8 Brand-New Romance Authors. Avril Tremayne

on him. Never had and never would. However, it did annoy her that he had started seeing someone and had failed to mention it to her the other day at the coffee shop. There had always been an unspoken understanding between them. She always met the girlfriends before they became his girlfriends. Her approval was required.

      It shouldn’t bother her, but oh, were her feathers ruffled. Hanna must have felt the same way, arranging a girlfriend meet and greet in the guise of a housewarming party. Or maybe it was a housewarming party with the added bonus of being able to sneak a peek at the new girlfriend. It didn’t matter.

      She sat in her car, in Hanna and Nathan’s driveway, seriously considering heading back home. She couldn’t decide if she wanted to go in or not. Meeting the girlfriend was important, but she wasn’t looking forward to seeing Josh again.

      Micah turned the car back on and reached for her seat belt when a knock on the window made her jump.

      Busted.

      “Where are you going?” Jamie opened her car door and stuck his head inside. “If I have to be here, so do you.”

      “Oh, I just forgot—ah! Never mind.” She let go of the seat belt, turned the car off again and bravely stepped out of the car.

      “Dang, girl! You look hot!”

      Heat rushed to the surface of her cheeks, and she was sure they were turning an embarrassing shade of red. She looked down at her black leather leggings and electric-blue suede booties.

      She was trying something new in an effort to feel better about herself, but it had only caused her to second-guess herself more. She felt so insecure in the new clothes, but she kept recalling Sabina’s lecture on confidence. Confidence makes the outfit. You can pull off anything as long as you do it confidently.

      Therefore, she doubted her ability to pull off the look. “I don’t look ridiculous?”

      “Heck, no!” He grabbed her by the hand and pulled her along. “You’re walking in with me.”

      “Wow. This place is crazy. I bet it cost a buttload of money.” Hanna had been adamant about finishing the decorating before anyone saw it. It was impressive, to say the least. Colonial architecture provided history and elegance, but the modern upgrades gave it an element of luxury. “Hanna must be making a lot more money than she’s been letting on. Next time we go out, we should make her buy.”

      “I was just thinking the same thing!”

      The oversize front door opened to them as they walked up to it. Hanna greeted them, looking as if she’d just stepped out of a Better Homes and Gardens magazine with her happy-homeowner look. “Yay! You’re here! Let me take your coats.”

      “Hanna, your home is gorgeous!”

      “Thanks. Wow, Mike. Love the outfit.”

      “See? I told ya.” Jamie’s elbow shot out and nudged her in the side.

      “Nathan, come get these coats and put them away,” Hanna called out, disappearing into another room.

      “Guess we have to give ourselves a tour.”

      “I think that sounds like a good idea.” Taking Jamie’s offered arm, she followed him as they went off to explore the huge house in all of its glory. Each room was filled with people—people in suits—Hanna and Nathan’s type of people. Their conversations were even boring in passing.

      She could hear Josh’s voice coming from farther down the hall. A delicious tingle traveled down her spine. Never had the sound of his voice incited such a reaction from her. She told herself to get a grip. It was just Josh. BFF Josh.

      It didn’t matter what she wore or whether or not she wore it confidently. She would never turn his head. The girls he dated—and there were plenty of them—were of a higher caliber. They were girls who cared about their appearance, like, really cared. They had magnetic personalities. They tended to giggle at everything he said. He got attention everywhere he went.

      He had never, not once, dated a bookish girl with glasses and an affinity for sweatpants. So it was absolute insanity to think he would actually look her way or think of her as anything other than a sister or best friend. Pure insanity.

      Where was this coming from, anyway? Why the sudden resentment?

      As she entered the room and caught sight of him, he automatically affected the temperature around her. He looked good. Really good. Drawn into the way his T-shirt hugged his muscled torso, she almost missed the girl holding onto his arm.

      She was beautiful. Long blond hair hung in wavy curls around her shoulders. Her body was...well, it was dangerous. Maybe even lethal.

      See? This was what she had to deal with. She needed to just forget about this and get some sense knocked into her.

      Distracted by her wandering thoughts, Micah almost missed the introductions. She wasn’t really paying attention. She caught the name.

      Taylor.

      Figured. She looked like a Taylor, all blonde and bubbly.

      Was this jealousy? What kind of a question is that? Of course it’s jealousy!

      Micah forced a smile and waved her greeting to the new arm candy. She was being rude and she knew it. Josh would let her hear it later, but she couldn’t help it. She just did not care right now. Why did she have to be nice to all of his interchangeable arm extensions?

      He sent a perplexed look her way, which she chose to ignore. Let him think whatever he wanted. She wanted to leave, to go home. She was acting like a crazy chick with all her erratic roller-coaster emotions. There was no way she could handle being around him right now, especially with this Taylor girl at his side.

      Micah left the room and ran into Hanna in the hallway. She reached out and grabbed her arm as she passed by. “I’m leaving, Han.”

      “What? You can’t go!”

      “I’m just not feeling good.” She couldn’t believe she’d just lied to her friend. What kind of person was she turning into?

      “I don’t care. This is a big night for me. This is my housewarming and engagement party.” She let out a deep sigh. “Okay, I didn’t mean that. I care if you really are sick. Are you really? Or is something else bothering you?”

      “You’re right. It’s your big night. I’ll hang out a little while longer.”

      “Thanks. If you really are sick, I’ll forgive you if you have to go.”

      “Gee. Thanks.”

      If she could just steer clear of Josh and his new girlfriend then maybe, just maybe, she could survive this party.

      “Come with me. I have someone I want to introduce you to.”

      Hanna took her by the wrist and pulled her into another room. She obviously didn’t have a choice in the matter. “Just what I wanted tonight—a fix-up.”

      “He’s really nice!”

      “I’m sure he is.”

      Hanna pulled her to a stop in front of a very tall man in a suit. Yes, a suit. At a party.

      Uh, I don’t think so.

      “Micah, this is Cameron Patterson. Cameron, this is Micah O’Shea.”

      “It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.” He stuck out his hand in greeting and she took it.

      She glanced sideways at Hanna before speaking. “Oh, really? All good, I hope.”

      “Yes. Hanna has sung your praises.”

      “Has she now?” She threw another look Hanna’s way. She would definitely kill her later. “So do you work with Hanna?”

      “Yes. Are you a lawyer, too?”

      “Me?” She laughed. “Oh,