Page 37 of Bad For Me (Rock Canyon, Idaho 5)

“What’s the reason?” Callie was unable to look away from his intense gaze.

“Haven’t figured it out yet.”

WHEN CALLIE PULLED her hand from his, Everett let her. He’d told himself he needed to go slow, to not push her. Whatever it was that made her jumpy wouldn’t be helped by his forcing his attentions on her. Still, he couldn’t help it. She was like a wild rabbit—skittish as hell but so soft, you just had to touch her.

Taking up the rear, he decided to change the subject to something a little less personal. “For a woman who seems to prefer older country, you sure play a lot of Taylor Swift.”

“She’s a popular artist,” Callie shot back without stopping.

“With whom? Twelve-year-old girls?”

“And I bet you just love Kenny Chesney’s new song,” she said.

“As a matter of fact—”

“Kenny Chesney lost his roots right around his third album.”

“I was just going to say I’m not a fan of his new stuff,” he said.

“Oh.”

Everett liked that she was so passionate about the music she played. “So, who’s your favorite band?”

“Diamond Rio. You?”

“I thought you said it was Little Texas.”

Callie paused. “You’re right. I did tell Rhett that.”

“So, which is it?”

“I guess it depends on the day,” she said.

“What made you fall in love with country music in the first place? Aren’t you a California girl? Shouldn’t you like rap and alternative?”

“I grew up in a small town in California, and my mother was originally from Tupelo, Mississippi. She raised me on the greats: Patsy Kline, George Jones, Johnny Cash, George Strait, and Garth Brooks. Plus, we have cowboys and FFA, just like you do.”

Everett held up his hands. “Pardon my faux pas then.”

“If I must.”

She turned around and kept walking, missing his grin.

“So where’s your mom now?”

They broke through a patch of trees, and she took so long answering that he almost repeated himself.

“She died.”

“Shit, I’m sorry. What happened?”

Callie stopped again and leveled him with a hard look. “I don’t want to talk about it, okay? Some things I like to keep private.”

“What about the rest of your family? Friends from your childhood?”

“There’s no one.”

She was shutting him out again, and it hurt. Stepping up alongside her, he reached out to touch her face, running the back of his hand from her temple to her jawline. Her breath caught and her mouth trembled, as if she wanted to fight her attraction to him.