Pawfectly In Love

by Stephanie Rowe

  The island was getting closer, but he still couldn't see any sign of Paige. Muffin was alert, his gaze fixed on the island. "You better be right, Muffin."

  His breath coming hard, he abandoned conversation with his dog. Only one outcome was acceptable: getting to that island and finding Paige.

  After what felt like an eternity, the island was almost within reach. He shouted at himself to keep going, astounded by the force of the water. Then he could see rocks beneath the water, and they were close.

  He was about to jump out, when Muffin leapt to his feet, nearly tipping the boat over.

  "Muffin! Down!" A wave swept over the side of the tilting boat, adding more water to the bottom.

  The dog ignored him, looking along the west side of the island and barking.

  He followed Muffin's gaze. A black buoy was bobbing in the water at the tip of the island. "It's a buoy, Muff."

  When Muffin didn't relax, Luke took another look, and noticed a second dark object in the water. Two buoys? Shit, no, he realized it was a person. No, not two people. No, hell, it was Paige and Bandit, bobbing in the water, with the kayak nowhere to be seen. Adrenaline surged through him. "Get down!" This time, Muffin sank down, as if he realized Luke was finally listening.

  Oblivious to his tired muscles, Luke dug in, blistering against the wind as if it were a still day. Each time the thunder rumbled, it was as if it shot a fresh batch of adrenaline through his body.

  "Paige!" Every few feet he shouted her name, but it wasn't until he was only about ten yards away that she turned her head. Her hand went up, waving at him.

  She was still alive. Relief poured through him, and he paddled harder.

  Muffin started to stand up again, but dropped at Luke's sharp command. His ears stayed alert as he kept his gaze fastened on Paige and Bandit.

  He pulled the canoe alongside her, and she stood up, the water coming to her chest. She was apparently standing on some sort of reef, too far from land to swim, but high enough that she had been able to stand. She was drenched, pale, and visibly trembling. "Luke! I can't believe you're here." She'd slid her arm through Bandit's lifejacket, keeping the dog from floating away.

  "What are you on?" He glanced over the edge of the boat and saw a rock a few feet beneath the water. Holding the stern rope firmly in his hand, he jumped out of the canoe, landing beside her.

  The moment his feet hit the rock, he grabbed her, hauling Paige up to his chest, unbearable relief surging through him. He kissed her hard and deep, unable to stop himself, before he hugged her again, holding her and Bandit tight against him, using his strength to hold them up. "God, I thought you were gone."

  "I found rocks to stand on. I knew I couldn't make it to the island," she mumbled, barely audible with her face scrunched against his chest and the rain pounding down around them. "Bandit fell out of the boat when we got hit by a wave, and when I was trying to get him, I fell out. If we hadn't found the reef, we'd be floating in the middle of the lake somewhere," she said, lifting her head up. "I couldn't swim against the wind. It's too strong. I thought I could make it to the island, but I couldn't."

  She was still gripping Bandit tightly, the water too deep for him to reach the rock.

  The sky flashed again, making them both jump. Shit. They were chest deep in the lake with lightning coming on fast. "Let's get outta here."

  Paige nodded, and held Bandit out to him. While she held the canoe steady, Luke lifted Bandit into the boat. A sharp command from Paige kept both dogs lying down, though their tails were wagging furiously at each other.

  "You next." Luke pulled the bow of the boat toward them and slid his arms around Paige. She didn't hesitate for even a fraction of a second, throwing her arm around his neck so he could lift her into the boat.

  After Paige was secure, Luke managed to get himself into the stern without capsizing the full canoe. Despite her evident exhaustion, she grabbed the extra paddle and helped him row to the island, flinching visibly with each flash of lightning. With the two of them working, it took only a few minutes to reach the island, which was good, considering that the lightning and thunder were almost simultaneous now.

  The canoe bumped against the rocks. "Everyone out," Luke commanded, gesturing at the dogs.

  The dogs jumped to shore, and Paige followed, with a steadying hand from Luke, which she didn't turn down. Once they were all safely ashore, Luke climbed out into the lake, then lifted the canoe out of the water and carried it onto the shore. He hauled it a safe distance from the water, then turned it upside down to drain. He and Paige piled the four life jackets under the canoe, while the dogs ran in happy circles on the beach, delighted by the adventure and to be out of their lifejackets.

  Luke looked up, squinting against the rain. The sky was still black, and the trees gave little protection. There was no chance they were going back on the water now. "Now what?"

  "There's a hut on the island. It's pretty rainproof. We could go there."

  "Are you kidding? Hell, yeah. Which way?"

  Paige held out a trembling hand and pointed to her right. "It's not far."

  "Lead the way. Unless you want a piggy back? You look pretty beat."

  She hesitated briefly before refusing. "I'm fine."

  "I don't believe you." He turned his back toward her and went down on one knee. "Hop on."

  When she didn't move, he looked over his shoulder. "Stop debating and just get on."

  She stopped twisting her mouth in an adorable scowl. "Fine." She sighed in capitulation, and, with a look of relief on her face, wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. Luke stood up, looping his arms around her legs to hold her on. There was something that felt so incredibly right to have Paige on his back, leaning on him, allowing him to take care of her. "Which way?"

  "Go straight for now."

  He felt her rest her cheek on his back, and he felt a strong sense of possessiveness. He was not going to let anything happen to her.

  "You're trembling," he said.

  "I'm cold." She rubbed her cheek against him. "It took you long enough to get there. You left me in the water way too long."

  He chuckled and squeezed her calf. "Sorry. I wanted to catch the Red Sox score before I came after you."

  "Typical male." She tightened her arms around him. "You're warm," she murmured.

  "And you're freezing. We'll get you warm as soon as we get in there, I promise."

  "Mmm. Actually, I'm shaking with passion from being so close to you," Paige mumbled. "Veer to the right a little bit, through those trees."

  "All the better. Nothing warms one up like a little frolic."

  "That's the cabin." She let go of him with one hand and pointed ahead to a gray shack in a grove of trees.

  "That?" Luke eyed the tilted structure, leaning precariously to the left. The wood looked rotted, and he doubted whether the roof was intact. He gave the wall a hard shove with his foot, but it didn't move at all. "Must be stronger than it looks."

  "It's safe." She sounded weary, and he was hit with an urgency to get under cover.

  He ducked inside, surprised to find a metal cot inside, complete with indoor-outdoor cushions. "Did you furnish this?"

  She was resting her cheek against his shoulder again. "Yeah. I like to come here sometimes."

  Luke set Paige down on the cot. "What do you do when you come here?"

  "I read. I hang out with Bandit. Just quiet time." She wiggled to a sitting position. "I come here by myself. It's private. You're the only one who's ever seen it."

  "How do you figure? Isn't this a public island?" He whistled for the dogs, who were still running around outside.

  "My mom gave it to me when I moved up here. It's mine."

  "This island is yours?"

  Paige nodded. "She gave it to me to cheer me up after I..."

  "After you what?"

  "Nothing." She was hugging her arms to her chest now, shaking visibly.

  "No fireplace, huh?"

>   "No. There's a spot for a campfire outside."

  "Which isn't going to help us now." He sat down next to her. "Guess it's body heat then."

  "No need. I'm fine. Really."

  "Could you be more stubborn?"

  "I'm not stubborn."

  "Uh huh." He stretched out on the cot and pulled her down next to him, hauling her up against him. He draped his legs and arms over her, anchoring her trembling body against him. "This should help."

  Suddenly he was accosted with memories of that encounter in the bathroom, when he'd helped her with her zipper. He could feel the fabric of her panties against the back of his hand again. Time hadn't lessened his desire.

  "Better?"

  Paige closed her eyes and snuggled against him. "A little."

  "Give it a minute." He let go of her with one arm and gently massaged her neck and shoulders. "Think about being somewhere warm."

  "Luke?"

  "Mmm."

  "Sorry about taking off like that. It was dumb, especially since I endangered you, and both dogs. I was just upset, and I acted stupidly."

  "No, don't apologize. I'm the one who owes you and the dogs an apology. I was a jerk at the house. I'm sorry." He watched the dogs hop up on the end of the cot, curling up against each other for warmth. They were so cute, and their actions so innocent. So why did Paige and him, doing the same thing, ignite his hormones? "I was an ass, Paige. I'm the one who should have ended up in the lake, not you."

  Paige was silent for a while, then said, "The truth comes out in the heat of the moment. You meant what you said. There's no need to apologize for that. You aren't interested in anything with me. It's my problem, not yours, if that bothers me."

  "It's not that I'm not interested in you," he said, unable to let her think that. "The reason I was such an ass is because I was trying to piss you off so you gave me the boot, because I was having a hell of a time resisting you."

  She looked at him in surprise. "You were?"

  "Yeah." He sighed and ran his fingers through her wet hair. "I want you, sweetheart, in every way. If circumstances were different, things might not have to be the way they are."

  "You mean if I weren't a country hick? Is that what you mean?"

  Luke sighed and kept rubbing her shoulders. "Paige, I made a resolution a long time ago not to get involved with women like you. I resolved never to be tempted by the rural, simple life."

  "Why?"

  He was quiet for a moment, but his hands were still rubbing her body, soothing her.

  "Luke?"

  "I hate my past."

  "What's your past?" She scooted up his chest so she could see his face.

  Luke sighed and tightened his arms around her. "I grew up on a potato farm in northern Maine."

  Her eyebrows shot up. "A potato farm? Seriously?"

  He nodded. "My whole life was working on that farm, helping my parents, never knowing if there'd be enough rain for the crops to grow, enough money to buy even the most basic of supplies. I hated being poor. I hated being trapped by the farm. I hated watching my parents work so freaking hard for so little. I wanted a different life."

  Paige rested her cheek on his chest, listening attentively.

  "And then when I was seventeen," he said, "I fell in love with a girl named Daisy."

  "And?"

  "And I loved her. I asked her to marry me."

  "At seventeen?"

  Luke shrugged. "It seemed the right thing to do at the time. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. Life on a farm wouldn't be so bad if she were with me."

  "Do you still love her? I mean, what happened?" Paige snuggled closer against him.

  His voice turned hard. "She said she wouldn't marry me because I didn't have the financial future she wanted. Daisy wanted a man with lots of money who would rescue her from her life, because she couldn't or wouldn't rescue herself. She wanted out of that town, and she said I would trap her."

  Paige raised her brows. "So you decided to show her by getting out of town and making a bunch of money."

  "Well, that was my thought originally, but after a while I did it for me." Luke ran his fingers through her damp hair. "All she did was show me that I'd been right in thinking that life in a small town held no future. So I packed my bags and left."

  "And now you reject anything having to do with your past, thinking that you've now found happiness in your world of superficial people and fancy cars. Women love you for your money, and you love to avoid anything that touches your heart."

  "That's not quite how it is. It's just that I worked really hard to be able to leave the small town New England life behind. Really hard. I like my life, and I don't want you to tempt me out of it."

  "And you think that because I am a poor country hick, that I would ruin your life if you fell for me?"

  Luke was quiet before he finally answered. "Paige, I'm already falling for you, and it scares the crap out of me. I don't want to give up all that I've worked so hard for, but I'm afraid I'd do it for you, and I'd resent you forever. You deserve more than that. I don't want to do that to you, and I don't want to do it to myself." Though he was feeling less and less certain of that with each passing day. He was becoming attached to the town, fond of his dog, and was definitely on the verge of falling in love with Paige. And he sort of wanted a mug.

  Paige studied him. "You're falling for me?"

  "Trying my best not to." He searched her face, her beautiful, makeup-free face, and sighed. "I really want to kiss you right now."

  She grinned. "I don't kiss handsome lawyers."

  "You think I'm handsome?" He moved against her, his pelvis pressing into her fanny.

  Oh…Paige could feel that he was definitely affected by their closeness, which made her even more aware of it. "And arrogant. And superficial," she added cheerfully.

  Luke shifted her under him, so he loomed above her, bracing on his arms. "And handsome?" he asked again.

  She grinned, ignoring his question as she slid her feet over his calves, trapping him on top of her. "So, have you ever gone back to visit your parents, or did you abandon them in your newfound wealth?" She wasn't trembling anymore and color had returned to her cheeks. In fact, they were almost flushed now. Was she reacting to their intimate situation the way he was?

  "Of course I go back. I bought them a bunch of new farm equipment that makes their life a lot easier." He couldn't take his gaze off her mouth. Her gorgeous, kissable mouth that he knew would taste incredible. "I can't get my parents to stop working. They'll run that farm until they keel over."

  "As if you'll stop working when you reach retirement age." Paige slid her hands behind his neck, her fingers playing with the hair at the base of his head. "You're a classic workaholic."

  "Who you think is handsome." He bent his head and nibbled on her collarbone.

  Paige closed her eyes, one hand slipping to his chest. "Luke."

  "Mmm?"

  "You say you don't want me to tempt you, but then you nibble on my neck. Which is it?"

  "Both. I can't resist you, but I want to resist you." He dropped his head further, running his tongue along the collar of her v-neck tee shirt.

  "You aren't a purebred lawyer, you know," Paige whispered. "Despite your best efforts to appear otherwise, you do value nature, community, and a life beyond the office, don't you? That's the only way I could tempt you, if the longing was already there." Her heart swelled at the thought that Luke really was the man she'd wanted him to be. He had lost touch with his roots, but it was still a part of him.

  "I'm a city person, now, Paige. The only thing I'm longing for is your body." He lightly bit her neck, and desire rippled through her.

  With a low whimper she couldn't quite suppress, she wrapped her fingers around his arms, feeling his flexed muscles twitch under her touch. She had to distract herself. "Did you have dogs growing up?"

  "You asked me that weeks ago."

  "I did? Tell me again." She caught her breath as his lips
traced along her jaw. Oh, God. "That feels amazing."

  "I didn't have any dogs like Muffin, that's for sure. I didn't even know anyone who had a dog who lived inside as a pet." He grabbed the bottom edge of her shirt with his teeth and tugged it toward her head, his whiskered chin tickling her stomach. "Too many chickens for a dog."

  "Chickens?" She sucked in her breath and arched her back toward him, her nerves tingling with desire.

  "My dad would've shot a dog if it chased the chickens. Chickens were money." He circled her belly button with his tongue, his hot breath sizzling her skin. "You taste like the lake."

  "So, do you miss the farm? Anything about your old life?" She rubbed her hand over the stubble on his chin, her other hand tousling his hair as he covered her stomach with the most tender of caresses.

  "Not at all." His voice was firm, but Paige heard the catch in his voice. He did feel the pull, but he was too confused to see what he really wanted. She'd been right to fall in love with the man. Her eyes widened, and her breath caught in her throat.

  "What's wrong?" Luke looked up, touching her cheek with his hand.

  She covered his hand with hers, and stared at him, her breath tight in her chest. She'd fallen in love with him the moment she'd shaken his hand and realized that it wasn't the hand of a lawyer. But now, she knew he was worthy of her love; he did value more than money and fancy things. The man had grown up with dirt under his fingernails.

  Impulsively, she stretched upward and kissed him. She had meant it to be a quick kiss of thanks, for restoring her faith in him, but the instant their lips touched, she couldn't break away. Her love merged with passion, and she wanted more of him.

  He returned her kiss with a desperation that nearly consumed her. His fingers dug into her hair, gripping her as if she would slide through his fingers.

  "Paige." The words were a whisper, his voice husky.

  She squirmed closer, her heart searing with the love that drove her. She dropped her hands, sliding them underneath his shirt, entwining her fingers in the hair on his chest. She knew what it looked like, dripping with water from the lake, like it had been that morning he'd been sitting on the float with her. But now she wanted to feel it against her cheek.