Swinging one leg over the Harley, he righted the bike. If hed seen any other woman in that skimpy vinyl crap, he would have appreciated the hell out of it, but not Delaney. Seeing her shrink-wrapped tighter than a deli snack had made him itch to peel back the plastic and take a bite. Hed gone from zero to hard in about three seconds.

He kicked the stand up with the heel of his boot and pressed the ignition button. The v-twin engine roared to life, shattered the still night air, and vibrated his thighs. Getting hard for a woman he wasnt planning on taking to bed didnt bother him. Getting hard over that particular woman did.

He gunned the bike and shot down the alley, barely slowing as he turned onto First. He felt restless and was home only long enough to take a shower. The silence set him on edge, and he didnt know why. He needed a diversion, a distraction, and he ended up at Henneseys with a beer in his hand and Lonna Howell in his lap.

His table looked out onto the dance floor, pitched in darkness and filled with slow shifting bodies, moving to the sensual rhythm and languid blues flowing from five-foot speakers. Slivers of light shone on the band and several rows of track lighting illuminated the front of the bar. But mostly the tavern was as dark as sin so a person could get away with sinful things.

Nick didnt have any particular sin planned, but the night was still young and Lonna was more than willing.

Chapter Six

Delaney locked her fingers behind her old boyfriends neck and moved with him to the slow pulse of blues guitar. Being so close to Tommy again felt a little like deja vu, only different because the arms holding her now belonged to a man, not a boy. As a boy hed had no rhythm, he still didnt. Back then, hed always smelled like Irish Spring soap. Now he wore cologne, not the fresh scent shed always associated with him. Hed been her first love. Hed made her heart pound and her pulse race. She felt neither of those things now.

“Remind me again, he spoke next to Delaneys ear, “why cant we be friends?

“Because your wife hates me.

“Oh, yeah. He pulled her a little closer, but kept his hands on the small of her back. “But I like you.

His shameless flirting had started an hour ago, right after Lisa had left. Hed propositioned her twice, but was so charming about it, she couldnt get angry with him. He made her laugh and made her forget that hed broken her heart by choosing Helen.

“Why wouldnt you sleep with me in high school? he asked.

Shed wanted to—really wanted to. Shed been madly in love and filled with the juices of raging teen hormones. But overpowering her desire for Tommy had been the terror that her mother and Henry would find out shed been with a boy. “You dumped me.

“No. You dumped me.

“Only after I caught you boffing Helen.

“Oh, yeah.

She pulled back far enough to look into his face, barely visible on the darkened dance floor. His laughter joined hers when she said, “That was horrible.

“It sucked. I always felt really bad about what happened, but I never knew what I should say to you after that, he confessed. “I knew what I wanted to say, but I didnt think youd like it.

“What?

His teeth flashed white in the murky light. “That I was sorry you caught me boffing Helen, but could we still go out anyway?

There had been a time when shed written his name all over her notebooks, when shed envisioned living the picket-fence dream with Tommy Markham.

“Would you have gone for it?

“No, she answered, truly grateful he wasnt her husband.

He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. “Thats what I remember the most about you. The word no, he said against her skin. The music stopped and he pulled back and smiled into her face. “Im glad youre back. He escorted her to the table and grabbed his jacket. “See ya around.

Delaney watched him leave and reached for the beer shed left on the table. As she raised the bottle to her lips, she lifted her hair from her neck with her free hand. Tommy hadnt changed much since high school. He was still good-looking. Still charming and still a hound. She almost felt sorry for Helen—almost.

“Planning a date with your old boyfriend?

She knew the voice even before she turned around. She lowered the bottle and looked up at the only man whod caused her more misery than all her old boyfriends combined. “Jealous? But unlike Tommy, she would never forget what had happened one hot August night with Nick Allegrezza.

“Pea green.

“Did you come over here to fight with me? Because I dont want to fight. Like you said the other day, were both going to be in your brothers wedding. Maybe we should try to get along. Be more friendly.

A slow sensuous smile curved his lips. “How friendly?

“Friends. Just friends, she said although she doubted it would ever happen. But maybe they could quit taking swipes at each other. Especially since she always seemed to lose.

“Buddies?

That might be pushing it. “Okay.

“Pals?

“Sure.

He shook his head. “Itll never happen.

“Why?

He didnt answer. Instead he plucked the bottle from her hand and set it on the table. The singer of the small blues band dug into a slow sweet rendering of “Ive Been Loving You Too Long as Nick dragged her onto the crowded dance floor. He pulled her against him, then swayed his hips to the sensuous soul music. She was jostled from behind as she tried to put a little distance between her breasts and his chest, but his big hands on her back kept her just where he wanted her. She had no choice but to lightly place her palms on his broad shoulders. The ends of his hair brushed her knuckles like the whisper of cool silk, and the heat from his hot, hard body seeped through layers of denim and flannel and sweater to warm her skin. Unlike Tommy, rhythm poured through Nick, easy and natural, like a languid stream in no great hurry to get anywhere. “You couldve asked me to dance, she said, speaking past the heavy thud of her heart.

“Youre right. I could have.

“This is the nineties. Most men have abandoned the cave. The scent of him filled her head with the smell of clean cotton and warm man.

“Most men like your old boyfriend?

“Yes.

“Tommy thinks with his dick.

“So do you.

“There you go again, he paused and his voice lowered a fraction, “thinking you know so much about me.

Her stomach knotted in a tangle of conflicting emotion. Anger and desire, breathless anticipation, and gut-level fear. Tommy Markham, her first love, hadnt created such chaos within her. Why Nick? Hed been nasty to her more times than hed been nice. They had a past shed thought shed buried. “Everyone in town knows you spend time with quite a few women.

He pulled back far enough to look down at her. Light from the stage sliced across the left half of his handsome face. “Even if that were true, theres a difference. Im not married.

“Married or not, indiscriminate sex is still disgusting.

“Is that what you told your boyfriend?

“My relationship with Tommy is none of your business.

“Relationship? Are you going to meet him later for some of that indiscriminate sex you find so disgusting? His hands moved up her back to the base of her skull. “Did he get you hot? He plowed his fingers through her hair from beneath, holding her head in his palms. His eyes were as hard as granite.

She pushed at his shoulders, but he tightened his grasp, pressing his strong fingers into her scalp. He wasnt hurting her, but he wasnt letting her go either. “Youre sick.

He lowered his face and asked against her lips, “Does he turn you on?

She sucked in her breath.

“Make you ache?