Seduction, Westmoreland Style - Brenda Jackson [19]
Damn. Casey Westmoreland was getting under his skin—and that was something he’d sworn not to let another woman do again. Casey stood at her bedroom window and looked out, clearly seeing the mountains beneath a moon-kissed sky. Shivers ran all through her body at the memory of being in McKinnon’s presence tonight, sitting across from him at the dinner table trying to concentrate more on her food than on him.
And then there was the part of the night when she’d helped Savannah clear the table and he’d handed her his plate. The moment their hands had touched she felt a heated sensation shoot from the bottom of her feet all the way to the top of her head. There were also moments she had caught him staring at her like she was the dessert he would get after the meal. Just thinking about that deep look of desire she’d seen in his eyes had heat flaring up inside her and no matter what she did, there was nothing she could do to smother it.
She’d tried sleeping but her thoughts wouldn’t let her be. Heat would start in her stomach and move lower down her body while visions of McKinnon Quinn danced in her head. How could she concentrate on getting Prince Charming trained when something else dominated her thoughts?
Knowing going back to sleep was out of the question, she slipped into a robe after deciding to take a walk outside. There was a courtyard connecting the cottage to the main house that was surrounded by the flowers Henrietta had planted. It was a beautiful night and she wanted to stand underneath the Montana sky and smell the flowers.
She had been standing outside in the courtyard for well over fifteen minutes and was about to go back inside when she heard a sound. Her heart jammed in her ribs and her breath caught. She blinked, not sure if she was seeing things or if McKinnon was actually there within ten feet of her, sitting bareback on his huge black horse and staring at her.
She blinked again and watched as he slowly slid off Thunder’s back and she realized it wasn’t a hallucination.
She shook her head to clear it before her gaze latched onto his. She felt her breathing grow shallow as he slowly moved closer.
The moon overhead cast enough light on him and his devastatingly good looks to make her appreciate that she was born a woman. His hair hung loose and wildly around his shoulders, and he was bare chested and wearing jeans. His body was solid, muscular and for a moment her breath caught because he reminded her of a savage beast. But she knew that the man coming toward her—although private and reserved—was no threat to her. At least not physically. Emotionally was another matter.
“What are you doing out here?” he asked in a deep, husky drawl that sent goose bumps spreading all over her body. He came to stand directly in front of her.
From the moon’s glow she could see the intensity in the depths of his dark eyes. “I couldn’t sleep and decided to come out here for a spell,” she said as her hands automatically went to the belt around her robe to tighten it, fully aware that her meager clothing offered no protection nothing against the heat she saw in his eyes.
“You should go back inside,” he said in a gruff voice.
“I was about to,” she said, taking a gathered breath. Then she asked, “What are you still doing up?”
At first she thought he wasn’t going to respond, but then he said, “I couldn’t sleep either and decided to ride Thunder.”
“Oh.” She inhaled deeply. “Well, I’d better go back in. Good—”
“I know the reason why neither of us can get any sleep,” he said, taking a step closer to her.
She stared up into his dark eyes. “Do you?”
“Yes. We need this.” And then he wrapped his arms around her and lowered his mouth as his lips captured hers. Then he placed his hands on her hips, molding her body firmly to the fit of him. Without wasting any time, his tongue found hers and he heard her gasp at the contact and immediately knew…at thirty years of age, Casey Westmoreland had never been properly kissed before. And damn it all