Logan flinched away, like she’d startled him. “What the fuck. Where did she come from?”

Cara cast him a sidelong glance and went to stand in between Grace and Fiona. “I don’t know why you’re always surprised to see me. It’s not like I’m going anywhere.”

“A guy can dream.”

Cara rolled her eyes.

Gavin came down the trail wearing nothing but sandals and what looked like underwear. He carried a towel draped over one of his broad shoulders. His outfit—or lack thereof—left little to the imagination. He was all lean muscle and olive skin. The sight of him—especially almost naked—sent a flurry of tingles through my body.

Ginny leaned close and lowered her voice. “Wow. I do not blame you.”

“I know, right?” I said quietly.

“Damn it, Gav,” Asher said. “Did you have to wear those?”

“What?” Gavin asked, looking down at himself. He wasn’t just wearing underwear. He was wearing underwear with Asher’s face right on the crotch. “They’re basically a Speedo.”

I stifled a laugh.

“You’re utterly ridiculous,” Cara said. “You know that, right?”

He just grinned at her.

“No more boot?” I asked.

“Nope. I’m officially healed.” He lifted his legs one at a time, bending them at the knee, as if to emphasize his point. “Feels good to be back.”

“I take it you’re jumping in?” I asked.

“Of course I am. I do it every year.”

He waved to his fellow river jumpers. They didn’t look pleased to see him. A few crossed their arms and they grumbled to each other.

“What’s that about?” Ginny asked.

“They’re disappointed Gavin showed,” Logan said.

“Why?”

“Because he wins every year.”

“Aren’t you cold?” I asked.

Gavin shrugged. “Yeah.”

“And that doesn’t bother you?”

“Not really. I’ll warm up later.” He winked at me, then turned back to his brothers. “Am I really the only one taking the plunge this year? I’m disappointed in you.”

“We’re happy to let you represent the Baileys,” Logan said. “Also, you’re nuts and we’re not.”

“Or I like to have fun and you’re all boring.”

“How is jumping into ice cold water fun?” Logan asked.

Gavin grinned, his eyes widening. He looked a little crazed. “How is it not fun?”

Cara’s phone rang and she smiled when she pulled it out of her handbag. “Oh good. I’ve been waiting for her to call me back.” She winked at me—which was kind of odd—and wandered away to take her call.

Quite the crowd had gathered along the riverbank. I caught sight of my dad a little bit downstream. My mom was with him, wearing the cutest knit hat and very impractical shoes. She teetered a little, but Dad caught her before she could fall. Their eyes met and I held my breath. Oh my god, was he going to kiss her?

He didn’t, and a second later whatever had been happening over there—if anything—had passed. Dad put his hands in his coat pockets and Mom turned her attention to the river. I’d probably imagined it anyway.

“Is it just me, or are your mom and dad hanging out a lot these days?” Ginny asked.

“Yeah, they are. Mom tends to invite herself along whenever he’s going somewhere that isn’t work. Although come to think of it, he asked if she wanted to come down here this morning.”

“Interesting.”

The truth was, I didn’t know what was going on with my parents. They could go from sharing happy memories of my early childhood to snipping at each other in seconds.

I was also pretty sure I’d caught my mom trying to peek in Dad’s bedroom while he was changing the other day.

A man in a dark coat climbed onto a rock near the water’s edge and raised a megaphone. “Ladies and gentlemen, the great city of Tilikum would like to welcome you to the forty-fourth annual Pumpkin Plunge.”

A cheer went up from the crowd. Gavin hollered and punched his fist in the air.

The announcer held up a crown decorated with pumpkins and orange, yellow, and red leaves. “The winner will be crowned Tilikum’s Pumpkin King! Or queen, but I don’t think we have any female plungers this year.”

“That’s because women are too smart!” someone yelled, earning a laugh from the crowd.

“All right, all right. Gentlemen, make your way to the front.”

Gavin handed me his towel. “Mind holding that for me?”

“Sure. Be careful.”

“I’ll be fine.” He winked, then made his way down to the river’s edge.

The rest of the plungers stripped off their sweatshirts and bathrobes. Gavin was the lone twenty-something in a sea of middle-aged beer bellies and gray-haired chests. He smiled and shook hands with a few of his fellow daredevils, then started jumping and shaking his limbs out, like he was getting ready to run a race.

Cara came back and stood next to me. “He is a cutie, isn’t he?”

“Yeah, he is.”

“So I know I haven’t gotten back to you about Sven.”

“Sven?”

“My massage therapist. I was going to set something up for you, but I actually found a better way to thank you.”

“For picking up Gavin? You really don’t have to do anything. He’s my friend, I didn’t mind.”

“Be that as it may, I’m working on a little surprise.”

“Cara, you really don’t—”

“I can’t wait,” she said, cutting me off. “You’re going to love it.”

“On the count of three,” the man said into the megaphone. “One.” The crowd chanted along. “Two. Three!”

It turned out there were three kinds of Tilikum pumpkin plungers. Men who stepped carefully, wincing at the cold, clearly ready for it to be over as soon as their toes hit the water. Men who waded in with more gusto, sucking in quick breaths as each bit of skin submerged beneath the water.

And then there was Gavin.

He let out a whoop and rushed into the river, splashing the men next to him. When he got closer to the center, he dove under, then popped back up and hollered again. He raked his hair out of his face, and his eyes were wide and bright, his smile huge.

The crowd cheered from the riverbank. Gavin’s brothers shouted his name, calling out encouragement. Not that he seemed to need it. Two pumpkin plungers turned around and immediately ran out of the water. Another was right on their heels.

“That’s it, Gav,” Logan shouted.

Gavin jumped up and down a few times in the waist high water. Seconds ticked by, but the longer it went on, the more excited he seemed to get.

Another plunger succumbed to the cold, hurrying out of the water into a waiting towel. Pretty soon it was a mass exodus, more and more men running for the riverbank.

Finally, it was down to Gavin and two other men. One clutched his bony arms around himself while he shivered, his teeth chattering. The other was a burly man with a bald head, thick auburn beard, and the hairiest chest I’d ever seen.

“Earl,” a woman called from the bank. “It’s not worth it. Get back up here or you’ll catch your death.”