Wishes in the Wind Read Online Free PDF Page B

name?”
    She blinked. “Pardon me?”
    “Your name,” he prompted. “You must have one.”
    “Oh. Yes. It’s Nicole.”
    He smiled, and Nicole found herself wondering just how long someone could exist without breathing.
    “Nicole,” he repeated. “It suits you perfectly—beautiful and delicate. Have you a surname as well?”
    That snapped her out of her reverie.
    “I must be going.” She made to rise. “I’ve already been away too long.”
    Those amazing midnight eyes narrowed. “Away? Away from whom?” His gaze fell to her left hand. “A husband?”
    Nicole smiled at the expectant note in his voice. “No. I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I have no husband.”
    “Disappointed? Au contraire, my mysterious beauty, I’m elated.” He caught her wrist, stroked it ever so lightly. “Sit. Just for a few minutes. Until the color returns to your cheeks.”
    She found herself complying. “Very well.”
    “Since we’re exchanging only given names this evening, mine is Dustin.”
    “Hello, Dustin.”
    He grinned. “Hello, Nicole.” His thumb traced the pulse in her wrist. “Why were you crying? Is it a man? If so, tell me his name and I’ll beat him senseless.”
    She was uncomfortably aware of the heat his touch evoked, making her wrist tingle and burn. “No, it isn’t a man. It’s many things. Memories, mostly.”
    “Sad memories?”
    “No, actually happy ones.” She swallowed. “I was thinking about my mother.”
    “You lost her.” It was a statement, not a question, and Nicole’s eyes widened in surprise.
    “Don’t look so shocked,” Dustin answered her unspoken thought. “I’ve worn that particular look myself.”
    “I see.” Nicole inclined her head. “Why are you here?” she blurted.
    A corner of his mouth lifted. “Is that a philosophical question or a specific one?”
    “A specific one. Not ‘here’ meaning on this bench, but ‘here’ meaning on the river walk—alone.”
    “Is going for a solitary stroll so astonishing?”
    “For a man like you? Yes.”
    “A man like me,” he repeated. “What does that mean?”
    “It means you’re handsome, well bred, and devastatingly charming. Add to that the fact that it’s the height of the London season and countless parties are in progress. So why aren’t you there, surrounded by eager, adoring women rather than walking along the Thames by yourself?”
    One dark brow arched. “I’m flattered. And dumbfounded. Are you always so honest?”
    Nicole considered his question. “I think so, yes.”
    “Very well then, I’ll be equally honest. I was invited to all those parties to which you refer, where I would mingle with all those women you just alluded to. And the very thought of spending another evening like that left me cold—cold and empty. So, instead I’m here, taking a solitary walk along the Thames. Now, have I shocked you?”
    She studied his face, then shook her head. “As a matter of fact, no.”
    He leaned forward, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. “What nearly caused you to faint?”
    “Exhaustion, I suppose. I haven’t slept in several nights. I have a great deal on my mind.”
    “Obviously.” His gaze intensified. “Would you like to talk about it? Perhaps I can ease your distress.”
    Nicole sighed. “Not unless you can undo events that have already occurred, or right life’s wrongs and balance its inequities.”
    “Only that?”
    He was teasing again, in that disarming way of his, and Nicole found herself responding by speaking the emotional truth that had gnawed at her all week. “Sometimes it all seems like too much. Sometimes I don’t think I’m strong enough to overcome life’s obstacles.”
    Dustin’s smile vanished. “But you are. And it’s not,” he replied, somehow not needing to ask for clarification of her veiled declaration. “I have it on the finest authority that when a problem becomes unbearable, a solution appears. Therefore, the very fact that you’re reaching your