Georgia On My Mind Read online

  Alarms! Bells! Whistles! Stop! Now! This is wrong! This isn’t you—you don’t do this! Oh, but I want to. I really, really want to! I want to let this amazing, sexy man make me forget, just for tonight, all the misery of the last three months. Don’t I deserve that much? Yes, but oh how I’ll hate myself in the morning. The morning is twelve hours from now, though. Twelve blessed hours of release from the worry, the pain, the uncertainty.

  “Georgie,” he gasped as he pulled back from her. “I can’t seem to resist you.” Resting his forehead on hers, he drew in a deep, cleansing breath. “But we should stop. I’ll walk you home.”

  I don’t want to go home! I don’t want to be in a house full of memories that remind me over and over that I’m never going to see my mother again! Don’t make me go back there. Please don’t. Telling herself that one night with him—one night of mindless, no-holds-barred, no-commitment sex with the most devastatingly sexy man she had ever met—was just what she needed, she reached up to release a button on his shirt.

  He went still on top of her. “Georgie?”

  Another button popped free.

  Exhaling a long deep breath, he reached for the hand at work on his shirt. “Are you sure?”

  She nodded.

  “But—”

  With a finger to his lips, she told him she was done talking.

  Chapter 4

  Nathan studied her for an endless moment, during which she wondered if he was going to say no, and then he lowered his face to hers for a soft, gentle, mind-altering kiss. All the power he had shown her earlier was gone, replaced by sweet seduction that took their chemistry from simmer straight to boil.

  While he went slow, Georgie redoubled her efforts to get rid of his shirt, desperate to get her hands on the chest that had dominated her fantasies for weeks. With her lips still fused with his, she couldn’t decide what part of him to touch first.

  An opportunity like this was not to be rushed, nor should it compete with the sensations coursing through her from kisses that made her feel cherished as much as desired. That would be something to ponder tomorrow when this sure-to-be-incredible night was just a memory of a one-time lapse in judgment.

  With her hands cupping his pectorals, she urged him onto his back.

  Tearing his lips free, he resisted for a second. But the urgency he saw on her face must have swayed him because, with a great sigh of frustration, he did as she asked.

  “Take this off,” she said, tugging at his shirt.

  He sat halfway up and slid the shirt off his broad shoulders.

  She licked her lips with anticipation.

  His eyes narrowed as he watched her tongue move over her lips. “Georgie,” he groaned, his voice hoarse with desire.

  Leaning forward to nuzzle the golden chest hair that had played such a big part in her fantasies, she said, “Hmm?”

  A tremble rippled through him, and a wave of desire shot straight to her core when she realized the effect she was having on him. The light shining into the room from the hallway made it possible for her to see the growing bulge in his pants. Forcing herself to focus on his chest when all she wanted was to get rid of his pants so she could see the rest of him, she grazed her tongue over his nipple.

  He sucked in a sharp deep breath and buried his hands in her hair. “Georgie, please. Come up here.”

  “In a minute.” Her inhibitions faded away in a red haze of desire that was all new to her. The overwhelming need made it easy to forget that she had only just met him, that she was having first-date sex, that tomorrow she would be back to reality and most likely horrified by her behavior. None of that mattered now.

  With her lips and fingers, she explored every ridge of hard muscle and each patch of soft hair while soaking in his masculine scent—a combination of soap, sporty deodorant, and spicy cologne. When she reached the waistband of his pants, she tugged on the button and unzipped him slowly, going for maximum effect. Where this temptress had come from, she couldn’t have said. All she knew was she loved the hissing sound he expelled when she ran her hand over his throbbing length—his impressive throbbing length.

  “Georgie, sweetheart, come on.” He sounded as if he were speaking through gritted teeth.

  Georgie was too busy freeing him from his clothes to venture a glance to see if that was the case. She closed her hand around him and stroked him gently, afraid to hurt him because he was so hard. “What do you like?” she asked in her best sex-siren voice, delighted by this new, unexpected side of herself. She had never been so bold or brazen with a man and had to wonder why not. It sure was fun.

  “I don’t hate that,” he said in a choked whisper, his head turned to one side, his eyes closed, his lips parted, his jaw tight with tension.

  “How about this?” she asked as she slid her lips and tongue over the head of his penis.

  He clutched a handful of her hair. “Yeah,” he gasped, his eyes now open and focused on her. “That’s good, too.”

  Georgie dipped her head and went back for more. Using her hand, tongue, and lips, she worked him into a frenzy.

  “Georgie,” he groaned. “That’s enough. Stop.”

  But she didn’t want to. She wanted to do something she had never done before, something she had never allowed before. If she was stepping outside herself for one glorious night, why not go all the way? So when he begged her again to stop, when he warned her it was the last chance, she continued on, determined to take him over the edge.

  It didn’t take long.

  Georgie stayed with him for every second of his almost violent release, thrilled to know she had driven him to it.

  “God,” he whispered as she kissed a path to his stomach and chest. Still breathing hard, he gathered her into his arms and held her tight against him. “What did I do to deserve that?”

  She shrugged. “Just felt like it,” she said as if it was something she did all the time. He didn’t need to know it was one of several firsts for her on a night when anything seemed possible.

  “Lucky me. Maybe it was the calamari. I’ll have to make sure I feed you that next time, too.”

  Next time, she thought with a sigh, knowing there wouldn’t be one. Like Cinderella at midnight, the morning would transport her back to where she belonged.

  “Why the deep sigh?” he asked.

  “No reason.”

  He propped himself up on one elbow and looked down at her. “You’re wondering when you’re going to get your fair share, aren’t you?”

  His smile was so sexy and almost cocky that Georgie had to resist the urge to drool. “The thought never crossed my mind.”

  “Is that so?” He slid a hand under her skirt and, in one swift move, had her dress up and over her head before she had time to determine his intentions.

  “Oh,” she said, acutely aware of her mismatched underwear and wishing she had taken Cat’s advice to plan for this possibility.

  “Mmm.” He left a trail of hot, openmouthed kisses along the top of her panties. “Purple polka dots. Very sexy.”

  Saying a silent thank-you to Doug for dragging her to the gym every night after work and insisting on no fewer than two hundred crunches, Georgie took a deep breath as Nathan’s lips traveled over her firm belly. “It doesn’t match,” she managed to say.

  He looked up at her. “What doesn’t?”

  “Underwear.”

  “And was that intentional?”

  “I’d hoped it would be an insurance policy to keep me from doing exactly what I seem to be on the verge of doing right now.”

  He laughed softly against her belly. “Let me say, for the record, I couldn’t care less if your bra matches your panties, because you won’t be wearing either of them for much longer.”

  His words, coupled with the movement of his lips over her fevered skin, had her writhing under him, clinging to him, on the verge of begging him. Through her bra, he closed his lips around a protruding nipple and tore a moan from deep inside her. “Nathan,” she pleaded.


  “My friends call me Nate, and I’d like to think we’re friends.” As he spoke, he continued to nip and suck and tease.

  “I like Nathan better.” Somehow she managed to speak despite what he was doing to her breasts.

  “Sweetheart, you can call me anything you want,” he said, reaching behind her to unhook her bra, “as long as you call me.”

  His comment penetrated the aura of fantasy she had surrounded herself with, reminding her that he was a real man with real feelings, not the larger-than-life character she had made him out to be. If he was expecting more than this one night, they had a problem. That she had the potential to hurt him struck her hard. Placing her hands over his on her breasts, she said, “Nathan, wait.”

  He nudged their hands out of the way so he could get at her nipple with his lips. “What?”

  “I don’t want you to think . . .”

  With a hard tug, he drew her deep into his mouth, rendering her speechless. Swirling his tongue over her nipple, he said, “Think what?”

  “That this is more than tonight,” she forced herself to say, knowing it had to be said. With her hands on his face, she forced him to look at her. “I’m dealing with a lot of complications right now. I can’t handle another one. I don’t want to hurt you or lead you on.”

  His jaw shifted slightly, which was the only indication he gave that he was wrestling with what she had said. “If that’s how you want it.”

  “It is,” she said, even though she ached as she said the words.

  Shrugging, he returned his attention to her breast. “Then I’ll just have to change your mind.”

  “Nathan—”

  “Shh. I’ve been warned.”

  Unable to muster another ounce of protest, she fell back against the pillow and gave herself over to him as he used everything in his arsenal to bring her more pleasure than she could have imagined possible.

  His broad shoulders forced her legs apart as he pressed his lips to her belly and then tugged at her panties with his teeth.

  Georgie moaned and lifted her hips to help him get rid of them. His hands coasted over her legs, pushing them apart again, and coming to rest on her inner thighs. When he leaned in to nibble that sensitive skin, she cried out. He took advantage of her being distracted to sink his tongue into her.

  “Oh my God.” She sighed. “God.” Since he already had her hovering on the brink, it took only a few concentrated strokes of his tongue to send her flying. Clutching his shoulders, she held on for the most intense release she had ever experienced. She’d had no idea it could be like this, and even as she was in the midst of it, she had the presence of mind to wonder if she would really be able to walk away from him in the morning.

  Before she could catch her breath, he brought his lips down on hers for a searing, sensual kiss that ensured he still had her full attention. “Let me get a condom,” he whispered.

  “I’m on the pill.”

  Shaking his head, he said, “As tempting as that is, condoms are nonnegotiable with me.”

  She let him up and watched him as he went into the bathroom.

  He was back a minute later and pulled the sheet up and over them.

  They lay facing each other, caressing, soothing, stirring. He pulled her tight against him and kissed her as if it was their first kiss all over again. “Georgie,” he whispered. “I want you so badly. I’ve wanted you for weeks.”

  Startled, she said, “You have?”

  He hooked her leg over his hip and slid his fingers through her moist center, denying contact to the spot that throbbed for him—again, already. “Did you really think I didn’t notice you when I ran by every morning? I never used to go that way until I saw you there the first time.”

  Swallowing the lump forming in her throat, she said, “You didn’t?”

  He shook his head, brushed his lips over hers, and slid a finger into her.

  Sucking in a harsh deep breath, Georgie arched her back and pushed against his probing finger.

  Adding a second one, he kissed her softly. “What a nice surprise to realize who was stuffing Styrofoam into the Dumpster today. You can’t imagine how sorry I was that I had upset you.”

  No! He doesn’t mean that! He can’t do this to me. He can’t make this out to be more than it is. He’ll ruin everything if he does that. Desperate to put the focus back where it belonged, she shifted onto her back and reached for him, encouraging him to take what she offered so willingly.

  Poised between her legs, he looked down at her, daring her to look away as he entered her.

  Georgie gasped and struggled to take in his hard length, which was more than she was used to—much more.

  He went slowly until he was fully sheathed in her, holding still for a long moment during which Georgie let go of the worries and the fears and the lingering disgust over what she was doing and gave herself permission to feel.

  And then, as if he had no choice, he began to move.

  She raised her knees to take him deeper and cried out in shock when a climax slammed into her. Never before had it been so easy to get to that elusive place—never before had she gotten there so quickly. As he tightened his arms around her and let himself go, she had yet another reason to worry that her night of mindless sex wasn’t going to unfold quite the way she had planned.

  When Georgie awoke the next morning, she knew before she even opened her eyes that she was alone. Sun streamed in through uncovered windows as she lay there trying not to think about the night she had spent with him. But despite her best efforts, flashes and images that would be forever burned in her mind played like a movie—straddling him and riding him with abandon as he held her hands, his face buried between her legs, the intense way he had gazed at her each time he entered her. She had lost track of the number of times and ways and orgasms. There had been a lot of them.

  With a groan, she rolled over to bury her face in the pillow and was greeted by a scream of protest from muscles unused to such frenzied activity. A piece of paper crunched under her elbow, and she raised herself up to look at it.

  Georgie, thank you for the most amazing night. I’m sorry I had to leave for work so early. Believe me, I’d much rather be in bed with you. There’s a coffeemaker in the downstairs bathroom that’s all ready if you want a boost before you go, or there’s OJ in the fridge. Make yourself at home, use the shower, anything you want. The door will lock behind you when you leave. I know you said this was a one-time thing, but I’d really like to see you again—and not just because of the s-e-x (which was incredible). Call me or come by the house if you change your mind. I’ll think of you today. Probably tomorrow, too. And the next day.

  Nathan

  He had included his cell number at the bottom of the page. She released a pained sigh as she read the sweet note again. Why couldn’t she have met him when things were normal? When she had room in her life for all the things he could be to her? Riddled with regret, she sat up, ran a hand through her tousled hair and, ignoring the protest from her sore muscles, darted naked into the bathroom, hoping his brother wouldn’t choose this moment to come home. She eyed the shower with longing but decided to get out of there and take one at home.

  His damp towel hung from a rack under the window, and she reached out to run her fingers over it. The air was heavy with summer humidity and his cologne, which made her want him like she hadn’t had him all night. “Knock it off,” she muttered.

  Gazing at her reflection in the mirror, she saw puffy bags under her eyes from the all-but-sleepless night, red patches of irritation from where his whiskers had abraded her skin, and, oh God, was that a hickey? “No,” she moaned. Ashamed, she cast her eyes down to find a pile of shiny black condom wrappers in the trashcan. She couldn’t resist bending over to count them. One, two, three. No way. Four. Her heart pounded, and her stomach surged with nausea as a fifth one appeared under the others.

  Mortified by the discovery, she flushed the toilet and dashed back into his bedroom to find her clot
hes. Her dress was a bundled-up mass of wrinkles, her bra dangled from the end of the bed, and her panties were missing in action. Digging around in the sheets, she finally found them and tugged them on, certain she would never look at purple polka dots in quite the same way again.

  Reaching for her earrings on his bedside table, she was swamped with longing. To see him just once more. To feel the way he made her feel, even if just for five more minutes. Was that too much to ask after what she had given him during the night? “You’re the one who said it was a one-time thing,” she mumbled as she stared at the earrings, which all but dared her to leave them there to give him an excuse to seek her out again.

  Before she could change her mind, she slid on her flip-flops and left the room—without the earrings. In the hallway, she heard water running in the bathroom. She went in to find the toilet still flushing. When tinkering with the handle didn’t take care of it, she lifted the cover off the back and fiddled with the plunger thingy, but couldn’t get it to stay up to stop the flow of water. “He’ll flip his lid if I leave it like this all day. I’ll bet he’s a freak about water conservation, too.”

  She looked around for something she could use to fix it. Feeling like she was invading his privacy, she opened the medicine cabinet. Mixed in with all the guy stuff, she found a box of dental floss. Her eyes darting from the malfunctioning plunger to the light fixture on the wall above the toilet, she mulled her options and decided there weren’t any. It was this or nothing.

  With only another moment of hesitation, she grabbed the dental floss, tied it to the plunger and hoisted it up with a knot around the light. Just for good measure, she added a second piece. Satisfied she had done what she could, she returned what was left of the floss to the cabinet, closed the door, dashed down the stairs and out the front door, hoping no one would see her as she left. She didn’t take a deep breath until she reached the foot of Extension Street and hung a left onto Lower Thames toward Dean Avenue, back to her mother’s house, back to her mother’s job, back to the aftermath of her mother’s death.