Matt chuckled. “You’ve gotta know that he’s not like this with everyone. One of our distribution guys, Wayne—well, Dex isn’t a fan of his. Oh, hey, did you see that? Watch.” They both watched Dexter’s face and Matt said, “Wayne,” again. Dexter stood and gave a sharp bark, and Matt threw his head back and laughed.

Jules grinned at the pair of them. “So, I guess you have to spell his name out now, huh?”

“I dunno, he’s pretty clever.”

“Who, Dexter or Wayne? Oops.” She clamped a hand over her mouth right as Dexter barked again. “Sorry.” She giggled through her fingers.

Matt petted his dog on the head. “Actually, he’s bang on. I’m not much of a fan of W-A-Y-N-E either. C’mon, let me show you around.”

He retrieved Jules’s carry-on and his duffel bag from the car and led the way inside.

“Oh, my god, I love this!”

“It’s home—a little rustic, but we like it, right Dex?” Matt set the bags down and Dexter responded to his question by curling up on a dog mat next to the couch.

The main room—a combined kitchen, living, and dining room—was light and airy with wooden floors, off-white walls and a high apex ceiling. A wall of windows looked out over gently rolling hills covered in neat rows of vines.

The modular couch invited lounging and a long, low, wooden coffee table offered a variety of activities—coffee-table books, a stack of novels, a chessboard, and a backgammon set.

The long wooden dining table looked like the perfect place to spend an evening with friends having dinner and playing board games, and the large kitchen had polished stone countertops and, not surprisingly, a built-in wine fridge.

And even though the room was spacious, it felt cosy, inviting. It was also super tidy.

“No, really, Matt, this place is awesome.” She walked over to the windows and looked out at the vines. “And this view … I bet you never get tired of this.”

He stood beside her, draping an arm around her shoulders and, as though it were the most natural thing in the world, she leant against him and breathed in his scent—woodsy and masculine. His fingertips gently stroked her arm. “I’m really glad you’re here,” he said quietly.

Her breath caught in her throat. “Me too,” she whispered. She felt his head rest against hers and steadied her breath, a defiant move against her racing heart.

She wasn’t sure who moved first, or if perhaps they turned together, but his arm slid to her waist and she tipped her face to his as their mouths came together. His other hand found the nape of her neck, the touch of his fingers sending tingles down her spine as he pulled her closer. Their tongues flicked, tips touching, and she sank into the kiss.

Oh, yeah. This. Exactly this.

It was hard to know how much time passed, but eventually they broke apart. “Roawwrr.” They looked down as Dex raised his paw to Matt’s thigh.