Page 41 of At First Catch

I’ve never heard him unleash such a joyful, unrestrained laugh before. Warm enough to slide beneath my ribs and stay there.

Rook decides Nolan is his new favorite person and launches himself from the SUV with all the grace of a falling piece of furniture.

“Jesus Christ,” I mutter as the dog barrels directly toward Nolan.

Instead of stepping back, Nolan crouches just before impact, and Rook crashes into him enthusiastically.

Nolan braces one hand against the dock railing to keep from getting flattened while Rook attempts to climb into his lap despite his gangly legs and erratic tail.

“Well,” Nolan says, scratching behind the dog’s ears while Rook pants ecstatically, “this feels aggressive.”

“He has no boundaries.”

“Clearly.”

The sunlight catches Nolan’s face as he looks up at me from where he’s crouched beside Rook, and something low in my stomach flips hard enough to hurt.

God. This is bad. Because suddenly I’m imagining impossible things: Nolan here every morning, coffee in his hand, Rook following him around the marina when he escapes from Lark, me standing beside him while the docks wake up around us.

Domestic thoughts are dangerous thoughts.

I clear my throat and reach desperately for professionalism. “You said you needed help with the event permits I suggested?”

Nolan stands, one hand still resting absently on Rook’s head, until he pulls up to his full height.

“I do.”

“You also said this was mostly professional.”

His eyes hold mine.

“Mostly. I’m trying very hard to maintain my professional reputation.”

I fold my arms.

“Do you have one?”

“I had one.” His mouth twitches. “Then you showed up.”

The way he says it makes my pulse stumble. I look away first because I’m weak.

“Okay,” I say brightly, already emotionally spiraling. “Great. Wonderful. Let’s discuss bureaucracy.”

Nolan’s mouth twitches.

“Very sexy sentence, Hadley.”

“You should hear me talk about zoning restrictions.”

“Careful. We’re in public.”

Ruddiness floods my cheeks.

Nolan notices, and the smugness that briefly flickers across his face should annoy me.

Instead, it makes me want to kiss him a little.

This is going terribly already.