Page 22 of Maid in Heaven

Avafelt stunned as he spoke, nodding in agreement.

“Life is full of ups and downs,” he continued, “and,sure, a lot of the time things don’t work out. But with a good book, you get to feel that rush of euphoria over and over again. It’s like a drug.”

Gremlin deviated from her wide, circular path and darted toward her owner, hurtling her grunting body between his feet at top speed. Kuda followedthe exact same trajectory,bowlingWill backwardwith the force of the dog’s strong impact against his thighs.

“Oh, f—”

Will landed on his backwith a hardthwapin a patch of brown,muddied slush.

At least,hehopedit was mud.

“Oh no!Kuda!” Ava squeaked, kneeling beside him in the slurry. “Oh my God, are you alright?I’m so sorry, Will!”

As Ava spoke, suddenly, the pain from his fall felt dulled. Instead of feeling the sting of concrete against his hip, tailbone, and shoulder, he felt warmed by her touch, soothed by the sight of her. He glimpsed the porcelain face beneath hercurtain of longhair, colorful and vibrant against the bleak, gray sky.She was a vision of redwaves, her locks in sharp contrast to those jungle-green eyes. He felt like he could look at her forhours, studying every curve of her inviting mouth, flawless skin,and fluttering eyelashes with the appreciative gaze of an artiststaring at an exquisite creation.

Was it the hard fall that stole the air from his lungs? Or was it that she had the single mostarrestinggaze he’d ever seen?

His heart thrummed hard in his chest. It had been so long since he’d felt every fiber of his being surge with excitement, and even then, it had never felt quite likethis.

He saw her perfect lips moving but remained too focused on the gloved hand cupping his cheek to hear a word she’d said.

“Huh?” he finally mumbled, catching his breath.

The coldness of the world flooded back, along with the sound of her voice finally carving its way through the fog in his mind.

“I said, ’Are you alright? That was a hard fall.’”

“Oh. Mmm-hmm,” he answered, dazed. His eyes glanced at her lips, and he wondered how they tasted.

“Here, let’s get you up.” Ava rose to her feet and held out her hands to help him.

Cold slushseeped through the back of his jeans, soaking the bare ass beneath them with a blast of frigid liquid.

As Ava helped Will to his feet, the sound of panting wafted toward them. They both turned their headsin shock.

Kuda was humping Gremlin.

They shouted the dog’s names in unison, but the animals kept at it, pounding away like long-time lovers after a lengthy absence.

Nothing short of a fire hosewas going to break them apart.

Ava covered her mouth with her hand, trying to stifle her laughter. “He’s neutered, I promise.”

“She’s spayed,” Will offered, tilting his head in curiosity at the scene.”

“What do… we do?” Ava’s giggles grew louder. She turned her back to the dog and shielded her periphery with her flattened hand.

“I guess if they’re both…you know,maybe… welet them have their fun.”

“Kuda, I don’t believe you!Snap out of it!” She swatted the air.

Will doubled over with laughter. “Did you just pull a Cher and quoteMoonstruckto your Pit Bull? I’m…impressed, frankly.”

Ava giggled, embarrassed, and turned her back to the humping dogs. “I ammortified.”

“Eh, dogs have short lives. Too short. If they’re both fixed. It’s good to let ‘em live a little, I think.”

“I just don’t know why he’s humping her. He’s got no…” Her eyes grew wide, and she threw her hands up in an over-the-top shrug.

---