Wild Men of Alaska 03 - Dreamweaver

scarf will clash with the hunter green of my apron.”
    She giggled, surprising herself with how much fun she was having. She reached up and with one hand felt for the top of his head, her fingers diving into thick, soft hair. It was her turn to groan. By her calculations, his hair was just shy of shoulder length, wavy and soft as goose down.
    “Gemma,” he moaned her name, the books inching closer to her in her peripheral vision.
    She shushed him again. When they’d had these stolen moments before she wasn’t fully awake and always came away wondering how much of what she remembered had really happened and what was just a dream. But she was awake, aware, and more involved than she wanted to admit.
    “Clo se your eyes,” Lucky whispered.
    “No.” She gasped. The desire to close her eyes was unbearably hard to refuse. If she did that she’d be lost again. And she badly wanted to give in. So she didn’t. She grabbed the hat and placed it on his head, next she wrapped the scarf around his neck. She stepped back to view her handy work.
    He looked a bit like a scarecrow.
    “There is nothing sexy about a scarecrow.”
    “I don’t know. The scarecrow was always my favorite character in The Wizard of Oz.”
    “Well, I am brainless with desire.” The humor in his voice was back and made her smile. She realized how much she’d laughed tonight. What fun they would’ve had together if he’d lived.
    “Aren’t we having fun now? Can you only enjoy things when you’re alive? I’m proof that isn’t true.”
    She sobered as the improbability of their situation cleared all the laughter out of her.
    Her heart was in danger.
    “Gemma—”
    “I know.” She shook it off. Tonight. She’d steal tonight for herself. “Do you like to dance?”
    “I’m a fan of anything that gets my body flush against yours.”
    And just like that her despondence was gone as laughter bubbled to the surface. “Hang tight. I’ll be right back.” Once again she returned to the office, picked out her favorite music to play, and lowered the lights in the store, flipping the switch for the mural on the ceiling. Before her dad had died, he’d installed lights that resembled the constellations. Gemini being the brightest. It had been too long since she’d lit them up.
    She walked out of the office into a magical land of light and color. The plate glass windows at the front of the store reflected the greens, reds, and purples of the Northern Lights, while her ceiling sparkled with stars and the fluid streams of the Milky Way. She found Lucky, having placed the books she’d been making him hold, onto the display. He’d even moved the books around so that the colors on the covers popped and balanced the promo. There wasn’t anything about what he’d done that she’d change.
    He seemed to get her in a way that no man had before. As though he could see into her soul.
    He turned as she approached and for a moment she thought she saw more than an apron, hat and scarf. He seemed more outlined in the dim light. If she squinted, she thought she could see details of his frame.
    The hat cocked to the side. “Fleetwood Mac?”
    “I’m a hippie child. Some things you don’t outgrow.”
    “I’m a big fan of Stevie Nicks and of the hippie lifestyle.”
    “You’re not just saying that?”
    She felt the touch of his hand on her check. “One thing you can rely on with me, Gemma, I will never lie to you.” She felt his other hand on her waist, just above her hip. “Dance with me.”
    She slid into his arms as though she’d always belonged. His hips brushed hers, as they moved into a rhythm as natural as breathing. He led her across the book floor under the twinkling lights of the constellations as the smoky voice of Stevie Nicks sang “If Anyone Falls in Love.” It was like they danced on clouds as each step fell into step with each other. He twirled her around the bookcases, from Romance to Mystery to Sci/Fi, they glided.
    The song changed to the slower ballad “Silver Springs,” and Lucky wrapped both of his arms around her, pulling her in close to his body. She sighed, resting her head on his invisible shoulder. This felt so perfect, yet made no sense.
    “Babe, just live in the moment.”
    His bedroom voice rumbled under her ear, and the scent of fresh mountain air twined around her. She didn’t even mind his use of “babe” as she had the other night. This time her insides melted with the endearment. His hands caressed up