Stacey Joy Netzel Boxed Set by Stacey Joy Netzel Page A

a soft laugh. “Probably better if you explain.”
    “Think he’ll believe it?”
    “Yeah...I think he might.” She laid her palm
against his cheek, gazing into his shining gray eyes, happier than
she’d ever imagined possible. “But in the end, it really only
matters if we do.”
     
     
~*~
     
     

 
     

     
     
     
    Ditched Again
     
by
     
Stacey Joy Netzel
     
    (back to top)

 
     
     
    Summer Clark: Yes, I’m excited for my
ten year class reunion—I flew all the way from Florida to Wisconsin
so I could rub my success in Josh Nelson’s face. I know it sounds
vindictive, but the jerk ditched me at the Snowball dance, left me
to find my own ride home, and never apologized. He’s got it
coming…if I can get a tow truck to come out in this freak May
snowstorm and pull my rental car out of the ditch.
    Josh Nelson: No, I’m not looking
forward to the reunion. Just hearing the name Summer Clark brings
back memories of a night I buried long ago and never talked about
again. Seeing her means skirting the truth while trying to deliver
a way-too-late apology. No, with this storm, I think I’ll head
home…as soon as I help this car sunk in the ditch.
    Clearly, there are two sides to every
story.
     
     

 
     
     
    Dedication:
    Jena, thanks for your friendship and
input...
    now and back in high school!
     
    Additional thanks goes to authors Barbara
Raffin and Carol Ericson.
     

 
     
     
    SUMMER CLARK
     
    I drove down the two lane state highway
toward my hometown of Silver Falls with a ball of nerves tangled in
my stomach. Some were excited nerves because I was returning home
for my ten year class reunion. Others were just nerves because as
was typical in Wisconsin, Old Man Winter was paying one last visit
on this fifth day of May and the road was covered in four inches of
snow.
    My fingers white-knuckled the wheel as the
wet, slushy mess shoved and pulled my small rental back and forth,
juggling me and the car between the invisible center line and the
mushy gravel shoulder that had already tried to suck us into the
ditch twice. I’d forgotten what it felt like to drive in this crap,
but thankfully I only had about fifteen more miles to Northeast
Wisconsin’s version of civilization.
    Despite the unexpected weather, I was really
looking forward to this weekend. Being back in the Dairy Land of
rolling hills and plowed fields (though I couldn’t see them now ), I realized I’d missed my home state, snow and all. I’d
had no reason to return. See, once I’d finished college, I found
myself an amazing job in southern Florida, and my parents decided
to enjoy early retirement in…you guessed it—Florida.
    Don’t get me wrong. I liked having them
there. They’re great dog-sitters and it’s really nice not to have
to spend a fortune travelling for the holidays, but it was a bit of
a shock when they came for that first visit—and stayed. These days,
my dog, Jenga, and I enjoyed an acceptable half an hour buffer
between their condo and mine and Mom finally realized it’s not
polite—or smart—to drop in for an unannounced visit. Then again,
since my last relationship ended six months ago, that hasn’t been
much of an issue.
    I saw the sign for Silver Falls and the
nervous excitement did another little dance in my belly. I couldn’t
wait to see how the town had changed. I couldn’t wait to see my
cousin and classmate, Jenna. But mostly, vain though it sounded, I
couldn’t wait to show Silver Falls how this shy wallflower had
blossomed into a confident woman who now ran her own successful
business.
    And by Silver Falls, I meant Josh
Nelsen.
    My grip tightened even more on the steering
wheel, and I forced a deep breath, willing my hands to relax. It
was stupid to let what had happened in high school still bother me.
Actually, I thought I’d forgotten it, or at the very least, put it
behind me years ago.
    Until the reunion invitation arrived.
    Faced with the possibility of seeing Josh
again, the old hurt