Page 43 of Wreck Me

Again, he seemed to read her mind. “And maybe I could stop by other times too, or we could meet up in town? You know—just to annoy you now and then, so you’ll feel alive.”

She tried to make her face serious, but a flirty smile broke through. “You are expert at annoying me, Nico Vitale. And maybe now and then, you could leave something lying around for me to hold onto long enough that I can claim it?”

He reached out and took her fingers lightly into his. “You have a knack for that.”

Eddies of happiness swirled through Ginny at the realization that he might be feeling something between them too, but the eddies felt equally dangerous. She and Nico had entirely different values and life philosophies. And even if she didn’t care about Great Aunt Lydia’s million dollars, she promised her sisters she wouldn't date. Granted, it was a stupid promise given that she would never marry anyway. Breaking it for a man whose way of living was the polar opposite of hers seemed doubly stupid. It was probably the open spaces affecting him. Once they returned to civilization, he’d be all Mr. Deal Maker and Return-On-Investments Guy again.

She took a small step back. “Um…we should probably start heading home.”

As if stung by a bee, he dropped her hand and stepped back too. She expected to see shock, and maybe even anger, in his features—how could someone he considered so lowly and pathetic possibly rejecthisadvances? But his eyes dimmed with hurt, and he seemed to shrink a few inches in all directions. He quickly adopted a stiff smile, but for that fleeting moment, she was sure she’d seen the hopeful little boy in the photo from the family album, only all grown up and no longer hopeful.

“I didn’t mean…,” he stammered.

“No, it’s okay, I…” Her mind and heart battled inside her. Had she just made a huge mistake? The electricity crackling between them was long gone now, and she had no idea how to get it back. They still stood no more than two feet apart, but it might as well have been the distance between her and the Pacific Highway as it ribboned round the skirts of the Santa Monica mountains far below.

A commotion in the direction of the driveway drew their attention.

“What was that?” she asked.

Nico sucked a guilty breath in through his teeth. “Probably Mick. He took off when I was trying to get him on his leash. I figured he wouldn’t go far. With all the…excitement…I forgot to mention it.”

She stared at the scrub, searching for signs of brindle fur and a half-bitten ear. “Do you think he’s safe? There could be coyotes around here.”

“If there are, Mick’s their alpha by now.”

“Mick!” Ginny called. The sound echoed off the hills behind them, but there was no sign of him. “Maybe what we heardwasa coyote?”

He pointed toward Annie and Jack. “Those two would be barking bloody murder if it was anything but Mick.”

She couldn’t argue with that, but before she could agree, a Mick-colored blur erupted from the scrub, heading in their direction. He was galloping going full tilt, as he always did—Mick had no moderation level—but he was going to plunge straight off the cliff if he didn’t slow down!

“Mick!” they both yelled, trying to get his attention.

But he’d already realized the danger he was in. His paws scrabbled wildly in the loose dirt in a cartoonish attempt to put on the breaks. When that wasn’t working fast enough to slow his advance, he changed direction, sending him plowing straight into Ginny like a seventy-pound bowling ball.

“Ah!” Ginny screamed as she realized she was now the one at risk of toppling down the steep slope. She tried to get a foot under her sideways fall, but her recently injured ankle protested. A sharp pain raced up her leg, tipping her further off balance. Helplessly, she felt herself falling, until Nico grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to him.

They were both breathing hard as Nico picked her up completely and moved them both several feet away from the ledge.

He set her down, but kept his arms wrapped tightly around her. “Are you okay?”

She nodded as she let out a relieved breath. “A little shaky.” She looked over at Mick, who’d ambled toward his siblings and laid down next to them as if he hadn’t just nearly murdered their owner. “Look at him now, acting like nothing happened. And here I thoughtyouwere the one who was going to shove me over a cliff.”

Nico exhaled a laugh. “It was either him or you, and he chose you.”

With her palms flat against his chest, she could feel his heartbeat, as rapid and erratic as her own. His eyes, deeper than the ocean just beyond, and just as dangerous, searched her face.Once again, she had the strongest urge to run her fingers along his cheekbones and lose them in the tendrils hiding just behind his ear.

“Ginny, I hate that you feel unsafe around me, especially since it’s my own fault. It was cruel of me to set up those speakers and dump strange dogs right next door. Even though we’ve talked about it already, I still feel terrible about it.”

She lifted her shoulders in a narrow shrug. “I could’ve been nicer too. I did like the outdoor theatre. It was romantic and sweet. I think the only reason it didn’t occur to us to just move the dang house was?—”

“We were too busy torturing each other.”

A moment of silent agreement stretched between them, but it gradually became awkward. He was still holding onto her tightly even though there was no need.

“I’m safe now.” Her voice came out softer than she’d planned.

He let her go, but didn't step back, and neither did she. Even without his arms around her, she still felt enveloped by him—his scent, his warmth, his solidity.

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