Grace started to move away, but Nick kept his arm around her waist. “Don’t. She won’t be back.”
“It probably would have been better if she stayed,” Grace said. “I think my aunt was right. You and I need a chaperone.”
Nick chuckled and took a step back. “C’mon, it’s just a kiss. That’s what people do when they like each other.”
“It’s not that simple,” Grace said, wondering how she could possibly make him understand without giving her own feelings away. “You kiss a lot of girls. I don’t.”
His smile widened. “I’m glad to hear that.”
It took her a minute to realize what she’d said. Grace groaned. “You know what I mean.”
“You’re wrong, you know.” His eyes softened and he pushed her hair gently back from her face. “I don’t kiss a lot of girls.”
It was a nice thought and although she wished it was true, Grace wasn’t stupid. “Okay, so maybe they’re women, not girls.”
Nick laughed and his dimple flashed. He tugged on her hair. “Brat.”
Grace had to laugh. Though she’d only known Nick a short while, he’d already stolen a place in her heart. “I’d better go.”
“Going is good.” Nick nodded as if she’d said something profound. “While we’re out we can stop and get some ice cream.”
“Ice cream?” Grace pictured the snow dusting the ground. “It’s twenty degrees outside.”
“But it’s warm in the car,” he said. “And it’ll be warm in the ice cream shop.”
“We didn’t eat our dinner,” Grace said.
“If you don’t tell Mrs. Prescott, I won’t.”
“You’re serious about the ice cream.”
“Of course I am.” Nick winked at her. “I’m always serious when it comes to Rocky Road.”
Later, sitting across from him, watching him eat a second bowl of his favorite flavor, Grace was forced to conclude, Nick was indeed serious about his ice cream.
“I’ve never known anyone to put chocolate syrup on Rocky Road,” Grace said, working on her dish of vanilla.
“All I can say is you must have led a very sheltered life,” Nick said, wiping some extra chocolate from his lips.
“Sheltered?” Grace thought for a moment, then shook her head. “More like boring.”
Though she laughed like she was joking, the words were more true than she cared to admit.
“Why?” Nick put down his spoon and transferred his attention from the Rocky Road to Grace.
Grace shifted uncomfortably under his scrutiny. “What do you mean, why?”
“I mean, why is your life boring?”
Grace started to give him a pat answer, but stopped before the words left her mouth. Why not be honest?
“I’m not much of a risk taker.” Grace paused and thought for a moment. “I analyze things to death.”
“That’s easy to change.” He tossed the napkin on the table and stood. “We’ll start now.”
She put her spoon down and took his outstretched hand. “What do you have in mind?”
“Ice-skating,” he said.
Though she’d always wanted to try ice-skating, Grace glanced down at her wool pants and sweater. “I’m not really dressed for…”
“Neither of us is.” Nick waved a dismissive hand. “Who cares?”
Grace could make a list a mile long why now wasn’t the time to go ice-skating, but Nick might be right. Maybe a little change wouldn’t hurt. “Okay, but you’ll have to promise to catch me if I fall.”
Pulling Grace into his arms every time she became unsteady was a pleasure. Especially after he’d gotten her to say, “Thank you, kind sir,” and give him a kiss every time it happened.
At first, she was kissing him almost every other minute, but then she got the hang of skating.
After fifteen minutes without a single fall, Nick was almost ready to trip her himself. He liked the feel of her arms around his neck and the breathless giggles against his face. But what he liked most was just being with her.
Grace was the real thing. There wasn’t an ounce of phoniness in her. Even if she’d wanted to lie, she wouldn’t be able to pull it off. Her face was way too expressive.
Though she often tried to pretend she didn’t care about him, he knew she did. He could see it in her eyes. Along with the fear.
Nick didn’t know why she was afraid to care. After all, he hadn’t planned on a new relationship, either. He thought he’d go with her for Thanksgiving, and that would be it. But that was before he’d gotten to know her. And though she might be prepared to walk out of his life, he wasn’t prepared to let her go.
“Look at me.” Grace skated several feet ahead before spinning around with her arms outstretched. “Ta-dah.”
Nick smiled. “You’re a natural.”
Her green eyes sparkled and he could tell his words had pleased her. “Do you really think so?”
He nodded. “In fact you’ve gotten too good.”
She lifted a quizzical brow.
Nick glanced at his watch. “It’s been at least a half hour since you’ve fallen.”
As if on cue, her arms began to flail and she called out for help.
He was at her side in an instant, but they were both laughing so hard they lost their balance. They tumbled to the ice in each other’s arms.
This time she didn’t kiss him on the cheek, but on the mouth.
And by the time they finally got up, Grace wasn’t the only one a little shaky on her feet.
Chapter Six
Grace rested the leather-bound menu against the linen tablecloth and pretended to study the wine list. She still wasn’t sure why Nick had asked her out tonight. They’d already been to a medical society function with Nellie and Paul on Saturday and they’d gone out for coffee after she’d gotten off work Monday.
When he’d asked her to join him for dinner Friday, she’d almost asked him why. But then she’d decided not to bother. They’d been dating for almost a month and every time she brought up the idea of ending the relationship, he’d change the subject or mention Nellie’s continued need for physical therapy.
Grace had to smile. Nick had to know as well as she did that Nellie was deliberately prolonging her time in St. Louis in order to spend time with Paul.
“May I get you something to drink while you wait?” The waiter had already stopped by once since Nick had left her to say hello to a colleague he’d spotted across the dining room.
“No, thank you.” Grace smiled up at the man and realized with a start that she knew him. His hair was a little darker and shorter than when she’d last seen him, and his face was now more of a man’s face than a boy’s, but it was him. “Jeremy?”
He stared at her for a long moment then his gaze cleared and recognition filled his brown eyes. “Grace?”
“It’s been forever.” She quickly calculated the time in her head. It had to have been at least five years. Jeremy had volunteered at the clinic the summer before he’d left to attend medical school in California.
“You look fabulous.” His gaze lingered and she knew he had to be remembering the days when she’d had flyaway red hair and conservative clothes.
Grace knew she bore little resemblance to her former self. In fact, her appearance had changed drastically just recently.
Last week Nellie had treated her to an afternoon at a day spa. After five hours of having her body waxed, her hair highlighted and trimmed and some lessons in covering up her freckles and enhancing her eyes, even Grace had been impressed at the results. Nellie had been so pleased that she’d promptly booked a session for herself.
When he’d first seen her, Nick had just smiled and said he couldn’t imagine that she could have looked any more beautiful, but she did.
Grace once again experienced the flush of pleasure that she’d felt at his words.
“Are you still at the free clinic?”
Jeremy’s words pulled Grace back to the present. “Still there. What about you
? Are you out of school yet?”
“Graduated from UCLA last year,” Jeremy said, a note of pride in his voice. “I’m in a surgical residency program now.”
“Congratulations.” Grace paused and chose her words carefully. “I know it’s none of my business, but if you’re a doctor, why are you working here?”
Although Antoine’s was one of the nicest restaurants in St. Louis and the tips had to be good, it couldn’t begin to compare to what Jeremy could make moonlighting in an emergency room.
Jeremy laughed. “My uncle owns the place. A couple of his servers called in sick. I’d worked here during college so—”
“You decided to help out.” It made sense now. Jeremy had been a tireless worker with great compassion for the clinic’s clientele. Apparently that same compassion extended to family members in a bind. “That was nice of you.”
“It’s no big deal,” Jeremy said with a dismissive wave. “I kind of enjoy it. Besides, if I hadn’t been working tonight, I wouldn’t have gotten to see you again.”
His gaze dropped to her left hand. “You’re not married.”
“No, I’m not,” Grace said, surprised the admission didn’t bother her. “How about you?”
Jeremy laughed again, showing a mouthful of perfect white teeth. “Are you kidding? I’ve barely had time to breathe these last four years.”
Grace laughed with him. There was something warm and genuine about Jeremy.
“Maybe we can get together sometime,” Jeremy said. “Catch up.”
“I’d like that,” Grace said immediately. She’d often wondered what happened to the students after they’d left the clinic.
“Great.” Jeremy smiled and leaned over the table, scratching his number on a scrap of paper. “Here’s my number—”
Jeremy stopped midsentence and Grace looked up to find that Nick had returned.
“Nick. I didn’t see you come back.”
“I know,” Nick said with an enigmatic smile. “You were…occupied.”
His gaze shifted to Jeremy.
“Dr. Tucci.” Jeremy straightened.
“Have we met?” Nick’s brow furrowed slightly but his tone was pleasant.
“In a roundabout way,” Jeremy said, shifting from one foot to the other, his easy smile now strained. “I’m a surgical resident and I’ve been working with Dr. Brenner. We ran into you in the hall at Children’s last week. You also spoke at a seminar I attended.”
Grace’s gaze shifted from Nick to Jeremy. “I can’t believe you two know each other.”
“We don’t know each other,” Jeremy said quickly. “Not really.”
“St. Louis isn’t that big,” Nick said with a shrug. “The medical community tends to be fairly tight.”
“I can’t believe you’re an instructor,” Grace teased, thinking of her college professors and knowing none of them had been as handsome as Nick. “What else don’t I know?”
Nick pulled out his chair and took a seat. Grabbing her hand he pulled it to his lips and placed a light kiss in the center of her palm then closed her fingers around it. “Sweetheart, you know everything that’s important.”
Grace could feel her face warm. She wondered if Nick realized the impression he was giving Jeremy.
“Can I get you two some wine?” Jeremy asked, suddenly all business.
Nick shifted his gaze to Grace and raised a brow.
“I prefer white but whatever you like is fine,” Grace said.
“Bring us a bottle of—” Nick picked up the folder and quickly scanned the wine list before picking one. Though Grace was by no means a connoisseur, she immediately recognized the dry white vintage. She’d had it only one time, at a wine-tasting class she’d taken at a local community college. It had been her favorite, but far too pricey for her to afford.
Grace shuddered to think what a whole bottle would cost. A house zinfandel would be more than adequate. She opened her mouth to tell Nick when his hand closed over hers and he gave it a squeeze.
Grace closed her mouth without speaking. She needed to remember that Nick had more money than she did and what seemed expensive to her was mere pocket change to him.
“Would you like to order now?” Jeremy asked, his pen poised above the order pad.
“I’m sorry.” Grace picked up the menu. “I haven’t even—”
“We’ll need a little more time,” Nick said.
“No problem.” Jeremy pocketed the order pad. “I’ll be right back with your wine.”
The minute Jeremy was out of earshot, Grace turned to Nick. “I can’t believe you and Jeremy know each other.”
“I was just thinking the very same thing.”
“Jeremy used to work at the clinic,” Grace said. “He was a very hard worker.”
“Were you and he ever—” Nick paused for a long moment “—involved?”
“With Jeremy?” Grace laughed. “He’s a boy.”
“He’s a man, not a boy.” Nick took a drink of water and studied her thoughtfully over the top of the glass. “And he’s not that much younger than you.”
“Well, I still think of him as a boy,” Grace said, wondering why Nick had taken a sudden interest in the waiter. “What does it matter anyway? I’m not interested in dating the guy.”
“You’re right. I don’t want to talk about him anyway.” Nick’s gaze lingered on Grace’s lips. “I want to talk about how beautiful you look tonight.”
For the first time in her life Grace didn’t argue. Tonight she felt beautiful. The black dress she’d chosen was simple yet elegant. The cut flattered her willowy figure and the scoop neckline showed a discreet amount of cleavage. Aunt Nellie had loaned her a strand of pearls. Though she couldn’t hold a candle to any of Nick’s previous girlfriends, Grace knew she looked good. Not gorgeous by any means, but classically elegant.
“I’m not beautiful,” she protested halfheartedly.
He met her gaze. “You are to me.”
Butterflies fluttered in her stomach and when Jeremy returned to take their order, Grace barely noticed. In fact, all through dinner, the only thing she was conscious of was Nick: his look, his touch, his laugh. Even the elegant ambiance of the restaurant faded into the background.
On the drive home Grace realized she could get used to having Nick around.
“Penny for your thoughts,” he said, casting a sideways glance.
Grace was glad the dim light of the car’s interior hid her guilty flush. She wondered what he’d say if she blurted out the truth and told him she was in danger of falling in love with him. She could picture it now; his eyes would turn wary and that easy smile would freeze on his lips. Because he was a nice guy, he’d say something about really caring for her, too. Then he’d change the subject.
“Grace?”
With a start, Grace realized Nick was waiting for an answer. If she was Holly, she’d toss off a one-liner that would make him laugh. But she’d realized long ago that she wasn’t witty and charming like her sister, nor was she a sophisticated beauty like the other women Nick had dated.
“I was just thinking what a good time I’ve had this evening.” Even as the words slipped past her lips, Grace knew she was probably breaking some unwritten rule of dating by making such an admission. But then again, she and Nick weren’t dating, not really.
He smiled and his shoulders relaxed. For one crazy second Grace had the feeling he’d been worried about her response.
“I had a very nice time, too,” he said, pulling into her driveway and turning off the ignition. “In fact, I hate to see the evening end.”
“It did go fast,” Grace conceded, wishing that they’d lingered longer over dessert.
Nick turned in his seat and took her hand. “How about you invite me in for a drink?”
His thumb massaged Grace’s palm. The sensuous touch sent little shivers of electricity up her arm and threatened to short-circuit her good sense. Feeling the way she did about him and knowing they would be all alone, it would be t
he height of foolishness to let him inside.
Grace took a deep steadying breath. “I don’t think that would be a good idea.”
For a long moment he sat there, his gaze fixed on her.
Her heart picked up speed and the air was heavy with longing. Grace held her breath. The sensible part of her wanted him to just say good night, but another part hoped he could convince her to let him come inside, at least for a few minutes.
Nick leaned closer and his hand softly cupped her face. “I know you’re scared—” he barely whispered the words “—but don’t you know I would never hurt you?”
She couldn’t help herself. Grace turned her head to his hand and kissed it, her heart aching in her chest.
Because though Nick might not realize it, he’d already broken that promise. The moment he’d flashed her that first smile, he’d sealed her fate.
Nick stared into Grace’s eyes. He could see the fear in the emerald depths and hot anger rose inside him. How any man could hurt such a wonderful woman was beyond his comprehension. But she had been hurt, and badly. Her inability to trust told him that.
He longed to tell her that she would never be sorry she’d met him, but he knew words were pointless. He would have to show her he could be trusted. And there was no better time to start than now.
“Invite me in,” he repeated, offering her a reassuring smile.
He’d been wrong to move so fast in her bedroom that night. If she let him in her house tonight, he would be on his best behavior. He wouldn’t even try to steal as much as a single kiss.
His gaze lowered to her soft sweet lips and Nick quickly amended his hasty promise. Maybe he would give her a good-night kiss or two—but that would be all.
“Nick, I—” Indecision warred on her beautiful features.
“If you’d rather I not, I completely understand.” The words were out of his mouth before he had the chance to think them through. But hastily thought out or not, they came from the heart. He would do whatever it took to make Grace happy.
Relief filled her eyes and he was already shrugging aside his disappointment when her hand lightly touched his arm. “I don’t have any alcohol, but how about a cup of cocoa?”
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