Westmoreland's Way - Brenda Jackson [47]
Dillon heard what she was saying but it didn’t make sense. In his profession he didn’t know of any bank that would loan that much money without requiring that some kind of life insurance be purchased with it.
“So there,” Pam pronounced.
She’d said it like that settled it, but he had news for her. It didn’t. His gaze traced over her features. A part of him saw beyond what she was saying. It saw beyond what she thought she needed. She assumed she needed Fletcher Mallard. As far as he was concerned, she needed him. And unlike Mallard, he would deliver without any strings attached. It could only be then, after the matter with Mallard was dispensed with, that he would ask her to marry him, for all the right reasons two people should marry.
But still, something about the way her father’s loan had been handled bothered him and he intended to check a few things out for himself on Monday. Deciding it would be best not to tell her what he planned to do, he lowered his head and tasted her lips instead, stirring the embers between lovers back to a roaring blaze.
And moments later, when he eased back inside her body, he knew he was where he belonged.
“Where do you get so much energy?” Pam asked in a whisper, while watching Dillon ease from the bed and head toward the bathroom. He glanced over his shoulder and smiled at her. “You, Pamela Novak, give me strength.”
He moved on toward his destination giving her a good view of strong, long legs and a nice, tight tush. He gave her strength, as well, she thought, closing her eyes and snuggling under the covers. She inhaled the masculine scent he’d left behind and knew at that moment, as crazy as it seemed, and unlikely as it could be, each time they made love she fell deeper and deeper in love with him.
Now he knew the whole story regarding her relationship with Fletcher, and although she had a feeling he didn’t like it, at least she hoped he understood why she had to marry Fletcher. Shifting up in bed she glanced at the journal on the chair, just as she heard Dillon returning from the bathroom.
“Did you find out any more about why your great-grandfather ran off with my great-grandfather’s wife?” she asked, trying to keep her focus on her question and not on his naked body.
“Yes, I found out,” he said, walking over to the chair to pick up the journal and returning to the bed to hand it to her. “I marked the spot with a sticky note. Some members of your family had to have known the whole story, but I guess it was a family secret.”
Pam lifted a brow before opening the journal to begin reading. A few minutes later she was lifting astonished eyes to his. “Portia was caught in bed? With another woman?”
Dillon nodded slowly. “Yes. And to protect her from the scandal it would have caused, the husband of the other woman and your great-grandfather decided it would be best to keep the matter between them. But it was decided both men would eventually divorce their wives, which during that time would have been a scandal in itself.”
Pam nodded. “So since Raphel was about to leave Gamble anyway to head out to California, he and Jay came up with this plan to take Portia away so she could start a new life elsewhere. Do you think the other woman joined her later?”
Dillon shrugged. “Who knows? We’re talking about the nineteen thirties. There’s no telling how things turned out with Portia. But your great-grandfather did legally divorce her for desertion before marrying your great-grandmother. I’m glad to finally know why Raphel ran off with another man’s wife for the second time.”
Pam closed the journal. With the mystery solved, Dillon would be leaving Gamble. He had no reason to stay. “Both times Raphel came to the rescue of women who needed his help. Sounds like a high-caliber man, a real protector of women,” she said.
His lips curved into a smile. “Yes, but so was Jay. He could have made things hard on Portia, but he was willing to step back and