ANNA'S POV

“Alright, alright, we’ve seen enough,” Dan said with a dramatic sigh as he stepped forward. “If you two want to do more than hugging and whispering, then you can head over to his house.”

He reached us and gently but firmly placed himself between Ryan and me, prying us apart like an overprotective referee.

Ryan and I both burst into soft laughter at the same time. The sound filled the living room and, just like that, the heavy tension that had been sitting on everyone’s shoulders finally vanished. The awkward silence, the sharp glares, the stiff postures, everything melted away as if it had never been there in...