by Romes, Jan
****
Max was in a haze. One minute he was chasing his dog, the next, he was in the lake. Epic fail. He knew better than to climb on those rocks. Even if they appeared stable, the continuous movement of the water was known to shift the rocks. As soon as he’d fallen into the icy water, his legs cramped. Panic didn’t set in until his shoulders followed suit. Thank God for Libby. If she hadn’t been there…
He closed his eyes. Libby not only saved him from drowning, she tried to save him from hypothermia. It took a lot of balls to do what she did. In spite of the embarrassment and awkwardness, she’d had his best interests at heart. Max touched his chest where Libby’s nipples had pushed into him. That pure, unguarded moment would forever be etched in his soul.
While he was holed up in the cabin the past several days, he’d mostly come to grips with his decision to stay away from Libby. Now, all the rationalizing he’d done about how things could never work out between them, amounted to a waste of time. Libby was beautiful and fascinating and when she was close he forgot about how different they were.
Between shivers, Max smiled. He didn’t want to, but dammit, he did.
****
Libby was in a mood to bite someone’s head off. She glared her way through the cosmetic department, tossing eye shadow, eyeliner, mascara, lip-gloss, twenty-four hour foundation and moisturizer into the basket. Some people devoured chips and chocolate to combat stress, she bought make-up.
On her way to the cashier she spied a display of dark chocolate. Sure. Why not? It would take more than makeup to adjust this much anxiety. She grabbed two bags. Libby bit down hard on her bottom lip and grabbed a third bag. An issue of Cosmopolitan magazine was needed too. Hopefully there was an article on what to do when you screw up and strip for someone.
A sales girl met her at the next aisle. “Ma’am, is there anything I can get you?”
The phone number for a good shrink? Libby moved her bad mood out of the way long enough to answer. “No. I think I have what I need.” She sneezed. “Excuse me.”
The friendly clerk didn’t miss a beat. “We have cold remedies on sale right now.” She pointed to a shelf with nighttime cold reliever, cough syrup, acetaminophen, and mentholated vapor rub. “If you buy three items we’ll throw in two boxes of tissues for free.”
“Great.” Libby grabbed an assortment, ripped open a box of tissues and blew her nose. Another round of emotion was about to let loose. She’d cried from the cabin to the drugstore and it now looked as if she’d repeat the process on the way back.
Since arriving in Celina earlier in the month, the only things she’d accomplished were crying and stripping, with a small amount of designing in between. What was next? Sleeping with Max? Pfft. Not in this lifetime.
Chapter Six
Everything was beautifully white. Instead of just cold air, the Arctic clipper that worked its way into Ohio brought a bunch of snow along with it. There were a couple of inches on the ground and it was still coming down like someone above had tons of frozen confetti to get rid of. As far as Libby was concerned, it could snow for days. She hoped for so much snow that she couldn’t get the cabin doors open. That way there’d be no chance of running into Max. Libby didn’t care if she ever ran into him again, unless it was with her Jeep. She half-laughed, half-whimpered.
When she’d returned from the drugstore and found him gone, she’d breathed a sigh of relief. At the same time, she’d wanted to march over to his cabin and throw her arms around his neck and kiss him until they both felt better. Whether she liked it or not, he’d gotten into her bloodstream and now she had some sort of whacked out attraction for Max that was driving her insane. That bearded wonder turned her into a needy, clingy, pathetic woman who couldn’t think straight or fall asleep.
It didn’t make sense. She didn’t like guys with beards. Yes, she drooled over tall, dark and handsome men but Max still wasn’t her type. He was tall, but that’s all he had going for him. Well, that and his eyes. They were spectacular. But that was it. Although he was put together pretty good. Damned good. Mouth-watering good. And his kisses were heaven.
Libby sat in the recliner, tucked her feet up under her and tried to force the pencil to behave. Fifteen minutes later there was a pile of crumbled papers on the floor and she was close to snapping the pencil in two. “This is not working.” She tossed the sketchpad aside and grabbed her laptop. She clicked into the LibbyMax file and studied the neon designs. Not that she was big-headed or anything, but those garments were incredible. Hmm. Maybe she and Max were even. She saved him from the lake and he was saving her creativity from drying up. Instead of blank pages in her portfolio she had some awesome designs. Although the last few days she hadn’t added a darned thing.
Her cell phone rang, making her jump.
“Soooo, how’s it going?”
In spite of her mood, Libby grinned. Steph always seemed to know when she was needed. “I’ve been drawing so much I may need carpal tunnel surgery.” It wasn’t a fib. She’d been drawing—pumpkins, horns of plenty, winter scenes, a rough sketch of Max, everything but clothes.
“I mean with Mr. August.”
Libby made a face. “We have snow, Steph.”
“Yeah, we got a few inches too. Supposed to get a lot more.” Steph’s kids were in the background making so much noise they sounded like a demolition crew. “Nice dodge, Lib. You bypassed my question with the weather. Since I only have a few minutes, don’t make me dig for the answer.”
“Nothing to tell.” Steph wouldn’t judge her, but Libby wasn’t ready to share the stripping incident since she had yet to come to grips with it. Not talking about Max though would make Steph even more curious. “We had another encounter.”
“Details, please.”
Libby blew out a puff of air. She might as well get it over with. “I had to fish his butt out of the lake.”
“What?” Steph’s phone slipped out of her hands and it made a loud clunk. “Sorry about that. Now what’s this about fishing him out of the lake?”
“Long story short, he was chasing his dog and fell in.”
“And tiny you pulled him out?”
“I know, right.” Libby cracked up laughing so it wouldn’t appear to be a big deal.
“When did this happen?”
“Two days ago,” Libby said quietly, hoping Steph’s kids would drown out the information.
“And you’re just now telling me?” Steph sounded hurt.
“Steph, it’s just that I…” Libby swallowed hard. “Aww hell, I might as well confess. The fool fell in the lake. When I pulled him out he was so cold and shivering all over the place. His lips were blue.”
“Aaaaand?”
“I did something really dumb. Not just dumb—stupid.” Libby expelled a heavy groan. “I took off my clothes to warm him with my body heat.”
“You did what?” Steph started to laugh but stopped. “Oh my, God, you’re serious.”
“I didn’t know what to do. I was afraid for him.”
“I did not see that coming. Not from you. If the guys you dated knew that all they had to do was fall in a lake to get you out of your clothes, they would’ve done it.” Steph snorted.
It was true. Despite her looks that bordered on the wild side, she was anything but. “I don’t strip for just anyone—just guys who are dripping wet and have blue lips.” Libby gave into a laugh but there was little humor attached to it. “I think I left my brain in Columbus.” She told Steph everything, including dashing off afterwards because she couldn’t face Max. She also mentioned the kiss.
The sweet, loving friend she’d grown up with put things into perspective. “I know you’ll deny this but there’s magic afoot, Libby-girl. There’s no other explanation. Think about it. You guard yourself unlike anyone I’ve ever known. The fact you dropped your drawers for Max means something big. And you’re not prone to kissing strangers. Maybe you’re…in love with him.”
Libby tried to butt in, but Steph talked ove
r her. “You can blame the circumstances, but if he was just the neighbor guy you would’ve stood him by the fire—soaking wet—until he dried out. You personalized the incident with something extraordinary. That says a lot, Lib.”
“You’re waaaaay off base. The stress of raising four kids has finally turned your brain to mush.” In love? Not! Sure she was attracted to Max but love and attraction were two very different animals. She cared about him the way she cared about every human being. Okay, maybe she wouldn’t have taken her clothes off for every Tom, Dick, or Harry but that still didn’t mean she had special feelings for him, especially love. She didn’t even know the guy. Not really.
“My brain is mush, but I’m lucid enough to recognize that something awesome is happening.” Steph sounded like she was in the middle of a sugar buzz. “Can’t wait to meet him. Halleluiah! My bestie is in love.”
“Get a grip, Steph.”
Steph continued with intermittent laughing. “By the way, have you checked on him since it happened? Did he catch pneumonia?”
“He’s a big boy and doesn’t need me to mother him.”
“Yet you stripped for him.”
Libby made a face at the phone. A wave of guilt for not checking on him brought her out of the recliner. She paced back and forth from the kitchen area to the bathroom with the phone glued to her ear. “I have no idea if he’s sick.” Her gaze shifted to the sack of cold meds still sitting on the kitchen counter.
“Well, you should. He might need to make a trip to the ER.” Steph chuckled and then grunted. “I have to go. Jimmy just jumped off the back of the couch with a cape made from a towel and he’s conking his sister on the head with a feather duster. Argh! I need a glass of wine. Text me later.”
Libby snapped the phone closed and buried her face in her hands. The stay at the cabin was nothing like she’d anticipated. She’d glamorized the time alone as a few quiet months where she would unleash a bounty of creativity. She unleashed a bounty of something all right—foolishness. Maybe it was time to pack up and go home.
****
Max typed the same line three times and subsequently hit the backspace key three times. He glared at the computer screen like it was the source of his impatience. Rory also seemed to be in a snit and whimpered at the sliding doors.
Earlier he’d taken the dog—on his leash—as far as the bottom step of the deck to do his business. The snow all but buried the dog. “Sorry, boy, we’re stuck inside. If we go out, I’ll probably break a leg. With my luck, Libby will have to save my sorry ass again.” He shook his head. “Once was enough.”
Max topped out at a hundred and eighty pounds and Libby couldn’t weigh more than a hundred and twenty. That petite blonde somehow managed to get him out of the lake. He was thankful as hell, but was close to having to turn in his man-badge since guys were supposed to do the saving, not the other way around. He hadn’t talked to Libby or even caught a glimpse of her since she tore out of the cabin two days ago. He was tempted to wander over with a dozen roses to thank her properly and to ask forgiveness for being a jerk, but he didn’t miss the huge wall she’d put up to keep him away. He’d seen it in her eyes right away. And he had a feeling it was still in place.
Max got up to refill his coffee cup and stood at the kitchen window, not really looking out. Snow or not, he was too keyed up to stay inside; one more day and he’d go bonkers. He took a sip of coffee and dumped the rest down the drain. “We’re going out after all.”
Snowdrifts surrounded everything in sight. Even the drive leading into the main part of the campground was undetectable even though Jiggs had gone through with a plow earlier. Max glanced toward Libby’s cabin while he scraped the snow from his windshield. There was no sign she’d been out and about. No footprints leading to her Jeep. Nothing. His man-badge was in no danger of being revoked today.
Rory scampered toward Libby’s front door.
“Oh no you don’t. You’re not setting me up again.” Max pulled on the leash. “Besides, she’s probably had enough of us.”
****
Libby touched her side coat pocket to feel for the key she would return to Jiggs. Her heart clenched at having driven away from…the cabin. She swallowed hard and took a seat in the tavern situated alongside the west shore of the lake. It was a well-worn establishment, with an L-shaped bar, a slew of square tables, and a few dimly lit booths partitioned for privacy.
The barmaid ambled over with a big smile while snapping her gum. She handed Libby a menu. “I’ll be back in a minute to take your order, unless you already know what you want.”
Comfort food. ASAP. It was doubtful they had mac and cheese or tea. “I’ll have a cheeseburger with pickles and a chocolate shake.” After the conversation with Steph, she’d paced some more and battled a range of emotions until she found herself in the Jeep with her suitcases loaded in the back.
For a good twenty minutes, she’d sat with the motor running, staring at Max’s door, hoping he and Rory would magically appear and talk her out of leaving. If she’d been on her game she would have noticed right away that his car was gone.
When she found herself at the stop sign that would lead to the highway, she sat another twenty minutes, drumming her thumbs on the steering wheel, watching for Max’s station wagon. Finally, she turned right instead of left. And here she was, in a bar, on the brink of tears.
One of the locals held up his mug. The barmaid acknowledged him with a nod. “How would you like your burger cooked?”
“Well done, please.”
The barmaid winked. “I’m on it.”
Libby removed her jacket and slung it on the back of the chair. At the end of the bar a couple of coffee drinkers were loudly rehashing the results of last week’s football game. The man wanting a refill on his draft beer was seated by himself at the center of the bar. Two tables away an older couple was oblivious to anything except their baskets of deep-fried shrimp. To her left, a good-looking, dark-haired thirty-something guy sat reading the sports page of the newspaper and taking an occasional swig from a long-neck bottle of beer. He looked up from his paper and gave her a grin. Wow! Deep blue eyes. Million-dollar smile. Biceps that said “look at me”. He was exactly the type of guy that could make her heart burst into a gymnastic routine. Oddly, no cartwheels. No back flips. Not even the hint of a somersault.
Max watched Libby come into the bar and felt his gloom slip away. She was the most stunning creature with her holey jeans, leather choker and pink hair. He sucked in a breath. Every day since they’d met he’d fantasized about gently tugging on that choker to bring their mouths together. If he had any kahoonies, he’d do it…right here, right now. He’d kissed her the day he begged for a ride into town, but he hadn’t given it his all. He was afraid to show her how much she excited him. Man did she excite him—in ways no other woman ever had. Libby made him want to do crazy stuff, like kiss her in a bar…or fall in the lake again to get her to remove the wall that stood between them. And if her clothes came off in the process, he wouldn’t mind that either. Libby Griffin turned him on and drove him nuts at the same time. Everything about her threatened his man-badge, but truthfully, he’d give up the damned thing to be with her.
Libby sat at a table by the window so it was doubtful she could see him. He was thankful to have a few minutes to gauge her mood. She drummed her fingers on the table, folded the napkin into an accordion and fringed the edges of the paper placement. She was clearly on edge. He had a pretty good idea why.
Maybe he should just join her and get it over with. If she told him to get lost, he’d know where he stood and she could settle down. He wouldn’t, but that was his problem.
He was about to make his move when he noticed the guy at the table next to Libby sizing her up behind his newspaper. An unexpected surge of jealousy spiked through him. Max flexed his fists and appraised his competition. The guy must’ve won some sort of gene-pool lottery. Great hair. Freaking good looks. Women tripped over themselves to get a guy like hi
m to notice them. He considered his own looks. He was in dire need of a haircut and the growth of his beard was getting out of hand. All Libby had to do was compare him to pretty boy and her choice would be easy.
****
While Libby waited for her food, she blasted herself for not following Steph’s suggestion and checking on Max. Maybe he was at the hospital at that very minute. She let out a heavy sigh. She’d allowed embarrassment to keep her away, which now seemed silly. They were both adults. She’d seen naked bodies. He’d seen naked bodies. It was no big deal. But she’d made it one.
A feeling of being watched made her shift in the chair. She turned to find the guy next to her checking her out. He’d laid his newspaper aside and was giving her strict attention while nursing his bottle of beer. Caught looking, Libby offered a half-smile.
In a flash, he was at her table. He’d obviously taken the smile as an invitation. “Mind if I join you?”
Libby put a hand up to keep him from sitting down. “Actually, I won’t be very good company. I have to inhale my food when it comes and then rush off. I want to get home before it gets dark.” That was a bit of a stretch since it was one o’clock in the afternoon and wouldn’t get dark until five.
The guy slid into the seat anyway. “So you’re not from around here?”
Sweet, she thought sarcastically. Handsome but clueless. “I’m from Columbus.”
“I love Columbus.” That million-dollar smile notched to a billion and the fool scooted his chair closer.