Chapter One
Christy Fairchild could have sworn Elvis winked at her.
One minute the paunchy king of rock ’n’ roll, resplendent in a white jumpsuit, was pronouncing her and David Warner married, the next he was giving her a knowing smile as she and her new husband were hustled aside to make room for the next couple.
“You two are lucky we had a cancellation.” The shapely assistant with the bouffant hairstyle and overdone makeup à la early Priscilla Presley smiled and handed them their wedding pictures. “Most chapels in Las Vegas are booked a year in advance for Valentine’s Day.”
“It was a last-minute kind of thing,” Christy murmured as she took the photos, the huge marquis diamond on her finger twinkling in the light. She stared down at the ring.
“Regrets?” Her new husband’s voice was warm against her ear.
It had been six months since she’d had a real date and a lifetime since David had been a part of her life. But tonight, on the spur of the moment, she’d scrapped her plans to do a little shopping and instead married a man she hadn’t seen in ten years.
“Not a one,” she said, smiling up at him. It surprised her that she actually meant the words. Normally she was a worrier, second-guessing every decision and analyzing everything to death. The combination of the antihistamine she’d taken earlier and the glass of wine she’d had in the lounge with David must have affected her more than she’d realized.
“Chrissy.” His voice was deep and low. He was the only one she’d ever known who called her by that name. “Do you want to go back to your place or mine?”
Christy looked up and met his gaze. A shiver of anticipation traveled up her spine.
They were married. It had been her dream when she was seventeen. Now it had come true.
Had she ever known a more handsome man? His broad shoulders filled out his dinner jacket to perfection and his dark hair gleamed in the fluorescent glare. But it was his eyes that captivated her. They were hazel, but could change to gold or green depending on his mood or the clothes he wore. Right now there was a curious intensity in their golden depths that was as unsettling as it was exciting.
“Did anyone ever tell you that you have beautiful eyes?” Christy reached up and ran the tip of her finger along his jawline. “Or that you’re irresistible when you smile?”
A forgotten dimple flashed in his cheek. “So does that mean you won’t be able to tell me no? No matter what I ask?”
“Right now I’d say—” her voice sounded husky even to her own ears “—your wish is pretty much my command. Tell me what you have in mind.”
His eyes darkened and he opened his mouth as if to speak, but he never got the chance. Before he could answer Christy wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, deciding it might be best if she showed him first what she had in mind.
Christy’s lips curved into a smile even before she opened her eyes. What a beautiful dream it had been. She and David Warner toasting each other with champagne in the Jacuzzi, kissing on the balcony, making love in her king-size bed…
Her eyes popped open and her breath caught in her throat. The smell of his cologne, the taste of his lips, the feel of his hands on her skin was so vivid, so graphic she could almost believe it had been real.
But how could that be? She’d never been with a man before, not in that way. A warmth stole up her neck.
It must have been the whole Valentine’s Day thing, she decided. Since she’d never been in Las Vegas before, staying over after her seminar ended had seemed like a good idea at the time. Unfortunately she’d been unprepared for the hype that went along with this day for lovers. That explained why the wedding chapel had been in her dreams. And David Warner? That wasn’t hard to figure out. Her best Valentine’s Day celebration had been with him her senior year in high school.
Christy smiled wryly. Dreaming of wedding chapels and an old boyfriend had to be a sign of a seriously deficient social life. She was going to have to get out more.
Though even if she did find time to start dating again it’d be a long time before she’d be standing in any wedding chapel saying her vows. Marriage for her was a lifetime commitment and she wasn’t going to marry any man until she knew he was the one she would be with forever.
No wonder her subconscious had brought up David Warner. At one time she’d been convinced he was her “forever love.” When he’d asked for his ring back right before high school graduation, she’d thought her heart would crack in two. But their breakup was the best thing that could have happened. They’d been totally wrong for each other. She realized that now.
She shook her head. Thank goodness she’d outgrown that youthful foolishness. Wisdom now tempered her actions, and consequently her life ran like clockwork. Staying over an extra day in Las Vegas had been an impulsive move, but after six months on the road she thought she’d earned a break.
Today she’d be back on schedule. She’d check out of the hotel, grab a plane back to Chicago and be in her apartment in Lincoln Park before dinner. Though she didn’t have to present her ideas regarding the next series of seminars to her manager for a couple of weeks, Christy wanted to get a jump start. Order brought calm to her life. She didn’t like being late and she didn’t like rushing. That’s why she’d be at the airport well ahead of her ten-o’clock flight.
Rolling to her side, she glanced at her travel clock. She took a second look. Nine-thirty?
Christy bolted upright and the bedcovers dropped to her waist. The moment they did Christy became conscious of cold air hitting her bare skin.
Bare skin?
Christy dropped her gaze. Her eyes widened. Where were her cotton pajamas? Though many people slept in the nude, she never had.
“Christy?”
Her head jerked up and her mouth dropped open.
David Warner stood in the bathroom doorway wearing only a towel wrapped around his waist. Still damp, his hair spiked up, while the dark strands on his chest glistened with drops of water.
She blinked once.
He didn’t disappear.
She blinked again.
He shifted from one foot to the other and stared, a strange look in his eyes. Her heart pounded in her chest. He was real. Standing in her hotel room. Looking even more incredible at twenty-eight than he had at eighteen.
Christy gasped, suddenly realizing where his gaze was focused. With one swift yank she pulled the bedspread up to her neck, wishing with all her heart that she could pull it over her head.
Instead, she lifted her chin and ignored the rapid beating of her heart and the heat burning her cheeks. “What are you doing in my room?”
If he’d noticed the curtness in her tone, it didn’t show. His gaze searched hers. “I think you know the answer to that.”
A shiver traveled up her spine and her sense of unease skyrocketed.
It couldn’t be true. It was just part of the nightmare.
“We met in the lobby?” he prompted, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. “You said you were in Vegas because of some seminar. I was here because of my grandfather’s birthday.”
It had been part of the dream, the chance meeting by the front desk, the decision to stop in the lounge for a drink to catch up on old times.