Absolutely Not in Love (Sweater Weather, #7; Appies, #2)

by Jenny Proctor

I look to the back of the auditorium. Felix is gone. My heart sinks, which is a very, very bad sign. I may not want to have a crush on my hockey-playing neighbor, but if the way my thoughts are still spiraling is any indication, I definitely do. Honestly, it just makes me mad. I worked so freaking hard to put up the walls I needed to stay happy and healthy. That means no hockey. Still, once my cello is packed up and I’m making my way across the lobby of the performance hall, I can’t help but scan the crowd, looking for Felix’s tall, dark form. There’s no way I’d miss him in this sea of gray hair and polyester, but he’s nowhere to be found. “Gracie!” a voice calls from somewhere behind me. I spin around, all thoughts of Felix leaving my mind at the sight of my college roommate hurrying toward me. “Summer!” I hurry to close the distance between us and pull her into a hug. “What are you doing here?!” She squeezes me tightly, despite the enormous cello strapped to my back. “I came to see you. To surprise you!” “You were here? For the concert?” Summer only lives a few counties over in Silver Creek, but she’s an attorney—an assistant to the DA—with aspirations of world domination. Between her work life and my teaching schedule, we don’t get to see each other nearly as often as we’d like. She smiles wide. “You know I’m a sucker for Dvořák. Excellent job, by the way. The cellos sounded great. Are you any closer to bumping Joyce out of first chair?” “Joyce will be first chair until...