Just then, there was a rap from the other side of the kitchen door. “Excuse the interruption, but we’re starving out here.” The deep voice was Travis’s. “Unless there’s been some emergency—”

“No . . . no. I’m getting the roast out.” Maggie swung the door open. “Come on in. You’re just in time to carve it for me while I dish up the vegetables and gravy. Then we can eat.”

The small kitchen was getting crowded. Megan allowed herself to be nudged back into the living room, where Conner stood by the fireplace. He came forward to meet her and draw her into the circle of warmth.

“What did I tell you about those two ladies?” he asked. “Was I right?”

“You were.” Megan stared into the flames, avoiding his eyes. “They’re lovely, and very down-to-earth.”

“You’re lovely, too, Megan.” He lifted her face with a touch of his thumb under her chin. “I like the way the firelight reflects in your eyes.”

Megan made herself smile, but her response was forced. Conner was saying nice things to her. But he was only mouthing pretty words. It was Lacy—the fake version of herself—that he really wanted.

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Sitting next to Megan at dinner, Conner studied her delicate profile. His gaze traced the soft petal curve of her lips, her pert nose, and the fringe of eyelashes that cast shadows on her cheeks. He’d thought she was cute from the first time he saw her. But now, he realized that she was more than cute. She was beautiful. And it wasn’t just her looks that appealed to him. It was something else—an inner spark that lit her face and her voice when she spoke of things she cared about, such as her family and her young students.

He was liking her even more than he’d planned. But something, he sensed, was wrong.

Megan appeared to be having a good time with his friends, laughing at their jokes, complimenting Maggie on the meal, smiling at everyone around the table—even him. But the smiles she gave him were only with her lips. Her eyes held a glint of cold steel—almost as if he’d somehow become the enemy.

What had changed? Had she heard something from Maggie and Tracy behind that closed kitchen door—a bit of gossip, an unfounded rumor—that had raised her defenses? He’d been honest about the women he’d dated. She’d seemed fine with that. And it wasn’t as if he were hiding a scandalous secret. His life was an open book—all she had to do was google him online, something he would bet she’d already done.

But he wasn’t imagining things. Megan’s manner toward him showed signs of strain. And he liked her too much to shrug and walk away. He wouldn’t be satisfied until he found out what was troubling her.

* * *