The Twenty-Four-Hour Bride Read online

  “Abigail,” he murmured

  Letter to Reader

  Title Page

  Dedication

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  EPILOGUE

  Copyright

  “Abigail,” he murmured

  Ever so gently, he slipped one hand beneath the baby’s back and head. Lord, she was tiny. So tiny she practically fit within his palm. She stared at him with great solemn eyes and blinked her lush lashes. Then she heaved a mighty yawn for one so tiny and fell instantly asleep. Carefully placing the sleeping baby back in her bassinet, he brushed a finger across the downy crown of her auburn-tufted head. “Little Abigail.”

  Dani eyed him curiously. “Is that a family name?”

  “No, it’s...just a name.”

  “Nick?” A curious flush tinted Dani’s cheeks. “Thank you for everything. The wedding and getting me to the hospital in time. And...and being there when I needed you.”

  “You’re welcome.” He hesitated, unwilling to leave until he’d rectified one final omission. “I did forget something, though.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I never had the opportunity to kiss the bride.”

  Welcome to Whirlwind Weddings!

  Dear Reader,

  This is a brand-new minisedes about matrimony, featuring strong, irresistible heroes, feisty heroines and four marriages made not so much in heaven as in a hurry!

  When the authors came up with the idea for WHIRL WIND WEDDINGS, we gave them just one stipulation: their heroes and heroines had to meet and marry within a week! Mission impossible? Well, a lot can happen in seven days....

  Titles in this series are:

  January Marry in Haste by HEATHER ALLISON

  February Dash to the Altar by RUTH JEAN DALE

  March The Twenty-Four-Hour Bride by DAY LECLAIRE

  April Married in a Moment by JESSICA STEELE

  Day Leclaire says: “My husband and I were married five short months after we met, in our very own Whirlwind Wedding. It was a total fiasco! We’d planned to elope. We really did. One small problem: I made the mistake of telling my parents ahead of time. Well...they didn’t take kindly to that idea. Not at all. So instead of running off to Vegas? We had to ‘elope’ to Illinois where they were living and get married there! And then they made us do it a second time six months later, so all our relatives could attend. Nineteen happy years later, we’re still laughing about it!”

  Day Leclaire

  The Twenty-Four-Hour Bride

  TORONTO • NEW YORK • LONDON

  AMSTERDAM • PARIS • SYDNEY • HAMBURG

  STOCKHOLM • ATHENS • TOKYO • MILAN

  MADRID • WARSAW • BUDAPEST • AUCKLAND

  Special thanks to Bonnee Pierson for trying to keep me

  within the realm of “computer reality.”

  And all my appreciation to my CompuServe “buds.”

  You guys are great!

  PROLOGUE

  NICK COLTER left Paris two full weeks ahead of schedule.

  He didn’t know what drove him. It was an impulsive, gut-level decision based on emotion rather than intellect. It was also totally out of character for a man nicknamed Ice—as totally out of character as the one night he’d last allowed instinct to override common sense.

  The night he’d made Dani Sheraton his.

  A strong instinct for self-preservation fought to deny the impact of that one unforgettable evening, fought to keep him from resurrecting the memory. Not that it did any good. All the willpower in the world couldn’t change hard, cold fact.

  He’d gone to Dani the night before he’d left for Europe. He’d taken her into his arms and later into his bed. And after five long years of waiting, he’d finally made love to her.

  Then he’d left.

  But the memories of that brief moment persisted, haunting him day and night. It didn’t take much. A flash of ink-black eyes in Rome. Dusky curls caressing a creamy shoulder during a layover in Madrid. A husky, feminine laugh in the middle of a business meeting in London. And instantly he’d find himself transported back in time.

  He’d see Dani standing in front of his granite fireplace, slowly disrobing, stripping away piece by agonizing piece of rose-red satin. And as each delicate garment fell, more and more of the woman within was unveiled.

  She’d been so full of warmth, her heat seeping beneath his icy guard, bringing the rebirth of spring to a man who’d spent a lifetime in barren winter.

  She’d knelt at his side, firelight licking across her skin and catching in her heavy, dark curls. He’d never wanted a woman as much as he’d wanted her—not before and not since. Still, he’d been cautious, careful. He remembered how serious her expression had been. She’d seemed almost hesitant—which was ridiculous. He’d never known anyone as confident and outgoing as Dani. But that night...

  Perhaps she’d been haunted by memories of her own, because that night she’d changed from the wild gypsy he’d always known to a creature of shy passion and almost virginal uncertainty. And when he’d joined with her, she’d stared at him with huge, stunned eyes, as though she’d discovered some wondrous secret that had been kept hidden from her until that moment. The image had burned its way into his heart and soul, pursuing him across two continents and through more months than he cared to remember.

  He closed his eyes, finally realizing what drove him to leave Paris. It crystalized into a stark, inescapable certainty. It was time to return home.

  Dani needed him.

  CHAPTER ONE

  “YOU’RE PREGNANT.”

  Dani gripped the front doorknob, wrath vying with a crippling pain so intense it threatened to bring her to her knees. Anger won, giving her the strength she needed. She glared at Nick, furious that not a flicker of emotion dimmed the brilliance of his flinty blue eyes. As usual, he remained cold as ice while she needed every ounce of restraint to keep from going up in flames.

  “You have a talent for stating the glaringly obvious,” she snapped, splaying a protective hand across her extended belly. She’d been a fool to think she wouldn’t feel anything for Nick when they next met. If anything, her longing had grown with each passing month until it had reached staggering proportions. How was that possible, when he clearly felt nothing? “You’re right. I’m pregnant.”

  “How far along are you?” He didn’t wait for a response, but shook his head, shards of September sunlight darting through the white-blond streaks. It gave her a wrenching pang to recall that the last time she’d seen him it had been moonlight ricocheting off those pale streaks, frosting his hair with silver icicles. “Never mind. I already know. Nine months.”

  Denying the truth was pointless. “Almost to the day.”

  “Which means it’s my baby.”

  “Brilliant observation, Sherlock.” It wasn’t her wittiest comeback, but it would have to do, considering Nick had banged on her door without so much as a phone call to warn of his return.

  Of course, if he had called, she’d have made a run for it. Or at least a waddle for it, which was about as fast as she could move these days. She just couldn’t face the consequences of her actions from that long-ago night. Nor could she face the knowledge that once again she’d given herself—heart and soul—to a man incapable of love. She shot him a wary glance.

  Why, oh, why did he have to catch her now, when she was totally off guard? Why couldn’t he have come home in two more weeks, as planned? In ano
ther few days, she’d have given birth and... And what? In the endless months since he’d left, she’d never quite figured out what would come after that momentous occasion. She grimaced, conceding an undeniable fact of life. As usual she’d allowed her late husband’s personal motto to make her decision—why plan tomorrow when it can be left to chance?

  She stood before Nick, torn between wanting and fleeing, the want far outweighing the urge for flight.

  “Why don’t you let me in while you work on your explanation,” he suggested mildly.

  Dani folded her arms across her chest, refusing to budge. “I don’t need to come up with an explanation.”

  To her utter amazement, a tiny spark of fire ignited those cool blue eyes. “Yes, sweetheart. I’m afraid you do. Now, are you going to deactivate the alarm system and let me in?”

  “No.”

  He didn’t ask again, but simply eased her to one side and stepped across the threshold. Instantly an alarm sounded.

  “System override,” he snapped. “Colter zero-zero-one. Cancel alarm, Gem.”

  “ALARM CANCELLED, MR. COLTER.” The sweetly feminine voice issued from hidden speakers. “RESET SYSTEM?”

  “Affirmative.”

  There was a momentary pause and then Gem announced, “SYSTEM RESET IN PROGRESS. ALARM REACTIVATED FOR ZONE ONE. WELCOME HOME, MR. COLTER.”

  “Dammit, Nick!” Dani protested. “Why is she welcoming you home? This is my house and my security system.”

  “Perhaps it’s a glitch in the programming.”

  “Not likely, considering you designed the thing.”

  “Enough, Dani.” A wintry chill settled across his features, and she felt an anxious pang. “I didn’t come here to talk about Gem, as you damn well know. You can’t avoid discussing the real issue any longer.”

  “What issue is that?” she asked as blandly as she could manage.

  “The baby.” His mouth twisted. “Or had you forgotten?”

  Forgotten? She pressed a hand to her stomach. How could she when every day she felt her baby’s sweet life fluttering within her?

  Every tiny kick provided a constant reminder of that one delirious night with the man currently towering above her. She’d dreaded this meeting, uncertain of how a man of ice would take to impending fatherhood. “I haven’t forgotten a darned thing. As for avoiding a discussion of the future...” She set her jaw, apprehension filling her at the thought of a future that included Nick Colter. “I’d be quite happy to avoid that discussion for days. Weeks. Maybe even months.”

  “Not a chance, sweetheart. We’re going to resolve the matter here and now.”

  She knew that tone, knew she wouldn’t be able to hold him off much longer. Still, she could try. “First, explain how you got in here. How were you able to override the security codes? You shouldn’t be able to do that!” She faced an intimidating bank of digital readouts on a panel by the front door. “You may not allow Mr. Colter in without my authorization! You got that, you mechanical hunk of junk?”

  “PLEASE USE APPROPRIATE FORM OF ADDRESS WHEN MAKING A REQUEST,” came the melodious response.

  Dani gritted her teeth. “Mr. Colter isn’t allowed in here, Gem. No more overrides without my permission. Got that?”

  “AUTHORIZATION CODE?” Gem requested crisply.

  “Oh, hell. Um, three-eight-nine-eight-six-seven-four. I think.”

  “AUTHORIZATION OH - HELL - UM - THREE EIGHT - NINE - EIGHT - SIX - SEVEN - FOUR - I - THINK REFUSED. ERROR NUMBER FOUR - THIRTEEN. PLEASE FORMULATE REQUEST ACCORDING TO APPROPRIATE GUIDELINES. HAVE A GOOD DAY, MRS. SHERATON.”

  She whipped around to face Nick. “What the devil does that mean?”

  “It means you can’t override my override.”

  “Why not?”

  “You don’t have the proper authorization codes.”

  “Then give them to me.”

  “Why? They won’t do you any good.”

  She glared impotently. He had her with that one. She didn’t have a clue when it came to mechanical monsters like Gem. “I could try. You never know, I might get lucky.”

  The slightest smile touched his mouth. “Your particular brand of luck is likely to get you mistaken for a burglar and hauled off to jail again.”

  “That was Gem’s fault. I forgot my card, and she wouldn’t accept my voice code.” She shook an accusing finger at the digital display. “She called the police on purpose!”

  “Gem’s a machine, Dani. She was simply following her programming when she alerted the authorities.”

  “Then why did she laugh?”

  “It was a hiccup in her voice modulator. The error was with an earlier model. Her programming’s been upgraded several times since then.” His explanation sounded far too smooth. “But if it makes you feel any better I plan to give Gem a full overhaul later this week. We can’t afford any computer errors with a baby on the way.”

  “Just make sure you take out that override while you’re at it.”

  “Not a chance.” He changed the subject with typical decisiveness. “Where would you like to talk? Kitchen or living room?”

  “My office.”

  If she’d hoped to get a rise out of him, she failed. As usual. He simply inclined his head and motioned for her to proceed.

  She’d chosen the office because it would offer some small advantage for what would undoubtedly prove to be a difficult conversation. She’d hoped to hide behind the desk and let him play the part of a client or visitor—not that the desk would hide much of her current bulk. Nor, she suspected, would he willingly play any part she chose to assign him. He never had in the past, a fact that had always aggravated her no- end.

  Nick gestured down the hallway. “Lead the way.”

  He followed as Dani started toward her office, fighting to regain the pieces of his almost nonexistent self-control. A baby. His hands clenched. Heaven help him, Dani carried his child, bearing the priceless burden with an innate feminine grace. Pregnancy gave a gentle sway to her hips, a rhythmic rock and roll that held his attention with frightening ease. It didn’t matter that the final stages of pregnancy were upon her. As far as he was concerned, she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever known. Her hair appeared glossier than he remembered, thicker, curling past her shoulders in heavy black waves. And her skin radiated a translucent quality, as though lit from within. It took every ounce of self-possession not to reach for her, to keep himself from pulling her into his arms and claiming all that should be his. Only one thing kept him from touching her.

  She hadn’t told him about the baby. He’d had to find that out on his own. For nine long months, she’d kept it a secret. There could only be one explanation. She didn’t want him in her life. His mouth firmed, and he forced back an unsettling combination of fury and panic. Too bad. Whether she liked it or not, he intended to be a major player in her future—and in his child’s. He wouldn’t be shut out.

  “When exactly is the baby due?” he asked the moment they entered the office.

  “Any day.”

  Determination filled him. “Then there won’t be much time.”

  Dani eased into the leather chair behind her desk and eyed him suspiciously. “Much time for what?”

  “To get married.”

  His comment shouldn’t have surprised her. She’d known Nick for five impossible years, knew how persistent he was. She’d also learned through painful experience that once he made up his mind about something, he couldn’t be budged. Which meant she’d better hurry and dissuade him before his latest idea became fixed in concrete.

  “I don’t want to get married again. Once was enough.”

  “Once to Peter was enough. I’m not Peter.”

  No, he wasn’t. In fact, the two men shared absolutely no resemblance whatsoever. Peter Sheraton, her high-school sweetheart, had been boyish, charming and slyly persuasive. He’d also been totally untrustworthy. Nick, on the other hand, wouldn’t know charm if it slugged him in the jaw. And as for being p
ersuasive... No doubt his idea of that particular trait involved the use of a bulldozer with its throttle thrown wide open.

  “Look, I know this situation comes as a surprise—”

  “We’re getting married.”

  “But once you have a chance to get accustomed to the idea,” she continued doggedly, “I’m sure you can come to terms with it.”

  “No doubt. Once we’re married I’ll have, what? Two or three whole days to come to terms with it?”

  She winced at his sarcasm. As for having two or three days... “Only if you’re lucky,” she muttered. On her visit to the doctor that morning, he’d used the words “any minute” rather than “any day.”

  “I’d have had a hell of a lot longer if you’d told me last month. Or two months ago. Or even six or seven months ago.”

  She cleared her throat. “Yes, well—”

  “Why didn’t you let me know?” he cut her off coldly.

  “There’s a really good reason.”

  “Which is?”

  She lifted her chin. How could she explain how much she wanted him—and how much she feared that desire? How could she explain her instinctive awareness that once he knew about the baby he’d try to take control of her life—and her child? She couldn’t deal with that. She simply couldn’t. “I didn’t want to tell you.”

  Was it her imagination that made her think he flinched? “Why?” he demanded.

  “Because I knew you’d insist on doing something foolish. This only confirms it.”

  “Foolish,” he repeated softly. “Foolish, like what? Like giving my child a name?”

  “The baby has a name! My name.”

  Where in the world had she ever gotten the impression that his emotions were on ice? One look warned that she’d made a huge mistake. He started toward her, his long strides devouring the distance with nerve-racking speed.