TESS awoke with a splitting headache. Sunlight streamed through the blinds like lasers. Damn it! She had gone to bed without removing her contact lenses. She threw her arm over her eyes.

Suddenly she realized she was naked beneath the covers. And then she felt the sticky mess beside her. Alarmed, she pushed herself up, keeping the bedsheets to her breasts, searching the room for clues.

Why couldn’t she remember Daniel being here? He never stayed over at her house. She noticed her clothes in a tangled mess on the chair. Heaped on the floor next to the chair were what looked like men’s trousers, the tips of shoes peeking out from underneath. A leather bomber jacket hung from the doorknob. She didn’t recognize it as anything Daniel would wear. That was when she heard the shower, aware of its sound only as the water stopped. Her pulse quickened as she tried to remember something, anything, from last night.

She checked the bedside stand. It was eight forty-five. Somehow she remembered it was Monday morning. She didn’t have any appointments on Mondays, but Daniel would. Why couldn’t she remember coming home?

The last thing she did remember was doing tequila shots at Louie’s. Had she called Daniel to pick her up? And would he be furious if she asked him to fill in the blanks? Obviously he hadn’t been angry with her last night; she shifted away from the damp spot.

“Good morning, Tess,” said a rich, deep voice. It didn’t belong to Daniel.

In a panic she sat up again and pushed her back against the headboard. The tall, lean stranger with only a towel around his waist looked concerned.

“Tess?” he said softly. “You okay?”

Then a dam broke loose in her brain, releasing the memories in a flood. He had been at Louie’s, watching her from the corner table, handsome and quiet, so unlike anyone who frequented Louie’s.

“Tess, you’re starting to scare me.”

His concern seemed genuine. At least she hadn’t brought home a mass murderer. But then, how did she think she’d know the difference? Wrapped in only a towel, he looked harmless. Immediately she noticed his firm body and realized he could overpower her without much effort. How could she have been so foolish?

“I’m sorry. You startled me.” She tried to keep the alarm from her voice.

He grabbed his trousers from the floor but stopped before putting them on as if something had just occurred to him.

“Christ! You don’t remember, do you?”

His boyish face looked embarrassed. He fumbled into his trousers, accidentally dropping the towel before they were all the way up. Tess watched, flustered and annoyed that his muscular body was turning her on. She should be worried he could hurt her, instead she found herself wondering how young he was. And why couldn’t she remember his name?

“I should have known you had too much to drink,” he apologized as he searched for his shirt. “I’m a complete idiot, aren’t I?”

“No, not at all.” She smiled again, and his obvious discomfort relaxed her. “It’s just that I don’t do this sort of thing,” she tried to explain. “At least, not anymore.”

“I don’t usually do this sort of thing at all. So you really don’t remember any of last night?”

“I remember you watching me. I remember being very attracted to you.” Her revelation surprised her almost as much as it surprised him.

“That’s it?” He looked wounded.

“Sorry.”

Finally, he grinned. She couldn’t believe how comfortable she felt with him. The only tension seemed to be the obvious sexual attraction, which she tried to ignore. He didn’t look as if he was even thirty. And he was a stranger, for heaven’s sake. She wanted to kick herself. Had she not changed at all after all this time?

“If I ever find my shirt, could I maybe take you to lunch?”

Then she remembered Daniel. She felt the sapphire ring he had given her stabbing into the soft underside of her chin. What was wrong with her? Daniel was a mature, respectable businessman. Sure, he was arrogant and self-absorbed sometimes, but at least he wasn’t some kid she had picked up in a bar.

Still, she watched the handsome young stranger put on socks and shoes while he waited for her answer. He was being a gentleman, pretending he hadn’t had access to every inch of her body only hours ago. The thought should have repulsed or terrified her. It didn’t. Instead, she continued to watch him, enjoying his nervous but fluid motions, yet at the same time annoyed with herself. How had she been so certain he wouldn’t hurt her? One of these days a stranger’s eyes might not be a safe way to judge his character.

“So what about lunch?” he asked, looking as though he was steeling himself for rejection.

“I don’t even remember your name,” Tess finally admitted.

“It’s Will. William Finley.” There was a glance and a hesitant smile. “I’m twenty-six, never been married. I’m a lawyer. Just moved to Boston, but I’m visiting a friend here in Newburgh Heights. His name’s Bennet Cartland. His father has a law practice here. You can check it out if you want.” He hesitated. “Probably more than you wanted to know, right?” When she rewarded him with a smile, he continued. “What else? I have no diseases, except I did have the mumps when I was, like, eleven, but then so did my buddy, Billy Watts, and he has three kids. Oh, but don’t worry, I used protection last night.”

“Um…there’s a damp spot,” she said quietly.

“I had only two condoms, but the third time I…well, I pulled out before, well, you know.”

Suddenly she remembered the intensity, could feel it fill her body. The unfamiliar rush frightened her. She couldn’t slip back into her old habits. Not when she had worked so hard.

“I think maybe you better leave, Will.”

He hesitated, staring at his feet. She wondered if he wanted to touch her. Did he have the urge to kiss her goodbye or to convince her to let him stay? Maybe she even wanted him to. Instead, Will found his jacket on the doorknob and left.

She lay back into the pillows, now noticing remnants of his aftershave. Dear God, twenty-six years old! Almost ten years her junior. How could she be such an idiot? Yet, this time when she closed her eyes, their night together started coming back to her in crisp sensations. She could feel his body rubbing against hers, his hands playing her like some delicate instrument, knowing how to send her to places she hadn’t been in a long time.

Tess hugged her pillow to her. She couldn’t let someone like Will Finley sidetrack her. Not when she had worked so hard for what she had. She needed to think of Daniel. Despite their differences, Daniel gave her credibility. He was good for her in all the ways that were necessary for her to become a respected, successful businesswoman. So why did she feel as though she had let something valuable slip from her fingers when she asked Will Finley to leave?