Page 41 of Wag More Bark Less

“We’re going to grab a bite at The Skillet,” Connor said to me, still grinning like he knew something I didn’t. “Want to join us?”

“I’ll pass. Got a few things to take care of before I head to the farm.”

I didn’t want to admit I was going to wait until Yoga on the Water concluded and Maggie made it safely to shore. I couldn’t explain why I needed to see her feet touch sand. Why my heart was still thundering in my ears. She was a grown-ass woman, capable of handling her own. Especially if she was military like Connor said. And besides, she wasn’t alone. Alyssa was with her.

I waited anyway, even after Frank walked away with his wife and left me standing alone. Several townsfolk said hello and a few others made innocent jokes about my quick ability to jump into action.

“I didn’t know landlord duties included water rescues,” Alyssa said as she and Maggie approached me. She flashed me a shit-eating grin that said she’d clocked this entire thing. Fuck, she’d probably call Kira the first chance she got. Family dinner tonight was going to be nothing short of brutal.

“I should be thanking you,” Maggie said, lifting one corner of her mouth in a smile that bordered on flirtatious. Her wavy blonde locks were still half damp, giving her a beachy essence.

“For what?”

“For taking the attention off me. What you did was way more embarrassing.”

Because no one called me out on it the first time, I tried the lie again. “I thought you hit your head.”

“You smell that?” Alyssa said to Maggie, sniffing the air dramatically as she set her tote bag on the nearby picnic table and rummaged through it.

“Smell what?” Maggie played along.

“That distinct smell of bullshit,” Alyssa said. “It’s so strong my eyes are watering.” She pulled a jacket from her bag and offered it to Maggie.

“Thanks, but I’m okay,” Maggie said, waving away the offering despite the way she hugged her arms tightly against her chest. The fight to keep my eyes averted from those pebbled nipples was a fierce one. “I’m only a few blocks from dry clothes. It’ll be a quick walk.”

“You’re walking?” I demanded.

“No, you’re giving her a ride, you jackass,” Alyssa said, and forced my hand.

“I was going to offer⁠—”

But she interrupted with, “Magnolia, I’m so glad you came out. I can give you a ride if you don’t want to be trapped with this caveman, but my car is two blocks in the opposite direction and it’s filled to the brim with”—she flicked her gaze to mine, then back to Maggie’s—“donations.”

“It’s okay, really. I don’t mind walking.”

“You’re not walking,” I insisted.

Alyssa smirked, flashing me a knowing look that promised I’d hear about this later. Maybe I should call in sick for family dinner. It wasn’t like any of the rainbow trout were mine anyway. Connor caught the first one, and Opal snagged the rest. My line never even got a tug. But the innocent heckling would be far more desirable than Grandma Connie’s wrath should I decide to skip it.

“Let me give you a ride,” I said in a less demanding tone once Alyssa hurried off, leaving us alone on the nearly deserted beach.

Maggie wanted to argue. I could see the war in her eyes, but a full-body shiver shut her right up. I shrugged my flannel jacket off and draped it over her shoulders, tugging it tightly around her body. The jacket swallowed her up, and something primal and borderline possessive roared to life inside me at the sight of her in my clothes.

The fuck?

“Were you really going to run into the lake fully dressed?” Maggie asked, that flirtatious half smile directed at me.

“I’m trained to respond in emergencies. Hesitating can be the difference between life and death.”

As much as I wanted to tug her against me, I dropped my hands from the jacket, shoved them into my front pants pockets, and started walking toward my truck. Maggie followed.

“I bet you ran track in high school, didn’t you?” she asked.

“I still hold the school record for the two-hundred-meter dash, if you must know.”

“I can see that.”

“Is your name really Magnolia?”