Page 59 of Finding New Dreams

Clenching my jaw, I barely glanced at the target before letting the axe fly. It landed a few inches south of the bullseye.

A frown wrinkled Rose’s brow, even when I smiled like a gracious loser. Those wide, dark eyes seemed to search my soul.

She stepped toward me and grasped my hand before leading me out of the way of the next throwers. Gina conveniently stopped to chat with a few women I didn’t recognize.

“You didn’t lose on purpose, did you?” Rose asked, our entwined hands almost hidden in her billowing skirts.

“Of course not.” I rubbed my thumb over her soft hand. “You’re the better axe-thrower. Simple as that.”

“So…you’re fine leading Mrs. Q’s class? You know it was just a silly bet. You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

I smiled down at her. “Would you have backed out of my class if I’d won?”

She hesitated then shook her head, sincerity finally smoothing her frown. “No. I think I could learn a lot from you.”

The sudden breathlessness in her voice tugged me closer to her. I forgot where we were. The people, the noise, the town square faded away.

The pink tip of her tongue darted over her lower lip. A deep groan, unlike any sound I’d ever made, rumbled through my chest. Every thought fizzled out except Want. Need. Now.

“You guys want more lemonade? Not that you need any more.” Gina’s voice was like a bullhorn in my ear.

Rose quickly took a step back, separating our hands.

I smiled at Gina with gritted teeth. “Damn, Gina, I think you almost burst my eardrum.”

“Had to. You guys didn’t hear me the first two times.” In a quieter voice, she added, “Now quit eye-humping each other in the middle of Lumberjack Jam and help me find Dom. I want to get a picture with him in front of the statue.”

Rose spluttered denials about said eye-humping, while I scrubbed a hand over my face, trying to come back to earth.

More than ever, I wished we didn’t have these barriers between us. That she could let her guard down. That I could be someone other than Flynn Higgins, playboy artist and her friend’s big brother.

Maybe if we’d met somewhere else. At an art show or something.

And I’d just been some guy and she’d been a random girl.

I would’ve spotted her immediately. She would’ve been standing in front of one of my masterpieces, of course, admiring it. I’d tell her I was the artist, and she’d smile and introduce herself. We’d talk, I’d flirt, she’d show me some of her work, and I’d call her my dream woman. She’d laugh, sure I was using a line.

But then there’d be a moment where she saw the truth in my eyes, when she stepped into my arms, when she kissed me with all that wild passion coursing beneath her sweet surface.

And the night wouldn’t have ended there. We’d go back to my place. Lock ourselves in. We’d barely sleep for days. And even when the most urgent exploration was finished, there’d be no desire to walk away.

But it hadn’t happened that way. And wouldn’t.

Instead, I’d leave, and she’d probably fall right into Leo’s understanding arms.

My stomach churned at the image.

He’d told me he was merely poking fun at me, that he knew she was spoken for even if neither she nor I did. But that didn’t mean it wouldn’t happen. He wasn’t kidding when he’d said I was the heartbreaker and he was the heart-mender.

It had never bothered me. Until now.

I was under no presumption that I had any claim on Rose’s heart. But still…the moniker rankled.

We caught up with Dom and his friends by the grill tents. As the sun sank behind the trees, we filled up on more food and lemonade. Eventually, Dom allowed his mom to pull him away toward the bronze statue of the town’s lumberjack founder, Travis “Tree Trunk” Lamont.

The statue was very popular for pictures, so we had to wait for a few minutes.

Gina took that opportunity to give me a sly look, then asked Rose, “So, no date last night?”

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