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The sincerity behind the words caught her off guard. Before she could figure out how to answer, his foot brushed hers beneath the table. He didn’t pull it away immediately, and the contact sent a pleasant shiver through her.

Yet as much as she enjoyed having him so close, the scene around the table held her attention.

Homemade pizza. College plans. Rissa scrolling through course descriptions between bites while her father asked questions and tried not to look too pleased.

It was such a normal family dinner. And somehow, without ever meaning to, Amanda had become part of it.

Chapter Thirty-Four

By the time everyone descended on the Rock Diner, Grady figured half of Rockland County had already heard how well the final performance had gone.

The diner had set up a large tent in the parking lot for the after-party, with rows of picnic tables beneath it for the cast, crew, and families. Most of the students had claimed the outside tables, still riding the high of three successful nights, while people wandered in and out of the diner with burgers, fries, milkshakes, and slices of pie.

Grady had chosen a table inside with Amanda, Fen, and Edith, though traffic between the two areas kept them close to the celebration. Every few minutes, someone else stopped at their table to talk.

“I just wanted to thank you,” one of the mothers told Amanda. “The sets were incredible. And those costumes... You made those kids feel like they were putting on a Broadway show.”

“They did all the hard work,” Amanda said. “I just helped them make it pretty.”

“That’s not what my daughter said.”

Amanda laughed. “Your daughter exaggerates.”

“Not about this. By the way, I love your show. I can't wait to see the episodes you shot here.”

“Thank you.”

After the woman headed back outside, Grady reached for his coffee. “What number was that?”

Amanda narrowed her eyes at him. “Don’t start.”

“Eight?”

“Nine,” Fen said.

Her glare shifted to her assistant. “Traitor.”

“I’m simply keeping an accurate count.”

It had been happening since they arrived. Students, parents, teachers, and plenty of other people Grady recognized from the performances had stopped to compliment Amanda on the sets and costumes or thank her for everything she’d done for the musical.

And every damn time, she redirected the praise to someone else. He wasn’t surprised, though. Somewhere along the way, the woman who’d arrived in Antelope Rock furious over community service had become someone everyone would remember when they talked about this year’s musical.

He certainly would.

The thought took some of the evening’s enjoyment away.

Wednesday.

Four days from now.

He’d known the date was coming. They both had. From the beginning, an expiration date had hung over whatever was happening between them. Amanda had a home in California, a career that required her to travel, and a life that had nothing to do with Wyoming. Knowing all that hadn’t stopped him from getting used to her being here, though, and Wednesday was getting closer whether he liked it or not.

“Okay, I’m done.” Edith pushed her empty dessert plate toward the middle of the table and leaned back against the booth. “That’s it. I’m officially too old to party with teenagers.”

Amanda laughed. “You lasted longer than I expected.”

“Watch it.”