Hearts Through Time

FOUR

The next day after Nick's last appointment had left, he closed his eyes and dropped his head in his hands, leaning his elbows on the desk. He'd had an extremely busy day, but what made it worse was that he couldn't concentrate on his new clients. He was too busy thinking about Miss Carlisle. That woman wouldn't leave his mind no matter how much he tried to dismiss her. Was she really a ghost? Had he been hallucinating? As hard as he'd convinced himself otherwise, no other explanation came to mind.

Yet Mr. Moore, who hadn't called back to reschedule, had seen Abigail's trick—had seen the chair move as if of its own accord. So perhaps Nick wasn't having a mental breakdown. After all, he could still function, and he still remembered the law and could assist his clients.

Could he consider Abigail his client? There would be no way to collect payment from her, but learning about her murder interested him, and gazing into her pretty face and amazing eyes made his heart flutter as never before. Thankfully, having a relationship with her was out of the question. The new Nick would not ruin his career over a woman...even if she was a ghost.

Earlier today, he'd run an Internet search for the Carlisle estate, but nothing of value came up. At least he wanted something on her uncle. The only other possibility was that Alexander Carlisle had changed his name or the name of his brother's company.

Nick blew out a loud breath and ran his fingers through his hair. He leaned back in the chair and glanced out the window. The sun had already set, and night crept in. So much to do, so little time. He glanced at the clock. It was seven-thirty—past dinnertime. His stomach growled. He'd have to order Chinese takeout and eat while working late.

From down the hallway, the click of heels echoed and grew closer. He looked toward the closed door. A woman stopped in front of the door, her shapely silhouette outlined by the frosted glass window. Inwardly, he groaned. Vanessa! He'd forgotten about their date tonight.

He braced his hands on his chair and rose as she walked in. Her face looked freshly made up, as always, but tonight she wore a pout on her heart-shaped, glossy red lips.

"I can't believe you're still working," she whined.

"I'm sorry, Vanessa. I've been so busy with clients today, I forgot about dinner. Will you take a rain check?"

She slinked across the floor and stopped in front of him, her short dress clung to her every curve. "I don't know. I'm very mad at you."

"And you have every right to be."

Within seconds, the lines around her mouth and the corners of her eyes disappeared and a mischievous grin changed her expression. Nick's hopes of getting out of this mess flew right out the door. As long as he'd known her, only one thing had occupied her mind. Now he'd spend the rest of the evening fighting off her advances.

"I suppose we could have dinner right here. A private room for two. Sounds perfect, doesn't it?" She practically purred in a low voice.

Groaning, he rubbed his forehead. "Vanessa, I'm too tired for company tonight. Not only that, but I have a lot of work to get done before tomorrow."

She ran her hands over his chest once before stopping to tease the buttons at his neck. "I won't take up too much of your time. I promise. I'll be more help than a hindrance, you'll see."

If he didn't take her out to dinner, she'd continue to hound him. "Fine. Why don't you run down the street and get some Chinese takeout. I could use your help on a few things. You have done research on the Internet, I'm assuming."

Her eyes widened. "What? You expect me to help you with your cases?"

"Of course. I just told you I had a lot of work to do, and since you insist on being with me tonight, I figured you wanted to help." If he could pat himself on the back for thinking up that excuse, he would have.