Page 49 of Save the Dance

Her feet rooted to the hardwood floor, Tara watched Jason until he rounded a corner and stepped out of sight. She twisted a strand of hair between two fingers. Talk about your classic bad moods—if she didn’t know better, she’d guess he was mad at her for some reason.

Was he already having second thoughts about them? If he was, why not talk it out instead of storming off?

Doubts plagued her footsteps as she made her way back to her spot by the window. At her table, a cold shiver of unease passed through her. If Jason had read her article, it would certainly account for his brusque manner. But no. Her laptop was just as dark as she’d left it. Satisfied, she brought up the email to Regina. Her hand hovered above the Send button. Slowly, she lowered her fingers to the table.

She eyed the empty table next to hers. The Dobson Star left a lot to be desired. Gaudy was too kind a word for the jewel that more closely resembled something from a blacksmith’s forge than a jeweler’s bench. Yet Saundra had treated it like a priceless artifact. As proof of her love for the man she was about to marry, the bride planned to wear it when she walked down the aisle.

At the bakery, Nick had said that love was a series of compromises. And here she was, about to ruin the future of the man she professed to love. Where was the compromise in that?

When she’d first landed a job at Weddings Today, she’d thought she’d soon be attending the ceremonies of movie stars and power brokers. That she’d be sharing the exquisite details of weddings of the rich and famous with the magazine’s eager readers. Things hadn’t turned out quite like she’d expected.

It had taken two years, but she’d finally realized that to get ahead, she’d have to get her hands dirty. Much as she hated to admit it, she’d intended to do exactly that by exposing Kate Steven’s choice of wedding gowns. Okay, so her first big break hadn’t panned out, but it had led to her first big assignment—to destroy a legend and, in the process, rip the title of America’s Top Wedding Destination from the town that deserved it.

She’d justified her actions by telling herself she was only doing what she had to do in order to get ahead at Weddings Today. Once she exposed the truth about Captain Thaddeus, that big promotion was hers for the asking. In all likelihood, though, her next assignment and the one after that would just be more of the same. A different town, a different topic, more slinging mud at someone who didn’t deserve it. Just like Jason had predicted. Her stomach plummeted.

Was that really the career she wanted?

It wasn’t. A single tear rolled down her cheek. She loved Jason more than she wanted to succeed at Weddings Today. Deliberately, she moved the cursor to Delete and hit the button. In an instant, the screen went black. The article she’d come to Heart’s Landing to write no longer existed.

She sat for a long moment, her head bowed. She’d just ruined whatever chance she had for success at Weddings Today. She ought to feel sad about that. She didn’t. Rather, a giddy elation surged through her. When it had come to a choice between love and career, she’d chosen love.

Jason paced the length of his office. Reaching the wall, he pivoted and retraced his steps to the door. A potent mix of anger and betrayal churned in his stomach. Disappointment tightened his chest. He’d been sure Tara was the one. He didn’t deny that they’d face hurdles, but none of them were insurmountable. He’d been so sure they’d succeed that he’d allowed himself to dream of the future. Of a boy with Tara’s fair hair who’d race through the Cottage and slide down the banisters. Of a little girl with his gray eyes who demanded to go wherever her big brother went, do whatever he did. There’d been times when he’d sworn he’d almost heard the sound of their laughter ringing through the halls. He’d imagined himself following in his dad’s footsteps and asking the cooks to stop feeding the children cookies and ruining their dinners … with the same amount of success.

But it had all been a pipe dream. None of it was possible. Not now that he’d discovered the real reason behind Tara’s presence in Heart’s Landing. Not now that he knew how she’d played him, had used him to get the information she needed to destroy his town. Not now that she’d broken his heart without giving it a second thought.

He mopped his face with his hand. The question was, what did he do next?

According to the plan, he should already be on the phone with the mayor. The man might be under the weather, but his instructions had been clear. Jason was supposed to contact him the minute he ran into a problem he couldn’t handle.

Tara’s betrayal certainly qualified. So why hadn’t he picked up the phone?

He wasn’t hoping Tara would change her mind. One of the things he’d admired most about her was her insistence on seeing a project through to the end. By now, her article sat on an editor’s desk at Weddings Today. He wasn’t waiting for an apology. He couldn’t demand one when she’d been doing a job he’d encouraged her to pursue. He wasn’t waiting for her to come crawling to him, begging his forgiveness and asking for a second chance. There weren’t enough I’m sorry’s in the world to undo the harm she’d done, or would soon inflict, on Heart’s Landing.

He might as well face it—he wasn’t waiting on anything from Tara. Or anyone else, for that matter. No, there was only one reason he hadn’t called the mayor or confided in any of the other members of the review team—this fiasco fell squarely on his shoulders.

His job had been to show Tara the best parts of Heart’s Landing. He’d been asked to introduce her to the shopkeepers who made their town special. He was supposed to make sure she understood how every resident would go to practically any lengths to ensure that every wedding went off without a hitch.

Maintaining a polite, but professional, relationship with her had been part of the plan. Falling for her had not. But he’d trusted her when he shouldn’t have. He’d been wrong to give her access to the ship’s logs or Mary’s diaries. In doing so, he’d handed her the means of destroying the legend of Captain Thaddeus and ruining the town’s reputation.

For that, he had no one to blame but himself.

Worse, he’d given Tara his heart, and she’d smashed it into a million sharp-edged shards that she’d plunged straight into his chest. Was it any wonder he didn’t know what to do next? How could he explain his actions to the mayor? How could he stand in front of the people of Heart’s Landing and tell them he’d single-handedly brought about the ruin of everything they’d worked for all their lives?

A tapping sound echoed in the hallway. The footsteps halted outside his door. His chin resting on his chest, Jason continued pacing. He didn’t need to look up to know that Evelyn stood in his doorway, concern etched on her elfin features. If there was one thing in this life he could count on, it was his cousin. She showed up whenever there was trouble. Normally, he confided in her. Not this time. He couldn’t share Tara’s betrayal with anyone.

“What’s wrong?” Evelyn’s hoarse whisper cut through the silence.

He pointed to the furled script for the pageant lying in his desk. “I need someone to play Mary’s part tomorrow night.”

“I thought Tara was going to do that.”

“She’s not available.” He stopped himself. He might not be up to baring his soul, even to his cousin, but he couldn’t lie to her. He sighed heavily. “It’s over between us.” He made a chopping motion. “Done. Fini. Over.”

“What happened?”

“I can’t talk about it right now.” He turned dampened eyes toward her. “It hurts too much.”

“Got it.” Evelyn cleared her throat. Her voice perfect, she said, “Looks like it’s you and me on stage, same as always.”

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