Right before New Year, the three of us flew back to Seabreeze City.

Caleb specifically got me an ankle-length down parka, boasting it was the brand he wore scaling the Himalayas.

I hated the cold and rarely walked out.

Liam was busy visiting relatives with Mom and Dad, so Caleb played games with me.

He was being pressured into blind dates recently.

Without fail, his sharp tongue scared every single woman away.

"You do it on purpose," I said, watching him obliterate another opponent onscreen.

"Do what?"

"Sabotage the dates."

"I don't sabotage them. I'm authentically myself. If authenticity scares them, they're not the one."

"Nobody talks about fiscal policy on a first date, Caleb."

"I was testing intellectual compatibility."

"You told her the restaurant's profit margins were unsustainable and she should switch to the competitor across the street."

"That was helpful advice!"

I threw a pillow at him. He caught it without looking away from the screen.

"Why don't you just tell your parents the truth?" I asked.

"What truth?"

"That you're not interested in any of those women."

He paused the game. Set the controller down. Turned to face me with an expression I'd never seen on Caleb Crawford's face before.

Vulnerability.

"Because the one I'm interested in," he said slowly, "just got out of something terrible. And I'd rather wait forever than rush her into something she's not ready for."

The room went very quiet.

"Caleb—"

"You don't have to say anything. I just... wanted you to know. Whenever you're ready. If you're ever ready. I'm here."

He picked up the controller. Unpaused the game. Started playing again as if he hadn't just rewritten the air between us.

I sat there, heart pounding, and realized that the warmth I'd been feeling wasn't just the parka.

It was him. It had always been him.