Westmoreland's Way - Brenda Jackson [48]
He took the book out of her hands and placed it on the nightstand before easing back into the bed with her. “I’m flying out in the morning to return home to take care of a few family matters, but will return by the end of the week,” he said.
Confusion touched her face. “But why are you returning? You’ve gotten what you came for. You now know the reason Raphel ran off with Portia. He and Jay set the entire thing up to look that way to protect Portia’s reputation.”
“Yes,” he said huskily, easing up on his knees in front of her and slowly advancing on her like a hunter stalking its prey. “That was the reason I came initially, but you’re the reason I’ll be coming back.”
“B-but nothing has changed. I still need to marry Fletcher.”
A dimpled smile touched his lips. “No, you don’t. I’m a man known to make things happen instead of taking advantage of a situation like I think Mallard is doing, so I plan to offer you an alternative.”
She lifted a brow. “An alternative?”
“Yes. I can’t let you marry another man when I know that I’m the man for you.”
She shook her head and gave a resigned sigh. She’d thought he understood, but he really hadn’t understood at all. “Dillon, please listen to me, I—”
“No, I’m asking you to trust me,” he said, gazing into her eyes with a plea that she felt all the way to the lower part of her belly. “I know that is a lot to ask when we’ve only known each other for a short period of time, but I believe there has to be another way out of this situation. A way in which you don’t feel forced or obligated to marry Mallard or anyone else. I want you to trust me and give me time to find another way. Do for me what Jay did for Raphel. Trust me to make your situation better.”
She stared deep into his eyes and then she said softly, “Fletcher expects me to have a date set for our wedding when he returns.”
Dillon nodded. “When does he get back?”
“Sometime this weekend, probably Sunday.”
“Then stall him. I need time to check out a few things,” he said huskily. “Say you will trust me.”
She continued to look into his eyes, searched his face for a sign of why she shouldn’t trust him and knew she would not see one. “I will trust you.”
A satisfied smile touched his lips. Raising his hands, he cupped the lower part of her face and leaned forward for their mouths, as well as their bodies, to mate once more.
Ten
“P amela, I thought we agreed that you’d set a date for our wedding by the time I got back,” Fletcher said, sitting down to the dinner table with her and her sisters.
He had called Sunday morning to say he would be arriving back in Gamble around noon and was eager to see her. She had invited him to dinner and the first thing he’d done, after giving her a hug and telling her how much he had missed her, had been to ask what day she had picked for their wedding.
“Maybe she’s decided not to marry you after all, Fletch,” Jill said, smiling sweetly over at him with a deliberate glare in her eyes.
“That’s enough, Jillian,” Pam said to her sister. Jill didn’t know how true her words were. “I’ve been busy, Fletcher.”
He frowned. “Too busy to plan a wedding that we both know needs to take place?”
She frowned back, wishing he wouldn’t discuss such matters in front of her sisters. “We can talk about this later, Fletcher.” She knew he didn’t like putting off the discussion. In truth, she didn’t, either.
Thanks to her sisters dinner hadn’t been pleasant. They had practically ignored Fletcher. Having been gone for almost a week, he had wanted to be the center of attention and hadn’t liked being ignored. Although she had tried rallying conversation around him, Nadia, Paige and Jill had not bought into her ploy. He hadn’t been any better, often times mocking things they’d said. By the end of dinner her nerves were strained and she was ready for her sisters to retire to bed and for Fletcher to leave.
“Oh, I almost forgot,