Page 48 of Radar

But according to his female friends, Xander looked safe, especially when Radar was around. After whatever tension just happened at the bar between the local stud and her, she was probably heading this way because he was a—

“Hi,” she stopped next to the lounge chair. “I don’t know you. But you look like a nice guy. I’m wondering if you would mind if I just hung out over here for a few?” She smiled.

Yup, he was a safe harbor.

That smile.Wow.Xander’s blood raced through his veins. He wasn’t sure he could catch his breath. “However long you need,” he managed as he closed his book.

Xander shot a look at the guy on the bar stool and back to her. “Are you shaking?”

“Maybe a bit.” She came around the chair, setting her drink on the table, and lowered herself into the deep cushions.

Was the shaking from her interaction with the guy or the cold? Xander started to take off his fleece to hand it to her.

“No, thank you, if that’s for me, you’re kind, but I’m just … I don’t enjoy those kinds of interactions.”

“Bear in the woods,” Xander said as Radar moved to sit between his knees.

Having Radar there was grounding. It helped.

This woman was doing something to Xander’s circuitry, and his cheeks had gone numb.

Radar looked up at him.His eyes said,I mean, what the hell, man? Get it together.

Xander patted Radar’s side to reassure his doggo that he was doing his best under these unprecedented conditions.

“Ha! Yeah, well, if you’re referring to the viral question of whether I would prefer to be with a man or a bear in the woods,” the woman said, “that whole thing takes on a different meaning here in Alaska. I usually answer that with black bears in mind, since I’m from northern Virginia. I might need a little moreresearch about grizzlies and polar bears before I answer that, while out here in the middle of nowhere.” She leaned forward, stretching out her hand. “Elyssa.”

And before Xander could shake, Radar lifted his paw and slipped it between her fingers.

“Hello, handsome. Aren’t you the best dog ever?” she asked, then looked up at Xander with a smile even more radiant than before.

“This is Radar.”

Xander followed Radar’s gaze and saw the man Elyssa had fled, putting his arm out on the wall, capturing a woman. The bartender called out the guy’s name, barking a warning, and the guy dropped his arm and stood up. The woman slipped to the side and hustled to her group.

Elyssa had taken in the scene as well. “Research complete, I’ll chance the grizzly.”

“That guy is terrible.”

“If you’re about to say, ‘that’s not me’ or ‘that’s not every guy,’ it’s a poor answer. While I wait for my friend to get back, I appreciate the safe-feeling harbor, but—”

“But you're monitoring to see if your gut kicks in telling you that you made a poor choice, thinking I was harmless?”

“To be clear, I chose your dog.” The return of a warm smile took the edge off and made this exchange feel flirty rather than tense.

Xander liked the saltiness of it. Johnna White sprinkled salt on her melon, telling him that it made it taste all the sweeter. And now Xander understood that it could be true. “Radar’s a great dog. Now, back to the terrible guy at the bar thing, it’s a tough one for a man to navigate. I’ve had to come up with strategies.”

Radar stood up, walked over to Elyssa, staring at her, his body rigid.

“Hello to you, too, sweetheart.” She reached toward his neck and wriggled her fingers in his fur.

“Radar, come here,” Xander said.

Elyssa reached for her drink, and Xander noticed she was wearing a medical alert bracelet. As Radar moved back between his legs, he whispered. “I got it, buddy, thank you.” Xander stroked down Radar’s neck and chest as he nodded toward Elyssa’s glass. “What are you drinking?”

“Electrolytes.” She lifted the glass. “Gotta stay extra-hydrated in the cold.”

Xander raised a finger in the air. “Nachos with salsa and a shaker of salt,” he called out. Then focused on Elyssa. “Will you eat some nachos?”