more about Grey Lowell the man.
“He’ s a beautiful dog. ” Avery watched the dog tearing up the ground to retrieve the branch. “How’d you come up with that name?”
Grey stretched his legs out and rubbed his thigh. “It’s an Indian word for medicine man.”
“Very cool.” She glanced at Shaman, who was already returning.
“He’s a healer, like you.” Grey grinned.
That grin melted her insides a little.
“I’d prefer Shaman to Bambi.” She playfully cocked one brow, even as she resented succumbing to his charm.
“Just accept the fact you don’t get a vote.” He winked at her. The words heart aflutter had always sounded corny to her until that moment. His silken waves of hair called to be touched. His intense gray eyes sparkled with mischief. His lips . . .
Don’t be stupid, Avery. Too much at stake.
She crossed her arms and refocused. “Where exactly do you live? Because you really shouldn’t be pushing it.”
“Above the office, just a few blocks away.” Grey withdrew a small bag of lollipops from his pocket and offered her one. When she declined, he grabbed one for himself and shoved the rest back in his coat.
She straightened her spine. “Backtrax is more than a few blocks. Pretty far for this stage of your recovery, especially with the pits in the sidewalks and roads.”
“Are you worried about me?” His good knee brushed against her thigh when he twisted toward her to toss the branch in the opposite direction. She kept her leg still, maintaining contact. Apparently her body didn’t care about her brain’s warnings.
“More like I’m worried all my hard work will end up down the drain.”
“Nah. I’m tough.”
She believed that about him. Saw, had seen, the evidence. Well-developed calf and thigh muscles. A strong core and sinewy arms and shoulders. A sculpted body earned through years of healthy, active living and sports, not from protein powders and calculated weight training.
“You’d have to be in your profession.” She’d skied the backcountry with her brother from time to time, but they’d never pushed too hard. Would it be fun or frightening to ski with Grey? “Do you like Sterling Canyon?”
“So far, so good. The skiing’s pretty sweet, and the town is beautiful.” Grey gestured around with his arm. Then he looked right into her eyes. “Just like one of its residents.”
Avery caught herself blinking again, like flippin’ Bambi. Meanwhile, he remained completely comfortable and confident, as if it were no big deal at all to tell her he thought she was pretty. His grin widened at her silence.
Flustered, Avery deflected. “Is that so different from your hometown?”
“Not much. I grew up in Truckee, outside of Lake Tahoe, but I left a couple of years after high school and traveled around, working at different resorts. Colorado, Utah, Alaska.” Grey tilted his head. “Guess that makes me a vagabond, huh?”
“Or just very well traveled, unlike me.” Funny how the notion Sterling Canyon might be just another pit stop for Grey came as a letdown instead of a relief. “So then, will your time here be short-lived, too?”
“Depends.” He flashed a smile, the one that should come with a “hazardous to your health” sign.
“On what?” Curiously, she’d stopped breathing for a second.
He grinned again, like he’d noticed her anticipation, but then his expression grew serious and he glanced away. “On what happens with Backtrax.”
More accurately, with his case against Andy—a topic they couldn’t discuss.
Grey’s livelihood and Andy’s freedom both hung in the balance, with her family’s finances caught in between. The heaviness of heart that had driven her to the park returned.
“But I hope I’ll be around a long time,” he finally said, breaking the gloomy silence.
“Do you ever miss your home?”
Before Grey looked away, she saw the light in his eyes dim a bit. “Home is where the heart is, right?”
“In other words,
“He’ s a beautiful dog. ” Avery watched the dog tearing up the ground to retrieve the branch. “How’d you come up with that name?”
Grey stretched his legs out and rubbed his thigh. “It’s an Indian word for medicine man.”
“Very cool.” She glanced at Shaman, who was already returning.
“He’s a healer, like you.” Grey grinned.
That grin melted her insides a little.
“I’d prefer Shaman to Bambi.” She playfully cocked one brow, even as she resented succumbing to his charm.
“Just accept the fact you don’t get a vote.” He winked at her. The words heart aflutter had always sounded corny to her until that moment. His silken waves of hair called to be touched. His intense gray eyes sparkled with mischief. His lips . . .
Don’t be stupid, Avery. Too much at stake.
She crossed her arms and refocused. “Where exactly do you live? Because you really shouldn’t be pushing it.”
“Above the office, just a few blocks away.” Grey withdrew a small bag of lollipops from his pocket and offered her one. When she declined, he grabbed one for himself and shoved the rest back in his coat.
She straightened her spine. “Backtrax is more than a few blocks. Pretty far for this stage of your recovery, especially with the pits in the sidewalks and roads.”
“Are you worried about me?” His good knee brushed against her thigh when he twisted toward her to toss the branch in the opposite direction. She kept her leg still, maintaining contact. Apparently her body didn’t care about her brain’s warnings.
“More like I’m worried all my hard work will end up down the drain.”
“Nah. I’m tough.”
She believed that about him. Saw, had seen, the evidence. Well-developed calf and thigh muscles. A strong core and sinewy arms and shoulders. A sculpted body earned through years of healthy, active living and sports, not from protein powders and calculated weight training.
“You’d have to be in your profession.” She’d skied the backcountry with her brother from time to time, but they’d never pushed too hard. Would it be fun or frightening to ski with Grey? “Do you like Sterling Canyon?”
“So far, so good. The skiing’s pretty sweet, and the town is beautiful.” Grey gestured around with his arm. Then he looked right into her eyes. “Just like one of its residents.”
Avery caught herself blinking again, like flippin’ Bambi. Meanwhile, he remained completely comfortable and confident, as if it were no big deal at all to tell her he thought she was pretty. His grin widened at her silence.
Flustered, Avery deflected. “Is that so different from your hometown?”
“Not much. I grew up in Truckee, outside of Lake Tahoe, but I left a couple of years after high school and traveled around, working at different resorts. Colorado, Utah, Alaska.” Grey tilted his head. “Guess that makes me a vagabond, huh?”
“Or just very well traveled, unlike me.” Funny how the notion Sterling Canyon might be just another pit stop for Grey came as a letdown instead of a relief. “So then, will your time here be short-lived, too?”
“Depends.” He flashed a smile, the one that should come with a “hazardous to your health” sign.
“On what?” Curiously, she’d stopped breathing for a second.
He grinned again, like he’d noticed her anticipation, but then his expression grew serious and he glanced away. “On what happens with Backtrax.”
More accurately, with his case against Andy—a topic they couldn’t discuss.
Grey’s livelihood and Andy’s freedom both hung in the balance, with her family’s finances caught in between. The heaviness of heart that had driven her to the park returned.
“But I hope I’ll be around a long time,” he finally said, breaking the gloomy silence.
“Do you ever miss your home?”
Before Grey looked away, she saw the light in his eyes dim a bit. “Home is where the heart is, right?”
“In other words,
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