Here’s a peek at the heroine of Sway – Daisy Huerta through our hero’s eyes:

Cherished – featuring SWAY by LAUREN DANE
Copyright 2012, Lauren Dane
All Rights Reserved, The Berkley Publishing Group
Releasing August 7!

“Daisy! Can you help? I’ve got one extra tonight.”

He’d been about to interrupt to tell the instructor he wasn’t interested in this class but was looking for another one. Until the aforementioned Daisy entered the room.

Long, dark hair had been captured into a high ponytail and it swayed as she walked. Big brown eyes. Not overly tall. Probably five and a half feet at most. Pretty, full lips glistened red. Her body, curvy and mouthwatering, was draped in a dress he could only describe as vintage. A full skirt and a tight bodice. Tattoos, though he couldn’t see all of the half sleeve due to her dress.

It was the jitterbug woman he’d watched a little while before. She had a gorgeous smile as she looked from the instructor to Levi. But he kept going back to her eyes. After a perusal of the impressively high and full breasts of course, he wasn’t a saint. She had beautiful eyes, but it was the intelligence in them that made him look twice and then again.

Suddenly it wasn’t so bad that he needed a dance class. Not if she’d be his partner for a time or two. That way he could say he went to the blasted class and have an excuse to get his hands on her.
She took him in and smiled, holding her hand out. Bangle bracelets jingled and clicked with her movement. “I’m Daisy Huerta. Nice to meet you.”

“Levi Warner.”

The instructor clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention. “Welcome everyone to introduction to dance. We’ll cover several different styles of dance and rhythm over the next few weeks. Partner up and let’s get started.”

This was definitely not the class he’d signed up for. They’d discover this, he assumed, when they checked to see who’d paid.

Daisy stepped close, took his hand and he naturally pulled her close, his other hand at her waist.

“Leading already? All right then.” When she quirked a smile, a dimple showed at the right corner of that full, lush mouth. “I love it when my partner is tall. Fits better.”

Well now.

There was a lot of talking and people laughing self-consciously, but he didn’t hear any of it. With his hand at her waist, there was nothing to do but slide into the dance as the music came on.

Rosemary Clooney took a deep breath and began to sing the opening of “Sway.” And she bent to his will and began to move, sensuously, slowly, gracefully. Giving over to him easily as he led. That simple act of submission wasn’t sexual. Not really. But it shattered all the reasons he’d been lining up to leave after that one dance. And tore at the walls he’d built around himself a long time ago.

His hand on her waist seemed to burn through the material of her dress as they moved.

He led every moment. Sure of himself. Propelling her just exactly where he wanted her to go. She relaxed and fell into the music. While others in the class worked slower, going step by step, Levi danced like he knew what he was about.

It was increasingly clear Levi wasn’t a beginner of any type. It wasn’t like she didn’t like his hands on her, but he didn’t need the class and it was only right she tell him. But she could wait until after the class. Just to be fair.

Until then she’d enjoy the hypnotic pleasure of being led by this man. She’d danced many times with many people and it had never felt this forbidden and sexually charged. A shiver moved through her system, hardening her nipples, heating her skin. Totally inappropriate to get all het up over this one silly moment, but there it was so why not enjoy it?

I often pictured Eva Mendes when I wrote Daisy – (with a little bit of Dita Von Teese thrown in for hair and fashion sense)