Page 39 of Unpacking Secrets

The surge of protectiveness rippling through my veins took me by surprise, but the last thing Juliet needed was to panic over what might amount to nothing.

I’d explore the possibility that someone else was out at Cooper’s Point that day on my own, so she could focus on her recovery. Anything that threatened her safety, especially into what could have been a much more serious accident, needed to be dealt with.

“I thought I was the only enemy you’ve made in town,” I teased, bumping her shoulder with my own to lighten the suddenly heavy atmosphere around us.

Juliet narrowed her eyes at me. “You could have hired a hitman. You certainly seemed pissed enough at me, between the inn and the incident at The Mermaid.”

“This ain’t the big city, Red. I’m just a small town boy, and believe me, I was more pissed at myself for not being able to control what came out of my mouth than I was at you.” I cocked my head. “How do you know what a gunshot sounds like, anyway?”

“My ex-boyfriend was a hunter,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “He insisted I go with him to the shooting range once. I hated it, but the sound is hard to forget.”

“Well, I’ll trust your expertise then. And I’ll ask around town. Blue and I hike those woods a couple times a week. I don’t want to risk running into some jackass shooting off-season out there.”

“Thank you,” she mumbled, looking a little flustered.

“What’s that face for? Don’t you want me to ask around?”

“No, I do,” she insisted. “I just appreciate that you’re willing to trust my judgment, even if I might be wrong.”

It seemed like she was having a hard time reconciling the Henry Walker she was coming to know with the one she’d been desperately avoiding, which was something I had to take full responsibility for.

“Look, we got off on the wrong foot, Juliet, but this is your home now, too. I want you to feel safe here and I’ll do what I can to make that happen.”

Her pretty lips curved upward in a sweet, shy smile. “Right. Well, thank you, for all of it.”

Frowning a little, I touched a finger to the tip of her nose. “You’re getting sunburnt. We’ve barely been here an hour. That’s got to be some kind of record.”

She muttered something derogatory about her coloring beneath her breath, then grimaced at me. “As much as I’d like to never leave this spot, I should probably get back to the cottage before I fry. I should’ve thought to wear sunscreen.”

I was also tempted to protest, but beneath the pink of her nose and cheeks, she looked a little tired. At her warning scowl, I offered a hand to help her off the boulder instead of lifting her down as I wanted to—anything to get my hands on her again. Blue bounced toward us, tongue lolling happily from her open mouth.

“You stink,” I told the dog. “You’re riding in the back.”

“Is that safe?” Juliet asked with a disapproving frown.

“You want to snuggle up to this smelly mutt in the truck?”

“It seems only fair,” she replied, rubbing Blue’s head with her uninjured hand. “We’re the ones who brought her here.”

When she looked back at me, I was still staring at her, dazzled. Libby had always been one of my best friends in the world and she was fair almost to a fault, but Juliet’s sweet sense of justice simply bowled me over.

The woman in question rolled her eyes and said, “Look, do whatever you want with your own damn dog and your own damn truck.”

“You’re an unusual woman,” I replied, my face breaking into a wide smile as I took her elbow to help her toward the truck. Then I leaned down so that my breath tickled her ear as I added, “And if you need help washing the smell of wet dog off of that flawless skin of yours later, you just let me know.”

She blushed again as I ran my thumb gently along her bare arm. Blue leapt into the truck and Juliet slid in beside her, fighting a grimace at the smell now that they were in close quarters.

I had no such qualms. I made a face and nudged the dog closer to Juliet as I got behind the wheel.

“You’re a big softy, Juliet Morrison,” I said, shaking my head, “but you certainly do make life around here more interesting.”

The drive back to the cottage, while pungent, was as peaceful as our time at the lake. Despite her insistence that she was perfectly capable of traversing twenty-some feet on her own, I walked Juliet to the front door. I didn’t touch her, cognizant of the fact that I’d be sorely tempted to keep on touching her if I did, but when we reached the door, I gave her a smile that caused an audible hitch in her breathing.

“I’m sure I don’t have to say this, but please take it easy. If you need anything else from upstairs, I’ll bring it down for you. You’ve got my number. I’m just a text away.”

She nodded. “Thank you, Henry. I had a really nice time today.”

“I did, too. I appreciate you giving me a chance to prove I’m not a complete jerk.”

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