Melodies of the Heart: A Pinewood Grove Sweet Romance by Sarah Paisley Page A

Gillian asked, and Kassidy’s heart sank.
    “How did you...?” she went to ask, but stopped herself. “Look, it was just a thank you for helping with his bike,” she told them. “But keep your voices down. My parents think I was out with Paul.”
    “Oh my gosh, Kass!” Addison giggled, and even Kayla, shy Kayla, was giggling too.
    “I know, I know,” Kassidy agreed. “But it was just a thank you. That’s all. There’s nothing to get excited about.”
    “I wonder what Paul will think,” Addison said. “Have you seen him yet? He keeps asking about you.”
    “I ran into him the other day,” Kassidy told them. “He just said hi, but come on, you know how it is between us.”
    “More than you do,” Gillian said, but Addison shoved her again.
    “We just don’t want you getting hurt,” Addison said.
    “And you and Paul made such a cute couple in high school,” Kayla spoke up. “He still likes you, and you both look so good together.”
    “That’s fine,” Kassidy tried to explain. “But I told you, I don’t see him that way. I only went out with him in high school because everyone said we’d be good together. He’s nice, but we just don’t spark.”
    “But Paul will still be here next week and the week after,” Addison said. “And when school is done, he’ll come back again. We can’t say the same about Levi, as hot as he is.”
    Kassidy wanted to protest that, to tell them Levi wasn’t like that and he wasn’t just going to take off, but she didn’t know that for sure either. Deep down, a part of her knew that they were right. He would leave one day and she would still be in Pinewood Grove. Alone.
    But hope springs eternal and she wasn’t going to give up just because he might leave. She saw giving in to be relenting and dating Paul again, and she knew that was worse than getting her heart broken by Levi.
    Even if she wanted to argue, she wouldn’t have gotten the chance. The little bell over the front door chimed and suddenly everything went quiet. The girls stopped bugging her – even Gillian – when Levi walked into the bakery.
    He was wearing a pair of dark jeans and a plaid shirt with the sleeves pushed up to his elbows. If they didn’t know who he was, he would have looked like just about any other guy in town – only a lot more good looking.
    “Hey,” he said before the girls erupted in nervous giggles.
    “Hey,” Kassidy greeted him while her cheeks flushed pink. “Um, you remember my friends, right?”
    “I do,” he said before he shot them all a smile.
    She thought for sure that her friends would insist on sticking around, but Addison spoke up first.
    “Come on, guys,” she told Kayla and Gillian as she began herding them toward the front door. “We should get going so we don’t waste the afternoon. The guys are waiting for us.”
    “Addison, come on,” Gillian protested, but Kayla began to help get their more stubborn friend to the door by blocking her path with her arm.
    “Kass, I’m singing tomorrow,” Addison said as they finally got to the door. “Can I count on you to film it for me?”
    “Sure,” Kassidy promised her. “Are you planning on putting it up on YouTube?”
    “Like always,” Addison said before the three girls finally left Kassidy and Levi in peace.
    “Um, hey,” Kassidy greeted him, careful to keep her voice low.
    “Morning,” Levi said as he approached the counter.
    “Not quite,” she told him. “It’s after noon.”
    “Does that mean I’m out of luck for breakfast?” he asked.
    “No,” she found herself giggling. “We still have bagels and muffins, though they aren’t exactly fresh out of the oven. Still good though.”
    “I’ll go with one of each,” he told her as he ran his fingers through his mop of hair. “You choose, just pick your favorites. I’m sure I’ll love whatever you pick.”
    Kassidy smiled and said, “Okay.” It was a fun game, getting to pick out her two favorites for him to try. They offered a