Spring River Valley: The Spring Collection (Boxed Set) Read Free Page B

been hiding out in your apartment for too long.”
    “I’m not hiding out. I took a hiatus from dating, that’s all.”
    “A year-long hiatus is about eleven and a half months too long.”
    “It hasn’t been a whole year yet.”
    Evie slurped the last of her drink and signaled the nearest waitress for another. She’d spent the last four days in hot pursuit of a decent front-page story and had come up with zilch. How did Janet expect her to find something newsworthy in a sleepy little town where barely anything happened that didn’t involve a car accident? And those were all covered by Chad, who seemed to have a knack for showing up whenever the slightest fender bender occurred. She’d figured, in addition to providing her friend Bailey with an excuse to venture out into the real world, the event at Colette’s might at least produce a bar fight worth a few inches of column space. In lieu of that, at the very least, she could do a write-up for the Lifestyle section. “Are you actually waiting for the anniversary of the day you broke up with Dan?”
    “No.” Bailey shifted her gaze to the stage where the first group of musicians had begun to set up their equipment.
    “I know that tone. That no means yes.”
    “I told myself I needed a good, solid twelve months to figure out what I wanted in a man and to be a hundred percent sure I wouldn’t make the same dumb mistakes I made with Dan.”
    “He’s the one who cheated on you. How is that your mistake?”
    “I believed everything he told me. I fell for all his excuses, and I gave him the benefit of the doubt even when I had my reservations about the things he told me. That’s all my fault. Next time, I’m going to be more observant, and I’m not going to blindly follow anyone down the garden path.”
    “Well , good for you. I’ve already made a list of half a dozen guys here tonight that I’d follow into a burning building.” She gestured with her drink to a brawny blond and a couple of his buddies at a nearby table. “Like him, and him, and him…and—” Her gaze fell on a familiar set of biceps and followed them to a pair of broad shoulders and a very distinctive cock-eyed grin, and her heart slammed into her ribs.
    There he was. The infamous Tanner Croft. He stood near the small stage, setting up an electronic keyboard and laughing with the guitarist. In between the two men stood a beautiful brunette adjusting a microphone stand. While Evie watched, Tanner put his arm around the brunette and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. She smiled, and Evie’s blood heated.
    What was wrong with her? Why an earth was she so ridiculously possessive of a man she’d spent less than three hours with? “I can’t believe this,” she muttered, staring daggers at him while he nonchalantly laughed with his band mates. “That’s the guy from the self-defense class.”
    Bailey’s eyes narrowed. “You mean Mr. Major Player? I hate guys like that.”
    Of course she did. She’d practically been engaged to one and hadn’t even known it. Dan Archer had chased every skirt in the Valley without Bailey’s knowledge, and here Evie was, nervous as a schoolgirl at the sight of a guy who was cut from the same cloth. She despised herself for not being able to tear her gaze away, and she nearly hyperventilated when his bottomless gaze met hers.
    She expected—if not a positive response, considering her article—at least a spark of recognition. Their eyes held for a split second, during which he smiled neutrally, then returned his attention to the brunette.
    Evie cursed. “I don’t believe him.”
    Bailey glared in his direction. “He completely dissed you.”
    “I suppose I deserve a cold reception for calling him out about his prowling, but that was…just frigid.”
    “Well, he is about to go on. Wait until his song is over and see if he does anything then.”
    Evie viciously stirred her second drink with her straw. “I’m not sure I can stand it that long.” She