“When Noah has suggested this trip, she thought it sounded like a perfect way to get over her heartbreak and help a good friend get over his. But on the car ride up, she’d begun to wonder if, in fact, it was such a good idea.

They’d been friends for years. They’d played together as kids, hung out as adults, but nothing in their history has been quite as intimate as a week in a cabin together.

She heard him shut what she assumed was the closet door. A moment later she heard him open his bedroom door, walk the couple of steps that separated their rooms, and knock.

“I’m ready whenever you are,” he said.

“I’ll be right out.”

Without the distraction of listening to him, she finished unpacking in short order, changed into her ski outfit, and grabbed her skiing equipment. “Done.”

He whistled. “You are the fastest woman I’ve ever met.”

“Uh, would you like to rephrase that? I don’t think it came out quite the way you intended.” She gave him her mock stern-teacher look, one that her English teacher, Miss Mac, used to give the class. She even went so far as to cross her arms and tap her foot.

He laughed, not the least bit intimidated. “What I meant is, I don’t think I’ve ever fully appreciated how non-girly you are. I mean, you’re like one of the guys.”

All sense of humor fled at the words. Even though she knew he didn’t mean telling her she was “one of the guys” as an insult - that to him, and to most men, those words were offered as a compliment - they hit too close to home, too close to the reason all her relationships seemed doomed to failure. It was hard for a guy to get serious about “one of the guys.”

“Gee, thanks,” she muttered.

“Callie, did I say something?”

“Yes, of course you said something. You gave me that sublime compliment. And since I’m ‘like one of the guys’ and ready so fast, let’s get this show on the road and get some skiing done.”

She grabbed her ski bag and walked toward the cabin door.

“Listen, I know I’m not always the most astute guy around - Julianna told me so all the time - but I’m sorry if I did something of said something that upset you. You know that wasn’t my intent.”

She sighed and turned back toward him. Standing there in his black ski pants and red and black jacket, a black hat pulled down over his equally black hair, and looking so little-boy forlorn, she felt embarrassed to have reacted so strongly to something she knew he’d meant kindly. There were many things about Noah she’d always loved, and his kindness was a big part of that.

Girls had always chased him. He was almost six feet tall and had dark good looks, but he’d never noticed. He never realized how good-looking he was.

Callie realized she was being overly sensitive, and she wasn’t sure why. “Listen, it’s not you, it’s me. I’m out of sorts.”

He walked over and put an arm around her shoulders. “We’re both out of sorts, and we have cause, so we’ll just take turns cheering each other up. Right now, it’s my turn to cheer you up.”

“And how are you going to do that?”

“I’m going to talk you skiing, and after a few runs down the mountain, I’m going to buy you a hot chocolate at the lodge, and I’m going to slip the waiter a big tip to make sure that our mugs have at least half-whipped cream.”

As quickly as it came, Callie’s funk lifted, and she laughed. “You’d do that for me?”

“I know you, Callie Smith. You say you love hot chocolate, but I’ve always known it was the whipped cream that made the drink for you.”

“Well, come on then. The sooner we get to the hills, the sooner I get my hot choc-whipped cream.”