Welcome To Redemption: Series Collection (Books 1-6)

by Donna Marie Rogers

  Dana sat up in her chair, rested her forearms on her knees and looked at Allie. “You said something about obedience classes to Charlie yesterday. Has Sugar had any training?”

  “I don’t think he’s had time.”

  Dana stood. “Well, I do.” Allie’s brows shot skyward, and her expression triggered Dana’s defenses. “I’ve got nothing else to do until Rick Wilde calls anyway.”

  “You’ve just seen for yourself Charlie’s got issues,” Allie warned. “And much as I love the guy, I don’t want to see you get hurt again. You can’t deny this is your classic situation.”

  “I know, I know, but this time I’m walking in with my eyes wide open. I know the signs and this is just about the dog, not the guy.”

  Allie stood, hands lifted hands in surrender, and backed toward the house. “Whatever you say.”

  Dana waited until she’d disappeared before turning to look at Sugar. “Just the dog—not the guy,” she murmured.

  Maybe if she repeated the words enough they would be true.

  ***

  The other ‘parents’ collected their ‘kids’, and when Charlie hadn’t come for Sugar by four o’clock, Dana offered to stay with her while Allie went to her line dancing class with her latest flavor of the month. According to Allie, it was very unlike Charlie to not at least call, and Dana dealt with a fresh wave of guilt for her unkind words.

  The afternoon with Sugar had proved rewarding, however. The dog was extremely smart, eager to please, and had already caught on to a number of basic commands. If Charlie didn’t mind her continuing, Dana anticipated making a lot of progress the next couple days.

  She was in the backyard reading a book in Allie’s hammock, Sugar lounging in the grass next to her, when the side gate opened and Charlie strode through. Sugar bounded to her feet with an excited yelp. Dana flipped the book down on her chest and watched him greet his dog. That he loved the animal, there was no doubt. Her heart gave a little flutter. It beat faster when his somber gaze lifted to hers.

  He’d changed into jeans and a black T-shirt that looked incredible with his dark hair and the faint shadow of stubble on his jaw. She’d always been a sucker for the five o’clock scruffy look. Then again, as evidenced by their first meeting, the man could make anything look good. By the time she’d finished drooling and collected her thoughts, he stood by her side. His dark brown eyes were so serious and intense, her stomach quivered.

  “I shouldn’t have taken off like that.” He raked a hand through his newly trimmed hair. “I’m sorry, I just didn’t know how to…”

  Dana reached out and clasped his hand hanging at his side. “Allie told me about your sister. If I’d have known, obviously I never would’ve said what I did.”

  His fingers tightened on hers. “How could you know? You’re not to blame.”

  She lifted her shoulder. “I still feel awful.”

  His chest rose and fell with a shaky sigh. Dana maneuvered as best she could on the hammock and once she’d made more room, she tugged so he’d sit down. The contraption swung a bit as he lowered his weight onto it, but he steadied them with his feet before glancing toward the house.

  “Where’s Allie? She’s not mad, is she?”

  “Of course not. She had a line dancing class, so I volunteered to stay with Sugar.”

  “Thanks. I should’ve called.”

  “It’s okay. I hope you don’t mind, but Sugar and I did a little work today. Some basic obedience training.”

  He’d rested their joined hands on his jean-clad thigh, and now rubbed his thumb across her knuckles. Warmth radiated up her arm and spread through her limbs.

  “You didn’t have to do that,” Charlie said.

  “It was fun. She’s a great dog—very intelligent. Right, Sugar?” The Great Dane lifted her head from her paws and barked twice. Dana smiled. “See? Two means ‘yes’.”

  Charlie’s gaze swung from Sugar to Dana. “Seriously?”

  Dana laughed at his priceless expression. “No.”

  He finally cracked a smile. “You almost had me going, there.”

  “See that? Somewhere in your subconscious, you actually buy into what I do.”

  His smile turned to a grimace. “I think my subconscious is the one with the problem. Logically speaking, about Sugar specifically, I know what you do makes sense. I didn’t mean to say what I did earlier.”

  “And the other day?”

  “I’ve got all kinds of excuses for that. Where do you want me to start?”

  She pretended to consider. “I should just let you off the hook after everything else, but I have a feeling this could be good.”

  She used his grip on her hand to pull herself into a sitting position, her bare leg soaking up his heat through his jeans. Once the hammock stopped its crazy swinging, she squeezed his hand and smiled up at him.

  “Okay, go.”

  He chuckled. “Well, see, now that I’ve had time to go over them in my head, I realize they’re all pathetically self-centered.”

  “Excuses usually are,” she agreed.

  He looked down, watching as he slowly adjusted his hand until their fingers intertwined. “If it’s okay with you then, can I apologize instead?”

  “Smart man,” she murmured.

  His gaze locked with hers and held, except for a one second glance at her lips. He leaned forward, then closer still, until she wanted to grab him and drag him the last few inches that separated her from sure-fire heaven.

  Just the dog, not the guy.

  She closed her eyes in search of willpower only to have his mouth settle on hers. Her heart thudded so hard, surely he could hear it? If she pressed against him, he’d certainly feel it pounding against her ribs. She started to shift closer.

  Cool air rushed over her lips, replacing the warmth of his mouth. She opened her eyes to see he’d drawn away. Acute disappointment drew her eyebrows together. That’s it? She’d expected so much more from such a sexy guy whose energy field radiated intensity and a hint of titillating danger.

  Swallowing her dissatisfaction, she let out a small sigh. It was probably better this way. She couldn’t afford to—

  Without warning, his free hand tunneled into her hair, and he pulled her flush against him. His lips brushed hers once, twice, then he urged her to open to him, sliding his tongue against hers; tasting, teasing, until Dana could barely catch her breath. Exhilaration left a delicious tingle in its wake. This kiss was the exact opposite of the first; passionate, intimate, and…oh, man, she was on fire!

  He urged her to lie back and followed her down, maintaining the kiss despite the unsteady hammock.

  “I tried,” he rasped against her mouth. “Just a friendly kiss to apologize.” He shifted his attention to her ear. Delicious shivers radiated from where his hot breath caressed her skin, making their way through her entire body.

  “That first one was an insult,” she accused, her husky voice unconvincing.

  Soft male laughter against her throat sparked a throb deep inside. His knuckles brushed the side of her breast. “How am I doing now?”

  Dana gasped softly. “You’re getting there.”

  He made a sound halfway between a growl and a groan and captured her mouth again. She arched against him, but was unable to establish the full contact she desired with their awkward position. She wanted his strong arms around her, wanted his hard chest pressed against hers, wanted all that and more—

  Common sense reared its ugly head. Dana slipped a hand between them and pushed against his chest.

  “Charlie,” she whispered.

  He pulled back an inch, regarding her with passion darkened eyes, his breathing as labored as hers.

  “I think it would be…in my best interests…to stop while I’m ahead.”

  He pushed back to a sitting position, then ran a hand through his hair while staring across the yard. Dana eased herself up on the hammock, trying to think of something else to say, a way to explain her need for self-preservation wit
hout sounding crazy, but the ability to string together coherent words seemed to have deserted her. Worse, the effects of his possessive kiss had her fighting the urge to pull him back down.

  “You have any plans for tomorrow?” Charlie asked with a sexy sideways glance.

  He sounded like he was going to ask her out. She barely contained a teenaged grin and instead gave him a look of contrition. “Big plans. Lots to do.”

  “Wanna come fishing with me?”

  “Fishing?”

  His head tilted. “Ever been?”

  “Minnesota isn’t called ‘The Land of Ten Thousand Lakes’ for nothing.”

  “That doesn’t mean you’ve been fishing.”

  She’d grown up going fishing with her Dad—sad that she couldn’t remember the last time they’d gone, though. She met Charlie’s gaze and anticipation did a little dance along her nerve endings.

  “I bet I can out-fish you.”

  His lips twitched, but instead of the smile she expected, he sighed. “Too bad you have so much to do.”

  “Oh. Yeah, well…I s’pose I could wash my hair and paint my nails tonight instead.”

  That earned her a husky laugh that made her stomach flip. She tried to convince herself it was the fishing that had her excited, but then Charlie stood to leave and leaned in to brush his lips against hers—another soft, light kiss like the first unsatisfactory one. Only this time she knew what he was capable of, and disappointment was the furthest thing from her mind because spending the day with him tomorrow swept everything else aside.

  Dana barely kept her hands in her lap and managed to keep the kiss sedate. A laugh threatened to escape as her heart pounded in her chest. Lord, she needed to be careful here, or she’d end up in a heap of trouble.

  He smiled down at her. “I’ll pick you up in the morning at eight. Loser buys dinner.”

  With a whistle and a pat on his thigh for Sugar, he strolled away.

  ***

  Dana snapped the cooler lid closed when Allie’s five doorbells went off. She rose on her tiptoes to see the front porch from the kitchen window. Trouble had arrived with a capital C, wearing jean shorts and tennies and a snug white T-shirt that showed off his beautiful tattoos. She’d never been a big fan of tattoos, but he made them sexy. His dark hair glinted in the morning sun, and just before he turned his back toward the window, she noticed he’d shaved.

  Her gaze drifted down to the denim hugging his backside. Charlie had a damn fine—

  “Sugar sure is something to look at,” Allie said from the doorway.

  Dana gave a small start, but when she turned to defend herself, Allie had already disappeared. Dana tugged self-consciously at the Minnesota Twins baseball cap she’d threaded her ponytail through. Allie knew her history; she knew where Dana was headed. Dana knew, too, but it felt different this time. That was part of the reason she’d tried to distance herself last night.

  For all of two seconds, but at least she’d tried.

  Then his captivating brown eyes had drawn her in again, and he’d asked her to spend the day with him. All that time alone on a cozy, quiet boat. But, really, what could be more innocent and less romantic than fishing?

  Live bait.

  Fish guts.

  Sweating in the summer sun.

  Charlie stripping off his tee shirt…slipping into the water to cool off...muscles glistening...

  Charlie’s deep voice in the foyer brought Dana out of the vivid daydream. She grabbed the cooler off the counter and the beach bag Allie had lent her off the floor, and went to join them. Sugar strained against Charlie’s hold, whining at the sight of Dana.

  Dana told her to sit in a firm voice and smiled when she did. Slipping a treat from her pocket, she rewarded the Great Dane.

  “Good girl.”

  She looked up to find Charlie and Allie watching her. Heat rose in her cheeks at Charlie’s open appraisal, and ignoring Allie’s “I told you so” smirk, she managed a casual sounding, “Hey.”

  “Ready to go?” Charlie asked.

  She hefted the cooler at her side. “All set.”

  He reached to take the cooler, his fingers brushing hers in the process. Dana’s pulse skipped at the brief contact. Oh, boy. Allie held open the door and Dana avoided her gaze as she passed. “See you later.”

  Sugar raced ahead, and Charlie’s long-legged stride caught up to her at the passenger side door of his black, extended-cab truck. She caught a faint whiff of understated cologne when he leaned past her to open the door.

  She stood aside for Sugar to jump into the back and waited until Charlie had stowed the cooler. Next thing she knew, his large hand spanned the small of her back to assist her into the seat. Her pulse full-out stumbled when his palm slid to her hip just before her butt hit the upholstery.

  Oh, boy, indeed.

  She managed a careless smile and watched him make his way to the driver’s side. Looked to be a long, intense day.

  No more than they’d turned onto Salvation Avenue, the sign for Coffee to Chai For triggered a Pavlov response and her mouth watered. Charlie pulled over across from the café before she could even form the words to ask him to stop.

  “You’re a mind reader,” Dana said with a laugh.

  “Hey, I’m no dummy. Coffee, fishing license, and then we’re on our way.” He paused with the driver’s side door open. “If you don’t mind waiting here with Sugar, I’ll be right back. Large Chai for you?”

  “No…I think I’ll have…” She tip-tapped her fingertips on her lips. “Umm…”

  Charlie lifted his arm to tap the face of his watch.

  “Ah…okay, fine, English toffee latte, please.”

  “I’ll be back before you decide if you want to change your mind.”

  Once more her gaze tracked his fit form as he crossed the street. “Oh, Sugar, I think I’m definitely in trouble.”

  At the sound of her name, the Great Dane pushed up to a sitting position and shoved her nose across the seat. Dana reached back to pet her, and moved on to mumbling warnings to herself about the danger of getting involved with a wounded man. Warnings that were promptly forgotten the moment Charlie reappeared and handed over her latte.

  After one last quick stop at the local bait store for Dana’s fishing license, it took about forty-five minutes to reach Shawano Lake where Charlie’s parents owned a cabin and kept their boat.

  Cooler in hand, Charlie showed Dana the cabin before leading her down to the boathouse. The cabin was impressive and yet still rustic, but the lush, tranquil beauty of the lake nearly took Dana’s breath away. It appeared their property was part of a secluded inlet, and she asked Charlie about the size of the lake.

  “It’s about four miles wide, and stretches out over seven miles. There are coves like this all along the shoreline, along with a number of beaches, each with their own little resort community that becomes more exclusive every year.”

  “I know exactly what you mean. We’ve got a lot of places like that in Minnesota, too. How long have your parents owned here?”

  “For as long as I can remember. Every summer, Dad would drive to Green Bay each day for work just so the rest of us could enjoy the lake.”

  “So you know where all the good fishing spots are?”

  “Sure do.”

  “Good thing we’re in the same boat, then.” As he chuckled, she walked through a patch of dappled sunlight and savored the warmth on her bare arms. “Looks like it’s going to be a nice day.”

  “For now, but it’s supposed to cloud over after lunch.” He glanced skyward. “I should’ve reminded you to bring a sweatshirt—it could get pretty cool out on the water.”

  Dana was about to tell him she was no dummy either, until she realized she’d forgotten to pack one. Idiot seasoned veteran caught in an amateur mistake. No. It was time to be honest with herself—eyes wide open—isn’t that what she’d said? Fine, she’d admit her mind had been on Charlie, not fishing or the weather. However, given the choice of Cha
rlie or the weather, well, darn right she wouldn’t think twice about a sweatshirt.

  “You got one in that bag of yours?” he asked on their way down the stairs to the dock.

  “No,” she admitted.

  He drew to a halt. “We’ve got plenty of extras at the cabin.”

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “You sure?”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  His brows rose just as a low whine caught her attention. Charlie’s mouth tightened and Dana looked around to see Sugar sitting by the stairs, ears flat against her head, expressive brown eyes begging for attention.

  “Sorry, Sugar,” Charlie said. “I’ll get moving.”

  He backed toward the boat house. Confused by Sugar’s odd behavior, Dana patted her thigh. “Come on, girl.”

  “Leave her there yet. I don’t call her out until I’ve got the boat ready.”

  “Is she scared of the water?”

  His glance flicked to the dog before he turned to fit the key in the lock on the boathouse door. “Two minutes, sweetie. I’ll be right back.” In an undertone to Dana, he said, “We’re working on it.”

  “What happened?”

  Halfway through the open door, he grasped the frame, and she saw his jaw clench. “I was fishing out here last fall and saw what looked like a gunny sack floating in the water. I pulled it up to find four puppies.”

  Dana gasped softly. Charlie’s grip turned his knuckles white.

  “One was still breathing, and Sugar was the only other one I could revive.”

  “Oh, God, that’s awful.” Compassion and rage warred within Dana. “Who would do such a thing?”

  “I asked around, but no one in the area knows anyone who raises Great Danes. I never found the bastard.”

  “What happened to the other puppy?”

  Another whine from Sugar urged Charlie inside to ready the boat. “I gave him to my friend Drew—he lives in town, so Sugar and Bo get to play every once in awhile.”

  Dana glanced back at Sugar, her heart going out to the dog. Poor baby almost drowned, no wonder she was so frightened. Dana’s eyes narrowed, and she swung back around to watch Charlie open the double doors at the back of the structure for access to the lake.