Free If You Were Mine by Bella Andre

could fairly easily
    guess the answer.
    “I’m not a forever kind of guy,” he said, as if that explained
    everything. And then, “Some guy you were dating broke your
    heart, didn’t he?”
    Any warmth she might have been letting herself feel toward
    him immediately cooled. “My heart is perfectly intact, thank
    you.”
    He snapped his fingers. “I’ve got it. Your parents split up
    and you’ve never gotten over it.”
    She had to unclench her teeth to say, “Wrong again. My
    parents are stil together. Not,” she added pointedly, “that it’s
    any of your business.”
    And not that their intact marriage had given her one single
    good thing to believe about love — or any hope whatsoever in a
    beautiful forever. In fact, it was the just the opposite whenever
    she thought about her parents’ relationship, about the way her
    father had cheated on her mother probably from the first day
    they’d met, and the fact that her mother stayed with him, like a
    dog begging for scraps regardless of the way he treated her.
    Heather picked up her bag and caled for Atlas so that they
    could leave. She never should have come over to Zach’s house
    this morning in the first place, or had breakfast with him, let alone
    a second one-on-one training session. She couldn’t wait to get
    back to her office. Back to her normal life. Back to the way
    things had been before thoughts of Zach Sulivan — and what his
    kisses might feel like — had started to crowd out al her good

    kisses might feel like — had started to crowd out al her good
    sense.
    But instead of getting the message that she was done talking
    about why she didn’t believe in love, as Cuddles came sprinting
    up behind Atlas, Zach said, “There’s got to be a reason.”
    Professional had gone out the window so long ago she
    didn’t even try to get back there this time. Instead, she said
    exactly what was on her mind. “Let me make sure I have this
    straight. A guy can not be looking for love because it’l
    complicate his easy life. But a woman has to have al sorts of
    trauma to make her like that?”
    Even the nauseating couple stopped licking each other’s
    faces to take in their heated discussion. Wel, heated on her side
    anyway, because Zach looked completely unrepentant. Worse,
    he seemed amused with her reaction.
    “That sounds about right.”
    She threw the bag of doggy treats straight at his heart.

    * * *
Beautiful women fel at his feet, they didn’t chuck things at
    him. And they definitely never said they didn’t believe in forever.
    Was Heather perfect, or what?
    Hot damn, he couldn’t wait to get her into bed, and keep
    her there. Especialy now that he knew she wasn’t secretly
    looking for the big commitment.
    The fun they were going to have once she finaly came
    around...

    around...
    The dogs threw themselves on the doggy treats that had
    spiled out of the bag when it bounced off his chest.
    “Was that part of your lesson on positive reinforcement?”
    he teased her.
    He tried not to laugh when she growled at him as she bent
    to pick up the bag and shoo the dogs away from the food. He
    was bending down to help her when he looked up to see a
    teenager on an out-of-control skateboard barreling down the hil
    straight toward them.
    The kid was yeling for them to get out of the way and Zach
    quickly scooped Cuddles up in one hand and slid his arm around
    Heather’s waist with the other. “Atlas, come!” he ordered as he
    roled quickly to the side.
    The edge of the skateboard clipped Zach’s calf hard
    enough to make him grunt in pain, but al that mattered was that
    he had Heather safe and sound beneath him, the puppy cradled
    in the crook of one arm, and Atlas beside his beautiful owner.
    They were out of the path of danger now, and he should
    have let Heather go. But how could he when she was so soft, so
    warm...and was looking up at him with those big eyes that had
    turned his heart over in his chest from the first moment he’d