Rumor Has It Read Free Page B

from someone who was trying hard to appear disinterested in him. “I'm not married. I realize I have a lot of work to do in here before I get to the decorating, but it's never too soon to start planning, right?”
    “Of course,” she said, her gaze scanning the empty room, more to keep from staring at him than anything else.
    The store had been a fancy dress shop in Briarwood's early days. Katie could have recited the history of the place as if she were a tour guide. She knew every building in town of any historical significance. This one was a three- story brick building of Federal design that dated to 1803. It had stood empty for nearly two years. To have a chance to decorate it made her mouth water. But to work on it would mean having to work with Nick Leone, and that was a bad idea.
    She glanced at him as he sipped his espresso. The tiny china cup looked distinctly out of placein his large hand. He seemed more the stoneware-mug type, she thought. It also seemed a tad unusual for him to offer her espresso. Wouldn't most men have had a cooler of beer in the back that they could dig into when the hot, dirty business of cleaning got to them?
    The question reminded Katie of what she had come for in the first place. She had to make an effort to find out something about Nick before she returned to the store, or Maggie would never give her a moment's peace.
    “Have you run a restaurant before, Mr. Leone?” “I've worked at my share. What do you suggest for a color scheme?” he asked. It was all he could do to pay any attention at all to the conversation, sensing an undercurrent of sexual tension between them while watching her sit there as prim and proper as any Southern belle he'd ever seen in the movies.
    “I don't know. What's your favorite color?” She was trying to avoid his eyes, he decided as he purposely waited for her to look at him. He drew his lower lip between his teeth, as was his habit when he was concentrating. “Mmm. Dark green. At least, I think it's dark green.” He made aface. “I'm just a little bit color-blind. See why I need your help?”
    Katie's heart skipped so hard she lost her breath. Nick Leone's face was devastatingly masculine— all hard planes and angles tinted by the blue shadow of his beard. His nose was bold, high-bridged, not quite straight. His jaw was solid and square. Every time she started to feel the tiniest bit comfortable with his very masculine good looks, he gave her a crooked grin or made a boyish face. Her world had flipped upside down when he'd bitten his lip.
    She took a long, deep breath to steady herself, inhaling the musty, dusty smell of the building, the aroma of espresso, and the faint tinge of sweat and man. “Have you decided what structural changes you're going to make?”
    “I want to stick to the original floor plan as much as possible, but the upstairs will have to be opened up more. The first and second floors will both be set up with tables. The third floor and attic will be my apartment. I found some great junk up in the attic. Some of it might work as decorations or something. Come have a look.”
    She started to protest, but he seemed sincerelyenthusiastic, and her own curiosity about the artifacts was overwhelming. Her need to know overruled the budding pain in her lower back that warned her against scaling three flights of stairs.
    Nick talked nonstop on their way up, pointing out bad steps and the original fireplace he already had uncovered in the second- floor parlor. Katie found his zeal contagious. Her decorator's eye could easily picture the finished rooms—stylish yet understated. She felt a definite sense of disappointment when she reminded herself Maggie would be doing the job.
    “Isn't this floor great?” Nick said as they climbed the final stair to the gloomy attic. Katie had to admire his imagination. She barely could see the pine planking for the layers of dust and grime. “I'm thinking of installing skylights on the north side, or