He hurried towards her, the big dog loping along with him, only the leash holding it back. Larry bristled at the sight of the huge canine galloping towards him and began a low growl in his throat, standing protectively next to Marissa. She hushed him then turned her attention to the man now climbing her porch steps. She propped her chin on her fist and gazed up at him, her hair tumbling wildly around her face in an explosion of red-gold curls.

“Hi, Aaron.” Her voice squeaked when she spoke, a blush creeping up her high cheekbones.

“Good Lord. Marissa? Is that you?”

“It’s me. Good to see you.” She gave him a little wave with her gloved hand.

“What the hell are you doing here? Do you live here?” He still sounded disbelieving.

“Guilty as charged.”

“Holy hell, woman. Are you okay?” Aaron picked his way through the strewn lumber and knelt down next to her. His big shaggy dog clambered forward and stuck his large gray snout into Marissa’s face. Larry seemed to sense that the floppy-eared dog meant no harm but stayed close beside her.

“I think so, all except for my pride.” Marissa stirred and wiggled a length of paneling off her back. “I feel like a fool.”

“I think I just skinned my knees and elbows. Of course, I haven’t tried moving yet.”

“Here. Let me help you up.”

His hands were gentle when he took her upper arms and began to lift her but she jerked with shock as his palms touched her skin. Suddenly she felt paralyzed. Heat seemed to radiate from his palms to her flesh but shivers ran through her, as though she’d been stroked with ice. How could she feel so hot and so cold at the same time?

She finally managed to move and slowly allowed him to pull her to her feet. A wave of dizziness surged over her; she wasn’t sure if it was because the fall itself had upset her equilibrium or if it was because Aaron’s hands were touching her. When she swayed he pulled her closer, wrapping his arms more tightly around her to provide her support. For a minute she felt lightheaded and her head fell down onto his shoulder. God, the world was swirling.

Without hesitation Aaron put one arm behind her shoulders, the other under her knees and swept her into her arms. Ordering the dogs to follow he stomped to the door and managed to wrench it open and still hold her close.

Marissa gasped with shock and flung her arms around his neck. He paid no attention and stepped in the door, using his shoulder to hold it open to allow the dogs to enter then striding into her house. He kept moving towards the kitchen and when he reached his goal he deposited her on a chair.

Without a word he turned to the sink and grabbed a handful of paper towels then ran them beneath the water. She watched him silently, noticing the tension in his broad shoulders. Even as she watched he seemed to draw a deep breath and compose himself. Was he nervous? Maybe it wasn’t just her feeling awkward.

Aaron turned and faced her, his face a picture of calmness.

“Let’s see that elbow.”

Marissa didn’t speak, just bent her arm to expose her elbow. He took her wrist in his hand and dabbed gently at the raw flesh. She looked on silently, gazing at the shaggy mop of black hair on his bent head. She fought back a sudden urge to plunge her fingers into that cap of silky curls.

“I can do that,” she suddenly blurted out, breaking free from the trance he’d woven around her. She stretched for the towels but he pulled them out of her reach.

“No. Let me.” His voice was determined and she let him have his way. He began again dabbing at her wounds.

The silence between them stretched until Marissa couldn’t stand it anymore and blurted out the first thing she thought of.

“Did you hear about Staci Green?”

He glanced at her, his eyes seeming to dim momentarily.

“I did,” he replied. “I read about it after I talked to you this morning. Quite a shocker.”

“I know. I still can’t believe it. Staci…dead.” She side-eyed him casually and tried to read his body language. He didn’t seem nervous talking about it. Surely he wasn’t involved in the murder. She was still suspicious, though. It was just so odd that Aaron turned back up on the same day she learned Staci was dead.

“So , I understand she was a realtor as well.”

“Yes. A pretty good one, too. She was a real competitor.” Marissa paused and bit her lip. “She was a good competitor at a lot of things.”

“So , you two finished high school together I take it ? . ” He switched to cleaning the other elbow.

“You must have still been friends after all these years. I’m sorry for your loss.”

He sounded sincere, his voice deep and soft. Could he sound like that if he’d had anything to do with Staci’s death?

He retrieved more paper towels and wet them in the sink, then knelt down in front of her. She jerked when his hand slid behind her knee and pulled it slightly towards him so he could run the soothing towel over it.

Holy crap. If just the touch of his hand on her leg made her heart beat so fast what the hell would it be like to kiss him?

And why had she thought about that?

“Thanks, though if I’m being honest I have to admit we weren’t really that close.” She shrugged. “I guess you might say more like frenemies.”

“Frenemies, huh?” He cocked his head and her heart hitched as she looked into his twinkling brown eyes.

She nodded; then a hallucination passed before her eyes. She reached out and grabbed his head, her fingers sinking into the thick mop of his hair and pulling his face down to hers. Her lips attacked his, sucking and tasting.

She blinked twice and the vision was gone. Damn, she needed to put an end to this.

But before she could think of how to do that, he abruptly changed subjects.

“So, why didn’t you tell me you lived next door to the house I was interested in?”

She wasn’t prepared for the question. Her hesitation was obvious. She finally spoke.

“I didn’t think it would be professional to tell you that. I didn’t want to influence you either way.”

“Oh, I see.” His face wore a thoughtful expression. “So , what you said about the neighborhood?”

“Well, it is a little rough. I mean, the Monon trail is just a block away. You hear about muggings happening there sometimes.” She knew she sounded lame but the babble kept coming. “And it is close to downtown Broad Ripple. It can get kind of noisy.”

“Really, Marissa?” His tone was laced with skepticism, his eyes doubtful.

Marissa avoided his gaze. She wasn’t about to tell him she was uncomfortable with the thought of him living so close to her. She thrust her chin in the air and didn’t say a word.

“Listen. Whatever the reason is you don’t want me living next door you’re probably going to be disappointed. I like that house. I want that house. I’m probably going to own that house. So , you might as well get used to the idea. Either you can sell it to me or someone else can. I really don’t care.”

Their eyes clashed, each one feeling angry. She was tempted to tell him to talk to another realtor but the businessperson in her made her bite her tongue. If he was determined to buy that house she might as well be the one to profit from it.

“Fine. I’ll see you in the morning then.”

“Fine.” Aaron threw the paper towels down, nodded his head firmly, snapped his fingers for his dog, and walked out of the room.

Obviously, she hadn't gotten off to a good start with this client.