Just in case.

Saying goodbye to Harry, he headed downstairs, glancing at his watch. It was after two, the club was closed, everyone drifting out. But he knew she’d have waited. She wouldn’t have left without seeing him. Partly because she’d want to see his reaction to her act. Partly because she knew he’d kill her if she’d walked out to her car alone.

“Iz?” he asked, knocking lightly on her dressing room door.

She opened it immediately. “Hi.” She was nibbling on her bottom lip and her hands were clenched in front of her. Rather than being dressed to go home, she wore just a slinky robe. Thankfully, though, the mask and hairpieces were gone.

“You doing okay?”

She nodded, then looked at him through half-lowered eyelids. “Um, so? What’d you think?”

He reached for her and drew her into his arms. “I didn’t see you dance.”

“What?”

“Sorry, other stuff was going on.”

“I heard there were some problems.”

“Yep.”

She fisted her hands and put them on her hips. The pose did really nice things, like pulling her short pink robe apart at the neck to reveal the lush, upper curves of her breasts.

“You’re telling me you just happened to have to deal with various crises during the exact times I was on stage? And that was simply coincidence?”

She might not believe it, but it was true. At least, he thought it was. He guessed he could have done the parking lot sweep a few minutes earlier or later. He hadn’t evaluated his decision before. But now, looking back…well, maybe something inside him had made sure he didn’t have to see other men looking at the beautiful body of the woman he considered his.

“You’re sure you’re going to be all right with this?” Her chin went up. “I won’t be able to handle it if you go all Cro-Magnon man and try to drag me by the hair back to your cave.”

“You woman. Me man,” he said, slipping his hands down and parting her robe further. He nuzzled into her neck, breathing in her essence, realizing twenty-four hours had been far too long to go without making love to her. “Me got heap big appetite.”

She swatted at his shoulder. But she didn’t back up. “You’re such a dork.”

Nick had never been called that, or anything like it, in his entire life. Ass maybe. Jerk. Cold-hearted pig, on one occasion. But never a dork. And it surprised a laugh out of him.

She delighted him. Simply brought every good feeling that existed inside him out into the open.

“God, I love being with you,” he muttered, unable to help revealing a little bit of what he was feeling.

“I know, I feel the same way.”

She didn’t admit that easily, the words had come haltingly out of her mouth. Which made Nick value them that much more.

He moved his mouth down, sampling her collarbone.

“Did you put that lock on my door yourself?” she whispered as she tilted her head farther, silently begging for more.

He nodded, continue to kiss and lick, lower now, to the curves of her breasts, beautifully bare under the robe.

“Let’s use it.”

“My thoughts exactly,” he murmured.

He didn’t let her go, he simply reached back and flipped the lock, then dipped down lower to lick his way down her to her pert nipple. Flicking it with his tongue, he waited until she was quivering to cover it with his mouth and suckle her.

“Mmm…more.”

Nick stroked her sides, his thumbs meeting near her belly button and scraping lower to tease the top edge of her pretty pink panties. With one last sweet suck on her breast he moved down her, following the path his hands had taken.

Izzie moaned softly, swaying on her feet. Nick kept her steady as he kissed his way down the front of her body. The soft robe brushed his face. So did her soft skin.

“Do you know what I wanted to do to you the first time I came into this room?”

She tangled her hands in his hair as he dropped lower, kneeling on the floor in front of her. “I think I have an idea.”

He pressed his face in her belly, licking at that tender bit of skin right above her pelvic bone, slowly pushing her panties down as he dipped lower.

“Did it involve that nice, big, flat surface in front of the mirror?” she asked.

Smart girl. “Uh-huh.” Gently holding her hips, he flicked at the panties, watching appreciatively as she shimmied out of them. The robe fell, too. Under the bright light bulbs ringing the mirror, he was able to see every glorious inch of her. But he wanted to see more-didn’t want his view blocked even by her pretty brown curls. So he turned her and edged her back until her bottom brushed the edge of the vanity top.

“Wait,” he said, suddenly remembering her accident. Wrapping his hand around the edge of the vanity counter, he tugged at it sharply, testing the shelf’s sturdiness. It remained firmly in place, well secured into the wall.

“Good,” she murmured. Rising on her tiptoes, she slid onto the vanity, parting her legs just the way he wanted her to.

Someone had brought her another chair, and Nick grabbed it, sitting on it directly in front of her. Reaching for her knees, he slowly pushed them apart, watching a pink flush rise through her entire body.

She made no effort to resist. Confident. Sensual. Incredibly seductive. She knew what he wanted and she wanted it, too.

He pushed her legs further, until he could see the glisten of moisture on the sensitive slit between her legs. “Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?” he asked.

It was a rhetorical question. She couldn’t possibly know how beautiful she looked to him, wanton and aroused, opening herself up so he could pleasure them both.

He couldn’t wait any longer. With a low groan of need, Nick dropped his face to that sweet, warm spot. He lapped at her in one slow, long lick, feeling her thighs quiver beside his face.

Izzie tilted up for him, inviting him further, and he sampled her again. “You taste just as good without the cannoli, Cookie,” he mumbled.

She managed a choppy laugh. “Don’t call me Cookie.”

“Can’t help it.” He nibbled his way up to catch her erect clit between his lips. He played with it even as he scraped his fingers across her swollen sex. She was drenched and ready to take whatever he wanted to give her. Wanting that warm, wet flesh wrapped around part of him while he continued to savor her with his mouth, he slipped a finger inside her.

“Mmm,” she groaned. “More. More of everything.”

He complied. Licking harder and sucking deeper, he slid another finger into her, then slowly moved them in and out, timing his strokes to her helpless moans.

With one more swirl of his tongue on her most sensitive spot, Izzie cried out and climaxed. He wanted to be part of that climax, to experience the spasms of her body as she clenched and shook. Standing, he tugged his shirt up and off, then unfastened his belt and pants and pushed them down, out of the way.

When he looked up again, Izzie had slid down to stand before him. He frowned. “I wasn’t nearly done.”

Her eyes sparkled. “Neither was I.” Then, with an Eve-like smile on her face, she turned around, facing away from him, until they were both looking in the mirror. She slowly bent forward, putting her hands flat on the vanity, curving that sweet ass back in pure, unspoken invitation.

His pulse roared. “You’re sure…”

“Oh, I’m very sure,” she promised him. She was still smiling, her eyes still glittered in avarice and hunger. “It’s your turn to take me, Nick.”

Remembering the way he’d begged her to take him the other night at his place, he nodded in lazy agreement. “Oh, honey, you can’t imagine how much I want to take you like this.”

Making love to her face to face-watching her incredible eyes widen with pleasure, and her sweet mouth fall open on every long sigh-was amazing. He knew he’d never tire of doing it.

But the idea of taking her like this-with raw, hot passion-excited him beyond reason. He’d be able to see her expressions in the mirror, be able to plunge deeper than ever before until he imprinted himself somewhere deep inside her. Deep enough that, perhaps, she might never want to let him go.