Westmoreland's Way - Brenda Jackson [38]
“What I shared with you tonight is something I’ve never shared before with any man. So there has to be another reason why I feel so free and uncontrolled with you.”
He felt the same way. There had to be a reason why he felt free and uncontrolled around her as well. But whereas she might accept what they had shared tonight as a casual affair, he could not. If she figured he would just walk away, leave Gamble and head back to Denver without a second glance, then she was wrong. Dead wrong.
And to show her how wrong she was, he raised a hand to her face and caressed her cheek. “Tonight was very special to me, Pam. I’ve never met a woman quite like you.”
He could tell by the look in her eyes that she didn’t know what to make of his words. That was fine because soon enough she would. He lowered his head and captured her lips in a slow yet greedy fashion. He felt her shudder beneath his mouth and when she tightened her arms around his neck, he deepened the kiss.
He wanted her. And he would have her. As far as he was concerned, she was already his. That was the Westmorelands’ way. The ability to recognize his or her true mate when he encountered her or him, although they might initially try to deny it. He would be the first to admit some Westmorelands were stubborn, and he had discovered that trait wasn’t confined to just the Denver clan. He’d been told that the Atlanta Westmorelands were just as bad.
He could now admit that he had made a mistake with Tammi in thinking she was the one. He felt certain there was no mistake with Pam. And for him to be so sure of that so soon might be a mystery to some, but not to him.
He slowly and reluctantly withdrew from her mouth, but for the moment he refused to release her from his arms. “I’m walking you out to the car and then I’m following you home to make sure you get there safely,” he whispered against her ear.
She pulled back and a cautious look appeared on her face. “You don’t have to do that.”
“Yes, I do.” For reasons you can’t possibly imagine, he thought. But he simply asked, “Ready to go?”
“Yes, but…” She studied his face. “Tonight…”
She didn’t continue, but nervously moistened her top lip with her tongue, an action that had him forcing back a rush of desire.
“What about tonight?”
“Tonight was tonight. Tomorrow remains the same. I’m engaged to Fletcher.”
He looked down at her. A shaft of light from the fixtures in the parking lot came through the glass door and slanted across her face, making her look so beautiful he felt his heartbeat increase. He silenced the response he really wanted to make—one that clearly stated her engagement was evidently in name only and regardless, she was his, signed, sealed and so deliciously delivered. His stomach clenched just thinking about their lovemaking.
Her expression indicated she expected him to understand and to accept her words. There was no use telling her he wasn’t about to do either. Instead, he knew he would do what he had to do. The first thing was to find out why she had gotten engaged to a man like Mallard in the first place.
So to bide his time, he pushed a strand of hair back from her face. “I know,” he said.
Those two words were all he was capable of saying to her right now. “Let me walk you to the car.”
She held back, refusing to move an inch as she studied his face for a moment. “You don’t need to come to the house tomorrow, do you?”
He swallowed deeply. She was trying to cut ties now. She didn’t have any regrets about tonight but she knew she couldn’t continue. “No, I’ll take the next couple of days and stay at the hotel and relax and read the journal. If you need me for anything, you know where to reach me.”
She nodded and then moved toward the door. He walked by her side. He would give her two days and if she didn’t come to him, engaged or not engaged, he would be going after her.
Eight
“W e don’t understand, Pammie. Why did Dillon stop coming for dinner?”
Pam glanced across the dinner table at Nadia, knowing how her baby