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“Everything okay?”

She stops short, her eyes darting to mine. “Sorry. I just… I was going to get some water.”

“I’ll get it for you.”

“I can do it.” She waves me off, and I relax back into the couch as she disappears into the kitchen.

A cabinet door opens, followed by the faint clink of ice in glass. When she reappears in the living room, she doesn’t head toward the stairs. She walks straight toward the couch and sits beside me. A few inches separate us, but I can feel her warmth as if she were pressed against me. Or on top of me.

My entire body tenses at the mere thought, and I take another gulp of whiskey, my pulse climbing with every second she remains this damn close to me.

I debate telling her she doesn’t need to keep me company. Hell, for the first time in my life, I’d prefer not to be around Wynter Hayes.

But maybe she’s the one who doesn’t want to be alone right now.

Maybe after the past several days, sitting in silence with someone else is easier than sitting in silence all alone.

So I keep sipping my whiskey as she drinks her water, both of us admiring the lights on the Christmas tree as they reflect in the dark windows.

“I’m not sure I ever actually loved Wyatt,” she confesses several moments later.

I glance her way. “What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said,” she replies, her eyes still fixed on the tree. “I never loved Wyatt. Not like you should if you’re getting married. Since I left Texas, I’ve tried to wrap my head around how I feel about everything. About Wyatt. About his infidelity. About my marriage.” She finally looks my way. “Do you want to know what I’ve realized?”

“What’s that?”

“Seeing those earrings on Lila didn’t hurt me. Not like it should have. Was I surprised?” She laughs softly. “Of course. But now that the shock has worn off and I’ve had a chance to sit with my feelings, what I’ve been feeling isn’t heartache or anger.”

“Then what is it?”

A peaceful smile tugs at her lips as she relaxes into the couch. “Relief.”

“Relief?”

“Yes. I’m relieved. Maybe I’m only saying this because the room’s spinning. But there’s a reason people say alcohol is a truth serum. And my truth is that I’m relieved. I can stop pretending we had the perfect marriage when it’s been anything but. Don’t get me wrong,” she adds quickly. “It wasn’t horrible. We get along fine. But there was never that…that…” She purses her lips, as if searching for the right word.

“Spark,” I suggest.

“Exactly.” She points at me. “We didn’t have that spark. Maybe it’s because he’s the first guy I’ve ever been with. Hell, the only guy I’ve ever been with.”

My grip tightens around the glass.

This is the last conversation I should be having with her, especially with her sitting so close and wearing my clothes. That’s bad enough on its own, but to also talk about her sex life? I’d finally gotten my erection to settle down.

“I thought it might get better, you know?” she continues. “As we matured, maybe we’d feel more comfortable exploring other things. Get a bit more…adventurous.”

My jaw ticks, and I stare at the Christmas tree, my brain already conjuring up images of what sexually adventurous Wynter Hayes might look like.

Nope.

Absolutely shouldn’t be thinking about that.

“But it never got any better. If anything, it got worse. Became less about us and more about him. It probably didn’t help that…” she trails off, staring into the distance. “Well, it doesn’t matter.” She forces a smile, her voice brightening. “This is probably more information than you ever wanted to know about me.”

“Now we’re even.”

“Even?” She arches a brow.