An image flashed through her mind of how she’d last seen him before departing his house this morning: in the shower-a heart-stopping sight she was now very familiar with-water sluicing down his lean, muscular, aroused body. Just the memory shot tingles down to her toes.

The man occupied every corner of her mind. Occupied? Ha. More like he’d pitched a tent, settled himself in a comfy chair, and taken up permanent residence in her brain cells. Which was bad enough. But she greatly feared the situation was far worse than that-that he’d managed to take up permanent residence in her heart as well. Which, given his imminent departure from Austell, was really bad. She needed help. A pep talk. Pronto. Since there wasn’t a twelve-step “Fight Your Daniel Addiction” program listed in the phone book-and she’d looked-she settled for the next best thing. Digging her cell phone out of her purse, she quickly dialed.

“Hello?” said a familiar voice.

“Hi, Mom.”

“What’s wrong, sweetie?”

Carlie couldn’t help but laugh. “I literally said two words. What makes you think something’s wrong?”

“I’m a mother. I know these things. And based on your voice, I’m guessing that whatever’s wrong involves a man, most likely your neighbor Daniel you briefly mentioned when we spoke last week.”

Briefly? She’d said his name. And only because Daniel had been there when her mom had called and she’d heard his voice in the background while he’d played with P.B. and J. “Okay, you’ve always been good at guessing, but this time you’re scaring me. What do you have-a crystal ball?”

“No, just the ‘I know when my baby needs me’ chromosome that never goes away, no matter how grown-up that baby might be. So tell me what’s wrong.”

“Maybe I’m just calling to wish you a happy Valentine’s Day.”

“Thank you. Same to you. Now what’s wrong?”

Since there was no point in trying to deny she was troubled, Carlie blew out a long breath, then tried to put into words the unsettling thoughts spinning around in her mind, grateful she and her mother could discuss anything.

“Over the past two weeks, Daniel and I have been, um, seeing quite a lot of each other.” Literally. Another image of him naked flashed through her mind. “And things have been…terrific,” she continued, although “terrific” didn’t even begin to do justice to what they’d shared. “He’s very…nice,” she grimaced at the lukewarm word, “and I don’t mean just between the sheets. Which is really the problem. And I guess that’s why I’m feeling so…out of sorts. He’s moving tomorrow, and well, I’m just…sorry he’s leaving. I…I’m going to miss him.” To Carlie’s dismay, her bottom lip trembled and moisture pushed behind her eyes. “Which is something I hadn’t anticipated. I knew going in that our time together had an end date tattooed on it. We both did. And that was fine with me. Believe me, the last thing I was looking for was a man to clutter up my life. You know that I’d sworn off serious relationships, at least until school is finished.”

“I recall you telling me that, yes.”

She raked her free hand through her hair. “But Daniel turned out to be so…different. So unexpected. He makes me laugh. He’s talented and smart. Kind and generous. Easy-going and patient to a fault with P.B. and J. He’s nice to his family. On top of all that, he’s spent hours designing and building me this fabulous, professional website, that I’d never be able to afford, to advertise my massage therapy services. Our time together was supposed to be no-strings but instead I find myself tied up in big, huge knots.”

“And why do you think that is?”

“I guess because I…like him.” She pinched the bridge of her nose and forced herself to admit the frightening truth that she could no longer deny. “Problem is, I think that maybe I like him a little too much. Certainly more than I wanted to.”

“Hmmm. And what are you planning to do about that?”

“Planning?” Carlie, frowned then shook her head. “Uh, well, nothing. There’s nothing I can do. He’s leaving for Boston tomorrow. This was nothing more than a fling. For both of us. My life is here. His life is there. I don’t have the time or energy to devote to a long-distance relationship. And even if I did, he hasn’t given me any indication he’d be interested in doing so.”

“Have you talked about it?”

“We agreed we’d ‘keep in touch,’” she made air quotes her mom couldn’t see, “but you know what that means. We’ll exchange a few e-mails or phone calls that will turn painfully awkward once he starts dating someone else. Which I bet won’t take long once the women of Boston discover him.” An unpleasant sensation that could only be called jealousy slithered through her, making her want to slap the entire female population of Massachusetts.

“And also awkward when you start dating someone as well,” Mom said.

“Right,” Carlie agreed, trying to picture herself in another man’s arms and failing completely.

“Does he know how you feel?”

“I don’t know how I feel. Except that I’m…confused. And irritated at myself for letting my heart get even the smallest bit involved.”

“Do you think it’s possible that maybe his heart’s involved, too?”

Carlie’s pulse jumped at the softly spoken question but then she shoved aside the ridiculous flare of hope it ignited. “I hope not because the bottom line is it wouldn’t matter. He’s leaving, I’m staying and there’ll be an entire country between us.”

Her mom’s sigh came across the phone. “I’m sorry, honey. I wish there was something I could say to make you feel better. A bandage I could put on your boo-boo.”

A sad smile tugged at Carlie’s lips. “Me, too. But I appreciate you listening. I’m just being silly. Sentimental ’cause it’s Valentine’s Day and all. Once he’s gone and I’m not seeing him every day, everything will be back to normal. I’ll be fine. Perfectly fine.”

“I’m sure you will be. But.

“But what?”

“Is fine good enough?”

Carlie frowned and gripped the phone. She hesitated for a moment, thinking, then said, “Being ‘fine’ sounds like I’m settling for something, as opposed to, say, being ‘deliriously happy.’” Her frown deepened. “And maybe being deliriously happy is something I shouldn’t give up so easily.”

“Maybe it’s not. You’re a smart girl, Carlie. You’ll know the right thing to do.”

Her throat tightened at her mom’s assessment. She didn’t feel smart. In fact, she felt as if she’d foolishly ventured beyond a thin ice warning and was about to crash through and sink below the surface.

“But I can’t give up something that was never mine in the first place, Mom. The only thing definite about my time with Daniel was that it was temporary.” She heaved a sigh, then glanced at her watch. “I need to go. Daniel and I are having the dinner we won together tonight and I have to get ready.”

“At least you won the Valentine’s Day contest,” Mom said in an overly cheerful voice.

“Sure did.” Which was exactly what she’d wanted.

Unfortunately, she feared she’d gotten much more than she’d bargained for.


WITH A BOUQUET of tissue-wrapped flowers clutched in one hand, Daniel stood on Carlie’s porch and drew a deep breath. For reasons he refused to examine too closely, he felt unnerved. Tense.

It’s just all this moving stuff, he told himself, flexing his shoulders to work out the stiffness. Yeah, all the last-minute tasks. Packing his car for the cross country drive. Settling everything with the Realtor. Getting the phone shut off and the mail forwarded.

Saying goodbye to Carlie.

And that, unfortunately, had somehow turned into an insurmountable task.

Which was ridiculous. He’d known from minute one that their time together would be brief. Hell, part of the beauty of the whole situation was that he’d be able to walk away with no regrets. Fun and games with no strings, no commitments, no problems.

Except he hadn’t counted on enjoying her company so thoroughly. He hadn’t doubted they’d be good in bed-and he’d definitely been right on that score-but he hadn’t expected to enjoy her so much out of bed. Hadn’t known she was so compassionate, so deeply committed and loyal to the things that were important to her, so witty. Hadn’t anticipated her thoughtful intelligence, her goofy sense of humor, her ability to laugh at herself. Hadn’t foreseen liking her so damn much. Hell, he even liked her dogs. And the thought of leaving tomorrow…it made him tense with an unpleasant sensation that felt like an all-over body cramp.

He dragged his free hand through his hair. What the hell was wrong with him? He should be on top of the world. The Realtor reported that someone was very interested in his house. A great job in a great city awaited him.

He was just…nervous. Yeah, that’s all it was. Once he was settled in Boston, he’d be fine. Just fine. Perfectly fine.

Feeling better, like the coach had just pumped him up with a pre-game pep talk, he rang Carlie’s doorbell. P.B. and J. set up a frantic chorus and he smiled at the commotion. Seconds later the door opened, and Carlie appeared, flustered and laughing, trying unsuccessfully to hold back the puppies. His heart executed the now familiar roll it performed every time he saw her.

She wore a fire-engine red dress that hugged her curves in a five-alarm way. With its high neck and long sleeves, the dress showed no skin at all, yet the way it showcased her form earned it the title of Sexiest Damn Outfit He’d Ever Seen. Strappy silver heels made her toned legs appear endless. A memory of those legs wrapped around his hips, urging him deeper into her body flashed through his mind, leaving a trail of steamy heat in its wake.

Her glossy curls looked soft and had “mess with me” written all over them. A shimmer of gloss that matched her dress made her lips look like a delicious candy apple, filling him with an almost painful anticipation of tasting that luscious mouth.