please.” Lucy felt the sting of tears. As lovely a time as she was having, it really did feel odd being away from home at Christmas.
“Right, now I have some news—some good, as in very good, and some not so much, but first … Lucy, I have a bone to pick with you.” Chloe’s change in conversation was abrupt, as it often was, but Lucy wasn’t prepared to have both her best friends mad at her. What had she done now? Chloe continued, “When were you going to tell us that Archer Tate grew up across the road from your parents?”
Jules, who was succumbing to the wine and had nearly nodded off, sat up, fully alert. “Hold on, what? Seriously?” How had Chloe kept something this juicy quiet until now?
It took Lucy half a second to catch on. “Ooohhh, right, Alan … yes, sorry, but I didn’t think of it to be perfectly honest.” Lucy knew—of course, she did—that he was incredibly famous now, but to her he was just the boy she knew from the village.
Predictably, when she was old enough to succumb to typical teenaged angst and longing, she’d had a crush on him. She’d been about thirteen, if she remembered correctly.
It was right about the time when she’d stretched to her current height and he to his. There was a sort of solidarity in being extremely tall teenagers amongst their peers, even if she was a fluffy-haired redhead with constantly pink cheeks and he already looked like someone out of a boy band. He was too young for Take That and too old for One Direction, but he’d had that carelessly handsome look, even back then.
What had sealed the crush, however, was how kind he
