her hand. “Except that tonight I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”
He stroked his thumb across her knuckles. Megan’s eyes widened and the pulse at the base of her throat jumped.
He hadn’t really thought about what he was doing, hadn’t intended to change the rules of their game, but suddenly, there was an awareness simmering between them that hadn’t been there before. Or maybe it just hadn’t been acknowledged.
She swallowed. “All I need is a couple hours of your time.” Her gaze darted away from his, but not before he saw the nerves lurking beneath the surface. “And maybe a glass of wine.”
He could use a drink himself, and was grateful to see that there wasn’t much of a line at the bar. “Red or white?” he asked her.
“Oh. I didn’t mean—you don’t have to—”
“Red or white?” he asked again.
Her cheeks flushed. “Red.”
He gave her hand a friendly squeeze before releasing it. “I’ll be right back.”
She watched him make his way toward the bar, and wondered if she’d imagined the zing she’d felt when he held her hand, and the heat she’d seen in his eyes when they’d locked on hers.
She saw her cousin Camilla in line in front of Gage, and she turned slightly to speak to him, smiling flirtatiously and laughing at whatever he’d said in response.
Yes, she’d definitely imagined it, because Gage Richmond couldn’t possibly be attracted to her—not when a woman like Camilla was around.
When the bartender gave Camilla her drink, she fluttered her fingertips at Gage before moving away.
“You can thank me later.”
Megan turned to Paige. “For what?”
“The fact that you got a pedicure and a gorgeous date for the evening.”
“You made sure the former was contingent on the latter,” Megan reminded her. “But speaking of dates.?”
“Ben’s on his way,” Paige said. “He got caught up at the office.”
“On a Saturday?”
“He’s got an important deposition on Monday.”
“You’ve got to start dating men in another profession.”
“Where would I ever meet any?”
“You’re asking me?”
Paige glanced toward the bar again. “Hey, does Gage have a brother?”
“He does. Married.”
“Damn.”
Megan chuckled.
“Oh, double damn,” Paige muttered, and grabbed Megan’s arm. “Gage is in trouble.”
She turned and winced. Gage might have survived his encounter with cousin Camilla, but now Aunt Vivian had moved in. “If he comes back after a one-on-one with Aunt Viv instead of bolting for the door, I’ll be surprised.”
“Forget surprised,” Paige said. “I’d snap him up and never let him go.”
Megan shook her head regretfully, because she knew that wasn’t an option.
While he was waiting at the bar, Gage noticed that Megan’s cousin, Paige, had joined her, so he ordered a drink for her, too. And when he turned away with his hands full, he found himself confronted by Megan’s elderly aunt.
The older woman’s brightly painted lips curved. “Gage, wasn’t it? I was hoping we’d have a chance to chat.”
“Really?” he said. “About what?”
“Oh, I just wanted to make sure that Megan was taking good care of you.”
“I have no complaints,” he assured her.
“Has she introduced you to my granddaughter, Camilla?” Vivian nodded in the direction of the attractive blonde who’d chatted him up while he was waiting in line, and whom he’d noticed had guzzled down her gin and tonic like it was water.
“No, but we met,” he told her.
“I was so pleased to see her here tonight,” she confided. “I was so worried that she wouldn’t want to come, since she just broke up with her boyfriend.”
She paused, as if to give him a chance to respond. Since he had no idea what kind of response was appropriate, he remained silent.
“He was a college professor,” the elderly woman continued. “It was a messy split, very unfortunate. But I’m sure she’ll find someone else.
“She’s a lovely girl—and smart. Graduated cum laude with a degree in art history from the Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences at Northwestern.”
He nodded politely. “Megan went to Northwestern, too, didn’t she?”
Vivian nodded, though her scowl warned that she didn’t appreciate the reminder.
Of course, she wouldn’t, because Gage knew that Megan had graduated summa cum laude with a master’s in science, which more than trumped Camilla’s accomplishment.
“Megan always had brains,” Vivian acknowledged, with more than a hint of reluctance. “That was apparent at an early age. And a good thing, too, because she was a homely child, and had no idea how to relate to other children her own age.”
Gage stared at her. “You do know that you’re talking about my date?”
She waved a hand. “As if anyone would believe a man like you could be seriously interested in Megan.”
“A man like me?”
“Handsome. Successful. Sophisticated.”
Rich.
Of course, she wasn’t crass enough to mention his financial status, but he’d seen the gleam in her eye when she’d caught his last name. A gleam that he’d seen in far too many eyes in his thirty-two years, but never in Megan’s. Whatever reasons she had for inviting him to be here tonight, it wasn’t because she had visions of landing a wealthy husband.
And as uncertain as he’d been about his reasons for agreeing to this “date” in the first place, he was enjoying being with Megan. Sure, she was more introverted than the women he usually dated, but once she’d started to open up, he found himself really enjoying her company.
She was kind and generous and insightful—and smart. He’d never concerned himself with a woman’s mind before. So long as his date was attractive and fun and knew that he wasn’t looking for anything long-term, she was his kind of woman.
Megan was different. She was attractive—a lot more so than he’d suspected. And it wasn’t just the mile-long legs or the unexpected curves put on display by the dress she was wearing. It was the capability of those slender shoulders, the strength in her delicate hands and the mystery of those stunning eyes.
“And Megan is beautiful, smart and talented,” he said, searching for—and finding her—across the room. “So why is it you think a man like me wouldn’t be interested in a woman like her?”
As if sensing his stare, Megan turned and caught his eye. Her lips curved, just a little, and something inside of him stirred, responded.
There was no longer any doubt in his mind that—if circumstances were different—she was a woman he could be interested in. But he had his eyes on a bigger prize and so he reminded himself that all he wanted from Megan was her cooperation with respect to his plan.
Okay, maybe that wasn’t all he wanted, but it was all he needed. And he wouldn’t let himself forget that.
“Now if you’ll excuse