Truly Madly Yours

Nick stood on the porch in his leather jacket and Oakleys. His breath hung in front of his face as a slow sensuous smile curved his lips upward. He looked good enough to roll in sugar and eat whole. Delaney didnt know whether to let him in or slam the door in his face for leaving her hanging the past two days. The shiny gold box in his hand decided his fate. She let him in.

He shoved his sunglasses in his pocket and pulled out a piece of mistletoe and held it over her head. “Merry Christmas, he said. His warm mouth covered hers, and she felt the kiss to the soles of her feet. When he pulled back to look at her, she placed her palms on his cheeks and brought him down for more. She didnt even bother to hide her feelings. She wasnt so sure she could have anyway. She ran her hands over his shoulders and across his chest, and when she was through, she confessed, “Ive missed you.

“I was in Boise until late last night. He shifted his weight to one foot and shoved the box at her. “This is for you. It took me a while to find it.

She stared at the gold box and ran a hand over the smooth paper. “Maybe I should wait. I have a gift for you at my apartment.

“No, he insisted like a death row inmate who just wanted to hurry and get his sentence over with as quickly as possible. “Go ahead and open it now.

Beneath her hands, the smooth paper ripped apart with one excited pull. Nestled in a bed of tissue paper inside sat a rhinestone crown like those given out in beauty pageants.

“I thought since Helen stole that homecoming crown from you in high school, Id get you a better one.

It was big and gaudy and absolutely the most beautiful thing shed ever seen. She bit her lower lip to keep it from trembling as she pulled the crown from its bed of tissue and shoved the box at Nick. “I love it. The rhinestones caught the light and shot sparks through the foyer. She placed it on her head and looked at herself in the mirror next to the coat rack. The shiny stones were fashioned into a row of hearts and ribbons with one central heart bigger than the rest. She blinked back her tears as she raised her gaze to his in the mirror. “This is the best Christmas present anyone has ever given me.

“Im glad you like it. He placed his big palms on her stomach, then slid them beneath her sweater to her breasts. Through her lacy bra, he cupped her, his fingers pressing into her flesh as he pulled her back against his chest. “On the long drive from Boise last night, I thought about you wearing that thing and nothing else.

“Have you ever made love to a queen?

He shook his head and gri

She grabbed his wrist and led him to the sunroom where shed been watching television. He undressed her with slow languid hands and made her feel beautiful and desired and loved right there on her mothers lemon yellow sofa. She ran her fingertips down his warm back and bare behind and kissed his smooth shoulder. She wanted to feel as she did at that moment forever. Her skin tingled and her body flushed. Her heart swelled when he kissed her sensitive breasts, and when he buried his hot erection deep inside her body, she was more than ready. He placed his hands on the sides of her face and stared in her eyes as he slowly drove into her again and again.

She stared up into his face, into his gray eyes, alive with the passion he felt for her, his lips moist from their kiss, his breathing labored. “I love you, Nick, she whispered. He stilled for a moment, then plunged deeper, harder, again and again, and she whispered her love with each stroke until she fell head first into the sweetest ecstasy of her life. She heard his deep primal groan and the mixture of prayer words and curses. Then his full weight collapsed on her.

A twinge of unease settled in her chest as she listened to his breathing slow. Shed told him she loved him. And while hed made her feel loved, he hadnt uttered the words. She needed to know how he felt about her now, yet at the same time, she feared the answer. “Nick?

“Hmm?

“We need to talk.

He lifted his head and looked into her eyes. “Give me a minute. He withdrew from her and walked naked from the room to rid himself of the condom he hadnt forgotten since that first frenzied time in the closet at the Lakeshore. Delaney searched for her panties and found them under a rattan cocktail table. She stepped into them, and with each passing moment her unease grew. What if he didnt love her? How could she stand it, and what was she going to do if he didnt? He returned just as shed discovered her bra behind a couch cushion. He took the bra from her hand and tossed it aside. He wrapped her in his embrace and held her against his chest, holding her tighter than ever before. Within his warm arms, with the scent of his skin filling her head, she told herself that he loved her. Even though she wasnt good at being patient, she could wait for him to say the words she needed to hear. Instead she heard the squeak of wood and hinges, like the front door swinging open, and she stilled. “Did you hear something? she whispered.

He put a finger to his lips and listened. The door slammed shut, galvanizing her into action.

“Holy hell! She jumped from Nicks arms and reached for the closest article of clothing, his fla

Gwen looked from Delaney to Nick then back again, shock rounding her blue eyes. “What is going on here?

Delaney closed the front of the shirt with her hand. “Mom ... I. . . Her fingers worked the buttons as an unreal feeling fogged her head. “What are you doing home?

“I live here!

Nick placed a hand on her abdomen and pulled her back against him, hiding his goods from Delaneys mother. “I know, but youre supposed to be on the love boat.

Gwen pointed a finger at Nick. “What is he doing in my house?

Carefully she finished with the buttons. “Well, he was kind enough to spend Christmas with me.

“Hes naked!

“Well, yes. She spread the hem of his shirt wider in an effort to cover him better. “He... ah ... She closed her mouth and shrugged. There was no help for it, shed been caught. Only this time she wasnt a naive eighteen-year-old girl. She was a few months shy of thirty and she loved Nick Allegrezza. She was a mature independent woman, but she would have preferred that her mother had not found them naked in her sunroom, “Nick and I are dating.

“Id say youre more than dating. How could you do this, Delaney? How could you take up with a man like him? Hes a womanizer and he hates this family. She turned her attention to Nick. “You put your hands on my daughter again, but this time youve fixed yourself good. You violated the terms of Henrys will. Ill see to it you lose everything.

“I never gave a damn about the will. His fingers brushed over the fla

Delaney knew her mother well enough to know shed make good on her threat. She also knew how to stop her. “If you tell anyone about this, then Ill never speak to you again. Once I leave in June, youll never see me. If you thought you never saw me after I left ten years ago, you just wait. When I leave this time, I wont even tell you where I am. When I leave, Ill have three million dollars and Ill never come back to visit you.

Gwens lips pursed and she folded her arms over her breasts. “Well talk about this later.

Nicks hand fell away. “If you dont want to see my bare ass, then you better leave the room while I get dressed.

The tone of his voice was razor-sharp. Shed heard it once before. The last time the three of them had been in Henrys office. The day the will had been read. Delaney couldnt blame him for being edgy. The situation was unbearably awkward, and her mother brought out the worst in some people under the best of circumstances.