Susan Andersen - Baby, Dont Go

Daisy Parker gave a sigh of pleasure as the weight

Daisy hadnt even cleared the office door before she caught

Late that afternoon, Daisy boarded a bus for Nicks. Staring

Holy shit, Daisy! Nick pushed up on an elbow and

Daisy awoke to find Nick squatting next to the couch,

An accident and men working on a gas main tangled

They stopped for lunch, then drove to Nicks final appointment

He froze for an instant in sheer surprise and the

You did what? Hang on a minute. J. Fitzgerald cupped his

Nick welcomed the sudden darkness. He was so visual that

Daisy awoke slowly. She rolled onto her back, draping her

What? For a moment Daisy stared blankly at the blood

Nick lay sprawled on top of Daisy, telling himself he

J. Fitzgerald allowed the very young patrolman plenty of time to

Okay. Daisy, Reggie said the instant the door closed behind

Daisy gazed around the sumptuous green and white room. I

Did you know theres a phone in the bathroom? Briskly

They were less than a mile from the carriage house

Nick slept like the dead and awakened disoriented, but strangely

Daisy jumped a foot when the doorbell rang shortly after

Nice function. Sipping a Napa Valley merlot, Mo looked around

Nice viewed the ballroom through the lens of his camera,

Blowing out a quiet breath, Nick turned to Daisy. Could

Reggie opened his door, took one look at Daisy, and

Daisy turned the corner just in time to see the

Daisy awoke to the sound of Nicks voice requesting a

Daisy didnt quite know what to do with herself once

Nick pressed Daisy up against the door and kissed her

nine years ago

DAISY Parker gave a sigh of pleasure as the weight of Nick Coltranes naked body pressed her into the mattress. Sweat bonded their bodies together, while his muscular arms held her tight. She could hardly believe shed just surrendered her virginity to himlet alone with such enthusiasm. As he pressed kisses into the side of her neck, her body hummed with little aftershocks of satisfaction. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she stretched with voluptuous delight.

To think she almost hadnt attended Mos wedding receptionwhich was still in full swing ten floors below. Two years ago, shed tried to sever all ties with the Coltranes. Shed detested Nick and Maureens father for the cold premeditation with which hed ended his marriage to her mother, not to mention the way hed arranged to have Mamas name smeared all over the tabloids. Shed seen no point in staying in touch with any of them.

But Mo had refused to let the connection lapse. Shed sent occasional notes that would have been rude to ignore, since Daisys beef had never been with her stepsister. So Daisy had written back, and every now and then theyd gotten together for a lunch or dinner. When the invitation to Mos nuptials had arrived, Daisy hadnt been able to resist.

The wedding at Grace Cathedral had been like something out of a fairy tale to Daisys nineteen-year-old eyes, and Mo and her handsome groom had looked deliriously happy. But when Daisy arrived at the reception at the Mark Hopkins Hotel a few hours ago, shed had second thoughts about the wisdom of attending.

She didnt belong with the throng of San Franciscos elite that crowded the Peacock Courtshe never had. Being thrust into their company again had driven home the fact, and shed planned to leave as soon as she paid her respects to the bride and groom.

Until Nick had swept her off her feet and blown all rational thought clear out of her mind.

She still couldnt believe hed greeted her like a long-lost friend and ditched the reception line to squire her around. Hed always done such an excellent job of ignoring her that the sudden attention had been like grabbing hold of the business end of a live wirehot, terrifying, and excitingly disorienting.

Thered been a look in his eyes that she hadnt been able to define: a sense of displacement maybe, an impression of recklessness, for sure. But hed charmed her and kept her so off balance with his toucha guiding hand in the small of her back here, long, warm fingers wrapped around her forearm or brushing her bare shoulder therethat shed told herself it didnt matter. He was a golden-skinned god with flashing white teeth and streaky brown hair, dancing attendance on her, snapping pictures of her from the camera around his neck, leaving her breathless, exhilarated, dizzy.

And that was before the dancing began and she got a taste of being in his arms.

When the lights went low and the music turned slow and torchy, shed been a goner. Hed held her so closely shed felt him from chest to knees, and hed been warm, hard, and very happy to see her, as the old saw went. The next thing she remembered, they were in the hotel elevator and he was kissing her; then they were in this room, on this bed, and her heart was pounding, pounding, pounding, her pulse throbbing in places she hadnt dreamed had a pulse; and hed been on top of her, inside of her; and just as the slight sting of her hymen rupturing pierced her consciousness, his slow hands and urgent hips had driven her to a place of screaming release.

And all Mamas talk about love finally made sense.

She breathed in his scent as he slowly pushed up on his elbows. He looked down at her.

Are you all right?

Yes. She was more than all right. She felt stupendous.

Good. He rolled off her and climbed to his feet, and Daisy propped her head in her hand to admire the play of lamplight across his naked flesh. He was so gorgeous.

That wasnt the most masculine word in the world, she supposed, but it suited him to a T. And no one in their right mind would ever deny he was masculine. Consummately, incomparably masculine. His shoulders were wide, his biceps hard, and lean, strapping muscle defined his chest. Body hair that looked silky and soft grew in a tree-of-life pattern, a fine fan that spread over his pectorals, then dwindled into a narrow trunk that ran down rigidly defined stomach muscles to disappear into the waistband of the tuxedo slacks hed pulled up his hard flanks.

She blinked. He was dressing? What are you doing?

Ive got to go.

A moment ago shed felt supremely confident in her nudity; now she suddenly felt exposed. Looking around for her dress, she blushed to see it dangling from the bedside lampshade where it had snagged by a strap. Plucking a couple of tissues out of the box on the table, she dabbed surreptitiously at the smear of blood on her inner thighs and shot him a glance. Why?

She watched as Nick pulled on his shirt and his jacket but didnt bother to fasten them up. He scooped the handful of shirt studs into his palm and dropped them in his pocket. Tie dangling, hands stuffed deep in his pants pockets, he looked over at her. His blue eyes softened, the corner of his mouth crooked up, and he took a step toward the bed.

Then, just as she was sure he was going to reach for her again, he pulled himself up short and squared his shoulders. Ive got an appointment in the morning, he said lightly. This has been great, but a guy needs his sleep.