Beyond Temptation - Brenda Jackson [38]
The kiss had been everything he had known it would be and more, and she had felt just like he’d figured she would in his arms. Now his senses were incapable of any other thoughts but those of her. At this point if she were to turn down his proposal to marry him and have his baby he didn’t know what he would do.
He stood, deciding there wasn’t much hope of getting a lot of sleep tonight. His only hope was to try and get some shut-eye on the plane, which he would be catching in a few hours. Throwing on his robe, he made his way down the stairs to get a cup of coffee before going over some paperwork for his meeting with Cameron and Ben Malloy.
Malloy was an entrepreneur with multifaceted interests. A year ago Morgan had approached him and Cameron in regards to what he saw not only as a sound business opportunity but also as a way to give back to his hometown’s dying community. His latest venture was to open several shopping malls within urban areas of several handpicked communities around the country.
In recent years there had been an explosion of growth within the suburban areas of various cities, but there seemed to be a constant neglect within the downtown areas—where a number of African Americans lived. Most business owners—although they considered themselves rather astute—failed to recognize or acknowledge the potential growth in urban areas, and as a result, their narrow-mindedness had left the residents, those people living in the neglected areas, with limited access to shopping, adequate housing and entertainment.
Magic Johnson had brought attention to this issue when he opened several theaters within the urban communities across the country. And what Morgan, Cameron and Ben were posed to do was something similar with the development of a mall in St. Louis. Ben had asked their support and their aid in pouring a substantial amount of money into the project, and after doing a considerable amount of research they had determined it not only would be a worthwhile financial investment, but it would also be a way to help place development in those overlooked areas.
Morgan glanced at the clock when he entered his kitchen. It was three in the morning and he had a flight out at eight. After he’d left Lena he had come home to pack, prepare a quick dinner and savor the memories of his first kiss with the woman of his dreams.
Moments later as he sat at his desk, he absently stirred his coffee while trying to read the report Cameron’s secretary had faxed earlier. Instead of concentrating, his mind was stuck on other things, namely Lena. Would she agree to his offer of marriage? He smiled thinking once he had her in his bed there were no limitations to just what he could do and would do.
The die was cast and an indescribable warmth spread through him in knowing that if Lena agreed to become his wife and the mother of his child, he would have her right where he wanted her.
Chapter 9
“How’s that Steele boy?”
Lena smiled as she shoved in her briefcase the documents she needed to go over with a potential buyer. Funny, although she knew her mother’s usage of the word boy was just a term, Lena couldn’t visualize Morgan as a boy. She saw the person who had kissed her almost senseless yesterday as being a man in every full sense of the word.
“If you’re asking about Morgan, I guess he’s fine,” she said, trying to keep her voice light, neutral and nonchalant.
“So when will he be coming back?”
Lena lifted her head and met her mother’s gaze with an arched brow. “How did you know he was going somewhere?”
“He told me when he called a few days ago,” Odessa said, as she sat at the kitchen table and took a sip of her coffee.
Lena, with an incredulous look on her face, shut her briefcase with a click. “Morgan called you?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“I told you it was a few days ago. Monday, I believe.”
Lena sighed. “And when did he call on Monday?”
“In the afternoon. Before you got home.”
Lena leaned against the kitchen counter. “He called to tell you