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words. Pushing his chair
back, he stood up. They were mere inches apart, close enough that
her soft floral scent beckoned to him. She wore very little makeup,
a contrast to the made-up version he was used to. He’d never
noticed how long her eyelashes were or the ever-so-faint sprinkling
of freckles across the bridge of her nose. Even without cosmetics,
the woman was stunning.
    Megan said,
“You don’t have to leave on my account. This is your home. Not
mine.”
    “What was your
home like?” Nick didn’t know why he’d asked, but he found he
suddenly cared.
    A frown creased
her forehead and between her arched eyebrows. He was relieved she
hadn’t resorted to injections to smooth out the natural lines. As
his eyes traced her face, he saw something else: ever-so-faint
laugh lines. He remembered the sound of her laugh and the way it
made him feel. He hadn’t heard her laugh since the first day he met
her, but he realized he wanted to again. Soon.
    “Why? You want
to do a little more research, dig up a little more dirt?”
    “Is there any
more dirt?”
    She closed her
eyes and drew a breath before looking him in the eye. “Have I done
things I’m not proud of? Yes. I’m human. Can I go to bed now?”
    Nick had the
sudden urge to touch her skin, to find out if it was as soft as it
looked. He brushed a fallen eyelash off her cheek. Velvet. That was
the only word that came to mind. Her skin felt like velvet beneath
his rough fingers.
    She pulled
back. “What are you doing?”
    “Eyelash.” His
lips turned up at the corners, and he realized that was probably
the first time he’d offered her anything resembling a smile. “I
guess that means you get to make a wish.”
    “I don’t waste
my time making wishes.”
    His heart
constricted. What had happened to prompt her to stop believing
wishes could come true? “Why not?”
    “Wishes are for
little kids. I know better.”
    “If you could
have one wish, what would it be?” For some inexplicable reason, he
suddenly wanted to know her just a little bit better. He knew it
was a dangerous quest in light of what he already knew, but he
couldn’t seem to help himself.
    “I don’t wish
for anything.” She tried to make her way around him, but he blocked
her path to the door.
    “Everyone
wishes for somethin’. Tell me what you wish for.” Nick was shocked
to see her eyes brim with tears, and he was even more surprised to
feel a bit of admiration at how hard she tried to prevent them.
    “I don’t share
my dreams with men who think so little of me.”
    She had him
there. “Okay, I’ll admit gold-digger may have been a little
harsh.”
    “I’m not dating
Shaw because of his money,” she said quietly.
    Just the man’s
name made Nick’s blood simmer. “Then what do you see in him, ‘cause
he sure as hell doesn’t have much else goin’ for him.” Women often
said Shaw was handsome, and Nick had to admit Shaw hadn’t built a
multi-million dollar business by being stupid, but that didn’t make
him worthy of… a woman like Megan. Where had that thought
come from?
    “He’s kind,
gentle, compassionate. He talks to me about his life, his business,
his friends and family. But more importantly, he listens. He wants
to get to know me.”
    Nick was
suddenly envious of the things Shaw knew about Megan when she was
still a mystery to him. “Do you see a future with him?” That
thought didn’t sit well with Nick. He didn’t want to spend the rest
of his life with her living just down the road, sleeping with the
enemy.
    “No.”
    Relief coursed
through him. “Why’s that?”
    “I don’t intend
to stay in Nashville. The plan is to go home at the end of my
contract.”
    “Why?”
Twenty-four hours ago, he would have whooped with delight, but
Megan’s softer side made him realize there may be a lot more to her
than he’d believed.
    “Nashville
isn’t my home. It never will be.”
    “It could be,
if you gave it a chance.”
    “Now why would
you want me to