Reaching for a piece of the red tinted marzipan to start rolling into little holly berries, she glanced out the kitchen window. Gasping, she ran for the door, forgetting all about her Yule log and her desire to fit in with the residents of Crystal Cove. Harley was wandering along the edge of the dock and Will was nowhere in sight.
Grabbing her jacket from the coat tree, she hurried out onto the dock, calling to the dog. “Here, Harley. Come here, boy.”
What if she couldn’t get him to come to her? She hated to think of what might happen if she couldn’t. He was dangerously close to the community parking area and the busy street just beyond.
But the moment he heard his name, the puppy turned and came loping toward her, much the way he had done the night before.
“Sit, Harley,” she said, remembering the command that Will had used to keep the dog from running over her. Harley immediately stopped and sat down a few feet from her.
Walking over to him, she took hold of his harness and released the breath she’d been holding since she’d noticed him wandering around alone. At least she was assured he wouldn’t run into the street and be hit by a car. Now if she could just get him back to Will’s place at the other end of the long dock without him pulling her down, her rescue mission would be a success.
“You’re going to be nice and walk beside me like a good puppy, aren’t you, Harley?” she asked hopefully.
In answer the dog thumped the side of her leg with his tail and if she hadn’t known better, she would have sworn he smiled at her.
She gripped the harness as tightly as she could in case Harley lunged forward and started dragging her along. But to her surprise, he looked up at her as if trying to determine what she wanted him to do, then matched the pace she set.
“Good boy,” she praised him as they approached Will’s door. Now that there was no danger to Harley, she fully intended to give Will Parker a lecture on the responsibilities of taking care of a dog and the importance of pet safety.
Raising her hand to knock, she frowned at the door standing wide open. “Will?”
When he failed to answer, she called out a second time. Still nothing. Could something have happened to him? What if he had fallen or become ill and was unable to respond? And how had Harley gotten out of the house if Will was incapacitated?
Macie wasn’t in the habit of entering someone’s home without an invitation, but she didn’t think twice about leading Harley into Will’s houseboat. Closing the door to keep Harley from wandering back outside, she released the dog and looked around. Will was nowhere in sight.
As she stood in the living room considering whether she should search the house first or call for help immediately, she heard a noise behind her. Turning, she saw Will striding down the hall toward her. He had his head bent, drying his wet hair with a towel and it was obvious that he’d been in the shower. It was just as obvious that the only thing he had on was a loose pair of boxer shorts.
Her heart stalled and she couldn’t have looked away if her life depended on it. Never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined that hidden beneath his clothes, Will Parker had such an impressive array of masculine bulges and ripples. A shiver streaked up her spine at the thought of how it would feel to have his strong arms wrapped around her.
When he glanced up to find her staring at him, he stopped dead in his tracks. His eyes narrowed suspiciously. “What are you doing here? Do you need something?”
That was a loaded question if she ever heard one. She forced herself to ignore the double meaning—and her wayward musings—and focus on the reason she was standing in Will’s living room. “I brought Harley back.”
Will looked doubtful. “Where was he?”
“Wandering around outside. By the time I got to him, he was dangerously close to the parking lot,” she said, training her eyes on Will’s handsome face to keep from being distracted by his broad chest and washboard stomach. He didn’t seem the least bit concerned that he wasn’t exactly dressed to receive visitors. “When I got to your door it was standing open and I...um, thought something might be wrong.”
Darn it all! Her explanation sounded lame, even to her. But it was hard to concentrate. Why did the man have to be the whole package—good-looking, a voice that could charm birds out of the trees and a body that could tempt a saint?
“How did he get out?” Will demanded, oblivious to her disturbing thoughts. “I’m sure I closed the door when we came back from his morning walk. So unless he’s able to walk through walls—”
Harley chose that moment to decide that the loose leg of Will’s boxers would be perfect for a game of tug of war. Biting the thin cotton fabric, he pulled and began shaking his head. Will grabbed at the waistband, but Harley was too quick and gravity took care of the rest.
As if in slow motion, Marcie watched the boxers drop to the floor a moment before Will cursed and pulled them back up. Realizing that she was blatantly staring at the most beautiful specimen of masculinity she had ever seen, she spun around to face the far wall. “Well, this is a bit awkward,” she said, barely able to suppress a nervous giggle.
“Stay right here,” Will said from behind her. “I’m going to put some clothes on, then we’ll try to figure out how Harley escaped.”
He didn’t seem bothered by the fact that she had seen him in all his glory, but she sure was. In comparison to Will Parker, Michelangelo’s statue of David was rather wimpy.
“God, you’ve lost every ounce of sense you ever possessed,” she muttered.
In an effort to get her mind off Will and his remarkable physique, she looked around his living room. His house was extremely neat and orderly. In fact, the room was too neat—as if he never used it. He hadn’t even put up a Christmas tree. Why would anyone have a floating home and not enjoy decorating every square inch of it?
As she continued to peruse the room, her gaze landed on a walnut plaque, and curious about the award she moved closer. It was from Snohomish Software Solutions, proclaiming Will the employee of the year for developing a computer program that had revolutionized the organization and storage of hospital medical records.
No wonder his name had sounded familiar to her. She had reviewed that program and several others of his over the past couple of years for Techno Nerd Monthly.
“You can turn around,” Will said, walking back into the living room. “I’m decent now.”
“I was just looking at your award,” she said, hoping to avoid a discussion on what had happened with Harley and Will’s boxer shorts. “You’re a software engineer?”
He nodded. “What do you do for a living?”
“I’m a writer,” she said, giving him the practiced answer she always gave whenever someone asked about her career. She had a confidentiality clause in her contract with the magazine that prevented her from revealing her pen name to anyone. Right now she was glad that it did, considering the last couple of reviews Ms. Tera Byte had given Will’s programs.
“That sounds interesting,” he said, smiling. “Do you work from home?”
“Yes, and I love being able to do that. It gives me more freedom to experiment with new recipes,” she said, hoping to steer him away from the subject of what she wrote and for whom.
“So you like to cook?” he asked, sounding as if he had a hard time grasping the concept.
“Absolutely. I’ve only gotten into it within the past year, but it’s quickly become my favorite hobby.” Much more comfortable with the change of topic, Macie asked, “What do you enjoy when you aren’t working?”
“I don’t have free time. I usually have too many projects and deadlines to do anything but work.”
“But you’re taking time to care for—” She stopped short. “Where did Harley go?”
“Damn! The door’s open,” Will said, grabbing the leash from a hook beside the door and hurry
ing outside. “Sit, Harley.”
When Macie reached the doorway, she watched Will snap the nylon leash onto the oversized puppy’s harness. “How did he do that?”
Leading Harley back into the house, Will closed the door. “I’m not sure, but I’m going to find out. Keep talking.”
“Excuse me?”
“Act as if you aren’t paying attention to him.” Walking over to stand beside Macie, Will positioned himself so he could observe Harley. “To answer your question about taking on the responsibility of a dog, my company is shutting down for the next two weeks, and my grandmother asked me to help The Haven with their Home for the Holidays campaign.” He frowned. “But she didn’t tell me I was going to be fostering Harley Houdini.”
Will’s close proximity and the sound of his deep voice were playing havoc with Macie’s peace of mind and making her think of things she had no business remembering. She was done with men and she would do well to keep that in mind.
“I noticed that you haven’t decorated yet,” she said, seizing the first neutral topic that came to her.
“I haven’t had time,” he answered absently. His full attention was on the dog.
“If I have a spare moment later today, I’ll drop by again and help you at least get a tree up,” she offered.
“Okay,” he said, clearly distracted.
“How long do you think this is going to take?” she finally asked, glancing at her watch. “I really need to get home. I’m trying to do some of the preparations for my party ahead of time. That way all I’ll have to do the day of the party is make the hors d’oeuvres.”
He nodded, not taking his eyes off of Harley. “I don’t think this will take long. He’s already inching toward the door.”
As they watched, the dog slowly walked over and, laying his chin on the brass lever, pressed down. In the blink of an eye, he had released the latch and was starting to nose the door open.
“Sit, Harley,” Will commanded, walking over to close the door and secure the lock. “Well, that solves that mystery. Looks like I’ll have to keep the door locked as long as Harley’s here.”
“You could change the lever to a doorknob,” Macie suggested.
Will shook his head. “He’s only going to be here for a couple of weeks.”
“Do you really think you’ll be able to take him back to the shelter?” she asked as she walked over to pet Harley. “He’s such a sweetheart, I’m not sure I would be able to do give him back.”
“Why don’t you adopt him then?” Will asked, grinning.
“My houseboat is smaller than yours.” She disengaged the lock and opened the door. “And if I don’t get back to it, I won’t have anything to serve my guests.”
“Thanks for bringing Harley home.” He followed her out onto the dock. “I really appreciate your looking out for him.”
“Not a problem.” She smiled. “I’ll see you at the party.”
* * *
AS WILL WATCHED MACIE walk back toward her houseboat, he found himself staring at the enticing sway of her slender hips and the length of her shapely legs. Why did he find her so alluring?
There was no doubt that she was attractive. But she wasn’t his type at all. He normally preferred tall, willowy brunettes with a quiet, mysterious air about them. Macie was a little below average in height, had lush curves that fascinated the hell out of him and a vivacious, engaging personality.
“I think I’m losing it, Harley,” he said, when he walked back into the house where the dog still sat.
Harley thumped his tail, then got up and lumbered to the door. Whining, he looked over his shoulder at Will, then back at the door as if he wanted the man to go after the woman and bring her back.
“That wouldn’t be wise,” Will said, shaking his head. “I’m not in the market for a relationship. And Macie Fairbanks has permanence written from the top of her head to the bottoms of her feet.”
But later that afternoon when he went into his office and sat down at his computer to work, Will found his thoughts straying to Macie once again. Why was she claiming so much of his attention?
And why was he pleased that she apparently found him as appealing as he did her?
When he had discovered her standing in his living room, she had been staring at his chest. And if the wistful expression on her pretty face was any indication, she’d liked what she saw. He chuckled. Thanks to Harley, she’d probably seen more of his assets than she was comfortable with.
Smiling, he started to turn his attention to the program he had been working on when the doorbell rang. Harley immediately jumped up from the blanket beside Will’s desk and took off for the door.
Will followed the dog down the hall and across the living room. Who would be visiting him? His grandmother and her friend, Mr. Hobson, had already left on their trip to Hawaii and he couldn’t think of anyone else who would be dropping by.
“Hi, Will,” Macie said when he opened the door. Her arms were full of a small artificial tree and several large bags of what he could only assume were decorations.
“Here, let me help you with that,” he said when some of the sacks she was juggling started to slip. His hand brushed one of her breasts as he took the bags from her and a jolt of electric current zinged straight up his arm. “What is all this for?”
“I told you this morning that if I had time, I’d come back and help you decorate,” she said as if nothing had happened.
“I don’t usually decorate for the holidays,” he said, vaguely remembering her mentioning something about a tree when they were waiting for Harley to pull his escape trick. He watched Harley wiggle and dance around her to show how happy he was to see her. “At least not since I moved here.”
“You don’t like having a Christmas tree?” she asked, petting the dog.
“’I’ll only have to take it down later,” he said, shrugging, as he placed the bags on the couch.
“But you used to decorate for the holidays before you moved here?” she asked, frowning.
He nodded. “But after my divorce I didn’t see that I had a lot to celebrate.”
“I’m sorry, Will.” She placed her soft hand on his arm and the contact sent a shaft of longing running the length of him. “How long ago was that?”
“We were together for five years and married for two of those. We’ve been divorced now for three years.” Will laughed, but there was little humor in it. “Not exactly how I dreamed it would go. By now I was supposed to have the wife, at least one of the two-point-two kids and a good start on a menagerie of hamsters, dogs, cats and goldfish.”
“Things don’t always work out the way we think they will, do they?” she asked, her tone indicating that she might have had a failed relationship of her own in her past.
Before he could ask, Macie turned to set the tree on one of the end tables about the same time Harley bumped the back of her knees in his excitement. Then everything seemed to happen at once. She let loose with a startled cry that frightened the happy pup. The tree went sailing one way, while Harley turned tail and ran the other way. Dropping the bags, Will lunged forward and barely managed to catch Macie to keep her from falling.
“Are you all right?” he asked, holding her to his chest.
“I...uh, think so,” she said, sounding delightfully breathless.
Will knew he should make sure she was steady on her feet and then put some distance between them. But her soft feminine body pressed to his felt damned good, and he was reluctant to let her go. Shifting her to face him, Will gazed down at Macie’s upturned face for several long seconds. She had the most incredible blue eyes and her perfect coral lips were just made for a man’s kiss.
He knew it was insane, but he suddenly felt compelled to taste her and find out if she was as sweet as she looked. Deciding that wouldn’t be in either of t
heir best interests, he slowly released her, searching for a distraction.
“I guess if we’re going to decorate for Christmas, we should get to it before the holidays are over,” he said, smiling.
“That would be advisable,” she agreed. “Unless you really don’t want to. In that case, I’ll take everything back home.”
“You went to the trouble of bringing it over, we might as well see what we can do.” When neither of them moved apart, he brushed an errant curl from her smooth cheek. “Where should we start?”
“Probably by picking the tree off the floor and reshaping it,” she murmured.
“Do you want me to—”
“Oh, yes,” she said, closing her eyes.
Will took a deep breath and used every ounce of strength he possessed to take a step back and reach for the abandoned tree. He knew Macie wanted him to kiss her, and nothing would have pleased him more. But they had only met yesterday, and besides, she wasn’t his type. She was definitely a committed relationship girl and he was a casual, strings-free-affair guy. There was no sense in starting something that would inevitably come to a bad end.
“While I shape the tree, why don’t you decide where I should put it,” he suggested, pulling the bent branches back into place.
From the corner of his eye, he watched her take a deep breath. “Considering Harley isn’t all that graceful yet, it might be a good idea to put it on an end table or possibly the snack bar,” she said, pointing toward the counter at the far end of the living room.
Hearing his name, the pup slowly ventured out of the office, then timidly put his head under Macie’s hand. “It’s all right, Harley,” Macie said, kneeling down to put her arms around his neck. “I know you didn’t mean to knock me over.”
If she had thrown her arms around Will’s neck like that, he would have kissed her for sure, Will thought as he glared at Harley. He shook his head. He couldn’t believe he was jealous of a dog.
Banishing the ridiculous idea from his mind, he placed the small tree on the polished surface of the black granite counter. “The snack bar would probably be safer. Harley might decide one of the ornaments is a chew toy.”
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