He was avoiding her. There was no possible other explanation. Which meant she was going to have to go to him. Her stomach churned. Why did this have to be so hard? She’d apologized. And then turned around and been insulting again. Details. Though at least this time he’d seemed more...sad, maybe, than angry. Progress?

Amy tossed the file folder containing the reams of paperwork proving that their school was within the guidelines for the school lunch program into a drawer. It was beyond her why the government seemed to care more about how many grams of fat each kid was eating than why most of them didn’t have a coat warm enough for the winter temperatures that were fast approaching, or why she had two seniors set to graduate who still couldn’t read above a fourth-grade level. Maybe the other issues didn’t sound as good from a campaign platform.

With a sigh, she pulled on the hem of her sweater and headed down the hall to Zach’s classroom. Hopefully he hadn’t run out early like yesterday. At least he’d given Terri a head’s up that he would be missing practice for the program. They’d need to start working on all the stage positions, movement, and transitions next week. Would the set be ready?

Zach nearly bumped into her as he turned into the hall. “Oh. Hi.”

“Hi, yourself. I was just coming to find you.” Amy tucked her hands in her pockets. Why was this awkward again?

He smiled. “Mission accomplished. What’s up?”

“We missed you at practice yesterday.” Amy gave herself a mental kick. That wasn’t the way to start out a conversation that would, hopefully, end with him agreeing to go out with her.

“Yeah. Sorry. I only had time to find Terri and let her know. Everything go okay?”

Amy nodded. “Yeah, yeah it was fine. We’re ready to start working on the stage next week, figuring out where everyone should stand, that kind of thing. Think the set’ll be ready?”

“Should be. I left instructions for the gang yesterday and when I peeked in this morning, it looked like they were done. Really it’s just a matter of getting it all in place and then praying it doesn’t fall over on someone.”

She swallowed. “Is that...do we really need to worry about that?”

He chuckled. “Gotcha. It’ll be fine.”

Amy managed a weak smile and tried to push the vision of eight-foot pieces of plywood toppling onto the kids as they sang and danced out of her head.

“Okay. Well. Have a good weekend.” Zach hitched the strap of his bag higher on his shoulder and turned.

“Zach. Wait.” Amy grabbed his arm. She licked her lips. “I didn’t come down here to talk about the program. I was...are you...could...”

An amused smile flirted with the corners of his mouth. He was enjoying this, wasn’t he? Amy frowned and blew out a breath. “Are you busy tonight?”

“I was going to sit at Season’s Bounty with Jackson.” He cocked his head to the side. “Why?”

“Can I come?” Amy bit the inside of her cheek. It was as close to begging as she could get. She really didn’t want to cross that line, but she would if she had to. Surely he wouldn’t make her...the man had to know this was an olive branch, didn’t he?

“I’d like that.” His arm darted out, pulling her close. Shivers danced at every contact point. “That wasn’t so hard, was it?”

“You have no idea.” Amy squirmed, trying to ease away. They were in school, after all. Granted, all the students were gone. But still. “Zach...come on.”

He let go, but snagged her hand, weaving his fingers through hers. “I took the Metro in, but we can catch a train to Clarendon, and Jackson’ll probably let me borrow his car to take you home.”

Butterflies danced in her belly. “Okay.”

“March nineteenth.” Paige poked the calendar in front of Jackson. “Circle it and let’s call it.”

“Seriously?” Jackson grinned and pulled Paige in for a kiss.

Zach cleared his throat. “I’m pretty sure the health department frowns on spit swapping in the kitchen. Or was this a private party and I didn’t realize it?”

“Don’t mind him, he’s just jealou...oh, um. Hi, Amy. Didn’t see you there.” Jackson cleared his throat and stared down at the calendar.

Paige punched his shoulder.

Heat burned up Amy’s neck and across her cheeks. What had Zach told them? She smiled, hoping it didn’t look like a grimace. “What’s March nineteenth?”

“Wedding date. Officially scheduled. At least for us. Now we just have to pray the chapel at the church is available...do you think it’s too late to call and ask?” Paige glanced at her watch.

“They close at three on Fridays. We’ll track someone down on Sunday and see if we can get them to let us make our reservation. And if it’s booked, we’ll find someplace else.” Jackson patted Paige’s hand as voices started to rise on the line. “You’d better go take care of that.”

Paige groaned. “I swear I’m going to just start doing dishes myself if I can’t find someone who actually understands what the job entails. Back soon with soup.”

Zach slid behind the table and scooted to the wall, patting the seat next to him. “Congratulations.”

“Thanks. It seems, in this case, the direct approach was both necessary and effective. Once Paige understood that I was going to need a new place to live, it all came together. So...thanks for the nudge.”

Amy frowned. “Why does he need a new place? What’s wrong with your house?”

“The owners are coming back on furlough, so they’re not renewing our lease.”

“Oh.” That made sense. But it was unfortunate. Well, for Zach at least. Jackson and Ben probably ended up with the better end of the deal if it pushed their weddings forward. “What will you do? There are a couple of places in my neighborhood that might work. Want me to send you info?”

Zach cleared his throat. “Oh. Sure. Why not?”

What did that mean? Surely if he was losing his place, and his teaching job was downtown, he’d move closer. Wouldn’t he? “Or not.”

“No, no it’s worth looking into. I hadn’t planned, really, to leave the area. I’ve got church and all that out here already...but it’s not a bad idea.”

“What about the mag—” There was a thud and Jackson clamped his lips shut. Had Zach just kicked him?

Amy waited. Neither man spoke. Maybe she didn’t want to know. “So, March nineteenth? That’s what, four and a half months away? Can you get everything done that fast?”

Jackson shrugged. “I guess we’ll find out. But I don’t see why not.”

“That’s probably because you’re a guy. I’m guessing Paige is a tad more stressed than you are.” She turned to Zach. “When does your lease run out?”

“End of May. So I’ve got a little time yet before I have to make any firm decisions.” His eyes darted to Jackson.

Amy pressed her lips together. Something was definitely going on. Zach’s fingers closed around hers, sending tingles up her arm. She’d worry about the mysteries later.

“Do you want to come in?” Amy’s heart pounded. Would he? It wasn’t late. Not really. “I could make some cocoa or tea?”

Zach held her hand loosely in his and studied her for several long seconds. “Okay. Cocoa would be good. It’s finally starting to feel like fall out there.”

She smiled and pushed the door open wider. “I love fall, but I really look forward to winter. There’s something about snow in the city, when it falls on the monuments. It’s just...peaceful.”

He nodded. “Sometimes I’ll go down and wander after school when it’s snowing. Of course it messes up the roads, and even the Metro half the time, but it’s still nice. If we got more of it, maybe it’d lose the magic.”

“Maybe.” But not likely. Not to her. The city with a fresh blanket of snow...everything was quieter. Cleaner. Maybe it was different in the suburbs? She reached for the kettle and filled it at the tap. “Marshmallows?”

“I didn’t know they were optional.”

Amy chuckled and opened one of the cupboards. She grabbed two packets of cocoa and the half-empty bag of mini-marshmallows. “What are you doing with the rest of your weekend?”

He shrugged and reached into the bag, snagging a handful of marshmallows.

She got two mugs and set them on the small kitchen table, sliding his cocoa packet across to him. “Do you want to try game night with my parents again? I can’t promise tamales, but it’ll still be good.”

“You sure? I don’t...what are we doing, Amy?” Zach sat and ripped the top off the powered hot chocolate, dumping the mix in one of the mugs.

Amy closed her eyes. She’d really set things back, hadn’t she? And yet...her concerns had been—were—valid. Weren’t they? “We’re dating. Exclusively. You said you love me.”

“I did say that.”

Her tongue darted between her lips. Was he saying he no longer meant it? Or was he referencing the fact that she hadn’t given the expected response? The kettle on the stove began to hiss, little fits and starts of steam managing a brief whistle as the water inside struggled to boil. “But?”

Zach shook his head. “No buts. It hasn’t changed. I haven’t changed. I just need to know if I should be working on it. If being in love with you makes you run in the opposite direction...are you going to let me catch you if I give chase?”

“I’m not running anywhere.” She stepped closer and lowered her forehead to his. His arms circled her waist, knocking her off balance so she tumbled into his lap. “I love you, okay? It’s just...a little scary.”

The corners of his lips quirked upward an instant before they crushed into hers. Amy slipped her arms around his neck, threading her fingers through his hair. Every one of her nerve endings was on fire. Blood thundered in her ears. And...was that high-pitched sound the angels singing?

Zach eased back. “I think the kettle’s ready.”

Amy blinked. Kettle? Right. The kettle. For cocoa. She pressed her lips together and nodded.

“Want me to get it?”

Hadn’t she gotten up? Amy chuckled and shook her head as she stood. Weak at the knees wasn’t just an expression. Who knew? Dazed, she flicked off the burner and squeezed the handle of the kettle to stop the whistling. She cleared her throat. “Do you want to drink a cookie with your cocoa?”

Zach smirked and took the kettle from her. He poured steaming water into both mugs. “Cookies are good. Why don’t you sit down and just tell me where they are?”

“No, I got ‘em. Can I just say ‘wow’?”

“That won’t hurt my feelings, so sure.” He grinned and dropped another handful of marshmallows into his mug.

Amy chuckled. She dropped the bag of sandwich cookies onto the table and sank into the other chair. “So was that a yes to game night?”

“Yeah.”