Maybe this is my sign to try Small Town Singles again,I think to myself reluctantly.
It’s getting dark out, the sky turning a deep shade of indigo as I get in my car and reverse onto Main Street. I turn on the radio for the short drive back to my apartment, flicking through the music playing on local stations.
All you need is love?—
Next.
We found love in a hopeless place?—
Next.
And I…will always…love you?—
“Not now, Whitney!”
I jab the button again, relieved when a weather report finally breaks the streak. At least the weather can’t make me feel bad about my love life.
“—followed by some light snow across Cherry Hollow on Saturday. And that’s it for the weather in Crave County.”
“Thanks, Stuart,” a woman says brightly. “Now, folks, let’s talk Valentine’s Day plans!”
“Ugh!”
I turn the radio off and hang a right onto my street. My apartment building is just up ahead, tucked away near the hardware store on the outskirts of town. Some of the tension eases inside me as I get closer. I need a long bath, another hot chocolate, and a whole lot of quality time with my Kindle to cheer myself up. Maybe I’ll skip romance books tonight and try a new genre. A thriller or a horror. Something where everyone dies…
As I pass the hardware store, a flash of gray darts into the road in front of me
Bushy tail. Beady black eyes.
I swerve instinctively, slamming on the brakes. But my tires hit a patch of ice, and instead of stopping, my car skids toward the sidewalk.
Crap!
I see the man a second too late.
He looms in my headlights like a giant shadow, and I crash into him with a shriek. The impact jolts through me, throwing me back against the seat, sucking the breath from my lungs like a punch to the throat.
Everything goes still.
Silent.
All I can hear is my heartbeat thudding in my ears.
No, no, no.
I can’t move. Can’t breathe.
Please no, this can’t be happening.
But it is.
I just hit someone.
2
CLAY
I tuckthe pie box under my arm, carrying it back toward my truck. I only came to town for a new drill, but couldn’t resist grabbing a cherry pie from Buttercup Bakery before I left. Don’t have much of a sweet tooth, but damn, this stuff tastes like heaven.
