Wrapped In Pleasure - Brenda Jackson [48]
He was who he was. A man of honor. A man whose life was not his own, so it could never be hers.
She sighed when she reached the porch, remembering how they had often eaten breakfast while sitting on the steps enjoying the sun. She also remembered a particular time when he had said something to make her laugh just moments before claiming her mouth and kissing her in a way that had melted her insides.
Inhaling deeply, Delaney knew there was no way she could stay at the cabin any longer. She walked up the steps after making the decision to pack up her things and leave.
Delaney had just closed the last of her luggage when she heard a car door slam outside. Thinking, hoping, wishing that Jamal had returned for some reason, she raced out of the bedroom to the front door. When she opened it, she swallowed deeply, recognizing her visitors.
Five men were leaning against a sports utility vehicle, and each man had his arms crossed over his chest and a very serious look on his face. Delaney sighed as she studied them.
Dare stood every bit of six-four and was the most conservative of the five. As a sheriff he demanded respect for the law, and those who knew him knew he meant business and not to call his bluff. Thorn stood an inch or so taller than Dare and was considered the prickliest of the five. He was moody and temperamental when it suited him. And he was the daredevil in the family, the one who took risks by racing the motorcycles he built. Chase was basically easygoing when the others weren’t around. He stood six-two and relished the success of his soul-food restaurant that had recently been named one of the best eating places in the Atlanta area. Stone was the most serious of the five, or at least he tried to be. His height fell somewhere between Chase’s and Dare’s. He enjoyed taking trips to different places, doing research for his books. So far all ten novels had appeared on the New York Times bestseller list. Last, but not least, was Storm, Chase’s twin. He was as tall as Chase and had dimples to die for. It had always been his dream to become a fireman, and now because of a recent promotion, he was a proud lieutenant in the Atlanta Fire Department.
Even Delaney had to admit they were a handsome group, but at the moment she wasn’t in the mood to be intimidated by the likes of the Westmoreland brothers. “You guys are a long way from home, aren’t you?” she asked, moving her gaze from one to the other.
Of course it had to be the prickly Thorn who spoke up by saying, “What the hell are you doing out here by yourself in the middle of nowhere, Laney?”
Before she could answer, Dare chimed in. “I see another set of tire tracks, you guys. It looks like Laney wasn’t here by herself, or she had a visitor.”
Delaney raised her eyes heavenward. “Always the cop, aren’t you, Dare?” She sighed. “Why the show of force? Didn’t Mom and Dad tell you I was okay and wanted to be left in seclusion for a while?”
“Yes, they told us,” Stone said easily, but eyed her suspiciously as if she would be the perfect villain for his next book. “But we had to check things out for ourselves. And who did that other car belong to?”
Delaney refused to answer. In fact, she had a question of her own. “How did you find me?”
Storm laughed. “Dare put your picture out over the FBI wire service as a most-wanted fugitive and we got a tip.”
At her frown, Storm held up his hand and said, “I was just kidding, Laney. For goodness sakes, cut the ‘I will kill you dead if that’s true’ look. Chase took a peek at the folks’ caller ID and got your new cell number. The telephone company was able to trace where the roaming fees were being charged. Once we had that pinpointed the rest was a piece of cake.”
Delaney shook her head. “Yeah, I bet it was, like none of you have anything better to do with your time than to hunt me down. I am twenty-five, you know.”
Stone rolled his eyes. “Yeah, and the cost of milk was two-fifty a gallon yesterday, so what’s your point?”
Delaney glared at the five of them as she came down off the porch. “My point is