Istand outside on the balcony with the doors open while Julie gets ready for our double date. The cream curtains p in the breeze as I people-watch. The closer we get to Halloween, the more bloated the town bes with tourists. Downtown has been gridlocked for days, and the sidewalks are packed with festivalgoers dressed in costumes and cozy sweaters. We’re in the center of it all, the ma of Cozy Creek.


    Julie’s balcony gives a front-row seat to the festivities. Honestly, I could stand here for hours. The weather is brisk, and I can feel the excitement floating through the air.


    Most of the paparazzi who were following us left three days ago, but I know it’s short-lived. Asher exined they’re chasing a scandal involving a senator’s son in Denver. He’d fabricated a story for them to salivate over, and they took the bait. I appreciate the reprieve more than he’ll ever know. This is why my brother is the best in this industry. He can bury anything, and I believe my sister knew Asher was a powerhouse, an asset. At first, I didn’t understand why Eden had chosen him to be CEO when I had worked beside her for years. Now, I get it.


    A chill rushes over me.


    Asher lives for strategy in intense situations and is obsessed with causing or putting out fires. Nothing intimidates him, and he genuinely loves New York. She knew Asher would be a lifer at Banks Advertising and Marketing. I think she knew I wouldn’t.


    Eden. My dear, sweet sister. She’d have loved Cozy Creek.


    “Are you okay?” Julie asks from her closet door. She’s leaning against it, dressed in her bra and panties, watching me. Red hair is twisted up on her head in small pinwheels.


    I nce at her, unable to deny how damn pretty she is.


    A smile touches my lips. “Of course. Why?”


    “You looked sad,” she says.


    I suck in a deep breath, confirming she can see straight through me. It’s a gift she’s had since we met.


    “Oh, babe. I’m very happy, I promise,” I say. It’s the truth.


    “Just making sure. Want to talk about it?” she asks, returning to her closet.


    Hangers slide against metal as I go back to my thoughts.


    “I was just thinking about my sister and how much I miss her.” I smile and turn back to the balcony. My mind drifts back to Eden.


    A month ago, I could hear her voice scolding me in a way that was perfectly, uniquely her. But since I’ve been here, my sister’s disappointment no longer haunts me. I think my happiness has settled her soul, or maybe it’s settled mine. Regardless, I’m not the same person I was a month ago. My outlook on life has changed, and a part of me has too. Even I can recognize that.


    Julie hasn’t returned to the coffee shop yet, but she’s supposed to soon. Her parents have stated several times that they don’t want her returning until November, but my girl is very stubborn. She decided yesterday that she would continue to do inventory throughout the month. Her dad caved.


    “I’m ready!” Julie announces.


    I turn and see she’s wearing a ck dress with a white cor, and it’s giving off a Wednesday Addams vibe. My eyes scan down her spiderweb fiss to her clunky Doc Martens boots that make her look like a vampire hunter. I believe she could kick ass in them after watching her knock the piss out of that photographer. It’s an energy I can match.


    “Are you sure about going out tonight?” I ask, moving into her room.


    “Yeah.” She grabs her pumpkin head from the edge of her bed and puts it on. Her voice is muffled inside the pumpkin. “No one will know it’s us. We’ll have anonymity. Your turn.”


    Julie hands me my ridiculous pumpkin head.


    “You’d better be d I like you,” I tell her.


    “Oh, I’m so damn d,” she admits. I can imagine her wearing a cute little smirk.


    I stand beside her, looking at us in the mirror. “You’re sure we’ll fit right in?”


    “Do you trust me?” she asks, moving closer, causing our pumpkin heads to bump together.


    “Absolutely.”


    “Good. Ready?” She grabs my hand. “Come on. Autumn and Zane are meeting us there.”


    “Are they wearing pumpkin heads too?”


    “Nope. But Autumn said she was trying to convince Zane to wear a matching cozy sweater.”


    I crack up. “Hmm. He’s never been the type.”


    She grins. “Yeah, well, he’s a changed man.”


    “For the better,” I admit. “I’m happy they found one another.”


    “Me too,” she says. “Ready?”


    “Yep.”


    We make our way downstairs.


    “Want to pregame?” she asks, moving toward the kitchen.


    “Pregame?” I lift my brows.


    “Oh, are you too old to do that?” She ces her hands on her hips.


    “You’re joking. I’m only a few years older than you.”


    “Still older.” She shrugs, antagonizing me.


    I slide the pumpkin from my head, and she does the same. Julie opens the cab and pulls out a bottle of Fireball.


    “Shots for courage,” she says, pouring two generous ones.


    “Courage is drinking that.” I nod toward it.


    “We’ll need it for what we n to do in that corn maze.” She winks.


    “You’re trouble, Little Red.”


    “Not the first time I’ve heard that.”


    We clink sses and down the cinnamon whiskey.


    “Ew.”


    She snickers. “One more for luck?”


    Before I can answer, she’s pouring the shot sses full.


    “For luck,” I say before we down them. “That tastes like shit.”


    “You get used to it.” She looks up at the clock on the wall. “We should get going.”


    Julie grabs my hand and drags me outside. The walk to the carnival grounds is hrious. Julie keeps trying to take selfies of us, causing us to m into tourists who have zero self-awareness.


    “These pics are terrible.” Sheughs, showing me a blurry photo where we look like demented vegetables. There’s another one where our heads aren’t even in the frame.


    “We’re pumpkin perfection.” I wrap my arm around her as weugh down the sidewalk together.


    We cross the street and enter the festival grounds. String lights are everywhere, and torches light the paths. Over half the people here are in costume. I’ve counted countless zombies, witches, vampires, and even pumpkin heads.


    “We fit right in,” I say.


    “See? Told you!” Julie’s voice echoes.


    “Nick? Jules?”


    I hear Autumn’s voice behind us. The two of us turn as she and Zane approach, both in regr clothes but wearing matching sweaters.


    “How did you know it was us?” Julie asks.


    “For one, Nick’s wearing a hundred-thousand-dor watch,” she says.


    “Shit,” I mutter, removing it from my wrist and cing it in my pocket.


    “And I’d recognize your ass from a mile away,” she says, pping Julie on her butt.


    Zane pulls his phone from his pocket. “Get together. I need to memorialize Nick being a little bitch.”


    Laughter falls out of my mouth.


    “You’re going to run your mouth, Mr. Matching Sweater?” Julie res at him.


    “Oh, sorry. Don’t want to set off Red Menace.” He chuckles. “Come on. Be good little pumpkins.”


    We pose for him, and then the four of us take a photo together.


    “Apple cider time!” Autumn announces, pulling Zane with her.


    We wait in a line that’s twenty people deep. Our conversation floats from topic to topic. It’s easygoing.


    “Are you still leaving in November?” Zane asks.


    “Yes,” I admit. “I have a meeting on the second that I can’t miss.”


    “Oh.” Autumn nces between us. “But you’reing back afterward?”


    “I don’t know yet,” I say. “Ask me at midnight on November first.”


    “Is that when you turn into a pumpkin?” Autumn asks.


    “Possibly.”


    We each orderrge apple ciders that are steaming with cinnamon sticks slid inside.


    “How do we drink this?” I ask, removing my pumpkin head.


    “Cheater,” she uses.


    “It’s called being adaptable, babe,” I say.


    She removes hers as well. As we drink our ciders, we stroll through the patch with Autumn and Zane. Many of the pumpkins are carved into extravagant designs and are lit, glowing in the night.


    “Look at this one!” Julie points to a pumpkin in the shape of a haunted house,plete with tiny windows. It’s Hollow Manor.


    “Isn’t that incredible? You both have to see this one,” Zane says, leading us to a massive pumpkin carved into a dragon, scales and all.


    “I can’t imagine how much work this took,” Julie says, smiling as she takes photos of it.


    Autumn clears her throat. “I think this is the perfect time to announce the news.”


    She’s giddy.


    I nce between Zane and Autumn, wondering what it could be.


    Julie grows impatient. “Hurry and tell us!”


    “My book is going to auction! The one I wrotest year.” She’s ecstatic.


    “Autie!” Julie squeals, hugging Autumn as tightly as she can. They’re both giggling andughing. “All I Want will be published?”


    “Yes! Can you believe this?” Autumnughs. “I got a call from my agent today. Publishers are fighting for it!”


    “Oh my goodness! My bestie is going to be a big deal. Finally, the world is going to meet Mr. Dreamy.” She waggles her brows.


    Zane chuckles. “It will be a hit. I mean, considering who the hero is based on, of course it will be.”


    Iugh. “Who’s Mr. Dreamy?”


    “A fictional character,” Autumn hurries and says.


    “The man Autumn dreamed about for thirteen years, who happened to weirdly be Zane,” Julie exins.


    My brows lift. “Wait, is that true?”


    Autumn nods. “It’s true. I still remember the first time we met.”


    “Me too,” Julie says, reminiscing. “It kinda feels like yesterday.”


    Autumn’s expression softens. “Zane ordered an asshole Ristretto.”


    “Not a Ristretto,” I mutter. “Seriously, all the finance assholes in New York drink that. It’s a red g.”


    “Exactly,” Autumn agrees. “Anyway, he told me my coffee tasted like shit and stormed out when it was perfect. Pissed me off.”


    Julie snickers. “She was convinced he had a shitty pte.”


    “My pte is refined,” Zane offers.


    I nce between them. “So, that’s how you met? At Cozy Coffee?”


    “Yep,” Zane says. “The moment our eyes locked, I knew she was the one. I wasn’t ready. I hade here to escape, to heal. Falling in love wasn’t on my agenda.”


    Autumn smiles wide. “I’ve wanted this since I was a little girl. And now magic is happening.”


    Zane’s arm wraps around her, and he kisses her hair. “I’m so proud of you.”


    It’s obvious how much he loves her.


    Autumn turns to him, standing on her tiptoes to kiss him. “You inspired me.”


    “You changed my life,” he tells her.


    It warms my heart that my best friend has what he always wanted—someone to love and see him for who he is.


    “I’m happy both of your dreams havee true.” I reach for Julie’s fingers and take her hand as we wander through the disys.


    It feels good, being with her without photographers or drama. We’re hanging out with our best friends, enjoying October. It doesn’t feel real.


    She puts on her pumpkin head and turns to me. “What?”


    “Nothing,” I whisper, realizing we’re doing everyday couple things. It’s something I’ve wished for, but I never thought I’d get this.


    “Remember when we tried to carve pumpkinsst year?” Zane asks Autumn.


    “You mean when we attempted?”


    “Yeah.” He chuckles, and Autumn chews on her bottom lip.


    We finish strolling the winding path. Music drifts through the speakers, and I can’t remember thest time I enjoyed myself so much.


    Once we leave the patch, we stop and eat caramel apples, then continue forward.


    Zane tries to win Autumn a spooky stuffed ghost at the ring toss and talks smack the entire time.


    When I turn my head, I see Craig by the kettle corn stand with a blonde woman.


    “Don’t look,” I tell Julie, but in the pumpkin head, she can barely see anyway.


    “What is it?”


    “Craig.”


    Her body tenses. “Has he seen us?”


    “I don’t think so.”


    I move toward Zane and lift my pumpkin head. “We need to split up, okay?”


    “Okay,” Zane tells me. That’s when he spots Craig—I can see it in my best friend’s expression. “Be safe. If you need anything, text me.”


    “I will.”


    I slide my fingers through Julie’s and lead her away from Zane and Autumn. With them, we’re too obvious; away from them, we blend in.


    I try to steer Julie away, but the blonde woman who was with Craig approaches us.


    “Excuse me,” she says, her voice shaky but clear. “Julie?”


    “Who?” Julie asks, attempting to disguise her voice.


    “I saw you with that dark-haired woman earlier. Autumn, right? The way you two hugged, I knew it was you.” The woman wraps her arms around herself. “I need to talk to you.”


    Julie’s body goes rigid, and I can feel the tension radiating off her. This is the woman Craig proposed to after dumping Julie.


    “We should go,” I mutter, sensing Julie’s difort, but she surprises me.


    “No, it’s okay.” Her voice is steady despite everything. “I’m listening, Sarah.”


    She looks surprised that Julie knows her name. “You remember me?”


    “I’ll never forget you. Craig brought you to my parents’ anniversary party three months after we broke up.” Julie’s voice is neutral. “You wore the ne I’d given him.”


    Sarah touches her neck, though she’s not wearing it now. “He told me his mother gave it to him.”


    I ce my hand on Julie’s back, feeling her trembling, but she continues to stand her ground.


    “Is that all?” Julie asks.


    “No.” Sarah looks around, making sure Craig isn’t close. “He’s not over you. He talks about you nonstop. Julie this, Julie that. He even …” She pauses, tears welling in her eyes. “He calls me by your name sometimes.”


    Julie is silent for a moment. “Why are you telling me this?”


    “We broke off our engagement a month ago, but we’ve been trying to work things out. Or at least, I thought we were.” Sarah wipes at her eyes. “But all he cares about is you.”


    “Sarah—”


    “I’m pregnant,” she whispers.


    We both freeze.


    “What?” Julie’s voice is barely audible inside the pumpkin.


    “Ten weeks. He doesn’t know yet. I came here to tell him, to try to make things work, but he keeps photos of you on his phone. He drives by your ce at night. I followed him once.” She looks desperate. “I need to know if you n on getting back with him.”


    “Never,” Julie says. “It’s over. I’ve moved on.”


    “But he’s sure you’ll get back with him.”


    “Not this time. Not ever again.” Julie pauses. “Look, I don’t want to get in your business, but you deserve to be more than someone’s second choice. You deserve someone who doesn’t call you by another woman’s name.”


    Sarah’s face crumples. “I know, but with the baby …”


    “A baby will never fix a broken rtionship,” Julie says.


    “Sarah!” Craig’s voice cuts through our conversation. “Who are you talking to?”


    “I was just—these people were asking about directions for the corn maze.”


    Craig approaches, not ncing at us.


    “The entrance is over there,” he says, pointing behind him.


    He grips Sarah’s wrist and pulls her with him. “Come on. You said you wanted kettle corn.”


    “Craig,” Sarah says, “you’re hurting me.”


    “Not now.” He’s impatient, still not looking at us. “Let’s go.”


    “Be careful with me. I’m pregnant,” Sarah blurts out.


    Craig freezes, and his head snaps toward her. “Who have you been seeing?”


    “You,” she cries. “Just you. I’m ten weeks,” she whispers.


    I grab Julie’s hand, moving us away from the conversation. “We need to get out of here,” I say.


    “Yes,” she whispers.


    Their conversation can still be overheard.


    “This is …” He runs his hand through his hair.


    I see it the moment recognition dawns.


    “Jules?” His voice is angry now. “I’d recognize those boots anywhere.”


    Julie doesn’t bother ignoring him and turns around with her arms crossed over her chest. “What do you want?”


    “You …” He looks between Sarah and Julie, his face reddening. “You were talking to her? Sarah, what the hell? What did you say?”


    “She deserved to know the truth,” Sarah says, finding her courage. “You calling me by her name, driving by her house every night, keeping her photos?—”


    “Shut up,” Craig snaps.


    “I’m concerned about you, Jules. There’s a difference,” he says. “Sarah is jealous. She always has been.”


    “Concerned people don’t drive by someone’s house every night,” Sarah interjects.


    Craig’s attention shifts back to her, his jaw clenching. “You have no idea what you’ve done.”


    “Please,” she says, reaching for him, but he ignores her, moving toward us.


    “Take those ridiculous things off. If we’re having this conversation, at least have the courage to show your faces.”


    Julie pulls off her pumpkin head, hair static wild, chin raised with defiance. I do the same, moving closer to her. She’s pissed—I can tell.


    Craig res at me. “How long until you get bored, Banks? How long until you move on to the next small-town girl looking for excitement? Everyone knows about your reputation.”


    “Finished?” I ask, not affected by him.


    I deal with assholes who make him look like child’s y. Asher is one of them.


    “You’re making a huge mistake with him,” Craig warns Julie. “This is a game he ys with women. You’re just entertainment. His personal whore.”


    “Shut your mouth,” Julie says, ring at him. She’s livid, and I don’t know if I’ve seen her quite this mad. “I will never give you a chance again. Ever. I’d rather be alone.”


    Craig’s mask slips, and I see pure rage underneath. “When he leaves, remember that you chose humiliation.”


    There is venom in his tone, but all I can do isugh because he’s trying too hard.


    “The only one who will be humiliated is you,” I tell him. “Look at you. You’re pathetic.”


    “Yeah, but I’m not fucking your sloppy seconds, am I?” Craig takes a step toward me, fists clenched, and I’m ready toy him out t.


    I look down into his eyes, with nostrils red. “I’ll destroy you. Throw the first punch. I dare you.”


    “Craig, stop!” Sarah grabs his arm. “Please. You’ll go to jail.”


    He shakes her off, but the mention of being arrested seems to snap him back to reality.


    He nces at Sarah, then at Julie, then back at Sarah.


    “We’re leaving,” he says. “Now.”


    He grabs her arm and pulls her away, but not before throwing onest look at Julie. “This isn’t over.”


    “Yes, it is,” Julie says. “I’m filing a restraining order. And this time, I have witnesses.”


    Craig’s jaw clenches, but he doesn’t respond. He drags Sarah away, and we watch them disappear into the crowd.


    Julie’s shaking, and I pull her against me.


    “You okay?”


    She takes a deep breath. “At one point in my life, I envied her. Now I feel sorry for her.”


    “That’s because you’re over it,” I say. “Congrats. That’s huge.”


    Julie looks up at me. “Thank you for having my back.”


    “Always.”


    Autumn and Zane find us a few minutester.


    “We saw Craig storm off,” Autumn says. “What happened?”


    “His ex is pregnant,” Julie says.


    “What?!” Autumn’s eyes go wide. “Are you serious?”


    “Ten weeks. It’s his.”


    “That bastard,” Zane mutters. “He was trying to get back with you while?—”


    “While he was still seeing her on the side. ssic Craig. He did the same thing to me.” Julie gasps.


    “You okay?” Autumn asks, studying Julie’s face.


    “That could’ve been me,” she whispers, inhaling with her eyes closed. “That could’ve been me.”


    I move closer to her. “I’m d it wasn’t.”


    “He traps women,” she says. “Last year, he wanted me to get off my birth control, making me believe we were getting back together.”


    “You escaped him. I’m so damn proud of you, Little Red,” I say.


    Julie grins. “It’s because I met you. That night”—her voice lowers to a near whisper—“my life changed.”


    The words hit me square in the chest because mine did too.


    “I’m finally seeing things clearly,” she says.


    “I think we’re witnessing something we shouldn’t,” Zane says to Autumn, but his voice is warm, understanding. He wraps his arm around his wife, then spins her around to face the opposite direction. “We’re going to look at more pumpkins. Over there. Far away from you.”


    “Subtle,” I call after them.


    “We’re giving you privacy,” Autumn calls back.


    “I married Captain Obvious!” Zane adds, and Autumn smacks his arm.


    As theirughter drifts away, mixing with the sounds of the festival, I lean forward. Julie’s still glowing with this newfound freedom, her cheeks flushed, eyes bright. I close my eyes and slide my lips across hers. She tastes sweet, like apple cider. Our tongues twist together, and I swear the entire world stops spinning on its axis.


    When we break apart, we’re breathing hard.


    “Thank you,” she whispers against my mouth, eyes still closed.


    “For?”


    “For being here. For having my back. For helping me be brave.”


    “You did that yourself.”


    “Maybe.” She kisses me again, quick and sweet. “But you showed me what I should be looking for. What I deserve.”


    “Jules—”


    “Twenty-two days,” she says.


    I know she’s thinking the same thing I am. We have twenty-two days to figure out if this is real or just another beautiful disaster waiting to happen.


    “I think we’re on the same page,” I say, studying her.


    “I hope we are,” she tells me.


    “Now, I think we have a corn maze to discover.”


    A wicked smile crosses her face. “I already love where this is heading.”


    “Shall we?” I reach for her hand.


    She takes mine. “Yes, we fucking shall.”


    We return the pumpkins to our heads and move toward the corn maze, excited to knock another thing off our list. Because, yes, I’ve adopted it too.


    She grabs my hand, and this time, goose bumps trail over my arms and through my body, causing a whirlwind of emotions to flood through me.


    I don’t want to let Julie go in twenty-two days. I think I want forever.