Free The Texan's Tennessee Romance by Gina Wilkins Page A

haven’t been hiking in a long time, either. But maybe I will go this week.”
    “You know, this is my first visit to this area. I’d like to go with you on a hike, if you don’t mind.”
    She didn’t even hesitate this time before she picked up her wine glass again and nodded. “Sure. Why not? I could use the diversion.”
    He wasn’t sure how he felt about being used as a diversion—but then again, wasn’t that what he was looking for, as well? Something to think about other than returning home and taking up his life where he’d left off—a prospect that left him feeling empty and inexplicably anxious?
    She won the game, by less than twenty points. “That makes you the champ tonight,” he said. “Two games to one.”
    “It was close,” she replied, beginning to gather the game pieces. “We’re pretty evenly matched.”
    He thought about those words for a moment, but decided not to comment on them. Instead, he took another sip of coffee while Natalie closed the Scrabble game box.
    Her gaze met his across the table between them and he was struck by something he saw in her eyes. His well-developed intuition told him that though she had laughed and played for a couple of hours, something was still eating at her. Something an evening of games—and half a bottle of wine—couldn’t entirely banish.
    He wondered just how much of a “diversion” she was looking for with him.
    She drained the wine from her glass, and looked for a moment as if she were tempted to refill it again. But then she pushed her glass away and replaced the stopper in the wine bottle. “Can I get you some more coffee?”
    “Actually, it’s getting late. I guess I’d better be going.”
    He saw the expression in her eyes before she lowered her lids, but he couldn’t interpret what he had seen. Was she reluctant for him to leave? If so, was it because she really wanted him to stay—or because she didn’t want to be alone?
    She followed him through the living room. “I’ll see you tomorrow, I suppose.”
    “Yeah. Thanks for dinner. And the games.”
    “You’re welcome. I enjoyed the company.”
    “You mean, the diversion,” he murmured, remembering what she’d said earlier.
    “That, too,” she replied with a slight shrug.
    She reached for the door at the same time he did. They collided, and Casey caught her shoulders to steady her. “Okay?”
    Smiling a bit sheepishly up at him, she said, “Clumsy. I rarely drink wine. I must have overdone it a little tonight.”
    He didn’t release her immediately. Nor did she step away, instead gazing up at him as he searched her face. Her cheeks were a bit flushed, her eyes a little too bright, and it was all he could do not to cover her slightly parted lips with his own. He suspected she knew full well that he wanted to kiss her. Just as he suspected she wouldn’t mind so much. Maybe she even wanted him to kiss her.
    But because she’d had too much wine, and because she’d admitted that she wasn’t quite steady tonight, he allowed himself only to touch her face as he brushed back a strand of hair from her cheek.
    He wanted to tell her that he was a pretty good listener, if she wanted to talk, but he didn’t think she would respond to that just now. It was obvious that she didn’t want to talk about whatever had brought her here, which he could certainly understand. But he wanted to do something to make her feel better.
    “I was serious about wanting to go on a hike with you,” he said, keeping his tone casual. “It sounds like fun. How about tomorrow morning? I can’t put the furniture back on the deck until afternoon at the earliest, so I don’t have a lot to do tomorrow. Unless you have something you would rather do?”
    Her mouth twitched a little, as if his somewhat pointed question had hit home. “No, not really,” she admitted after a moment. “A hike could be fun.”
    He hoped his smile didn’t look smug, but he was pleased that she had accepted his invitation.