Forged of Steele Bundle (Books 1-4) - Brenda Jackson [173]
“You’re awake?”
She smiled, wondering if he was asking her that for a particular reason. She turned over and met his drowsy gaze. “Depends on why you want to know.”
He wrapped his arms tighter around her. “I need to tell you something.”
He sounded serious and she wondered if he was going to tell her that he was leaving. Pretty soon his six weeks would be over and although he claimed he would hang around for at least three months, he really didn’t have to. Was he needed back in Charlotte?
“What do you want to tell me?”
“First I need to get my good-morning kiss,” he said, leaning over and capturing her lips with his, drinking the essence of her mouth.
When he released her lips, she smiled and said, “Keep that up and we’ll never get any talking in.”
He slowly pulled back and met her gaze. He reached out and traced his finger along her chin. “I feel things with you that I’ve never felt before with anyone, Jocelyn, and that can only mean one thing.”
She lifted a brow. “What?”
“I love you.”
His words, spoken simply, made her think she hadn’t heard him right. But then all she had to do was stare into the clarity of his eyes and see both seriousness and sincerity in their dark depths. She felt flooded by emotions she wasn’t ready for, and had to swallow a lump that suddenly formed in her throat. “No,” she whispered softly. “You can’t love me.”
Bas reached out and touched his fingertips to her lips. “Yes, I can and you won’t believe just how much I do. I want to marry you and—”
Jocelyn pulled away. “Marry me? How can you think such a thing? We can’t get married.”
Bas’s lips tightened in a grim line as he witnessed her reaction to his words. “Yes, we can. Why would you think that we can’t?”
Jocelyn pulled herself up in bed. “Because I don’t expect you to move here and surely you don’t expect me to just up and move to Charlotte. My life is here. The company is here. This is where I belong, Bas.”
“Fine, then I’ll move here.”
Jocelyn lifted her chin. “And do what? You belong back at the Steele Corporation. Coming here for a while I’m sure was a nice diversion for you but you’re going to leave and go back.”
Bas blew out a heated breath. “Surely you knew I was falling in love with you, Jocelyn. What do you think these past few weeks have been about?”
“Fun. We were having fun.”
“And that’s all I’ve been to you?”
She glared. “I didn’t say that, Bas, so don’t put words into my mouth. We were indulging in a short-term affair. I’m old enough to know that. I wasn’t expecting anything from you, and I most certainly didn’t think you were expecting anything of me.”
“Well, you assumed wrong.”
“And it won’t be the first time,” she snapped.
The silence between them stretched, and then Jocelyn finally spoke. “Look, it’s not that I’m not flattered by your offer because I am. But I can’t marry you. My life here is all I know and all I want. Leah was the one who always wanted to leave and move away. I was contented to stay right here. Nothing’s changed. That’s what I want.”
His gaze met hers and the pain she saw there almost pierced her heart. She hadn’t meant to hurt him, but she had. She reached out and touched his arm. “Bas, please understand that—”
“No,” he said, pulling away and getting out of bed. “There’s nothing left to say. I think you’ve said it all.”
“Breakfast was good as usual, Leah,” Reese said pushing the plate away.
She glanced up at him and smiled. “Thanks. I wasn’t sure how you would like the mango pancakes. It’s a new recipe I tried.”
He chuckled. “Hey, I love all pancakes and yours are the best.”
She shook her head. “It’s a good thing you’re as active as you are with how much you consume at breakfast. Going to the gym every day is paying off.” And that was true. Reese was in the best shape he’d ever been. The proof was in his jeans. She didn’t know of any man who could wear them better or could look sexier in them.
“So what are your plans today?” he asked.
This was how their day started, Leah thought. Reese would arrive for breakfast each morning around