Willow Smoke (36 page)

“Now
Claire?
She’s
never
had
anyone
threaten
her
with
a
needle
or
a
blade.
She’s
never
had
friends
who
were
raped
or
killed.
And
she
wouldn’t
know
how
to
fuck
a
man
if
she
had
to
save
her
life;
she’s
the
kind
who
only
wants
to
lay
there
and
fulfill
her
obligation
while
dreaming
about
signing
a
dozen
checks
or
credit
cards.

“From my point of view,
that stinks to
high
heaven,
Daisy
Matthews.
So
don’t
get
bent
out
of
shape
over
women
like
her.
What
you
got
is
the
real
thing.
Don’t
ever
let
anyone
tell
you
any
different.
Okay?”

Daisy
nodded.
Thelma
touched
up
her
own
lipstick.
“Thanks,
Thelma.
You’re
the
real
thing,
too.”

“Damn
right.
Now
let’s
get
back
to
our
men
before
some
fancy
hussies
come
along
and try to lure them away.”

- o -

“So
how’s
my
lovely
date?”
Nick
asked,
holding
Daisy
close
to
his
body
while
he
guided
them
through
the
steps
of
a
waltz.
He
wasn’t
at
all
surprised
that
Daisy
had
taken
to
dancing
with
the
grace
of
a
swan.
They’d
practiced
a
few
times
at
her
apartment,
and
now
no
one
would
have
guessed
that
the
young
woman
in
his
arms
was
experiencing
her
first
formal
dance.

“I’m
fine,”
Daisy
whispered
into
his
ear,
“although
my
feet
are
getting
a
little
tired.
I’ve
never
had
these
heels
on
this
long.”

“Slip
them
off
when
you
get
back
to
the
table.”

Daisy
leaned
back
and
frowned
at
Nick.
“I
wouldn’t
do
that.
That
would
be
uncouth.”

“Ha.
I
bet
if
we
peeked
under
all
the
delicate
table
cloths
in
this
room,
we’d
find
as
many bare female
feet as not.”

“We’re not going to do
that!”

“No,”
Nick
chuckled,
“I’ll
try
not
to
embarrass
you.
So,
do
you
like
Thelma?”

“She’s
a
gem.”

“Yep.
And
she
thinks
you’re
pretty
great,
too.
She
may
be
a
little
blustery,
but
Thelma
is
usually
slow
to
develop
friendships.”

“So
tell
me
about
Claire
Donaldson.”

Nick
scowled
and
missed
two
steps
before
regaining
his
stride.
“So
you
met
the
shrew;
I’ll
bet
that
was
pleasant.”

“Actually,
Thelma
chopped
the
woman
up
into
tiny
pieces
before
I
could
even
say
hello.
So
who
is
she?”

“A
social
climber
who
wanted
to
climb
into my bed, but never got there.”

“Really.”

“You
must
know
there’ve
been
plenty
of
women
in
my
life,
but
not
Claire
Donaldson.
So
what
did
she
have
to
say?”

“Not much, apart from
comparing
smells
of
gutter
snipes
and
deodorants.
She
wondered
if
I
was
your
niece.”

“God,
I
hope
no
one
is
still
wondering
that,”
he
mumbled
into
her
ear.
He
moved
his
hand
lower
on
her
buttocks
and
pulled
her
tighter
against
his
groin.
His
erection
pressed
just
about
where
it
should.
He
closed
his
eyes
and
breathed
deeply
her
delicious
scent.
“You
smell
good
enough
to
eat.”

“Promises,
promises.”
Her
voice
was husky.
“Claire
Donaldson,
eat
your
heart
out.”

Two
hours
later,
Nick
lifted
his
head
and
grinned.
“I like to keep my promises.”

“Don’t
stop!
Not
now!”
Daisy
pummeled
his
back
with
her
heels.

Nick
smiled
to
himself
and
dipped
his
tongue,
separating
her
engorged
lips.
She
sighed
in
response.
He
liked
it
when
she
rested
on
the
edge.
Daisy
was
easily
the
most
passionate
woman
he’d
ever
been
with.
Unexplored
desire
smoldered
within
her loins just
below the surface. It
pleased
him
immensely
that
he’d
learned
how
to
tap
that
unclaimed
reservoir.
It
was
his
tongue
and
his
lips
that
were
able
to
draw
her
ardor
to
a
near
boiling
point
and
then
to
back off, permitting it to subside of its
own
accord.
The
gradual
build-up
of
erotic
energy,
the
storing
up
of
aroused
synapses
ultimately
triggered
an
explosion as
hot
and
volatile
as
anything
he
witnessed
in
nature.

“Now,
Nick.
Now.”

Her
murmured
plea
touched
his
brain
and
his
heart;
he
could
no
longer
withhold.
He tasted
her moisture. He tested her heat. He inserted a finger, probed her inner
chamber
and
flicked
his
tongue
along
the
bud
at
the
apex
of
its
opening.

“Oh my God!”

Her
words
encouraged
his
efforts.
Her
body
tensed
beneath
and
around
him
and
then
released
and
then
tensed
and
released
again.
At
last,
she
shuddered
and
pulled
away.