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rolled with her, trying to keep most of the pressure off her and still allow himself to be in position to get a shot off at their attacker. What he hadn’t counted on was Regin’s determination to thwart this very attempt.
    She saw the gun being raised, his finger tightening around the trigger, and launched her upper body toward him. The sound of the gunshot blasted through the noise of their struggle while the air echoed with a still silence. Then Regin was on top of him, throwing punches and cursing up a blue streak.
    “You stupid son of a bitch,” she screamed! “You shot my dog.” She managed to land enough blows that seemed to satisfy her for the moment and jumped to her feet running to her wounded pet. “If you’ve killed her...” she stopped unable to finish the thought.
    “I didn’t kill anyone.” He assured her. “The shot went wild, straight into the air. You don’t own a weapon unless you know how to use it.” He walked toward her, eyes narrowing as Regin wrapped her arms around the dog’s neck and hugged her tight.
“It’s all right, girl,” she whispered her assurances, “I won’t let that mean ugly man get any where near you.” She slowly unwound her body from her dog and rose to face him. “What in the hell is the matter with you?” She shouted up at him and couldn’t control the shaking in her body.
    Galen saw her heartbeat pulsing in her neck. He was sure it would jump straight through and leap into his hands.
    Galen had faced men in dark alleys with nothing more than his mind and hands to defend himself, yet he never felt more helpless than he did now watching Regin’s eyes fill with tears she was too proud to shed. He was the reason behind her fear and knew of no way to make amends for the few minutes of hell he had put her through. But he had to try, or his job would be over before it had begun.
    “Regin, maybe I didn’t approach this or you correctly. I should have given you the chance to explain, but I think you should know it’s not wise to let just anyone approach you. This is a small town and even smaller island, but we have our share of crime just like any other town.” He swept his arm toward the water surrounding the island and beyond.
    The island wasn’t quite two miles wide, the only access being the small strip of manmade land connecting the island to the mainland. The land bridge wasn’t even a reliable way in during the hurricane season, as it was more frequently under water than not. His ancestors had made the wise decision to place the main house on the highest point of the island, but whether through design or not, they’d placed the mother-in-law cottage below the pond at the lowest part of the land.
    “You need to know who you’re dealing with before you allow yourself to show weakness.” He tried to explain.
    She whirled to confront him. “How dare you lecture me on my conduct? I was trying to be friendly to the man I was to be sharing a very small island with. The same man who was to teach me everything he knows about camping and fishing,” she paused to draw a breath before continuing to blast him. “I was, and am, prepared to defend myself, but not against a gun wielding maniac in my front yard.”
    She jabbed a finger at his chest. “You come out of nowhere, start telling me off, and then have the nerve to try and shoot my dog because she’s defending me.”
    As fast as she had raged at him, she turned her back once again and called for her dog. “Come on, Little Ann, we’re out of here.”
    She grabbed the nearest box off the porch and stalked back to her Land Rover, clearly intent on leaving the island as fast as her truck would carry her. As she bent to place the box in the trunk, he came behind her and yanked the box back out of the SUV.
    “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she demanded.
    He didn’t bother to answer, just walked away with her laptop and printer. He set them on the rocker and said over his shoulder, “Do