He needed a haircut. His thick black hair was getting in his dark eyes. Just your classic American stud, southern variety. She wished that she didn’t react to him as strongly and instinctively as she did.

“Hello, Strawberry.”

“What are you doing here?”

“Is that any way to say hello?” He folded his heavily muscled arms across that damn chest.

“What I meant was—oh, never mind. How did you get past the dogs?”

“They seemed to think I was a friend.”

“Oh.”

How long had he been watching her? Mary Beth kicked away from the side of the pool and sank under the water again. She swam to the far end of the pool and surfaced, hanging on to the rim with her back to him, as if she was catching her breath.

She didn’t know why she wasn’t that happy to see him. Maybe because he’d startled her. Maybe because—she had to admit it—he’d been away too long and she’d missed him more than she’d been willing to admit to herself. Mary Beth turned around. He was still there. She swam back.

“Looks like you’re having fun.”

“I was, yes.”

“And now that I’m here, you’re not?”

She paddled a little closer. “I didn’t say that.”

“Mind if I sit down?”

“It’s not my house. But go ahead.” She kept most of her body under water, paddling around. At some point, she would have to get out. Parr didn’t look like he was going to go away.

Her day of blissful solitude, happy puttering around, and uninterrupted time to think or not think, was over.

“I guess I should apologize for intruding,” he said. “But mother said you weren’t doing anything special today. I talked to her about an hour ago and I left you a message.”

Mary Beth had been traipsing around in the garden then. Without her phone. That still didn’t explain why he was here.

Parr pulled a wooden sun chair closer to the pool and stretched out on it, his arms crossed behind his head. She continued to swim, pausing only when her wet hair got in her mouth and she had to pull it out. She stood once and dipped her head, then flung her hair back over it in an arc that sent a shower of droplets in his direction.

“Enjoying the show?” she asked tartly.

Parr grinned. “So far, yeah.”

His intense gaze moved over her soaked shorts and crop top. Somehow he could do that without seeming to leer or gawk. Then his eyes met hers. The hot fire in them made her sink down to her shoulders again.

She let her arms float on the surface, feeling somewhat less miffed. It was clear that he’d missed her too.