Paige ran out to the parking lot just in time to see Walt Jr.'s sports car peel out onto the street, the tires squealing. She watched with dismay as he turned left, toward her house. Damn Luke. "I hate him."

"Yeah, he did seem rather desperate," Luke agreed, his breath warm on her cheek.

Paige jumped forward, away from Luke. She whirled toward him. "I meant that I hate you."

"It is said that there is a fine line between love and hate."

"Why did you do that? I had just told you that I wasn't here with him." Paige dug into her purse for her keys and stalked toward her truck.

Luke grabbed her arm, forcing her to stop. "I figured you wouldn't go home if you knew Walt Jr. was waiting there for you."

She twisted her arm out of his grasp. "And what's the point of that? Depriving me of my home?"

"I thought we could go somewhere and talk."

Paige clenched her teeth and unlocked her truck, refusing to look at Luke. "There's nothing more to say. You want me to be your kept woman, and I won't do it."

She climbed inside and tried to pull the door shut, but Luke wedged his hip in the door. He absently patted his dog, who was poking his nose over Paige's shoulder to greet him. "Hey, Muffin. Paige, I asked you to marry me. What more do you want?"

"I want to marry a man who loves me."

"Maybe I love you. Did you think of that?"

She sighed. "You don't even know me, so how can you love me? The fact you can even think that offering me fancy restaurants, nice clothes, and dinner with the partners in your firm shows how little you know about who I really am."

Luke pulled her keys out of the ignition and shoved them in his pocket. "Then why don't you tell me?" Challenge flashed in his eyes. "Why can't you move to Boston, Paige? You know my past. Tell me yours. Instead of throwing up walls between us like you do every time I ask about your past, tell me. Don't run away again. Just tell me."

Paige folded her arms across her chest. "Fine. You want to know? I used to be a lawyer at Black & Bonneau."

His brows shot up. "You did? The firm that's in my building?"

"Yep." She took a deep breath, fighting back tears. "I wanted to be the first female partner at B&B, so I worked my butt off. I slept at the firm most nights, and had no life outside. My fiancé also worked there, and we were hardly ever at home. I made tons of money, was about a year away from making partner, and then…." God, she didn't want to tell him. She didn't want him to look at her the way Howard had, the way everyone in her firm had.

"Then what?" Luke's voice was soft, and he moved closer, running his hand down her arm. "What happened, Paige?"

She raised her chin and met his gaze. "I had a nervous breakdown or whatever they're calling it these days. I collapsed in the middle of a team meeting and I had to be carted out on a stretcher. I spent a month in the psych ward at the hospital, and when they let me out…" she sighed. "A part of me was broken," she said softly. "My fiancé had already dumped me, and the firm had quietly asked me not to come back. My ex bought me out of our condo, and I moved up here to recover. I got Bandit a few weeks after moving here. That's when I discovered what life is about, and that's when I began to heal."

Luke whistled softly and encircled his fingers around her wrist. "You just left the law behind completely? After all you'd invested in it?"

Paige hesitated, unsettled by the fact he wasn't pulling away, that he was still touching her, that he didn't seem shocked, surprised, or horrified. Didn't he understand what she was telling him? "Yes, I quit. When I was in your firm that day, it was the first time I'd been in a firm since then. I was having a panic attack when you thought I had the flu."

Empathy flickered in his eyes. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea."

She met his gaze. "I'm the one you heard about. The crazy woman who lost her mind."

He shrugged. "I don't pay much attention to rumors."

She blinked. "That's it? That's all you have to say? Don't you realize what associating with me would do to your reputation?"

"I don't particularly care about what anyone else thinks." He twirled his index finger thoughtfully in her hair. "Do you miss practicing law?"

She took a deep breath, trying desperately to resist the urge to lean into him, to ask him for the hug she needed so desperately. Instead, she focused on the feel of his hands on her wrists, his thumbs tracing circles on the underside of her wrists. "I don't miss anything about my old life," she said firmly, meeting his gaze.

"I can imagine." He was still studying her thoughtfully, not pulling away.

She eyed him. "How come you aren't surprised I'm a lawyer?"

"Because it makes sense. You're obviously smart and witty, and you aren't remotely intimidated by me." He nodded. "Yep, it all makes sense now. I'm impressed as hell that you figured out what you wanted in life, and rebuilt yourself. That's not easy."

Her heart tightened. "Thank you."

He nodded, running his hands along her arms. "You've got it all, don't you? The education, the freedom to make a living wherever you want, and the experience to choose what makes you happy. Dog training."

"It's not perfect."

"How so?"

"I sometimes wish I could start a part-time local practice up here. I feel like I could make a difference to people, like how I make their lives better with my dog training. I mean, I love my dog training, and I'd never give it up, but it might be fun to do both." She looked at him. "But I'm scared. I was really a wreck, Luke. I don't want to be like that again. I don't think I could handle it, even up here, but there's no way I could do it in Boston."

"I understand why you don't want to move back to Boston," he said, resting his hands on her hips. "I'm sure you could handle it if you wanted to, but you have a beautiful life up here." He gave her a smile that held a hint of sadness. "If I'd known what I know now, I wouldn't have asked you to move to Boston. It's not right for you, and I apologize for asking you to do it."

Her throat tightened at his utter lack of judgement. "I do love you," she whispered. "Would you ever consider moving up here?"

He was quiet for too long, long enough for her to know the answer in his heart. "It doesn't matter, then," she said. "It just doesn't matter." She held out her hand. "My keys, please."

"No. We aren't finished."

"I am." She grabbed the waistband of his suit, and pulled him close, slipping her hand into his trouser pocket before he could stop her. "I love you, but I need to get away from you, Luke. You're breaking my heart, and it's just not healed enough to handle that." She put the key in the ignition. "And I have to go exterminate my house, thanks to you sending Walt Jr. over there."

Luke said nothing, but he stepped back and let her shut the door. Letting her go. Not fighting for her. "We aren't finished."

"I'm keeping your dog for now. He's scarier than Bandit and will drive away any intruders that may be lurking at my house. You can come get him tomorrow, if you still want him."

"I'll be there." But she was gone, out of hearing. Luke stood in the parking lot, watching the pickup disappear down the street, knowing that she wouldn't find Walt Jr. at her house. Luke had made that up just to keep her from rushing off without talking to him. He should have known better than to force Paige into anything. The woman must have been a good lawyer, she was so stubborn.

And she was better than a good lawyer. She was an incredible woman, courageous, funny, warm, and passionate.

He could never ask her to move to Boston.

But could he walk away from her? He closed his eyes. What did he really want? What did his soul really want?

It took him about three seconds, and he knew.