One Special Moment - Brenda Jackson [37]
Sterling’s cool gaze held Colby’s and knew she was angry. He watched as she crossed her arms under her breasts. The gesture made her breasts swell against the fabric of her dress. He got so caught up in looking at her, that for a minute he had forgotten she was waiting for his response. She soon reminded him, however.
“I asked you a question, Sterling.”
“Aren’t I the lucky one,” he responded smartly, annoyed with himself for finding her so darn desirable that at times he couldn’t think straight. He placed his coffee cup down and walked over to where she stood in the center of the room. When he spoke, his voice was soft but very clear.
“First of all, you and I are officially engaged. You are the woman who will become my wife and you’re also the woman who will give me my son. You can chalk it up to masculine possessiveness or just plain arrogance on my part, but from the moment you agreed to marry me, temporarily binding our lives together, I claimed you as mine. And what’s mine, Colby, I protect.”
Colby felt a soft tremor pass through her body with Sterling’s statement claiming her as his, but still she was determined to stand up to him. Squaring her shoulders she said, “But I don’t need your protection.”
He released a deep breath before he continued. “Yes, you do. Because of our engagement, you’ll now find yourself hassled unnecessarily by reporters who’ll want a story, and the paparazzi who’ll want pictures. They will badger you relentlessly. You wouldn’t even make it to the airport.”
“But you’ve given them a story. Surely they won’t bother to ask me anything else.”
“Yes, they will. And although I think you handled yourself remarkably well tonight with those reporters, the paparazzi can be relentless, thoughtless and inconsiderate. You do remember what happened to Princess Di don’t you? Think about it, Colby. The news of our engagement is now a hot item. Your life as you used to know it is virtually gone. I’ll try to protect you from the media as much as I can and taking you home is one way.”
Sterling then chuckled throatily. “Besides, if anything I believe your brother will expect me to bring you home. I’m sure he’ll want to talk with me.”
Colby nervously wrung her hands together. “But I haven’t had the chance to tell him about you yet.”
“Then I suggest you do so as soon as possible. News of our engagement will hit the newspapers in the morning. It may even make the late-night news on television tonight. I believe your brother is a good and decent man to have taken the responsibility of raising you after your parents’ death. I highly respect such a person, and it wouldn’t be right if I sent you back alone. Especially if he thinks the two of us are sleeping together while you’re here.”
“Why would he think anything like that!”
“Why wouldn’t he? You’ve been in California three days already and no doubt those reporters will release information indicating the two of us stayed together at this hotel. People will speculate about how we spent our time here. We know we haven’t been intimate but others won’t.”
“James will if I tell him so. He knows me. He knows I have all intentions of remaining a…” Colby stopped talking midsentence and decided not to finish what she was about to say.
Unfortunately for her, Sterling had no intention of not letting her finish it. “Remaining a what?” he asked, quietly, intently.
She shrugged. “Nothing.”
“What were you about to say, Colby?”
“It’s not important.”
Sterling stared at her. “If it’s what I think it is, it’s very important. Is it?”
She didn’t reply immediately, she just shrugged her shoulders again. “I have no idea what you think it is.”
Sterling was silent for a moment as he looked at her. The red dress she wore molded itself to her body with such allure, it gave an image of her being a seductress and temptress—unmistakably so. But deep down he had a gut feeling that image was false and far from the truth.
“I think you’ve never slept with a man and that you had all intentions of saving yourself for marriage,” he finally