...“Maggie?” There was genuine concern in his voice. He pulled up a chair next to her. “What happened? You’re looking kind of freaked.”

This was Ryan caring, not being nosey.

“I am kind of freaked,” she admitted. She couldn’t just keep this bottled up in her own head. “But whatever I tell you doesn’t leave here. You can’t tell Chris. Especially Chris.” Even if Schnauzer had told her every embarrassing detail.

“Now you’re starting to freak me out. Talk to me, Maggie.”

She glanced around their area, glad to find it all but deserted. “It’s nothing so horrible. Really. I…” God, how did you tell your best friend you discovered you were a closet dom?

She couldn’t do it. “I took off on him last night,” she said instead, sanitizing the hell out of the situation. “And I left him in a pretty bad spot.”

“Did he try something funny?” Ryan got all puffed up. “Because if he did—”

“No, it’s nothing like that.” Well, it was. It was just like that. Except she had encouraged it. “Basically, things were going along, and I…well, I freaked out.”

“They must have been going along well, then.”

“What? Why do you say that?” God, she must look like some kind of nympho or something.

“Because you only ever run when someone’s getting to you.”

“I do not.”

“Oh, yes, you do. The last three guys you’ve dated you’ve dumped by the second or third date. Usually about the time it gets around to the kissing part. Face it, kiddo, you’ve got issues with intimacy.”

“It’s not about intimacy; it’s about chemistry. After the initial spark, there was nothing.” She knew she didn’t sound even remotely convincing. “I figured why waste the time.”

He looked at her.

“I don’t have intimacy issues.”

“Not every guy is a Karl.”

“You would bring him into this. You always do.”

“Well, you’re the one who hasn’t moved on, Maggie. It’s been five years. More than enough time to get over the betrayal and realize he was the exception, not the rule.”

“Christ, Ryan, I know that. I’m over Karl. But apparently you aren’t.”

“You haven’t had a relationship that’s lasted more than a couple months since him. Shouldn’t that tell you something?”

“Yeah, that they weren’t the right guys.”

“You’ll never find the right guy if you don’t give any guy half a chance.”

“I suppose Schnauzer’s the right guy.”

“He could be. But you’ll never know, will you?”

“Maggie,” Stacy interrupted them, saving Maggie from having to come up with a protest. “Flowers for you.”

It was another bouquet of the seemingly random mix of wildflowers Schnauzer had given her the night before, this time overflowing from the enormous vase they had come in.

“Nice,” Ryan said casually. “You leave a guy high and dry and still he sends you flowers. Yeah, I can see why you wouldn’t want to date him.”

“Shut up, Ryan. Don’t you have work to do?”

“I can tell I won’t accomplish anything here. Think about what I said, Maggie.” He left, taking Stacy with him. “Or if you won’t listen to me, listen to him.”

There was a note tucked into the flowers. With a sense of impending dread, Maggie took it out and opened it.

Rather than the hurt or accusations she had expected, it just had one simple statement. Some dogs need to be taught restraint.

That’s when she noticed the decoration on the vase.

What she had taken for trim she now saw was a tightly braided dog lead wound around the neck of the vase and topped with a softly tooled collar, the brass buckle gleaming against the mahogany leather.

Maggie smiled in spite of herself, running her fingers over the smooth hide. She had to give the guy credit for his persistence, especially after the disaster of last night. By rights, he should be steering well clear. It only made her feel worse about her behavior.