“Don’t feel bad for caring about my dog. And he’ll be outside at least twenty minutes. I’m up, so have a coffee with me.”
She looked down at herself, as if she’d just realized she hadn’t put clothes on before breaking into his house. She was covered, with thin cotton shorts that looked like men’s boxers, and a hoodie she’d thrown over her tank top. But, as he looked at her, she zipped the hoodie, covering up the view a little.
He ran his hand over his naked chest. “I guess it’s a good thing I put sweatpants on before I fell into bed.”
The corner of her mouth quirked upward. “I guess that depends on your point of view.”
“Are you flirting with me?” Even as early as it was, being ogled by a pretty woman wasn’t a bad way to start the day.
“I can be a bit shameless when it comes to coffee. Sorry.”
He gestured to one of the stools at the island. “Have a seat. So, cream and sugar?”
“Yes, please.”
He got the half and half out of the fridge. “For future reference, Bear’s food is in that blue bin over there. It’s just a lift-top lid. He stays out of it as a rule, but if he gets hungry enough, he can get into it. And he’s got that big tank of water there that feeds into his dish but, as gross as it sounds, I always make sure the toilet lid’s up. Just in case.”
“I feel better knowing that.”
“If something happens to me that’s bad enough so they call my parents, somebody will come get Bear. But if you’re willing to break into my house, are you also willing to give me your number so I can call you if I can’t get home? Just because he won’t starve doesn’t mean I like him being alone overnight. And I’ll give you the extra key so you don’t have to crawl through the doggy door.”
“Funny, but yes. We should have each other’s numbers anyway. Being neighbors and all.”
“Speaking of being neighborly,” he said, setting her coffee in front of her and grinning, “any chance I can sweet talk you into giving me a ride to my truck later? If not, I can try Drew Miller.”
“Your chances of sweet talking Drew are pretty slim.” She smiled, then took a sip of her coffee.
“I bet you’re not too susceptible to sweet talk, either.”
“Not usually, but when a guy with no shirt on makes me coffee, it softens me up.”
He put the cream back in the fridge and then went to the back door to check on Bear. As expected, the dog was sniffing every blade of grass to make sure nothing had changed during the night.
On his way back to the island, he watched Hailey lower her head to drink her coffee and his body tightened. Her hair was pulled to one side, exposing her neck, and he remembered her shivering when he touched her there and how she fought so hard to hide it.
He shouldn’t touch her. He knew it. Not while he was overtired and feeling soft toward her because she tried to take care of his dog. Not while she was wearing barely anything. But as he crossed the kitchen, he couldn’t help himself.
“That bug bite healed nicely,” he said, and he ran his fingertip lightly down the line of her neck.
TEN
HAILEY SUCKED IN a breath and she knew there was no way she could hide the hot flush that felt as though it was covering every inch of her body.
“You are the master of mixed signals,” she said, deciding if she couldn’t hide her reaction, she might as well face it head on.
He walked back around the island, which in a way was worse because now he could see the blush on her cheeks. “What do you mean?”
“The night I brought you shepherd’s pie, you thought I was flirting with you and you practically ran into the house. But then you go and do that.”
“First aid is part of my job description. Just doing my duty, ma’am.”
She laughed at him. “You’re so full of crap.”
“Maybe.” He gave her a sheepish grin. “You’re not exactly consistent with the signals, either, you know.”
He might have a point there, so she kept her mouth shut and drank her coffee until a way to change the subject popped into her head. “What made you become a game warden? I’m guessing it wasn’t the promise of nine to five.”
“Nine to five. That’s funny.” He took a sip of his coffee, then shrugged. “I love being outside and always spent every minute I could in the woods. I love animals. I always wanted to be a police officer. It sounds trite, but I think I was born to be a game warden.”
“It must be hard, sometimes. The hours and not knowing what’s going to happen each day. I mean, barring something huge happening, I can tell you what my schedule will be three years from now. And usually a broken binding or a paperback that reeks of cigarette smoke or—God help me—cat pee is my biggest emergency.”
He wrinkled his nose. “Cat pee should be a chemical weapon.”