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said, feathering a hand through her hair. "I'm taking my foul mood out on you. It's been a rough couple of days."
    "So I gathered. Is this all the result of your inheritance?"
    She gave him a measured look. "More or less. Let's just say I'm making a tough transition." A wary pause. "I assume you know I took title to the manor today?"
    "Now how would I know that?"
    "Do I really need to answer that?"
    A corner of Nicholas's mouth lifted. "Are you always so difficult?"
    The blunt question caught Lindsey off guard and, despite her tension - or maybe because of it - she found herself giving a rueful laugh. "I never thought so. But when it comes to the Falkners, yes, I guess I am."
    "Then let's not talk about the Falkners. Let's talk about something else - like that cup of coffee we never had." He slipped easily into the role of social orchestrator, studying her intently as he did. "I know a place that serves great cappuccino, iced or hot. And a great sandwich, too, if you happen to be hungry."
    Which she was, Lindsey realized suddenly. She glanced at her watch, surprised to see that it was nearly one o'clock. As if to confirm that fact, her stomach gave a purposeful growl.
    Nicholas chuckled. "Ah, I see I've struck a chord. I might not measure up to your principles, but I managed to appeal to your more basic instincts. Come." He gestured toward his car. "I'll feed you."
    Lindsey hesitated, as uneasy as she'd been at their first meeting, and as uncertain of Nicholas's motives. True, she'd turned him down flat on his offer to buy the manor. That didn't mean he'd given up trying. This second conversation was no less highly-charged than the first, fluctuating from tense to friendly to adversarial, ricocheting from one to the other like a stray bullet. Okay, so part of the reason for that was her defensiveness toward him - who he was, his relationship to the Falkners. But part of it was also skepticism with regard to his sincerity. What exactly was he after? Had he really given up his notion of buying the house? He seemed genuine enough, as if his only goal was to make her transition easier. So was it just his natural magnetism speaking, or did he have a more backhanded agenda, like softening her up for the kill?
    She stopped in her tracks, eyeing his car but not making a move toward it. "I really can't take the time for lunch. I have so much to do, so many details to work out. I've only got a few days."
    "You can't work on an empty stomach," he reasoned, and Lindsey noticed he didn't ask for any specifics about her initial restoration plans. Could that be because he didn't expect them to happen?
    It was time to check out her suspicions.
    "True" she agreed. "But we can accomplish both - filling my stomach and letting me get started. I could stay here and work. In the meantime, you could ride into town, buy me a sandwich and a cappuccino, and bring them back. Now that would be a godsend."
    Silence.
    "Not what you had in mind, is it?" she asked, a caustic edge to her words.
    “No," he returned flatly. "Its not."
    "And why's that? Could it be because you want an hour to try winning me over again? Could you be looking for another chance to convince me to sell you the manor?"
    Nicholas's jaw set.
    Lindsey sighed, massaging her throbbing temples and feeling overwhelmingly weary. "Let's not play games, Nicholas. I'm not up for it. Just lay your cards on the table. I deal much better with honesty than with manipulation. Is all this about charming me into selling you the manor?"
    "In part. Most of it is about charming you into bed."
    Her head snapped up, and she stared at him in amazement, wondering if she could possibly have heard him right.
    The watchful expression on his face told her she had.
    "A bit too honest, huh?" he murmured. "I'm not surprised. I got the feeling you weren't exactly used to the direct approach."
    For the life of her, Lindsey couldn't think of a thing to say.
    "Are you offended, furious, or still convinced I'm playing