Rescue My Heart

RESCUE MY HEART

JEAN C. JOACHIM

Contemporary
Romance

Moonlight Books

ABOUT
THE E-BOOK YOU HAVE PURCHASED:
Your
non-refundable purchase of this e-book allows you to only ONE LEGAL
copy for your own personal reading on your own personal computer or
device.
You do not have resell or
distribution rights without the prior written permission of both
the publisher and the copyright owner of this book.
This book cannot be copied in any format, sold,
or otherwise transferred from your computer to another through
upload to a file sharing peer to peer program, for free or for a
fee, or as a prize in any contest. Such action is illegal and in
violation of the U.S. Copyright Law. Distribution of this e-book,
in whole or in part, online, offline, in print or in any way or any
other method currently known or yet to be invented, is forbidden.
If you do not want this book anymore, you must delete it from your
computer.

WARNING: The unauthorized
reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal.
Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without
monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up
to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

Moonlight Books
Novel

Contemporary
Romance

Rescue My Heart

Copyright © 2014 Jean C.
Joachim

E-book
ISBN:
978-1-62622-813-9

First E-book Publication:
January 2014

Cover design by Dawné
Dominique

Edited by Tabitha
Bower

Proofread by Shannon
Ellis

All cover art and logo
copyright © 2015 by Moonlight Books

ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED:
This literary work may
not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means,
including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in
part, without express written permission.

All characters and events in this book
are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is
strictly coincidental.

PUBLISHER

Moonlight Books

Other books by Jean C.
Joachim

FIRST & TEN
SERIES

GRIFF MONTGOMERY,
QUARTERBACK

BUDDY CARRUTHERS, WIDE
RECEIVER

PETE SEBASTIAN, COACH

THE MANHATTAN DINNER
CLUB

RESCUE MY HEART

SEDUCING HIS HEART

SHINE YOUR LOVE ON ME

TO LOVE OR NOT TO LOVE

HOLLYWOOD HEARTS
SERIES

IF I LOVED YOU

RED CARPET ROMANCE

MEMORIES OF LOVE

MOVIE LOVERS

LOVE’S LAST CHANCE

LOVERS & LIARS

His Leading Lady (Series
Starter)

NOW AND FOREVER
SERIES

NOW AND FOREVER 1, A LOVE
STORY

NOW AND FOREVER 1, THE BOOK OF
DANNY

NOW AND FOREVER 3, BLIND
LOVE

NOW AND FOREVER 4, THE RENOVATED
HEART

NOW AND FOREVER 5, LOVE’S
JOURNEY

NOW AND FOREVER, CALLIE’S STORY(series
starter)

MOONLIGHT
SERIES

SUNNY DAYS, MOONLIT NIGHTS

APRIL’S KISS IN THE
MOONLIGHT

UNDER THE MIDNIGHT MOON

MOONLIGHT & ROSES
(prequel)

LOST & FOUND
SERIES

With Ben Tanner

LOVE, LOST AND FOUND

DANGEROUS LOVE, LOST AND
FOUND

NEW YORK NIGHTS
NOVELS

THE MARRIAGE LIST

THE LOVE LIST

THE DATING LIST

SHORT STORY

SWEET LOVE REMEMBERED

Dedication

For pugs in need and the wonderful
people who save them.

Acknowledgment: Thank you to my
readers, friends, and family who support me and inspire me to keep
writing. Also to my editor, Tabitha Bower, proofreader, Renee
Waring, publisher, Beth Walker and the Tuesday Tales
group.

RESCUE MY HEART

JEAN C. JOACHIM

Copyright ©
2014

Chapter One

It came at her suddenly, out of
nowhere. Rory Sampson leapt out of the way of the speeding bike and
onto the grass, yanking her pug, Baxter, with her. The dog flew
into her belly, knocking the wind out of her. When she could
breathe again, she was shaking her fist after the careless
biker.

“
Can’t you read? It says
‘no bike riding on the paths’!” she screamed. It was too late—the
oblivious offender followed the path north. A few people looked
after the man then at her. One woman asked her if Baxter was all
right. Rory brushed herself off. Baxter was dazed for a moment, but
appeared to be fine.

“
Damn selfish bike
people,” she muttered as she and her pug made their way to the
Great Lawn in Central Park. Still trembling, she lost sight of the
beauty of the sunny day. Since it was before nine o’clock on a
spring Saturday, Rory unhooked the leash and let Baxter run free.
He trotted ahead, always keeping an eye on her.

Examining her shorts and legs, she
found grass stains on the fabric and a few small stones embedded in
her thigh. A sharp pain shot through her flesh as she pried the
pebbles from her skin.

“
These were new. Now
they’re ruined,” she said to herself, brushing dirt off her behind.
Baxter appeared to be fine as he returned to her side, keeping pace
with her stride. The few people in the vicinity ignored Rory’s
almost-accident and went about their way. Irked by the lack of
support from fellow New Yorkers against the reckless biker, her
good mood evaporated.

Unexpectedly, a shirtless young man in
running shorts came abreast of her.

“
I saw that asshat almost
run you down. I got a picture of him.”

Rory turned her head. Dazzled by the
sweaty, half-naked body in front of her, she could barely speak.
“Uh, thanks.”

“
Are you all
right?”

“
Bruised, but
okay.”

“
Give me your email
address, and I’ll send it to you.”

“
How sweet, thank you. I’m
Rory, by the way.”

“
Carter.” They shook hands
and exchanged emails.

Dark
hair, light eyes, and bare shoulders as wide as the park stood
right in front of her.
Stop
drooling.
She wanted to reach out and
touch his well-muscled chest, but held back.
Be faithful to Bruce.

As she was about to maneuver their
conversation into flirting territory, a gorgeous, half-dressed
blond guy ran up beside Carter. “Did you tell her?” he
asked.

“
I did. Got her
email.”

“
What a pig.”

“
Thinks he owns the park.
Bikers here are all like that,” Rory said.

“
Amen to that.”

“
This is Benton, my
partner,” Carter said.

Crap!
They’re gay.
Rory shook his hand and tried
to hide her disappointment. They said farewell and prepared to
continue their run. Baxter barked at them.

“
Nice dog,” Carter called
then took off, running in perfect stride with Benton.

Wish I
had a partner like that. Bruce is just as hunky.
She sighed and resumed her walk, pushing thoughts
about her relationship with her boyfriend from her mind.
It’s a beautiful day. Focus on that.
She kept her eyes peeled for her park friends,
people she saw only when walking Baxter. They were friendly
acquaintances and fellow bike haters. She couldn’t wait to tell
them what had happened. Halfway around, she still hadn’t seen any
of her usual gang, so she headed for Pug Hill.

“
We
might as well find some of your friends,” she said to her dog as
she steered him toward the east side of the park. Her favorite sign
of warm weather had to be male runners without shirts. As another
well-built one ran past her, her gaze swept his body.
But I have Bruce, don’t I?
She frowned until she spied a cluster of daffodils pushing
toward the sun.

Raising her gaze a bit, she saw a
familiar sight—the fawn and black of pugs whizzing by her eyes as
they ran free. Baxter smelled his breed and began to whine. He
raced toward the others, who were dodging, running, and playing.
She jogged along behind him.

A group of three fawn-colored dogs
were chasing another, who was making wide circles. Baxter woofed
once then joined in. Rory loved to watch him romp in the park with
others. Pug antics were especially cute and funny. The scene lifted
her spirits and made her laugh.

There were several men and woman
standing around watching and chatting. Rory joined the group. Each
canine displayed a distinct personality as they jockeyed for
attention, looking for a playmate. One especially small female
pooch had moxie. She strutted up to one of the males and put her
paw on his head.

“
Dumpling!” A buxom blonde
woman approached the playful pug. The male eased back, stretching
his front legs, assuming play position. Before the woman could
snatch up her little one, the two dogs were off and running.
Dumpling was agile and dodged the larger male until he finally
caught up with her. One nudge and she rolled over, came up panting,
and charged again.

The
blonde bit her lip.
I know her.
“Aren’t you Bess, from TV?” Rory
asked.

She nodded, never taking her eyes off
Dumpling.

Rory introduced herself. Bess
acknowledged her, but still kept her gaze trained on her
pug.

“
She’ll be fine. She can
handle that guy,” Rory said.

“
You think so? She’s so
tiny.”

“
Maybe, but with a big
heart. She’s got guts.”

“
Someday a bigger dog is
going to put her in her place.” Bess chewed her nail.

The two women exchanged facts about
their dogs—ages, names, and whether or not they were rescues.
Baxter was a rescue. Dumpling was handed down to Bess from her
aunt. Rory crossed her legs and sank down on the soft grass. Baxter
came over to her, panting.

“
Would he like some
water?” Bess asked. She plucked a plastic container and a water
bottle from the small, pink backpack she wore. She poured some for
Baxter, who lapped it up eagerly. Dumpling returned to Bess and had
a drink as well. Baxter sniffed the little pug as she
drank.

Rory
watched a woman throw a
Cuz
ball for her pug, but another intercepted it,
starting a game of keep-away. The first two were joined by two more
dogs, and the four tore around in circles, vying for the toy. Two
brunettes ran after them. The wily pugs eluded them at every turn.
Finally, the women gave up and lowered themselves to the ground to
catch their breath.

“
Cuz
is Baxter’s favorite toy, too,”
Rory said.

“
Romeo and Juliet love it,
too, but now that other one’s got it. I’m Miranda.” The woman
extended her hand. Rory took it and introduced herself.