A Wife for a Westmoreland - Brenda Jackson [42]
Jason just stared at him for a long moment. It didn’t take much to see that Derringer’s question had caught his cousin off guard. But he knew Jason; he liked mulling things over—sometimes too damn long.
“No. I’m not sure that can happen. At least not with me. Any woman who gets in my blood will end up being the one I marry. I don’t have a problem with settling down and getting married one day, mind you. One day, when I’m ready, I want to start a family. I want to will everything I’ve built up to my wife and kids. You know what they say, ‘You can’t take it with you.’”
Jason then studied Derringer. “Why do you ask? Have you met a woman that’s gotten deep in your blood?”
Derringer glanced away for a moment and then returned his gaze to Jason. “Yes…Lucia.”
“Lucia Conyers?”
“Yeah.”
Jason stood, almost knocking over his beer bottle. “Damn, man, how do you figure that? You only had one date with her.”
Derringer smiled. “I’ve had two. We went skating last night.” He didn’t say anything and wanted to see what Jason had to say. Jason sat back down without opening his mouth.
“She’s different,” Derringer added after a moment.
Jason glanced over at him. “Of course she’s different. You’re not talking about one of your usual airheads or Derringer’s Pleasers. We’re discussing Lucia Conyers, for heaven’s sake. She used to be one of the smartest girls at her school. Remember when Dillon and Ramsey paid her to tutor Bailey that time so she wouldn’t be left back? Lucia was only seventeen then.”
Derringer smiled. He had almost forgotten about that time. And if he wanted to believe what she’d told him earlier, she had been in love with him even then. “Yes, I remember.”
“And remember the time Megan got her first A on a science project because she was smart enough to team up with Lucia?”
Derringer chuckled, recalling that time as well. “Yeah, I recall that time as well.” At least he did now.
“And you actually think someone that smart is destined to be your soul mate?”
“Soul mate?”
“Yes, if a woman is in your blood that much then it means she’s destined to be your soul mate. Someone you want to be with all the time. Think about it, Derringer. Like I said, Lucia is not some airhead, she’s pretty smart.”
He didn’t say anything for a moment as he studied his boots, grinning, thinking Jason’s question had to be a joke. Then he lifted his gaze to find a serious-looking Jason staring at him, still waiting for a response. So he gave him the only one he knew. “Yes, I’m not exactly a dumb ass, Jason, so what does her being so smart have to do with anything? And as far as being my soul mate if that means sharing a bed with her whenever I want, then I intend to do everything in my power to convince her that she is the one.”
Jason rolled his eyes and then rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he stared at Derringer. “So are you saying you’ve fallen in love with Lucia?”
Derringer looked taken aback. “Fallen in love with her? Are you crazy? I wouldn’t go that far.”
Jason appeared confused. “You have no problem wanting to claim her as your soul mate and sleep with her, but you aren’t in love with her?”
“Yes. That’s pretty much the shape and size of it.”
Jason shook his head, grinning. “I hate to tell you this, but I’m not sure that’s how it works.”
Derringer finished off his beer and said, “Too bad. That’s the way it’s going to work for me.”
On Monday morning, Lucia stood in the middle of her office refusing to let the huge arrangement of flowers get to her. They were simply gorgeous and she would be the first to admit Derringer had good taste. But she knew just what the flowers represented. He wanted her back in his bed and would try just about anything to get her there. She wished things could go back to how they used to be when he hadn’t had a clue about her feelings. But it was too late for that.
Six hours later, Lucia glanced over at the flowers and smiled. They were just as beautiful as they had been when they’d been delivered that morning. She