Barbecue and Bad News by Nancy Naigle

gem.”
    “You got that right. She was the heart of this town. Jill is following in her footsteps. She’s really done great things with this place in a short time. She and Garrett are the best team.”
    Carolanne and Jill hugged once they reached each other, and the guys disappeared almost as quickly to hunt down food from the assortment in the tents around them.
    “We’ll meet you back at the bar tent,” Garrett said.
    Savannah smiled, feeling a bit like an outsider . . . not that feeling like an outsider was so unusual for her. But then that was by her own choice. Once she’d left Belles Corner she’d found it hard to open up, and since she didn’t go out often, on dates or with groups, when she did, she often felt this way. She didn’t like it, but she could fake it like nobody’s business.
    “I can’t wait to check out the artisan center, Jill. I’m Savannah. Nice to meet you.”
    “Thank you. I hope you find something you can’t resist in there. You’re new to the area?” Jill’s grin was wide and her words bounced with excitement at just the mention of the place.
    “Just passing through.”
    “How long are you visiting for?” Jill asked.
    “Just a week or so. I’m getting a much-needed rest before I start a new job.”
    “You picked the right place for it. How did you and Carolanne meet?”
    Savannah and Carolanne both laughed. “Well, actually . . . we met for the first time just a few minutes ago,” Carolanne said.
    “True.” Savannah nodded. “I rented Connor’s old apartment for a week and he invited me.”
    “Do you have family in the area?”
    “No.”
    “Then what made you pick Adams Grove?” Carolanne gestured to the other girls to head toward the bar tent.
    “A ticket.” They looked confused by her evasive answer. “Where I’m from we get ten over. Doesn’t everybody?”
    “A speeding ticket. Oh, gosh. Not around here. Even the locals can’t get away with that,” Carolanne said, but both she and Jill were shaking their heads.
    “Well, I guess I should thank my lucky stars then, because he let me off with a warning.”
    Carolanne and Jill responded in chorus. “Seriously?”
    “Yeah, but I think he only did it because he felt bad for me. I was supposed to be headed to my ex-husband’s wedding, almost got that speeding ticket, was almost out of gas, and my tire was almost flat . . .”
    “Oh, man. I feel bad for you too, and I wasn’t even there. So you decided to almost stick around?” Jill said.
    “Kind of like that.” Savanna nodded.
    Carolanne asked, “Who stopped you?”
    “The sheriff,” Savannah said. Scott , she thought. “Call me Scott” . . . or not . “Although I didn’t realize he was the sheriff at the time.”
    “Scott Calvin?” Jill sounded unconvinced.
    “Yeah. You know him?” Stupid question. Everyone probably knew everyone around here.
    “We grew up with Scott,” Carolanne said.
    Jill waved a warning finger toward Savannah. “Careful, he met his last girlfriend on the side of the road. You could be next.”
    “I can assure you that will never happen in a million years,” Savannah said. She’d been so hell-bent on keeping anyone from getting close all these years that she hadn’t even hesitated with that well-practiced answer, but she had to admit that the cute lawman had caught her attention on the side of the road too.
    “But I’m sure there’s a good story there.” Savannah added.
    “Long story,” Jill said. “Another time.”
    “He’s really cute, but he was kind of cranky. I made a joke and he didn’t even crack a smile!”
    “Maybe you read him wrong because he’d stopped you,” Carolanne said. “You have to admit getting stopped never makes for a good day.”
    “True, but he was pretty cranky this morning when I ran into him at the diner too.”
    “That’s really not like him.” Jill looked perplexed. “In fact, he’s usually the fun one.”
    Carolanne nudged Jill. “Not as fun as he used to be