Judith McNaught

“How foolish to yearn to ask the very person who'd caused the pain to heal it”

“Looking at you has been my favorite pastime from the moment you asked me to describe your face," he said solemnly, looking straight into her eyes.”

“I'm thinking that it will be autumn soon," she said, lifting her gaze to his. "Autumn is my absolute favorite season. Spring is overrated. It's soggy and the trees are still bare from winter. Winter drags on and on, and summer is nice, but it's all the same. Autumn is different. I mean, is there any perfume in the world that can compare with the smell of burning leaves?" she asked with an engaging smile. Matt thought she smelled a hell of a lot better than burning leaves, but he let her continue. "Autumn —is thexincgitsinagrechanging. It's like dusk." "Dusk?""Dusk is my favorite time of day, for the same reason. When I was young, I used to walk down our driveway at dusk in the summer and stand at the fence, watching all the cars going by with their headlights on. Everyone had a place to go, something to do. The night was just beginning ..." She trailed off in embarrassment. "That must sound incredibly silly.""It sounds incredibly lonely.”

“there is the door,use it....”

“I'm familiar with the myth, I'm merely surprised that a femalewould be familiar with the classics.""You must have a very limited experience with my sex," Alexandrasaid, surprised. "My grandfather said most women are every bit asintelligent as men."She saw his eyes take on the sudden gleam of suppressed laughterand assumed, mistakenly, that he was amused by her assessment offemale intelligence rather than her remark about his inexperiencewith women.”

“Why did happy memories fade and blur until one could scarcely recall them at all, while horrible memories seemed to retain their blinding clarity and painful sharpness?”

“Leave the star on top," said an achingly gen­tle, deep voice. "There's al­ready one angel in the room.”

“What hap­pens to me if this slip­per fits?""I turn you into a hand­some frog.”

“It's Christ­mas," he whis­pered.His wife smiled up at him, and her an­swer made his throat tighten. "No," she said softly, lay­ing her fin­gers against his jaw. "Christ­mas came three days ago.”

“He in­ter­rupted her with a boy­ish grin. "I promise I'll never wear your clothes, and I won't steal your al­lowances or your boyfriends ei­ther." Lau­ren couldn't help start­ing to smile as he fin­ished, "And if you swear never to call me Nicky again, I won't bite you."She stepped aside and let him in, then took his jacket and hung it in the closet. When she turned, Nick was lean­ing against the closed front door, his arms crossed over his chest. "On sec­ond thought," he grinned, "I take part of that back. I'd love to bite you.”

“If I had a hundred kingdoms, I would trade them all for you, my dearest love. Iwas nothing until you.”

“Life can be so good if you let it. But you must trade with life. You give something and you get something, then you give something of yourself again and you receive something again. Life goes bad when people try to take from it without giving. Then they came away empty-handed, and they grab harder and more often, growing more disappointed and disillusioned each time.”

“Sheridan bit back a teary smile at his quip, afraid to believe him, afraid to trust him, and unable to stop herself because she loved him. "Look at me," Stephen said, tipping her chin up again, and this time her glorious eyes looked into his. "I have several reasons for asking you to walk into that chapel, where there is a vicar waiting for us, but guilt is not among them. I also have several things to ask of you before you agree to go in there with me.""What sort of things?""I would like you to give me daughters with your hair and your spirit," he said, beginning to enumerate his reasons and requests. "I would like my sons to have your eyes and your courage. Now, if that's not what you want, then give me any combination you like, and I will humbly thank you for giving me any child we make."Happiness began to spread through Sheridan until it was so intense she ached from it. "I want to change your name," he said with a tender smile, "so there's no doubt who you are ever again, or who you belong to." He slid his hands up and down her arms, looking directly into her eyes. "I want the right to share your bed tonight and every night from this day onward. I want to make you moan in my arms again, and I want to wake up wrapped in yours."He shifted his hands and cradled her cheeks, his thumbs brushing away two tears at the edges of her shimmering eyes. "Last of all, I want to hear you say 'I love you' every day of my life. If you aren't ready to agree to that last request right now, I would be willing to wait until tonight, when I believe you will. In return for all those concessions, I will grant you every wish that is within my power to grant you.”

“Nor is he man enough to make a woman of you.”

“They had been married for three days.Lauren stirred, moving closer to him for warmth. Careful not to disturb her, he drew the satin quilt up around her shoulders. Reverently he touched her cheek, tracing its elegant curve. Lauren had brought joy to his life and laughter to his home.She thought he was beautiful. When she looked at him, he felt beautiful.Somewhere in another part of the big house a clock began chiming the hour of midnight. Lauren's lashes slowly flickered open, and he looked into her enchanting blue eyes. "It's Christmas," he whispered.His wife smiled up at him, and her answer made his throat tighten. "No," she said softly, laying her fingers against his jaw. "Christmas came three days ago.”

“You have to marry me. I think I've just been voted off the committee on international trade-they think I'm unstable. And Tony took me off his lift. Mary says she'll quit if I don't bring you back. Ericka found your earrings, and she gave them to Jim. He said to tell you that you can't have them unless you come back for them...”

“My name is Nick Sinclair," he said, and watched the young man's curious smile change to open animosity. "I would like to see Lauren.""I'm Lauren's brother," the young man retorted, "and she doesn't want to see you."Her brother! Nick's momentary relief was followed by an absurd impulse to smash the younger man's face for stealing Lauren's allowances when she was a little girl. "I've come to see her," Nick stated impacably, "and if I have to walk over you to get to her, I will.”

“Nick Sinclair will not be present today," he informed the thunderous-looking group. "He asked me to express his regrets and to explain that he was called away on an urgent matter."In unison, six outraged faces turned to glare with impotent hostility at the vacant chair of their missing member. "Last time it was a labor relations problem. What the hell is Sinclair's problem this time?" a jowly man demanded unsympathetically."A merger," the chairman answered. "He said he is going to try to negotiate the most important merger of his life.”

“He remembered the sheer perfection of her creamy breasts; the incredible silkiness of her skin; the exquisite taste of her lips; the way she had kissed him and held him to her..."Nick," the chairman said sharply, "I assume you are in favor of this proposal?"Nick dragged his gaze from the windows. He had no idea what proposal was being discussed. "I'd like to hear more about it before I decide," he prevaricated.Seven surprised faces turned toward him. "It's your proposal,Nick," the chairman scowled. "You wrote it.""Then naturally I'm in favor of it," he informed them coolly.”

“I think," Nick snarled, "that the stupid bastard isn't smart enough to win a poker hand with a deck of marked cards.”

“And then come and join us in a toast. I'm about to whisk Lauren off to Las Vegas to get married. The plane is being refueled and checked out right now.""Does Lauren know about this?" Mary said, frowning. "She's downstairs in Jim's office, hard at work.""I'll convince her of the wisdom of the plan.""When the plane is airborne and she has no choice," Ericka put in with a knowing smile. "Exactly." Nick grinned in high good spirits. He had missed her so much that he'd called her three times a day, every day, like a lovesick schoolboy.”

“So I'm tellin' you now-" Tony drew himself up to his most impressive height and slapped his hat on his head "-from now on you're off my list, Nick.If you wanna eat in my restaurant, you better bring Laurie with you!”

“By the way," he said, so casually that Lauren was instantly on guard, "a magazine reporter called me this morning. They know who you are and they know we're getting married. When the story breaks, I'm afraid the press will start hounding you.""How did they find out?" Lauren gasped.He shot her a glinting smile. "I told them."Everything was happening so quickly that Lauren felt dazed. "Did you happen to tell them when and where we're getting married?" she chided. "I told them soon." He closed his briefcase and drew her out of the chair in which she had just sat down. "Do you want a big church wedding with a cast of hundreds-or could you settle for me in a little chapel somewhere, with just your family and a few friends? When we come back from our honeymoon we could throw a huge party,and that would satisfy our social obligations to everyone else we know."Lauren quickly considered the burden a big church wedding would place on her father's health and nonexistent finances, and the highly desirable alternative of becoming Nick's wife right away. "You and a chapel," she said."Good." He grinned. "Because I would go quietly insane waiting to make you mine. I'm not a patient man.""Really?" She straightened the knot in his tie so that she'd have an excuse to touch him. "I never noticed that.""Brat," he said affectionately.”

“Lauren's eyes widened.An entire page had been devoted to the Children's Hospital Benefit Ball.In the center was a color picture of her-with Nick. They were dancing, and he was grinning down at her. Lauren's face was in profile, tilted up to his. The caption read, "Detroit industrialist J. Nicholas Sinclair and companion.""It does look like me, doesn't it?" she hedged, glancing at the excited, avidly curious faces surrounding her desk. "Isn't that an amazing coincidence?" She didn't want her relationship with Nick to be public knowledge until the time was right, and she certainly didn't want her co-workers to treat her any differently."You mean it isn't you?" one of the women said disappointedly. None of them noticed the sudden lull, the silence sweeping over the office as people stopped talking and typewriters went perfectly still..."Good morning, ladies," Nick's deep voice said behind Lauren. Six stunned women snapped to attention, staring in fascinated awe as Nick leaned over Lauren from behind and braced his hands on her desk. "Hi," he said, his lips so near her ear that Lauren was afraid to turn her head for fear he would kiss her in front of everyone. He glanced at the newspaper spread out on her desk. "You look beautiful, but who's that ugly guy you're dancing with?" Without waiting for an answer, he straightened, affectionately rumpled the hair on the top of her head and strolled into Jim's office, closing the door behind him.Lauren felt like sinking throught the floor in embarrassment. Susan Brook raised her brows. "What an amazing coincidence," she teased.”

“Lauren," he began gravely, "I would like four daughters with wobbly blue eyes and studious horn-rimmed glasses on their little noses. Also, I've become very partial to your honey-colored hair,so if you could manage..." He saw the tears of joyous disbelief filling her eyes, and he jerked her into his arms, crushing her against his heart,jarred by the same emotions that were shaking her. "Darling,please don't cry. Please don't," he whispered thickly, kissing her forehead, her cheek and finally her lips.”

“Let's get it over with, so I can stop wondering. How many have there been?"Lauren stared at him."How many what?""Lovers," he clarified bitterly.She could hardly believe her ears. After treating her as if her standards of morality were childish, after acting as if promiscuity was a virtue, after telling her how man preferred experienced women, he was jealous. Because now he cared.Lauren didn't know whether to hit him, burst out laughing or hug him. Instead she decided to exact just a tiny bit of revenge for all the misery and uncertainty he had put her through. Turning,she walked over to the bar and reached for a bottle of white wine. "Why should the number make any difference?" she asked innocently. "You told me in Harbor Springs that men don't prize virginity anymore, that they don't expect or want a woman to be inexperienced.Right?""Right," he said grimly, glowering at the ice cubes in his glass."You also said," she continued, biting back a smile, "that women have the same physical desires men have,and that we have the right to satisfy them with whomever we wish.You were very emphatic about that-""Lauren," he warned in a low voice, "I asked you a simple question. I don't care what the answer is, I just want an answer so I can stop wondering. Tell me how many there were. Tell me if you liked the, if you didn't give a damn abou them,or if you did it to get even with me.Just tell me.I won't hold it against you."Like hell you wouldn't! Lauren thought happily as she struggled to uncork the bottle of wine. "Of course you won't hold it against me," she said lightly. "You specifically said-""I know what I said," he snapped tersely. "Now,how many?"She flicked a glance in his direction, implying that she was bewildered by his tone. "Only one."Angry regret flared in his eyes,and his body tensed as if he had just felt a physical blow. "Did you...care about him?""I thought I loved him at the time," Lauren said brightly, twisting the corkscrew deeper into the cork."All right.Let's forget him," Nick said curtly. He finally noticed her efforts with the wine bottle and walked over to help her."Are you going to be able to forget him?" Lauren asked, admiring the ease with which he managed the stubborn cork."I will...after a while.""What do you mean,after a while? You said there was nothing promiscuous about a woman satisfying her biological-""I know what I said,dammit!""Then why do you look so angry? You didn't lie to me,did you?""I didn't lie," he said, slamming the bottle onto the bar and reaching for a glass from the cabinet. "I believed it at the time.""Why?" she goaded."Because it was convenient to believe it," he bit out. "I was not in love with you then."Lauren loved him more at that moment than ever. "Would you like me to tell you about him?""No," he said coldly.Her eyes twinkled, but she backed a cautious step out of his reach. "You would have approved of him. He was tall, dark, and handsome, like you. Very elegant,sophisticated and experienced. He wore down my resistence in two days,and-""Dammit, stop it!" Nick grated in genuine fury."His name is John."Nick braced both hands on the liguor cabinet,his back to her. "I do not want to hear this!""John Nicholas Sinclair," Lauren clarified.”

“You're back early from Chicago," Jim remarked, seemingly oblivious to his friend's cold reserve. "I wonder why?""You know damned well why," Nick retorted grimly.Jim's brows lifted, but he turned his tawny, appreciative gaze on Lauren. "I'd tell you how gorgeous you look,but at the moment,Nick is already restraining the urge to knock my teeth down my throat."Why?" Lauren gasped, her own gaze flying to Nick's granite features.Jim answered with a chuckle. "It has something to do with two dozen red roses and a kiss he witnessed.He's forgotten about a girl I was in love with once but couldn't quite get up the nerve to ask to marry me. He got tired of waiting for me to bolster my courage, so he sent Ericka two dozen-"Nick's breath exploded in laughter. "You bastard," he said good-naturedly, and this time his handclasp was sincere.”

“Consider what an amoral, unprincipled cynicI am-think of all the improvements you could make to my character.”

“Grow up!"Lauren felt as if he had slapped her. Infuriated past reason, she struck back at his ego. "You're absolutely right!" she blazed. "That's what I should do.Beginning today I'm going to grow up and start practicing what you preach! I'm going to sleep with any man who appeals to me. But not with you. You're much too old and too cynical for my taste.Now get out of here!”

“Panicked, she dropped the suitcase and started edging away. In her haste she caught the backs of her knees on the arm of the sofa, lost her balance and landed flat on her back on the cushions.His eyes gleaming with amusement, Nick looked at the delectable beauty sprawled invitingly across the sofa. "I'm flattered,honey, but I'd like something to eat first.What are you serving-besides baked shoes?”

“We all have urgent matters pending," one of the members growled. "What the hell is Nick's problem that he can't be here?""He said it's a labor relations problem.""That's no excuse!" another member exploded. "We all have labor relations problems.""I reminded Nick of that," the chairman replied."What did he say?""He said that nobody has a labor relations problem like his.”

“I also suspect that he loves you."Trying to suppress the anguished hope that flared in her heart, Lauren turned her face to the stained-glass window near their table. "What makes you think so?""To begin with, he isn't treating you the way he normally treats the women in his life.""I know that. He's nice to the others," Lauren said bitterly."Exactly!" Mary agreed. "He's always treated his women with an attitude of amused indulgence...of tolerant indifference. While an affair lasts he's attentive and charming. When a woman begins to bore him he courteously but firmly dismisses her from his life. Not once to my knowledge has any woman touched an emotion in him deeper than affection or desire. I've seen them try in the most inventive ways to make him jealous,yet he has reacted with nothing stronger than amusement, or occasionally exasperation. Which brings us to you."Lauren blushed at being correctly categorized with the other woen Nick had taken to bed,but she knew it was useless to deny it."You," Mary continued quietly, "have evoked genuine anger in him.He is furious with you and with himself. Yet he doesn't dismiss you fro his life; he doesn't even send you downstairs. Doesn't it seem odd to you that he won't let you work for Jim,and simply have you come upstairs to act as translator when Rossi's call finally comes through?""I think he's keeping me up there for revenge," Lauren said grimly."i think he is too.Perhaps he's trying to get back at you for what you're making him feel.Or possibly he's trying to find fault with you,so that he won't feel the way he does any longer. I don't know. Nick is a complex man. Jim, Ericka and I are all very close to him, and yet he keeps each one of us at a slight distance. There's a part of himself that he will not share with others, not even us.”

“Ricco will take care of you," he said. "Ricco thinks you are beautiful-he blushes when your name is mentioned."Ricco took their order and blushed when he put a glass of wine in front of Lauren. Mary's eyes twinkled, but when he left she looked directly at Lauren and said without preamble, "Would you like to talk about Nick?"Lauren choked on her wine. "Please,let's not ruin a lovely lunch. I already know more than enough about him.""What,for example?" Mary persisted gently."I know that he's an egotistical, arrogant, bad-tempered, dictatorial tyrant!""And you love him." It wasn't a question, it was a statement."Yes," Lauren said angrily.Mary was struggling obviously to hide her amusement at Lauren's tone. "I was certain that you did. I also suspect that he loves you.”

“Anderson!" he snapped murderously, "if you can tear your attention from Miss Danner's bust, the rest of us will be able to finish this meeting." Lauren flushed a vivid pink, but the elderly Anderson turned a purple hue that might be indicative of an impending stroke.As soon as the last staff member had filed out of the conference room, Lauren ignored Mary's warning look and turned furiously on Nick. "I hope you're satisfied!" she hissed furiously. "You not only humiliated me, you nearly gave that poor old man a heart attack.What do you plan to do for an encore?""Fire the first woman who opens her mouth," Nick retorted coldly. He walked around her and strode out of the conference room.Outraged past all reason, Lauren started after him, but Mary stopped her. "Don't argue with him," she said, gazing after Nick with a beatific smile on her face. She looked as if she had just witnessed a miracle. "In his present mood he'd fire you, and he'd regret that for the rest of his life.”

“What possessed you?" Lauren demanded of Jim the next morning.He grinned. "Call it an uncontrollable impulse.""I call it insanity!" she burst out. "You can't imagine how furious he was.He called me names! I-I think he's insane.""He is," Jim agreed with complacent satisfaction. "He's insane about you. Mary thinks so too."Lauren rolled her eyes. "You're all insane. I have to work up there with him. How am I going to do that?"Jim chuckled. "Very,very cautiously," he advised.”

“At five minutes to five,Jim walked into Mary's office, wearing his gray sweater and balancing four pieces of birthday cake on two plates. He put the plates down on Mary's empty desk and glanced at the doorway to Nick's office. "Where's Mary?" he asked."She left almost an hour ago," Lauren said. "She said to tell you that the nearest fire extinguisher is beside the elevators-whatever that means. I'll be right back.I have to take these letters in to Nick."As she got up and started around the desk, she was looking down at the letters in her hand,and what happened next stunned her into immobility. "I miss you,darling," Jim said, quickly pulling her into his arms.A moment later he released her so suddenly that Lauren staggered back a step. "Nick!" he said. "Look at the sweater Lauren gave me for my birthday. She made it herself.And I brought you a piece of my birthday cake-she made that too." Seemingly oblivious to Nick's thunderous countenance,he grinned and added, "I have to get back downstairs." To Lauren he said, "I'll see you later, love." And then he walked out.In a state of shock, Lauren stared at his retreating back.She was still staring after him when Nick spun her around to face him. "You viindictive little bitch,you gave him my sweater! What else has he gotten that belongs to me?""What else?" Lauren repeated, her voice rising. "What are you talking about?"His hands tightened. "Your delectiable body, my sweet.That's what I'm talking about."Lauren's amazement gave way to comprehension and then to fury. "How dare you call me names, you hypocrite!" she exploded, too incensed to be afraid. "Ever since I've known you, you've been telling me that there's nothing promiscuous about a woman satisfying her sexual desires with any man she pleases.And now-" she literally choked on her wrath "-and now,when you think I've done it,you call me a dirty name. You of all people-you,the United States contender for the bedroom Olympics!”

“When Lauren returned from lunch there were two dozen breathtakingly gorgeous red roses in a vase on her desk. She removed the card from its envelope and stared at it in blank amazement. On it was written "Thank you, sweetheart," followed by the initial J.When Lauren looked up,Nick was standing in the doorway,his shoulder casually propped against the frame. But there was nothing casual about the rigid set of his jaw or the freezing look in his gray eyes. "From a secret admirer?" he asked sarcastically.It was the first personal comment he had addressed to her in four days. "Not a secret admirer exactly," she hedged. "Who is he?"Lauren tensed. He seemed so angry she didn't think it would be wise to mention Jim's name. "I'm not absolutely certain.""You aren't absolutely certain?" he bit out. "How many men with the inital J are you seeing? How many of them think you're worth more than a hundred dollars in roses as a way of saying thank you?""A hundred dollars?" Lauren repeated, so appalled at the expense that she completely overlooked the fact that Nick had obviously opened the envelope and read the card."You must be getting better at it," he mocked crudely.Inwardly Lauren flinched, but she lifted her chin. "I have much better teachers now!"With an icy glance that raked her from head to toe,Nick turned on his heel and strode back into his office. For the rest of the day he left her completely alone.”

“Speaking of 'things,' Mary tells me that Nick is like a keg of dynamite ready to explode at the first spark. She says you're bearing up under the strain marvelously. You've won her wholehearted approval," he added quietly."I like her too," Lauren said, her eyes clouding at the mention of Nick.Jim waited until she had left to go upstairs,then he picked up his telephone and punched four numbers. "Mary, what's the atmosphere like up there this morning?""Positively explosive," she chuckled."Is Nick going to be in the office this afternoon?""Yes,why?""Because I've decided to light a match under him and see what happens.""Jimmy,don't!" she said in a low, sharp voice."See you a little before five, beautiful," he laughed, ignoring her wanring.”

“To have him look at her as if she was a piece of office equipment whose presence offended him but whom he was obliged out of neccessity to have nearby.”

“Have you missed me?" he asked."What do you think?" she evaded smoothly-but not smoothly enough, because he chuckled."Good.How much?""Is your ego in need of bolstering today?" she countered lightly."Yep.""Really,why?""Because I got shot down by a beautiful twenty-three-year-old, and I can't seem to get her out of my mind.""That's too bad," Lauren said, trying unsuccessfully to hide the joy in her voice."Isn't it," he mocked. "She's like a thorn in my side,a blister on my heel. She has the eyes of an angel, a body that drugs my mind, the vocabulary of an English professor and a tongue like a scalpel.""Thanks,I think."His hands glided up her arms, then curved around her shoulders, tightening as he drew her to within a few inches of his chest. "And," he added. "I like her.”

“Goodbye,Nick," she said, starting to close the door. "And thank you for stopping by."He accepted her decision with a slight inclination of his head, and Lauren made herself finish closing the door. She forced herself to walk away on legs that felt like lead, reminding herself at the same time how insane it would be to let him near her. But halfway across the living room she lost the internal battle. Pivoting on her heel, she raced for the door, yanked it open and hurtled straight into Nick's chest. He was lounging with one hand braced high against the doorframe, gazing down at her flushed face with a knowing, satisfied grin."Hello,Lauren.I happened to be in the neighborhood and decided to drop by.""What do you want,Nick?" she sighed, her blue eyes searching his."You."Resolutely she started to close the door again, but his hand shot out to stop her. "Do you really want me to go?""I told you on Wednesday that what I want has nothing to do with it. What matters is what's best for me, and-"He interrupted her with a boyish grin. "I promise I'll never wear your clothes,and I won't steal your allowances or your boyfriends either." Lauren couldn't help starting to smile as he finished, "And if you swear never to call me Nicky again, I won't bite you."She stepped aside and let him in, then took his jacket and hung it in the closet. When she turned, Nick was leaning against the closed front door, his arms crossed over his chest. "On second thought," he grinned, "I take part of that back.I'd love to bite you.""Pervert!" she returned teasingly, her heart thumping so much with excitement that she hardly knew what she was saying."Come here and I'll show you just how perverted I can be," he invited smoothly.Lauren took a cautious step backward. "Absolutely not.”

“Hi.What are you doing here?"He frowned. "Damned if I know."Unable to suppress her smile she said, "The usual excuse is that you happened to be in the neighborhood and decided to drop by.""Now why didn't I think of that?" Nick mocked dryly. "Well,are you going to invite me in?""I don't know," she said honestly. "Should I?"His gaze traveled down the entire length of her body, lifted to her lips and finally her eyes. "I wouldn't if I were you."Breathless from his frankly sensual glance, Lauren was nevertheless determined to abide by her decision to avoid all personal involvement with him. And judging from the way he had just looked at her, his reason for being here was very, very personal. Reluctantly she made her decision. "In that case,I'll follow your advice. Goodbye,Nick," she said, starting to close the door. "And thank you for stopping by.”

“Well,all she had to do was ask," one offended male replied."I hope you're satisfied!" Lauren whispered furiously."I'm not," Nick chuckled in her ear. "But I'm going to be."Fully intending to leave him to take his own notes, Lauren slammed her notebook closed and tried to shove her chair back. Nick's body blocked the chair. She twisted her head around to say something scathing, and his lips captured hers in a kiss that forced her head against the back of the chair, tripled her pulse rate and robbed her of thought. When he took his mouth away, she was too shaken to do anything except stare at him."What do you think,Nick?" a voice asked over the speaker."I think it gets better every time," he answered huskily.When the call was finally over, Nick pressed a button on the desk, and Lauren saw the door leading into Mary's office swing shut electronically. He grasped her arms and drew her out of the chair, turning her toward him. His mouth came closer to hers,and Lauren felt herself being helplessly drawn into his magnetic spell. "Don't!" she pleaded. "Please don't do this to me."His hands tightened on her arms. "Why can't you just admit you want me and enjoy the consequences?""All right," she said wretchedly, "You win. I want you...I admit it." She saw the gleam of triumph in his eyes, and her chin lifted. "When I was eight years old, I also wanted a monkey I saw in a pet store."The triumph faded. "And?" he sighed irritably,letting go of her."And unfortunately I got him," Lauren said. "Daisy bit me,and I had to have twelve stitches in my leg."Nick looked as if he was torn between laughter and anger. "I imagine he bit you for naming him Daisy."Lauren ignored his mockery. "And when I was thirteen, I wanted sisters and brothers. My father obliged me by remarrying, and I got a stepsister who stole my clothes and my boyfriends, and a stepbrother who stole my allowances.""What the hell does that have to do with us?""Everything!”

“The call was already under way when Lauren walked into his office. Nick gestured toward his chair and got up so taht she could sit at his desk and take notes.Two minutes after Lauren sat down, he leaned over her from behind, braced his hands on the desk on either side of her and brushed his lips across her hair.Lauren's self-control snapped. "Damn you, stop it!" she burst out."What?" "What?" "What?" three masculine voices chorused.Nick leaned toward the speaker and drawled, "My secretary thinks you're talking too fast,and she'd like you to stop it so she can catch up.""Well,all she had to do was ask," one offended male replied."I hope you're satisfied!" Lauren whispered furiously."I'm not," Nick chuckled in her ear. "But I'm going to be.”

“In the middle of his rapid-fire dictatioin he said softly, without pausing, "When the sun is on your hair, it shines like spun gold," and launched back into his letter. Lauren, who had inadvertently taken half of the compliment down in shorthand, gave him a killing glance, and he chuckled.”

“I understand that you have an urgent task for me.""I do.""What is it?""I want you to go to the coffee shop and get me something to eat.""That-" Lauren choked. "That's your idea of urgent?""Very urgent," Nick replied imperturbably. "I happen to be starved."Lauren clenched her hands into fists. "To you I may mrely be some frivolous, amusing sexual object, but downstairs I have an important job to do, and Jim needs me.""I need you,honey.I've been here since-""Don't you dare call me honey!" she burst out, reeling with unwanted joy at the casual endearment."Why not?" he cajoled, a smile lighting his face. "You're sweet.""You won't think so if you call me honey again," Lauren promised.His brows drew together at her tone, and Lauren had to remind herself that he was still her boss. "Oh all right!" she capitulated ungraciously. "What do you eat for breakfast?""Irritating secretaries," he mocked.”

“He turned over the application, and Lauren watched him scanning it, his gaze nearing the bottom where she had listed her job preferences. She knew the exact instant he spotted what she had written. "What the...!" he said, astonished, and then he burst out laughing. "Weatherby and I are going to have to be careful. Which of our jobs do you want most?""Neither," Lauren said shortly. "I did that because on my way to the interview at Sinco,I decided I didn't want to work there after all.""So you purposely flunked your tests,is that it?""That's it.""Lauren..." he began in a soft seductive voice that instantly put her on guard."I've had the dubious pleasure of reading through your file," she clarified, at his stunned look. "I know all about Bebe Leonardos and the French movie star.I even saw the picture of you that was taken with Ericka Moran the day after you sent me away because a "business aquaintance' was coming to see you.""And," he concluded evenly, "you were hurt.""I was disgusted," Lauren shot back, refusing to admit to any of the anguish she'd felt.”

“Hmmm," he said, "Lauren Elizabeth Danner.Elizabeth is a beautiful name and so is Lauren. They suit you."Unable to endure the sweet torment of having him flirt with her, Lauren said repressively, "I was named after two maiden aunts.One of them had a squint and the other had warts."Nick ignored that and continued aloud. "Color of eyes,blue." He regarded her over the top of the file, his gray eyes intimate and teasing. "They are definitely blue.A man could lose himself in those eyes of yours-they're gorgeous.""My right eye used to wobble unless I wore my glasses," Lauren informed him blithely. "They had to operate on it.""A little girl with wobbly blue eyes and glasses on her nose," he reflected with a slow grin. "I'll bet you were cute.""I looked studious,not cute.”

“You were wearing your hair up like that the day we left for Harbor Springs," he said, his deep voice pitched seductively low. "I like it.""In that case," Lauren said lightly, "I'll start wearing it down."He grinned. "So that's the way we're going to play it,is it?""Play what?""This little game we started yesterday.""I am not playing your game," she said with quiet firmness. "I do not want the prize.”

“By the way-" Jim stopped her "-I spoke with Mary and set her straight about who was seduced by whom a few weeks ago."Lauren sighed defeatedly. "I wish you hadn't...""Be damned glad I did. Mary worked for Nick's grandfather, and she's known Nick since he was a baby.She's fiercely loyal to him. She's also a staunch moralist with a particular dislike for aggressive young women who pursue Nick. She'd have made your life a living hell.""If she's such a staunch moralist," Lauren said mutinously, "I can't imagine how she can possibly work for Nick."Jim winked. "Nick and I are great favorites of hers.She's convinced that the two of us aren't beyond redemption.”