Читать книгу The Proposal / To Tempt a Sheikh - Оливия Гейтс - Страница 11
Two
ОглавлениеOn Tuesday of the following week, Bella was in her car headed to town to purchase new appliances for her kitchen. Buying a stove and refrigerator might not be a big deal to some, but for her it would be a first. She was looking forward to it. Besides, it would get her mind off the phone call she’d gotten from her attorney first thing this morning.
Not wanting to think about the phone call, she thought about her friends back home instead. They had teased her that although she would be living out in the boondocks on a ranch, downtown Denver was half an hour away and that’s probably where she would spend most of her time—shopping and attending various plays and parties. But she had discovered she liked being away from city life and hadn’t missed it at all. She’d grown up in Savannah right on the ocean. Her parents’ estate had been minutes from downtown and was the place where lavish parties were always held.
She had talked to her parents earlier today and found the conversation totally draining. Her father insisted she put the ranch up for sale and come home immediately. When the conversation ended she had been more determined than ever to keep as much distance between her and Savannah as possible.
She had been on the ranch for only three weeks and already the taste of freedom, to do whatever she wanted whenever she wanted, was a luxurious right she refused to give up. Although she missed waking up every morning to the scent of the ocean, she was becoming used to the crisp mountain air drenched in the rich fragrance of dahlias.
Her thoughts then shifted to something else or more precisely, someone else. Jason Westmoreland. Good to his word he had stopped by a few days ago to join her for tea. They’d had a pleasant conversation, and he’d told her more about her grandfather. She could tell Jason and Herman’s relationship had been close. Part of her was glad that Jason had probably helped relieve Herman’s loneliness.
Although her father refused to tell her what had happened to drive him away from home, she hoped to find out on her own. Her grandfather had kept a number of journals and she intended to start reading them this week. The only thing she knew from what Kenneth Bostwick had told her was that Herman’s father, William, had remarried when Herman was in his twenties and married with a son of his own. That woman had been Kenneth’s mother, which was why he was a lot younger than her father. In fact her father and Kenneth had few memories of each other since David Bostwick had left home for college at the age of seventeen.
Jason had also answered questions about ranching and assured her that the man she’d kept on as foreman had worked for her grandfather for a number of years and knew what he was doing. Jason hadn’t stayed long but she’d enjoyed his visit.
She found Jason to be kind and soft-spoken and whenever he talked in that reassuring tone she would feel safe, protected and confident that no matter what decisions she made regarding her life and the ranch, it would be okay. He also gave her the impression that she could and would make mistakes and that would be okay, too, as long as she learned from those mistakes and didn’t repeat them.
She had gotten to meet some of his family members, namely the women, when they’d all shown up a couple of days ago with housewarming goodies to welcome her to the community. Pamela, Chloe and Lucia had married into the family, and Megan and Bailey were Westmorelands by birth. They told her about Gemma, who was Megan and Bailey’s sister and how she had gotten married earlier that year, moved with her husband to Australia and was expecting their first child.
Pamela and Chloe had brought their babies and being in their presence only reinforced a desire Bella always had of being a mother. She loved children and hoped to marry and have a houseful one day. And when she did, she intended for her relationship with them to be different than the one she had with her own parents.
The women had invited her to dinner at Pamela’s home Friday evening so that she could meet the rest of the family. She thought the invitation to dinner was a nice gesture and downright neighborly on their part.
They were surprised she had already met Jason because he hadn’t mentioned anything to them about meeting her.
She wasn’t sure why he hadn’t when all the evidence led her to believe the Westmorelands were a close-knit group. But then she figured men tended to keep their activities private and not share them with anyone. He said he would be dropping by for tea again tomorrow and she looked forward to his visit.
It was obvious there was still an intense attraction between them, yet he always acted honorably in her presence. He would sit across from her with his long legs stretched out in front of him and sip tea while she talked. She tried not to dominate the conversation but found he was someone she could talk to and someone who listened to what she had to say. She could see him now sitting there absorbed in whatever she said while displaying a ruggedness she found totally sexy.
And he had shared some things about himself. She knew he was thirty-four and a graduate of the University of Denver. He also shared with her how his parents and uncle and aunt had been killed in a plane crash when he was eighteen, leaving him and his fourteen siblings and cousins without parents. With admiration laced in his voice he had talked about his older brother Dillon and his cousin Ramsey and how the two men had been determined to keep the family together and how they had.
She couldn’t help but compare his large family to her smaller one. Although she loved her parents she couldn’t recall a time she and her parents had ever been close. While growing up they had relinquished her care to sitters while they jet-setted all over the country. At times she thought they’d forgotten she existed. When she got older she understood her father’s obsession with trying to keep up with his young wife. Eventually she saw that obsession diminish when he found other interests and her mother did, as well.
That was why at times the idea of having a baby without a husband appealed to her, although doing such a thing would send her parents into cardiac arrest. But she couldn’t concern herself with how her parents would react if she chose to go that route. Moving here was her first stab at emancipation and whatever she decided to do would be her decision. But for a woman who’d never slept with a man to contemplate having a baby from one was a bit much for her to absorb right now.
She pulled into the parking lot of one of the major appliance stores. When she returned home she would meet with her foreman to see how things were going. Jason had said such meetings were necessary and she should be kept updated on what went on at her ranch.
Moments later as she got out of her car she decided another thing she needed to do was buy a truck. A truck. She chuckled, thinking her mother would probably gag at the thought of her driving a truck instead of being chauffeured around in a car. But her parents had to realize and accept her life was changing and the luxurious life she used to have was now gone.
As soon as she entered the store a salesperson was right on her heels and it didn’t take long to make the purchases she needed because she knew just what she wanted. She’d always thought stainless steel had a way of enhancing the look of a kitchen and figured sometime next year she would give the kitchen a total makeover with granite countertops and new tile flooring, as well. But she would take things one step at a time.
“Bella?”
She didn’t have to turn to know who’d said her name. As far as she was concerned, no one could pronounce it in the same rugged yet sexy tone as Jason. Although she had just seen him a few days ago when he’d joined her for tea, there was something about seeing him now that sent sensations coursing through her.
She turned around and there he stood dressed in a pair of jeans that hugged his sinewy thighs and long, muscular legs, a blue chambray shirt and a lightweight leather jacket that emphasized the broadness of his shoulders.
She smiled up at him. “Jason, what a pleasant surprise.”
It was a pleasant surprise for Jason, as well. He had walked into the store and immediately, like radar, he had picked up on her presence and all it took was following her scent to find her.
“Same here. I had to come into town to pick up a new hot water heater for the bunkhouse,” he said, smiling down at her. He shoved his hands into his pockets; otherwise, he would have been tempted to pull her to him and kiss her. Kissing Bella was something he wanted but hadn’t gotten around to doing. He didn’t want to rush things and didn’t want her to think his interest in her had anything to do with wanting to buy Hercules, because that wasn’t the case. His interest in her was definitely one of want and need.
“I met the ladies in your family the other day. They came to pay me a visit,” she said.
“Did they?”
“Yes.”
He’d known they would eventually get around to doing so. The ladies had discussed a visit to welcome her to the community.
“They’re all so nice,” she said
“I think they are nice, too. Did you get whatever you needed?” He wondered if she would join him for lunch if he were to ask.
“Yes, my refrigerator and stove will be delivered by the end of the week. I’m so excited.”
He couldn’t help but laugh. She was genuinely excited. If she got that excited over appliances he could imagine how she would react over jewelry. “Will you be in town for a while, Bella?”
“Yes. I have a meeting with Marvin later this evening.”
He raised a brow. “Is everything all right?”
She nodded, smiling. “Yes. I’m just having a weekly meeting like you suggested.”
He was glad she had taken his advice. “How about joining me for lunch? There’s a place not far from here that serves several nice dishes.”
She smiled up at him. “I’d love that.”
Jason knew he would love it just as much. He had been thinking about her a lot, especially at night when he’d found it hard to sleep. She was getting to him. No, she had gotten to him. He didn’t know of any other woman that he’d been this attracted to. There was something about her. Something that was drawing him to her on a personal level that he could not control. But then a part of him didn’t want to control it. Nor did he want to fight it. He wanted to see how far it would go and where it would stop
“Do you want me to follow you there, Jason?”
No, he wanted her in the same vehicle with him. “We can ride in my truck. Your car will be fine parked here until we return.” “Okay.”
As he escorted her toward the exit, she glanced up at him. “What about your hot water heater?”
“I haven’t picked it out yet but that’s fine since I know the brand I want.”
“All right.”
Together they walked out of the store toward his truck. It was a beautiful day in May but when he felt her shiver beside him, he figured a beautiful day in Savannah would be a day in the eighties. Here in Denver if they got sixty-something degree weather in June they would be ecstatic.
He took his jacket off and placed it around her shoulders. She glanced up at him. “You didn’t have to do that.”
He smiled. “Yes, I did. I don’t want you to get cold on me.” She was wearing a pair of black slacks and a light blue cardigan sweater. As always she looked ultrafeminine.
And now she was wearing his jacket. They continued walking and when they reached his truck she glanced up and her gaze connected with his and he could feel electricity sparking to life between them. She looked away quickly, as if she’d been embarrassed that their attraction to each other was so obvious.
“Do you want your jacket back now?” she asked softly.
“No, keep it on. I like seeing you in it.”
She blushed again and at that moment he got the most ridiculous notion that perhaps this sort of intense attraction between two people was sort of new to Bella. He wouldn’t be surprised to discover that she had several innocent bones in her body; enough to shove him in another direction rather quickly. But for some reason he was staying put.
She nibbled on her bottom lip. “Why do you like seeing me in it?”
“Because I do. And because it’s mine and you’re in it.”
He wasn’t sure if what he’d said made much sense or if she was confused even more. But what he was sure about was that he was determined to find out just how much Bella Bostwick knew about men. And what she didn’t know he was going to make it his business to teach her.
Bella was convinced there was nothing more compelling than the feel of wearing the jacket belonging to a man whose very existence represented true masculinity. It permeated her with his warmth, his scent and his aura in every way. She was filled with an urge to get more, to know more and to feel more of Jason Westmoreland. And as she stared at him through the car’s window as he pulled out his cell phone to make arrangements for their lunch, she couldn’t help but feel the hot rush of blood in her veins while heat churned deep down inside of her.
And there lay the crux of her problem. As beguiling as the feelings taking over her senses, making ingrained curiosity get the best of her, she knew better than to step beyond the range of her experience. That range didn’t extend beyond what the nuns at the private Catholic schools she’d attended most of her life had warned her about. It was a range good girls just didn’t go beyond.
Jason was the type of man women dreamed about. He was what fantasies were made of. She watched him ease his phone back into the pocket of his jeans, walk around the front of his truck to get in. He was the type of man a woman would love to snuggle up with on a cold Colorado winter night … especially the kind her parents and uncle had said she would have to endure. Just the thought of being with him in front of a roaring fire that blazed in a fireplace would be an unadulterated fantasy come true for any woman… . And her greatest fear.
“You’re comfortable?” he asked, placing a wide-brimmed Stetson on his head.
She glanced over at him and she held his gaze for a moment and then nodded. “Yes, I’m fine. Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
He backed up the truck and then they headed out of the parking lot in silence but she was fully aware of his hands that gripped the steering wheel. They were large and strong hands and she could imagine those same hands gripping her. That thought made heat seep into every cell and pore of her body, percolating her bones and making her surrender to something she’d never had before.
Her virginal state had never bothered her before and it didn’t really bother her now except the unknown was making the naughtiness in her come out. It was making her anticipate things she was better off not getting.
“You’ve gotten quiet on me, Bella,” Jason said.
She glanced over at him and again met his gaze thinking, yes she had. But she figured he didn’t want to hear her thoughts out loud and certain things she needed to keep to herself.
“Sorry,” she said. “I was thinking about Friday,” she decided to say.
“Friday?”
“Yes. Pamela invited me to dinner.”
“She did?”
Bella heard the surprise in his voice. “Yes. She said it would be the perfect opportunity to meet everyone. It seems all of my neighbors are Westmorelands. You’re just the one living the closest to me.”
“And what makes you so preoccupied about Friday?”
“Meeting so many of your family members.”
He chuckled. “You’ll survive.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Then she said, “Tell me about them.” He had already told her some but she wanted to hear more. And the ladies who came to visit had also shared some of their family history with her. But she wanted to hear his version just to hear the husky sound of his voice, to feel how it would stir across her skin and tantalize several parts of her body.
“You already met the ones who think they run things, namely the women.”
She laughed. “They don’t?”
“We let them think that way because we’re slowly getting outnumbered. Although Gemma is in Australia she still has a lot to say and whenever we take a vote about anything, of course she sides with the women.”
She grinned. “You all actually take votes on stuff?”
“Yes, we believe in democracy. The last time we voted we had to decide where Christmas dinner would be held. Usually we hold everything at Dillon’s because he has the main family house, but his kitchen was being renovated so we voted to go to Ramsey’s.”
“All of you have homes? ”
“Yes. When we each turned twenty-five we inherited one hundred acres. It was fun naming my own spread.”
“Yours is Jason’s Place, right?”
He smiled over at her. “That’s right.”
While he’d been talking her body had responded to the sound of his voice as if it was on a mission to capture each and every nuance. She inhaled deeply and they began chatting again but this time about her family. He’d been honest about his family so she decided to be honest about hers.
“My parents and I aren’t all that close and I can’t remember a time that we were. They didn’t support my move out here,” she said and wondered why she’d wanted to share that little detail.
“Is it true that Kenneth is upset you didn’t sell the land to Myers Smith?” he asked.
She nodded slowly. “Yes, he told me himself that he thinks I made a mistake in deciding to move here and is looking forward to the day I fail so he can say, ‘I told you so.'”
Jason shook his head, finding it hard to believe this was a family member who was hoping for her failure. “Are he and your father close?”
Bella chuckled softly. “They barely know each other. According to Dad he was already in high school when Kenneth was born, although technically Kenneth is my father’s half uncle. My father’s grandfather married Kenneth’s mother who was twenty-five years his junior.”
“Do you have any other family, like cousins?”
She shook her head. “Both my parents were the only children. Of course Uncle Kenneth has a son and daughter but they hadn’t spoken to me since the reading of the will. Uncle Kenneth only spoke to me when he thought I’d be selling the ranch and livestock to his friend.”
By the time he had brought the truck to a stop in front of a huge building, she had to wipe tears of laughter from her eyes when he’d told her about all the trouble the younger Westmorelands had gotten into.
“I just can’t imagine your cousin Bailey—who has such an innocent look about her—being such a hell-raiser while growing up.”
Jason laughed. “Hey, don’t let the innocent act fool you. The cousins Aiden and Adrian are at Harvard and Bane joined the navy. We talked Bailey into hanging around here to attend college so we could keep an eye on her.”
He chuckled and then added, “It turned out to be a mistake when she began keeping an eye on us instead.”
When he turned off the truck’s engine she glanced through the windshield at the building looming in front of them and raised a brow. “This isn’t a restaurant?”
He glanced over at her. “No, it’s not. It’s the Blue Ridge Management, a company my father and uncle founded over forty years ago. After they were killed Dillon and Ramsey took over. Ramsey eventually left Dillon in charge to become a sheep rancher and Dillon is currently CEO.”
He glanced out the windshield to look up at the forty-story building with a pensive look on his face and moments later added, “My brother Riley holds an upper management position here. My cousins Zane and Derringer, as well as myself, worked for the company after college until last year when we decided to join the Montana Westmorelands in the horse training and breeding business.”
He smiled. “I guess you can say that nine-to-five gig was never our forte. Like Ramsey we prefer being outdoors.”
She nodded and followed his gaze to the building. “And we’re eating lunch here?”
He glanced over at her. “Yes, I have my office that I still use from time to time to conduct business. I called ahead and Dillon’s secretary took care of everything for me.”
A few moments later they were walking into the massive lobby of Blue Ridge Land Management and the first thing Bella noticed was the huge, beautifully decorated atrium with a waterfall amidst a replica of mountains complete with blooming flowers and other types of foliage. After stopping at the security guard station they caught an elevator up to the executive floor.
“I remember coming up here a lot with my dad,” Jason said softly, reflecting on that time. “Whenever he would work on the weekends, he would gather us all together to get us out of Mom’s hair for a while. Once we got up to the fortieth floor we knew he would probably find something for us to do.”
He chuckled and then added, “But just in case he didn’t. I would always travel with a pack of crayons in my back pocket.”
Bella smiled. She could just imagine Jason and his six brothers crowded on the elevator with their father. Although he would be working they would have gotten to spend the day with him nonetheless. She couldn’t ever recall a time her father had taken her to work with him. In fact she hadn’t known where the Bostwick Firm had been located until she was well into her teens. Her mother never worked outside the home but was mainly the hostess for the numerous parties her parents would give.
It seemed the ride to the top floor took forever. A few times the elevator stopped to let people either on or off. Some of them recognized Jason and he took the time to inquire about the family members he knew, especially their children or grandchildren.
The moment they stepped off the elevator onto the fortieth floor Bella could tell immediately that this was where all the executive offices were located. The furniture was plush and the carpeting thick and luxurious looking. She was quickly drawn to huge paintings of couples adorning the walls in the center of the lobby. Intrigued she moved toward them.
“These are my parents,” Jason said, coming to stand by her side. “And the couple in the picture over there is my aunt and uncle. My father and Uncle Thomas were close, barely fourteen months apart in age. And my mother and Aunt Susan got along beautifully and were just as close as sisters.”
“And they died together,” she whispered softly. It was a statement not a question since he had already told her what had happened when they’d all died in a plane crash. Bella studied the portrait of his parents in detail. Jason favored his father a lot but he definitely had his mother’s mouth.
“She was beautiful,” she said. “So was your aunt Susan. I take it Ramsey and Chloe’s daughter was named after her?”
Jason nodded. “Yes, and she’s going to grow up to be a beauty just like her grandmother.”
She glanced over at him. “And what was your mother’s name?”
“Clarisse. And my father was Adam.” Jason then looked down at his watch. “Come on. Our lunch should have arrived by now.”
He surprised her when he took her arm and led her toward a bank of offices and stopped at one in particular with his name on it. She felt her heart racing. Although he hadn’t called it as such, she considered this lunch a date.
That thought was reinforced when he opened the door to his office and she saw the table set for lunch. The room was spacious and had a downtown view of Denver. The table, completely set with everything, including a bottle of wine, had been placed by the window so they could enjoy the view while they ate.
“Jason, the table and the view are beautiful. Thanks for inviting me to lunch.”
“You’re welcome,” he said, pulling a chair out for her. “There’s a huge restaurant downstairs for the employees but I thought we’d eat in here for privacy.”
“That’s considerate of you.”
And done for purely selfish reasons, Jason thought as he took the chair across from her. He liked having her all to himself. Although he wasn’t a tea drinker, he had become one and looked forward to visiting her each week to sit down and converse while drinking tea. He enjoyed her company. He glanced over at her and their gazes connected. Their response to each other always amazed him because it seemed so natural and out of control. He couldn’t stop the heat flowing all through his body at that precise moment even if he wanted to.
He doubted she knew she had a dazed look in the depths of her dark eyes or that today everything about her looked soft, feminine but not overly so. Just to the right degree to make a man appreciate being a man.
She slowly broke eye contact with him to lift the lid off the platter and when she glanced back up she was smiling brightly. “Spaghetti.”
He couldn’t help but return her smile. “Yes. I recall you saying the other day how much you enjoyed Italian food.” In fact they had talked about a number of things in the hour he had been there.
“I do love Italian food,” she said excitedly, taking a hold of her fork.
He poured wine into their glasses and glanced over and caught her slurping up a single strand of spaghetti through a pair of luscious lips. His gut clenched and when she licked her lips he couldn’t help but envy the noodle.
When she caught him staring she blushed, embarrassed at being caught doing something so inelegant. “Sorry. I know that showed bad manners but I couldn’t resist.” She smiled. “It was the one thing I always wanted to do around my parents whenever we ate spaghetti that I couldn’t do.”
He chuckled. “No harm done. In fact you can slurp the rest of it if you’d like. It’s just you and me.”
She grinned. “Thanks, but I better not.” He then watched as she took her fork in her hand, preparing to eat the rest of her spaghetti in the classical and cultured way.
“I take it your parents were strong disciplinarians,” he said, taking a sip of his wine.
Her smile slowly faded. “They still are or at least they try to be. Even now they will stop at nothing to get me back to Savannah so they can keep an eye on me. I got a call from my attorney this morning warning me they’ve possibly found a loophole in the trust fund my grandparents established for me before they died.”
He lifted a brow. “What kind of a loophole?”
“One that says I’m supposed to be married after the first year. If that’s true I have less than three months,”
she said in disgust. “I’m sure they’re counting on me returning to Savannah to marry Hugh.”
He sipped his wine. “Hugh?”
She met his gaze and he could see the troubled look in hers. “Yes, Hugh Pierce. His family comes from Savannah’s old money and my parents have made up their minds that Hugh and I are a perfect match.”
He watched her shoulders rise and fall after releasing several sighs. Evidently the thought of becoming Mrs. Hugh Pierce bothered her. Hell, the thought bothered him, as well.
In a way he should be overjoyed, elated, that there was a possibility she was moving back to Savannah. That meant her ranch and Hercules would probably be up for sale. And when they were, he would be ready to make her an offer he hoped she wouldn’t refuse. He knew he wasn’t the only one wanting the land and no telling how many others wanted Hercules, but he was determined that the prized stallion wouldn’t fall into anyone’s hands but his.
And yet, he wasn’t overjoyed or elated at the thought that she would return to Savannah.
He got the impression her parents were controlling people or at least they tried to be. He began eating, wondering why her parents wanted to shove this Hugh Pierce down her throat when she evidently wasn’t feeling the guy. Would they coerce her to marry someone just because the man came from “old money"?
He forced the thought to the back of his mind, thinking who she ended up marrying was no concern of his. But making sure his name headed the list as a potential buyer for her ranch and livestock was. He glanced over at her. “When will you know what you’ll have to do?”
She looked up after taking a sip of her wine. “I’m not sure. I have a good attorney but I have to admit my parents’ attorney is more experienced in such matters. In other words, he’s crafty as sin. I’m sure when my grandparents drew up my trust they thought they were looking out for my future because in their social circles, ideally, a young woman married by her twenty-sixth birthday. For her to attend college was just a formality since she was expected to marry a man who had the means to take care of her.”
“And your parents have no qualms in forcing you to marry?”
“No, not one iota,” she said without pause. “They don’t truly care about my happiness. All they care about is that they would be proving once again they control my life and always will.”
He heard the trembling in her voice and when she looked down as to study her silverware, he knew her composure was being threatened. At that moment, something inside of him wanted to get up, pull her into his arms and tell her things would be all right. But he couldn’t rightly say that. He had no way of knowing they would be for her, given the situation she was in. Actually it was her problem not his. Still another part of him couldn’t help regretting that her misfortune could end up being his golden opportunity.
“I thought I’d finally gotten free of my parents’ watchful eyes at college, only to discover they had certain people in place, school officials and professors, keeping tabs on me and reporting to them on my behavior,” she said, interrupting his thoughts.
“And I thought, I truly believed, the money I’m getting from my trust fund and inheriting the ranch were my way of living my life the way I want and an end to being under my parents’ control. I was going to exert my freedom for the first time in my life.”
She paused briefly. “Jason. I really love it here. I’ve been able to live the way I want, do the things I want. It’s a freedom I’ve never had and I don’t want to give it up.”
They sat staring at each other for what seemed like several mind-numbing moments and then Jason spoke. “Then don’t give it up. Fight them for what you want.”
Her shoulders slumped again. “Although I plan to try, it’s easier said than done. My father is a well-known and powerful man in Savannah and a lot of the judges are his personal friends. For anyone to even try something as archaic as forcing someone to marry is ludicrous. But my parents will do it with their friends’ help if it brings me to heel.”
Once again Bella fell silent for a moment. “When I received word about Herman and confronted my father as to why he never told me about his life here in Denver, he wouldn’t tell me, but I’ve been reading my grandfather’s journals. He claims my father hated living here while growing up. His mother had visited this area from Savannah, met Herman and fell in love and never went back east. Her family disowned her for it. But after college my father moved to Savannah and sought out his maternal grandparents and they were willing to accept him in their good graces but only if he never reminded them of what they saw as their daughter’s betrayal, so he didn’t.”
She then straightened her shoulders and forced a smile to her lips. “Let’s change the subject,” she suggested. “Thinking about my woes is rather depressing and you’ve made lunch too nice for me to be depressed about anything.”
They enjoyed the rest of their meal conversing about other things. He told her about his horse breeding business and about how he and the Atlanta Westmorelands had discovered they were related through his great-grandfather Raphel Westmoreland.
“Was your grandfather really married to all those women?” she asked after he told her the tale of how Raphel had become a black sheep in the family after running off in the early nineteen hundreds with the preacher’s wife and all the other wives he supposedly collected along the way.
He took another sip of wine. “That’s what everyone is trying to find out. We need to know if there are any more Westmorelands out there. Megan is hiring a private detective to help solve the puzzle about Raphel’s wives. We’ve eliminated two and now we have two more to check out.”
When they finished the main course Jason used his cell phone to call downstairs to say they were ready for dessert. Moments later banana pudding was delivered to them. Bella thought the dessert was simply delicious. She usually didn’t eat a lot of sweets but once she’d taken a bite she couldn’t help but finish the whole thing.
A short while later, after they’d devoured the dessert with coffee, Jason checked his watch. “We’re right on schedule. I’ll take you back in time to get your car so you can make your meeting with Marvin.”
Jason stood, rounded the table and reached for her hand. The instant they touched it seemed a rush of heated sensations tore through the both of them at the same time. It was absorbed in their bones, tangled their flesh and he all but shuddered under the impact. The alluring scent of her filled his nostrils and his breath was freed on a ragged sigh.
Some part of his brain told him to take a step back and put distance between them. But then another part told him he was facing the inevitable. There had been this blazing attraction, this tantalizing degree of lust between them from the beginning. For him it had been since the moment he had seen her when she’d entered the ballroom with Kenneth Bostwick. He had known then he wanted her.
They stared at each other and for a second he thought she would avert her gaze from his but she didn’t. She couldn’t resist him any more than he could resist her and they both knew it, which was probably why, when he took a step closer and began lowering his head, she went on tiptoes and lifted her mouth to meet his.
The moment their lips connected, a low, guttural sound rumbled from deep in his throat and he deepened the kiss the moment she wrapped her arms around his neck. His tongue slid easily into her mouth, exploring one side and then another, as well as all the areas in between before tangling with her own, mating deeply, and when she reciprocated the move sent a jolt of desire all through his bones.
And then it was on.
Holy crap. Hunger the likes he’d never felt before infiltrated his mind. He felt a sexual connection with her that he’d never felt with any woman before. As his tongue continued to slide against hers, parts of him felt primed and ready to explode at any moment. Never had he encountered such overwhelming passion, such blatant desire and raw primal need.
His mouth was doing a good job tasting her, but the rest of him wanted to feel her, draw her closer into his arms. On instinct he felt her lean into him, plastering their bodies from breast to knee and as Jason deepened the kiss even more, he groaned, wondering if he would never get enough of her.
Bella was feeling the same way about Jason. No man had ever held her this close, taken her mouth this passionately and made sensations she’d never felt before rush through her quicker than the speed of light.
And she felt him, his erection, rigid and throbbing, against her middle, pressing hard at the juncture of her thighs, making her feel sensations there—right there—she hadn’t felt before. It was doing more than just tingling. She was left aching in that very spot. She felt like a mass of kerosene and he was a torch set to ignite her, making her explode into flames. He was all solid muscle pressing against her and she wanted it all. She wanted him. She wasn’t sure what wanting him entailed but she knew he was the only man who made her feel this way. He was the only man she wanted to make her feel this way.
When at last he drew his mouth away from her, his face remained close. Acting by instinct, she took her tongue and licked around his lips from corner to corner, not ready to relinquish the taste of him. When a guttural sound emitted from his throat, need rammed through her and when she tilted her lips toward his, he took her mouth once again. He eased his tongue into her mouth like it had every right to be there and at the moment she was of the conclusion that it did.
He slowly broke off the kiss and stared into her face for a long moment before caressing his thumb across her lips then running his fingers through the curls on her head.
“I guess we better leave now so you won’t miss your meeting,” he said in a deep, husky tone.
Unable to utter a single word she merely nodded.
And when he took her hand and entwined her fingers in his, the sensations she’d felt earlier were still strong, nearly overpowering, but she was determined to fight it this time. And every time after that. She could not become involved with anyone, especially someone like Jason. And especially not now.
She had enough on her plate in dealing with the ranch and her parents. She had to keep her head on straight and not get caught up in the desires of the flesh. She didn’t need a lover; she needed a game plan.
And as Jason led her out of his office, she tried sorting out all the emotions she was feeling. She’d just been kissed senseless and now she was trying to convince herself that no matter what, it couldn’t happen again.
Only problem with that was her mind was declaring one thing and her body was claiming another.
