“I didn’t come over to be entertained.” Jenna walked in and Gard closed the door. “I was worried. How bad is it?”

“It’s really nothing.” Gard led Jenna back to the kitchen. “A few stitches.”

Jenna regarded her suspiciously. “How many stitches?”

Gard put her good hand into the pocket of her pants, but she didn’t have any coins to jiggle and pulled her hand back out. Glancing sideways at Jenna, she said, “Twenty, if you count the ones inside, but—”

“Sit down,” Jenna said, pointing to a chair. “I’ll fix you something to eat. Only it’s not going to be baloney and cheese. If you don’t mind me knocking around your kitchen, I’ll cook.”

“No way.” Gard got between Jenna and the refrigerator. “You sit. You’re my guest tonight.”

“You’re hurt.” Jenna’s eyes flashed with a little bit of anger, a little bit of worry.

Gard had never noticed the tiny flecks of black diamond swirling through the green, but now, so close to her, she was mesmerized. “You’ve got beautiful eyes.”

“Shut up.” Jenna caught her lower lip between her teeth, the flush creeping down her neck. “Don’t say anything else, and whatever you do, don’t touch me.”

“Why is that?” Gard stepped closer until they were only a few inches apart. Jenna was breathing noticeably faster, the tip of her tongue peeking out to moisten her lower lip when she released it from between her teeth. “You look so damn kissable right now.”

“I don’t know why it is,” Jenna said, her voice breathy and low, “but you make me want to be kissed like no one I’ve ever known.”

Gard traced a finger along the edge of Jenna’s jaw. “I don’t think I want to know how many women that’s been.”

“Jealous?” Jenna knew she was teasing, wanted to tease her. She’d rushed over to Gard’s to be sure she wasn’t hurt badly, but just one look at her had rekindled the wanting. The wanting had quickly caught flame and by the time they’d reached the kitchen, she was fully involved. All she could think about now was Gard touching her, kissing her, holding her. She snapped herself back to the present. Gard was hurt. “We are not doing this tonight.”

Gard brushed her thumb over Jenna’s lower lip, then pushed in just a little farther until the pad grazed over the moist inner surface of Jenna’s lip. “What are we doing? Huh?”

Jenna licked the tip of Gard’s thumb, aching to suck it. Aching to taste her. And where in Hell had her brains gone. She jerked her head back but Gard’s hand on her jaw blocked her escape.

“What are we doing?” Gard stroked Jenna’s lip, sending sparks showering straight to Jenna’s core. “Jen?”

Jenna planted her hands on Gard’s chest and pushed her backwards, one slow step at a time. “What we’re not doing is fooling around.”

The muscles in Gard’s chest and shoulders tightened beneath Jenna’s hands. God, she had a gorgeous body. Jenna couldn’t help but imagine what all that strength would feel like moving on top of her, moving inside her, and she felt herself go liquid. Go ready. Gard’s eyes flared, and Jenna knew she knew.

“I never heard how you got hurt,” Jenna said hoarsely, maneuvering Gard back the last inch until her legs hit the kitchen chair and she sat. “Tell me while I make your sandwich. But I’m not eating one of those things.”

“There’s some leftover pizza in the refrigerator.”

“I’m not really hungry.” Jenna set about assembling the sandwich, aware of Gard watching her. She concentrated on the mindless activity to keep her mind off the way Gard always made her feel like the absolute center of her attention. She’d been ignored as a child, and as Cassandra was used to being on stage, but rarely had anyone looked at her with such intensity. Having Gard’s gaze on her was as exciting as being touched. “Do you want something to drink?”

“Want to join me for a beer? There’re a couple of Long Trails in the refrigerator.”

“I will, thanks.” Jenna pushed the plate with the sandwich on it over to Gard, got out two bottles of ale, found the bottle opener where Gard directed her, popped the tops, and set a bottle in front of Gard. She sat down next to Gard and sipped from hers.

Gard took a big bite of the sandwich, then another. “Good.”

“It’s baloney. How could it be?”

Grinning, Gard finished chewing, tilted the beer bottle, and took three long swallows, her eyes never leaving Jenna. “How’s your writing coming along?”

“My new book?” Jenna was surprised that Gard would care.

“Can you tell me what it’s about so far, or is that a trade secret?”

“You really can’t be interested.”

“Wrong,” Gard said softly. “I am.”

“I’ve really just started.” Jenna laughed, hoped she wasn’t blushing. “Something a little bit different for me. I’m writing a love story, of course, that’s what I write, but this one is set in a little town a lot like this one.”

Gard’s brows rose. “Really? And who’s the hero?”

Looking at her, Jenna realized immediately who she’d written that day. “You. I mean, a character a lot like you. I’m going to make her a vet—I just decided that right this minute.”

“Not biographical, I hope.”

“Only insofar as she’s devastatingly handsome, effortlessly charming, and drop-dead sexy.”

“Is that what you think?”

“Oh, that’s exactly what I think.” Jenna recognized she was flirting again, and the feeling was a little bit intoxicating. “Of course, I don’t really know what it is that you do, but that’s what the Internet is for.”

“Why get it secondhand, when you could experience it yourself?”

Jenna wondered if they were talking about her book anymore. “What did you have in mind?”

“Why don’t you come out with me on some of my calls? That would be better, right? Give you more of the details that you need?”

“That would be amazing.” Jenna sat forward, excited. “You wouldn’t mind? Believe me, the character wouldn’t be recognizable, even if anyone in Little Falls did read my books.”

“You think they don’t? Rina knows who you are.”

“She might be the only one in Vermont, then.”

“I doubt it. Cassandra Hart sounds a lot more famous than you like to let on.”

Jenna waved that away with a flick of her hand. “Never mind that. You’re sure I can come out with you?”

“I’ll pick you up tomorrow at five.”

“Wait a minute, you can’t be working tomorrow.” Jenna brushed the bandage on Gard’s arm. “You need to recover.”

Gard laughed. “Sweetheart, I can’t stop working because I’ve got a little scratch.”

“I can’t believe that’s a little scratch. And you’ve very neatly distracted me so that you didn’t have to tell me what happened.” She stood up and pointed a finger at Gard. “I’m going to clean up and you are going to tell me what happened.”

“Oh yeah?” Gard grabbed Jenna’s hand with her uninjured arm and pulled Jenna onto her lap. She looped an arm around Jenna’s waist, holding her. “You sure?”

“Talk,” Jenna said. Being this close to Gard was dangerous, but she didn’t care. She laced both arms around Gard’s neck and leaned back so she could watch her face. “No touching.”

“It was a boar.” Gard stroked the outside of Jenna’s thigh below her shorts. Each gentle caress was a streak of fire. “I was doing some dental work and—”

“Wait a minute. A pig?”

“A very big pig,” Gard said with some heat.

Jenna almost smiled. “All right. A very big, mean pig, I gather.”

“All pigs are mean,” Gard said. “This one is especially nasty when he’s awake.”

“Wasn’t he?”

“He was supposed to be anesthetized,” Gard said. “He was getting a little light and some idiots were firing rounds in the woods out behind the farm. The unusual stimulation was enough to wake him up. I was almost done when he got me.”

Jenna cradled Gard’s injured arm in her lap, carefully stroking the white gauze wrapped around Gard’s forearm. “I’m sorry. Will it be all right?”

“Yes. It’ll be sore for a few days, and I’ll need to take it easy with the heavy work for another week or so. But it’ll be fine.”

Gard’s voice had dropped and the slow strokes on Jenna’s leg had become firmer, trailing over the top of her thigh and lightly down the inside, just above her knee.

“I need to get off your lap,” Jenna whispered.

“Why?” Gard nuzzled the side of Jenna’s neck.

“I’m going to forget you’re injured in another few seconds.”

“You don’t need to worry about me.” Gard slowly, deliberately, kissed her way up Jenna’s neck and tugged gently on the gold stud in her pierced earlobe.

Jenna arched, unable to stifle a faint whimper. The little pinpoint of pleasure streaked down the center of her body and struck her clitoris. She realized she was grinding her butt into Gard’s lap, an invitation she hadn’t meant to make and was afraid she couldn’t stop. With more strength than she thought she had, she pushed herself up and away from Gard.

“Sorry,” Jenna muttered. “Sorry.”

“My fault.” Gard didn’t want to let her go and barely restrained herself from yanking Jenna back into her arms. Her stomach was rigid, a hard hot plank of desire. She hadn’t meant to touch her in the first place, but watching her move around the kitchen, bantering with her a little, just being with her had been so damn easy. So damn good. “Sorry.”

“No, you didn’t do anything.” Jenna shook her head and backed up another step. “I can’t seem to think straight around you.”

“I don’t believe what we were doing had anything to do with thinking.”

“My point exactly.”

“The other night you wanted me to kiss you. You wanted me to do more than that,” Gard said.

“The other night you didn’t want me.”

Gard’s jaw clenched. “That’s where you’re wrong. I wanted you. I haven’t stopped thinking about wanting you.”

“Even when you were with your girlfriend?”

“Girlfriend.” Gard blew out a breath. “So you did hear the rumor. Look—”

“Never mind. God damn it. It’s none of my business and I know it.” Jenna turned to leave. “We’re not having this conversation. It’s completely unnecessary. I just wanted to make sure you’re all right.”

Gard stood up. “That’s bullshit. You came over here for something else.”

“You don’t know me well enough to read my mind.”

“Can anyone?”

Jenna shook her head. “No.”

“What about Alice?”

“What about Alice?” Jenna asked.

“She knows you, doesn’t she? I got the feeling Alice didn’t think too much of me.”

“Alice is a good friend. She cares about me. That’s all.”

“You’re not lovers?”

Jenna paused. “No.”

“Do you want to be?”

“It would make sense.” Jenna glanced at Gard. “We’re compatible. We have the same passion—we work too much and we both get more satisfaction from work than anything else. It would be easy and comfortable.”

“Convenient.”

“Yes. Would that be so bad?”

“Probably not.” Gard lifted her shoulder. “If more relationships were like that, they might last.”

“What about you and the girl last night?”

“I just met her.”

“That doesn’t tell me anything.”

“Her name is Madison. We bumped into each other at a bar. She’d been driving all night and was pretty played out. I took her home. That’s all.”

“Rescuing the damsel in distress.” Jenna nodded. “That seems to be your thing—taking care of people.”

“You’re reading that all wrong.” Gard wanted her to know the truth—that she wasn’t anyone to look up to. “One thing I’m not is a hero.”

“I didn’t say it was a bad thing.”

“I don’t want you laboring under any misconceptions about me.” Gard saw a shadow flicker in Jenna’s eyes, saw Jenna swallow a question, and she knew. She couldn’t escape her past, even here. “What have you heard?”

“Nothing,” Jenna said.

“Jenna,” Gard said, shaking her head.

Jenna knelt in front of Gard’s chair and put both hands on her thighs. Her eyes were fiery. “Listen to me. Alice recognized your name and said there’d been some kind of trouble. She didn’t know the details.”

Gard snorted. “I find that very hard to believe. Alice doesn’t look like anything gets by her. She told you I’d been in trouble with the law, didn’t she?”

“Yes.”

“Then why are you here?”

“Because I don’t care.”

“You would, sooner or later.”

“You don’t know that.”

“And you don’t know me.”

“I know you took care of me when I was hurt. You consoled me when I was sad. You make me laugh. You turn me on.”

“How long are you going to be here?”

“A few weeks,” Jenna said, but even as she did, she wondered if that was true. She had no obligations for the rest of the summer. She liked being at Birch Hill, and she liked being around Gard.