DONNA HILL
began writing novels in 1990. Since that time she has had more than forty titles published, including full-length novels and novellas. Two of her novels and one novella were adapted for television. She has won numerous awards for her body of work. She is also the editor of five novels, two of which were nominated for awards. She easily moves from romance to erotica, horror, comedy and womenâs fiction. She was the first recipient of the Trailblazer Award and currently teaches writing at the Frederick Douglass Creative Arts Center.
Donna lives in Brooklyn with her family. Visit her Web site at www.donnahill.com.
Dear Reader,
Thank you for once again entrusting me to take you on a romantic journey. I do hope you will be intrigued by my brainy, beautiful heroine, Naomi Clarke, a tenured professor, and Brice Lawrence, the man who makes her forget her lesson plans!
When these two meet for the first time on the balmy beaches of the Bahamas, neither suspects that their little vacation fling will not only put them together in bed, butâ¦well, youâll have to find out for yourself.
Do let me know what you think. Iâd love to hear from you. Drop me a line at [email protected].
Until next time,
Donna
âCome on, Naomi, live a little,â Alexis said as they browsed the swimsuit selections in the Neiman Marcus department store. âGo for a bikini.â She held up a fire-engine-red two-piece that was really no more than a few strings knotted together.
âYou have got to be kidding!â Naomi sputtered, shoving the strings back at Alexis.
Alexis couldnât contain her laughter. âGirl, relax. I know thatâs not your style, but weâre going on vacation. We wonât know a soul. It wouldnât hurt for you to let that bun down and flaunt yourself a little bit. Maybe catch the eye of some fine island man.â She winked. ââCause thatâs what I plan to do.â She rifled through the swimsuit rack.
âSo I guess itâs over between you and Gary.â
Alexis waved her hand in dismissal. âGary was much too boring. All he ever wanted to do was watch CNN. Can you imagine?â
âWhatâs wrong with that? At least you know where he is and what heâs doing,â she said, her tone dipping down to that place she didnât want to go.
Alexis sighed and turned to her friend. She knew all too well where the bitterness stemmed from. âNay, what Trevor did to you was despicable. And I hope he rots in hell for hurting you the way what he did. But itâs been two years.â She paused and took Naomi by the shoulders. âYou need to let it go so that you can be okay, sweetie. All you do is work and you need more than that. Your life can be more than your students and grading papers and going to meetings.â
Naomi pressed her lips together and looked at her friend. Alexisâs soft features and inviting brown eyes were the pictures of concern. She knew Alexis was right. But she wasnât like Alexis. She couldnât bounce from one man to the next. Sheâd always been reserved and shy when it came to relationships. Sure, sheâd enjoyed the attention of men just like any other heterosexual woman, but her conservative nature never really allowed her to âlet go.â Although sheâd always been a workaholic and driven, and not the party type, when sheâd met Trevor, a professor at Morehouse University during an educatorâs conference in D.C., a lot of that changed. He wooed her into opening that door that sheâd always kept shut. Sheâd stepped out from behind her books and research papers to become a partner in a relationship. What a mistake. So when it was over she did what was familiar and comfortable: she buried herself in her work, only deeper this time.
Naomiâs expression eased. She shook off the images of the past with a toss of her head. âI let you talk me into this trip, didnât I?â she teased, moving out of Alexisâs hold as she reached for a swimsuit. She held up a one-piece lemon yellow suit with cutouts on the sides. She smiled triumphantly.
Alexis angled her head left then right. âHmm. Okay. Not bad. Kinda cute.â
âGee thanks.â She laughed lightly. Two years is a long time to be alone, she silently admitted as they continued shopping. But sheâd rather be alone than to be hurt like that again. She was going on this trip because Alexis had all but twisted her arm and her relentless badgering finally broke her down. Hmm, two weeks on a sunny island was probably what she needed.
By the time Naomi returned home from their all-out shopping spree, her feet were on fire. She kicked off her shoes and her feet sighed in contentment. She flexed her toes. Alexis must have dragged her to every outlet in the mallâtwice. She laughed lightly thinking about her friend. Alexis Montgomery was a piece of work, but she wouldnât trade her in for anything.