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Windsor, or did I misunderstand?”
    He shook his head. “No, you heard right. I couldn’t wait for your company.” Although his compliments sounded sincere, she rarely received flattery from men.
    “Make yourself comfortable. I have to check on something….” Victoria left the sentence hanging and backed herself into the kitchen. She wiped her sweaty palms on a dishtowel and inhaled deeply. The wild rice still needed fifteen minutes to steam, the salad wasn’t made, and the salmon still required several minutes of prep time. All of which she’d planned to have done prior to his arrival. Now she would have to cook and entertain at the same time—and pray she didn’t mess up either task.
     
    * * * *
     
    Erik circled the cozy living room. Oak bookcases with a built-in desk filled one wall of the room. Albert Einstein graced the screen saver of her high-tech computer system. He shook his head and chuckled. Only another physicist would choose that image.
    The fireplace smelled of pine. Heat radiated from the burning embers. He took a couple of logs from the wrought iron basket on the hearth and placed them on top. In less than a minute, the fire roared to life again.
    He silently cursed his stupidity. He should have checked the distance from Windsor to Wakeburn. When she’d asked him where he lived, Windsor was the only town he could remember passing on his way up from Boston last Saturday. He never tripped up on small details, but then he never felt guilty about fabricating his past while working undercover either. How had she managed to touch his conscience when he believed he didn’t possess one?
    Victoria returned, carrying a silver tray with two glasses of Chardonnay. His gaze remained riveted to her slim hips and nicely rounded bottom as she bent down to set the tray on the coffee table. She laid out two linen cocktail napkins next to silver coasters. For someone used to tossing a can of beer across a room to his infrequent visitors, the display of well-bred manners left him feeling socially out of her league.
    He lifted a large textbook off the mantel and read the title. Quantum Physics: An Analysis of the Quantum Particle Theory. The damn thing weighed a ton. “A little bedtime reading?” he asked.
    She shrugged apologetically. “Not exactly. I wrote it.”
    He glanced at the author’s name. V.R. Jansen, Ph.D. He pulled his foot out of his mouth and returned the book back to its special place on the mantel.
    Seemingly undisturbed by his patronizing comment, she handed him one of the flutes. “Cheers.” She tapped her glass against his before taking a long sip.
    After downing a large gulp of the dry liquid, he leaned against the wall. “So, what exactly is the Quantum Particle Theory?”
    “It’s complicated to explain.”
    “Afraid I might not understand?”
    “Not at all. But I promised myself I wouldn’t discuss physics tonight.”
    “Why not?”
    She raked her fingers through the soft wisp of bangs. “Because I tend to put my dates to sleep that way.”
    “Then I’ll have to read the book to find out.” He raised a mischievous half grin. “Or find another way to get the information from you.”
    Although his suggestive comment brought the expected blush to her cheeks, Victoria seemed to have relaxed slightly. Wine had that effect on some women.
    She took another sip from her glass. “Don’t be too sure, Erik. I’m very good at keeping secrets.”
    He liked the way his name rolled off her lips with that trace of New England accent. “And I’m equally as good at extracting information.”
    Slender fingers rested gently on his shoulder. “Then maybe you should retire from the Water Authority and join the National Security Bureau.”
    Erik swallowed a choked cough. Did she know the truth?
    Her warm brown eyes sparked in the firelight. She raised her hand and tentatively touched his hair. “Of course, they’d probably make you cut all this. They’re a conservative bunch of