Lessons in Love

Chapter 1

 "Dizzy, stop!" Aria shouted. She scrambled up from her knees and ran after her runaway dog. He had pulled his stake out of the ground and was chasing a rabbit down the sidewalk, leash and stake dragging on the ground behind him.

Just before Dizzy reached the end of the block, a jogger rounded the corner. He quickly sized up the situation and stopped well in front of Dizzy, arms out. "Whoa there, Buddy. It looks like you're away without leave." Dizzy slowed to avoid crashing into the tall man in front of him. The man grabbed the leash and unhooked the stake, while the rabbit disappeared into the bushes. Dizzy pulled against the leash and then, thwarted, sat and stared up at the man. Aria raced down the block and stopped in front of Dizzy's captor, bending over and breathing heavily.

When she looked up, she was staring into the warm, brown eyes of a lightly tanned, dark-haired man at least six inches taller than her. A broad smile creased his face, showing off even, white teeth. Aria felt a tiny flutter in her stomach.

"Is this your runaway?"

"Yes, I don't know what got into him. It's not like he's never seen a rabbit before."

The man crouched down to stroke Dizzy's curls and look him in the eye. "You look like you're a smart guy, my friend. Best to stick with your Mama." The man looked up at Aria, his dark hair lifting in the breeze. "What's his name?"

Aria smiled coolly down at the man. "Dizzy. And thank you for stopping him."

The man scratched Dizzy, who was leaning against him in ecstasy. "You're welcome. I haven't seen you around before—are you new to the area?"

"Kind of...Anyway, we should be getting back." Aria reached for Dizzy's leash, leaning close enough to smell clean male sweat mixed with a fresh evergreen scent. She wanted to linger and breathe him in, but warning bells were going off in her brain. She tucked a tendril of blond hair behind her ear and started to back away.

Unfortunately, Dizzy wasn't on board with the plan. The golden doodle was a good forty-five pounds of muscle and curls, and he had decided he liked his new friend. He pulled against the leash and leaned on the man, who was now standing.

"Dizzy, come!" Aria said as she pulled on the leash. The dog wouldn't budge. This beautiful but irritating man looked as if he was thoroughly enjoying her predicament. Finally, he relented.

"It's okay, Dizzy. I need to finish my run anyway, although I bet it will be pretty boring compared to this adventure." He smiled again at Aria and reached out his hand. "My name is Lucas. It's nice to meet you."

Aria couldn't ignore the outstretched hand without appearing to be rude, so she extended hers toward him. He gently took her hand in his warm, firm grip, and Aria felt a snap of electricity. She dropped her hand quickly. Definitely time to go. "Okay, well, thanks again." Aria pulled Dizzy with her, who was finally cooperating since the man was backing up the other direction.

"You forgot to tell me your name!" he shouted as the distance between them increased. Aria looked back at him and sighed. "It's Aria."

*****

Aria. A lyrical name to go with the lyrical beauty Lucas had just had the pleasure to meet. Who knew that when he set out for his morning run, he would end up rescuing a friendly dog and meeting someone who was beautiful and charming? Okay, not exactly charming—more like coolly friendly, but still, he could feel the air hum as she got closer to him. She smelled like some mysterious night flower, and those green eyes—he couldn't look away from them. Maybe he would plan his run through this neighborhood more frequently.

Wait, what was he thinking? Lucas had everything he needed, and the last thing he wanted was a woman disrupting the comfortable flow of his life with Lily. He would enjoy the view if he happened across her again, and that would be enough.