Synopsis                         (Published May 2001, Zebra)

Fresh from jilting her latest groom—hand-picked by her Mafioso father, of course—savvy Sofia Rose Cardinella stumbles across Frank Sinatra wanna-be Ben Estes. Her first thought: Daddy would hate this guy. Her next: he must be the man for me! Sure enough, Ben turns out to be as suave and seductive as Ol’ Blue Eyes himself—no to mention a hottie in his own right. Sofia senses that they could make beautiful music together, aside from one teensy hitch: Daddy wants to have Ben whacked.

Though Sofia claims her father is about as sinister as Ben’s portable karaoke machine, the charismatic crooner isn’t taking any chances. With Sofia in tow, he hops the first plane to the West Coast to hide out for a while. After a few steamy nights alone in an ocean-side hotel room with Daddy’s Little Girl—and a few harrowing encounters with Daddy’s Bumbling Hit Men—Ben is willing to do just about anything the enchanting Sofia suggests. Even marry her. After all, isn’t true love worth getting rubbed out for?

Behind the Scenes Dish

This was my first novel, so it will always be a sentimental favorite of mine. Of everything I've written, I think this is perhaps the funniest . . . and maybe the sexiest, too. I got more emails about the love scenes than anything! If nothing else, I know that I re-energized some relationships in the bedroom. I say this because people told me so in alarming detail! The interlude with honey seems to be the odds-on favorite. I'll also always love this book because Borders Books & Music featured it in a full-page USA TODAY advertisement, where it appeared directly under Jackie Collins' HOLLYWOOD WIVES: THE NEW GENERATION. I lived on the fuel of that thrill for weeks!