The Love Wager

Chuck had never had a serious relationship before Jamie (which Hallie knew because she’d known him his entire life—he was also her second cousin). Rather, it was just her “winter.” After she and Ben split up (aka after he realized he didn’t love her at all), Hallie had decided to treat it as “the winter of her twenties.” A cold, dormant season that would lead to a bountiful spring. Hallie thought she was going to have to coach him on stories, but everything about their actual relationship translated into their fake relationship. She stared at the screen as she walked, and when the text finally came through, she felt breathless as she read his message.