Princess was obviously getting comfortable because she fell asleep in Lindsey’s lap, practically purring as she relaxed.

“I can’t hide there forever,” she said with a sigh.

Instantly, Lindsey wanted to kick herself. She hadn’t wanted to admit that hiding was exactly what she was doing, especially not to Maverick, who seemed to be far too intuitive as it was.

“You won’t feel like hiding at all by the time you realize how great life can be,” he told her. “That is, how great it is to have such an amazing friend like me,” he added with a wink.

She was grateful he didn’t harp on her admission that she was hiding. She much preferred that he joke with her. She would rather deal with his slightly obnoxious flirting than talk about real feelings and emotions.

“Now, come on. Let’s throw some balls.” She gave him an odd look and he laughed. “Not my balls, sugar. I’m sort of attached to those.”

Lindsey hated the instant blush suffusing her cheeks, but when he took her elbow, she gently set Princess on the ground and then let him pull her along. She was thrilled when Princess trotted after them.

Mav called Benji over and then pulled out a couple of small tennis balls from his pocket. They went to the side and threw them. Benji was great at chasing them down and bringing them back for another throw. Princess looked at her like she was crazy when she told her to go get one.

Lindsey laughed and sat down on the ground. Mav handed her a small rope and she brushed it on the ground in front of Princess. After a little while, the dog let out a quiet little growl and then attacked the rope. But even her bites were gentle as she tugged on it, making Lindsey laugh.

They stayed a couple of hours and still, when Mav told her it was time to go back, Lindsey wanted to refuse. She wasn’t ready to let Princess go yet, especially since she was starting to look a little less sad.

When they walked into the shelter, this time with Lindsey carrying Princess since she was worn out from all their playing, Lindsey wanted to just turn around and run out the front door with the puppy safely in her arms. But it was selfish of her to keep the dog. She wasn’t prepared enough to do so.

Still, as they walked out, the little dog’s sad eyes trailing after them, Lindsey couldn’t help the tears that popped into her own eyes.

“She’s yours if you want her,” Mav said as he stopped with her leaning against the truck.

“I . . . I can’t,” she said, feeling like crying her eyes out. He didn’t push her any further, just helped her inside the truck.

They drove for several moments without either of them speaking.

“Thank you for the day, Mav. It was a lot . . . better than I expected,” she told him.

“You didn’t think it was going to be something lame like dinner and a movie, did you?” he asked with his token twinkle.

“Well . . . uh . . . sort of,” she admitted.

“Ah, sugar, you’ll soon know that I’m anything but predictable.”

When Maverick dropped her back off at the cottage with no more fanfare and Lindsey walked inside, she wondered why she was disappointed. It wasn’t until later that she realized that she was upset that he hadn’t even attempted to kiss her.

It had been a date after all. Even if she had told him it wasn’t a date. It had been a date. And to tell the truth, it was the best date she could ever remember having been on.

But she didn’t want Mav to kiss her again. She didn’t want any man to kiss her. It was ridiculous to even think such a thought.

But as the rest of the day passed and she went to bed, all thoughts were on Maverick, and Lindsey knew she was in trouble. This man was getting beneath her skin. If she wasn’t careful, he was going to burrow too far to be removed.

CHAPTER TWELVE

It seemed that every time Maverick turned around, something else was changing in his life. He didn’t even fully understand it. Yes, he was the one at the controls, but it was almost as if he wasn’t the one making the decisions.

Earlier in the day, he’d found himself at his animal shelter. When it had come time for him to return Benji and Princess back to their kennels, instead he had told the staff he was taking them home.

What was he doing? He’d explained all the reasons he couldn’t own an animal, much less two of them. Then, later in that same day as he’d sat in the cold confines of his family home—the home he’d been living in for the past few years when he was actually home—he’d looked around at the cathedral ceilings, antiques, untouchable furniture, empty rooms. Suddenly, he’d found himself searching his computer for new places to live.

So that brought him to the end of another hectic day.

He sat on the back deck of a for-sale house as he looked out over the water as the sun began going down. Princess was curled up in his lap, keeping him warm as she snoozed away, her sweet snores almost comforting. She calmed him in a way that was more appealing than just about anything else in his life.

As if she knew he was thinking about her, she looked up with her sad eyes, begging him not to leave her. Benji barked from about twenty feet away as he ran after a squirrel that quickly climbed a tree before turning around and yakking at the dog, protesting at the intruder for being on its property.

“What do you think, Mr. Armstrong?”

For a moment, Mav had forgotten the woman was even there. The water was lulling him into peaceful oblivion as the breeze blew through the many trees scattered on the property.

“I’ll take it. Tell escrow I want to close by next Friday. I’ll pay full asking price.” What was he doing? He didn’t want a new house—not really—so why was he telling this woman he was buying it?