Blue Heron Cove, what shall I do to occupy myself?” she inquired, giving him a lingering look.

He grinned. “There’s the fish fry,” he suggested innocently.

“Under control,” she assured him.

“We’ll need another fund-raiser of some kind.”

“Also under control. I sent out letters today seeking contributions for a silent auction. Any other ideas?”

“I thought you still had a lot to do to get your house in shape.”

She noted that he was starting to sound a little desperate, since they both knew exactly the sort of distraction she really had in mind. Or thought she did. While a fling held a lot of appeal, she had a hunch starting something with Seth would quickly turn complicated. It was another slow and steady race, the very kind that made her a little crazy.

“Painting’s next,” she agreed without much enthusiasm, “but I need to take a trip to the mainland to find what I need for that.”

“You want some company for that?” he asked. “I have a day off coming to me.”

“And you’re willing to go shopping with me?” she asked, surprised.

“You’ll be going to some big box store with paint and tools,” he reminded her. “Very manly. It’s not as if you want to go lingerie shopping.” He grinned. “Though that could be fun, too.”

Abby could feel the heat climbing into her cheeks as she imagined modeling some lacy confections for Seth’s approval. Sweet heaven! She really did have to shift mental gears around this man. She tried picturing Marshall anywhere near a lingerie store, but the image wouldn’t come. Seth, however? Oh yeah!

“I think we’ll stick to the hardware store this time,” she told him a little too breathlessly.

He leaned closer. “Sweetheart, you do realize the image of you holding a hammer is probably just as effective a turn-on as you in lace, right?”

She swallowed hard at the glint in his eyes. “Oh?”

He sat back and shrugged. “What can I say? You’re an attractive woman. You get to me. Add in some tools and you’re every guy’s dream. If you hopped on a riding mower in shorts and a tank top, I’d probably follow you anywhere.”

Abby blinked at that. “Then it’s a good thing we’ve both vowed not to give in to temptation,” she said, her voice faintly choked.

“I don’t recall that,” he claimed, though the twinkle in his eyes said otherwise.

“Then thank goodness I’m here to remind you,” she said sternly. “Casual. No expectations. That’s what we decided.”

He shook his head, feigning bewilderment. “Nope. No memory of that.”

“Your testosterone must be interfering with your brain waves,” she suggested.

He laughed. “Could be. That seems to happen a lot when I’m with you.”

Striving to act cool, calm and collected, she patted his hand. “Bear with it. Maybe it will pass.”

His expression suddenly sobered and his gaze caught hers. “As smart and sensible as it might be, I don’t see that happening,” he said softly.

She thought she heard a faint note of regret in his voice. That was just about the only thing that kept her from seizing the moment and dragging him straight back to her bed, where they both so clearly wanted to be.

* * *

“Since Marcia’s out of the woods, would you mind if I take tomorrow off?” Seth asked Luke. “Could you handle any squad calls that are too tricky for Doug and Scott?”

The two men had taken their EMT training, but still didn’t have a lot of on-the-job experience since major emergency calls in Seaview Key were rare.

“That’ll work,” Luke said at once. “You need to sneak in a couple of days off before I go to New York with Hannah next week.” He studied Seth. “Any particular plans?”

“I thought I’d go over to the mainland with Abby. She wants to pick out paint for her house. I can pick up a few supplies for the rescue squad, too. We’re low on bandages, gauze and a few other things.”

Luke smiled. “Sounds very domestic. Shouldn’t you be taking her someplace for a romantic dinner, instead?”

Seth shook his head. “We’ve established some ground rules,” he said. “I laid them out there one night in a move of sheer desperation, but she’s apparently taken them to heart.”

Luke laughed. “Ground rules, huh? Designed to delay gratification? That’s a surefire way to fuel the fire.”

“I was thinking they’d slow things down,” Seth argued.

“But, of course, the opposite’s happened. You’re both chomping at the bit to get naked.”

Seth sighed. “You have no idea.”

“Oh, I have some idea,” Luke said. “Hannah and I took our sweet time getting together, too. It was the smart, rational thing to do. We agreed. Drove me flat-out crazy.” His gaze narrowed. “Of course, I pretty much knew where we were headed. How about you?”

“I have no idea,” Seth admitted. “I still have a lot of reservations about getting involved with anyone. A relationship with Abby seems even more complicated.”

“Then you’re smart to give it time. She says she’s here to stay. So, I hope, are you. It’s not the place to be making a mistake it’ll be hard to live with in such a small community.”

“I don’t feel smart,” Seth said. “I feel frustrated.”

“Get used to it, buddy.”

Seth frowned at his friend’s unmistakable amusement. “I’m so glad I can provide you with some entertainment. How’s Hannah, by the way? Is she freaking out over this trip to New York?”

Luke’s expression sobered. “Yes, though she tries to hide it from me. She’s terrible at it, though.”

“Do you know if she filled Abby in on what’s going on?”

“She did. I think Abby was very supportive.”

“She wants their friendship back. What can we do to encourage that?”

“Stay out of it,” Luke recommended. “If I start pushing for it, Hannah will only question my motives.”

“What about me? It’ll be a lot easier on us, if Hannah’s not regarding Abby with suspicion. Maybe there’s something I can do to encourage a reconciliation.”

“If you get tight with Abby, anything you push for is likely to be suspect, too,” Luke told him. “This will all work out eventually.”

“Boy,

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