him. He found he wanted to learn more. Everything. He hadn’t been this interested in a woman in… hell, he’d never been this interested. He couldn’t ignore the attraction, but it was more than physical. Everything about her called to him, leaving him both breathless and with an ache in his chest. He usually had to tell his dick to behave when he was around her, but now, all he wanted to do was hold her close. She was an enigma, and he wanted to peel back the layers.
“I like Tolkien’s Hobbit and Lord of the Rings.”
“Lots of people like those. But it’s kind of unusual for a dog’s name.” Frodo groaned, and he glanced up at the dog, seeing him still asleep, dreaming peacefully. A slight giggle had him swing his gaze around, finding Samantha smiling at Frodo before looking back at him. Her smile caused his heart to squeeze again with her beauty while feeling relieved that she was smiling at him.
“There are volumes and volumes of people analyzing Tolkien’s work. How his friends and his time in the war shaped the author that he became. But for me, it was always so simple. Yes, there was duty and honor. Sacrifice and fighting for what’s right. But mostly, it was about true friendship. And that was never more exemplified than between Frodo and Sam.”
“Have you always gone by Sam?”
Her shoulders hefted. “Sometimes my family calls me Samantha, but often it gets shortened to Sam. In college and vet school, I was known as Sam.” She held his gaze for a long moment then tilted her head to the side. “You always call me Samantha.”
“To me, you are Samantha. It’s a beautiful name for a beautiful woman.”
Her fingers halted in the middle of a beer label rip and she stared, not breathing. His gaze never left hers as his hand reached across the table and wrapped around her fingers. “Breathe.”
Her breath rushed out, and she blinked. He wanted to pull her to a stand, wrap his arms around her, and kiss her slightly opened lips. He did the first, then battled to not fulfill his wishes. She deserves so much more.
With them now both standing, his hands still holding hers and her face tilted up to his, he blurted, “Did you like the ride on my bike?”
Her smile widened, and she nodded.
“Then I’ll come pick you up tomorrow evening and take you into Baytown. You can get your truck, but I’ll take you to dinner first.”
Now it was his time to hold his breath, wondering what she’d say. And just like the Samantha he was getting to know, she said what was on her mind with no hesitation.
“I’d like that. I’d like that a lot.” Her admission was open. No games. No playing coy. It dawned on him that while she might come off as prickly at times, she simply was who she was—a lot like him. She said what she thought and felt but was never rude. And her big heart… no, not going there.
Now his smile matched hers, and as he gave her hand a squeeze and turned to leave, Frodo lifted his head, saw that all was right with the world, groaned, and flopped to the side. Chuckling, Joseph walked outside and started toward his bike.
“Joseph!”
Turning at the sound of Samantha’s voice, he waited as she stood in the doorway of her camper. The light from inside illuminated her profile, casting an otherworldly glow about her.
“J.R.R. Tolkien wrote in The Fellowship of the Ring something I thought you should hear. ‘Not all those who wander are lost.’” She shrugged but held his gaze. “It makes me think of you.”
He stared, transfixed by her beauty framed in the light and her words that surrounded him. He tried to swallow past the lump in his throat, offering a chin lift, his silent good night, before turning once again and jogging to his bike.
Throwing his leg over the seat, he fastened his helmet and started the engine. He’d always loved the feel of the machine underneath him, the power so connected to his body’s movements. But as he watched her wave while she stood in the door of her camper home, all he could think of was how his bike now seemed lonely without her sitting behind him. Not all those who wander are lost. He already knew he was falling under her spell, but with those words, he wasn’t sure how to keep from drowning.
Taking off down the