She considered turning around to greet him and then decided because he was the one who’d entered the kitchen, he should be the one to make the gesture. If he didn’t, it wouldn’t be any sweat off her back, namely because she didn’t have any sweat left after those naughty dreams last night where he’d had a starring role.
“Morning.”
Okay, he’d done the proper thing and spoke first, but did he have to do so with such a deep huskiness in his voice? Such raw sexuality in his tone? It had only been one word for crying out loud. Yet the sound that had emitted from his lips was sending shudders through her body and had the potential to do other things she just didn’t want to think about this early in the morning. It wasn’t even four yet. And it was going to be a busy morning and an even busier noon.
Reluctantly, she turned around, deciding she would at least return his greeting. “Good—”
She swallowed the other word. And was that a moan she’d heard that had just passed her lips? Ramsey Westmoreland had the nerve, the sheer audacity to be standing in the middle of the kitchen putting on a shirt. At least now he was buttoning it up. But not before she’d caught a glimpse of his naked chest, ultra-fine biceps, sculpted shoulders and muscular arms. And it didn’t help matters that his jeans were riding low on his hips and he was barefoot. It was quite obvious he had just taken a shower and had shaved. But still, he had that early-morning take-me-as-I-am look and she was tempted to do just that.
She wished she had the strength not to let her gaze hone in on such a powerful muscled body, but you could call her weak and she would answer. She was seeing firsthand why she wanted him as her Simply Irresistible man.
His gaze met hers when he’d noticed her looking and held on to her eyes until the last button was done. What a pity, she thought. She had enjoyed the show.
“I can’t believe you beat me up,” he said, now slipping a belt through the loops of his jeans.
Chloe wondered if it was the norm for him to get dressed in the middle of his kitchen. “I couldn’t sleep,” she decided to say. “Unfamiliar bed.” There was no reason to tell him what had really kept her awake.
“But you did get enough sleep to function this morning,” he stated. “The men will be hungry,” he added.
She snorted, not caring how it sounded. “Mama Francine said men are always hungry. Even when their stomachs are full.”
He leaned against the counter. “And who is Mama Francine?”
Too late she realized she might have said too much, but quickly decided telling him about Mama Francine wasn’t giving anything away. “She’s the person who taught me how to cook.”
He nodded and she turned back to her eggs. She wasn’t sure how many men would want their eggs scrambled, but she wanted to have the mixture ready just in case. And Mama Francine had taught her how to flip eggs, so those who didn’t want their egg scrambled could tell her just how they liked it.
She heard him move, but refused to look up again. Besides, she knew he was moving toward her with a slow walk and glancing around inspecting everything while doing so. And with every step he took closer to her she felt his heat. It was even more powerful than what the stove was generating.
“I’m impressed.”
She couldn’t help but smile as she glanced over her shoulder. “Again?”
“Yep. You’re serving both bacon and sausage.”
She lifted a brow. Curious. “Something’s wrong with that?”
He shrugged. “No. It’s just that usually Nellie did one or the other.”
She gazed him a pointed look. “Well, I’m not Nellie.”
His heavy-lidded eyes raked over her. Slowly. Thoroughly. Then he said in a voice drenched with masculine awareness. “I can see that.”
She didn’t know what to say to that, so she said nothing at all before turning back around, placing the egg mixture aside to give attention to the pan of biscuits.
She knew he was staring at her legs and was tempted to pull her skirt down. However, doing so would give him the impression she was uncomfortable with what she was wearing. She wasn’t nor should she be. It was a decent length and, therefore, it was appropriate. It hit just a little above the knee, but she was wearing leggings underneath. If he were to see her in some of the other outfits she owned, the ones that barely covered her thighs, he would probably be shocked.
“And we’re getting homemade biscuits, too?”
She couldn’t help the grin that touched her lips when she moved to open the oven door and slide the pan of biscuits inside. “Another abnormality?”
“Around here, yes.”
That made Chloe wonder why this Nellie didn’t prepare more of a variety of foods for breakfast. After closing the oven door she turned around, trying to ignore how responsive certain parts of her body were to Ramsey’s nearness. He looked like he needed another five hours of sleep to do him justice, yet at the same time he looked sexy as sin. “May I ask you a question, Ramsey?”
He shrugged those massive shoulders again. “Depends on what you want to know.”
She crossed her arms under her breasts and wondered if that had been a good thing when his eyes, half-asleep or not, followed the movement and seemed to be staring right through the material of her blouse to her nipples. At least the nipples thought so and were tingling at the attention they were getting. They were tingling and getting hard all at the same time.
“I want to know why this Nellie didn’t offer more of a variety to the men at breakfast time.”
She watched as a grin quirked his lips. “If you knew Nellie you wouldn’t have to ask that question.”
She rolled her eyes. “I don’t know Nellie, so I’m asking it.”
He tilted his head to the side, focusing those ever-so-intense eyes on her. And weakling that she was, immediately felt her body’s response to his gaze. She wondered if he could detect it. It seemed so unreal that she would react to him this way when Daren couldn’t get a spark of response out of her no matter how much he tried. But then, he hadn’t tried too often. He’d been more interested in building his political future by parading Senator Burton’s daughter out in front of those he felt he needed to impress. And when they were alone he was more into surfing the Internet for political blogs than getting into her. And those times when he had given her his attention, he might as well not have bothered. To say Daren hadn’t had a romantic bone in his body was an understatement. However, the final straw came when he’d actually suggested they participate in a threesome. He claimed that kind of sexual kinkiness was a total turn on for him. For a man who couldn’t even handle a twosome to fix his mouth to propose such a thing was too much. She’d sent him packing with the few items he had kept at her place and with a clear understanding not to come back.
Since then she had to focus all her energy—sexual and otherwise—into making her magazine a success and refused to think about having any type of a relationship with a man, and now, here she was, behaving like some supercharged, highly-sexed woman, ready to unzip his pants and jump his bones.
“Nellie figured that for breakfast she would give them just the basic, enough to get by so they could really be hungry by lunchtime,” he interrupted her thoughts by stating.
She raised a brow. In her opinion that didn’t make much sense. “Wouldn’t they be hungry at lunchtime anyway?”
“Yes.”
Chloe opened her mouth to say something, then snapped it shut, deciding to leave it alone. She and Nellie were two different people and the way the woman ran her kitchen was none of Chloe’s business. Chloe’s concern, her aim, was to make sure by the time she confessed who she was, Ramsey would feel he was irrevocably in her debt. And if offering the men who worked for him a variety at breakfast was going to get brownie points with him, then so be it. Besides, after listening to the men yesterday, it was quite obvious that most of them would like a home-cooked meal and she had no problem giving them one. Besides, being back in the kitchen had made her realize just how much she e
njoyed cooking.
She heard the sound of a vehicle pulling up. “Sounds like your men are starting to arrive.”
He shook his head. “No, it’s Callum. He always arrives earlier than the others. He and I usually have business to discuss in the mornings.”
She nodded. She had noticed the man yesterday and could tell he and Ramsey had more than just an employer-employee relationship. They seemed to be close friends. “He’s from the Outback, isn’t he?”
Ramsey had moved to where the coffeepot was sitting to pour a cup of coffee. He took a sip and frowned. The woman could even make damn good coffee. “Yes,” he finally said, answering her question.
Few people, including some members of Ramsey’s own family, knew that Callum was a millionaire in his own right and owned a vast amount of land in Australia. He had several sheep ranches in Australia that were run by a very efficient staff. There was no need to tell her that the Aussie donated to charity the salary he earned as Ramsey’s ranch manager.
Callum, at thirty-four, was the product of a wealthy white Australian father and an African American mother. His family had made billions in the sheep ranching business. Another thing she didn’t need to know was that the only reason Callum was still hanging around here instead of moseying it back to Australia was because he didn’t plan to leave without Gemma going with him.
Callum knew Ramsey well enough to know that when it came to his three sisters, Ramsey was a tad overprotective and would stop any advances on Megan, Gemma or Bailey cold. It had taken the Aussie a full year to convince Ramsey that his intentions toward Gemma were honorable and that he loved her and wanted to marry her. Both Ramsey and Dillon had given Callum their blessings for a marriage; however, they’d made it clear the final decision would be Gemma’s. His sister had never given any indication that she was the least bit interested in Callum and was virtually clueless in regards to Callum’s interest in her. As far as Ramsey was concerned maybe that was a good thing because Gemma was known to be a handful at times and would definitely have a lot to say about it; especially when she’d stated on more than one occasion that she never intended to ever give her heart to any man. That meant the Aussie had his work cut out for him if he intended to win her over.
Ramsey glanced around the kitchen before returning his gaze to Chloe. “It seems that you have everything under control.”
“Sorry you thought that I wouldn’t.”
The mockery of her words had him frowning. Something told him that when it came to an attitude, hers was worse than his sister’s. “It’s not that I thought you wouldn’t, Chloe. I think you more than proved your capabilities yesterday.”
She lifted her chin. “Then what is it with you?”
He could pretend he had no idea what she was talking about, but he didn’t. If the truth be told, he was the one with the attitude and was well aware it had probably been the pits since their initial meeting. He wasn’t used to having to deal with a woman who made men pause when she walked into a room. A woman who wore her sexuality like it was a brand with her name on it. A woman who even now had blood surging through his veins.
And a woman he wanted to kiss.
His heart was racing at the very thought of locking his mouth with hers, and he knew at that moment if she stayed another night under his roof he would be doing that very thing if for no other reason than to get her out of his system. It would only be right to give her fair warning.
“How old are you, Chloe?”
From her expression he could tell she was wondering what her age had to do with anything. “I’m twenty-eight.”
He nodded slowly, while his gazed continued to hold hers. “Then I would think you’d know what it is with me. But just in case you don’t have a clue, I’ll show you later.”
Chloe felt a slow burn in her midsection followed by the feel of her heart thudding erratically in her chest. The meaning behind his words was pretty clear. If it hadn’t been, then his eyes would have spelled things out for her. She could see the promises in the dark depths. Promises he wasn’t trying to hide. Promises he intended to keep.
Before she could level a response the back door opened and Callum Austell walked in. He looked first at her and then at Ramsey. The smile that touched the man’s lips would have been too deadly sexy if she hadn’t thought Ramsey had a monopoly on sexiness.
“Ram. Chloe. Did I come at a bad time?” Callum asked in a low tone.
Chloe watched an irritated frown touch Ramsey’s features and she drew in a deep breath. Lucia had warned her that he was a private person and she wasn’t sure just how he felt about his friend picking up on the sexual tension flowing between them. It was tension so thick you could probably cut it with a knife and then spread it on bread. Deciding she needed to play off Callum’s words, make the man think he was wrong in his assumption, she turned to Callum, opened her mouth to speak, but Ramsey beat her to it.
“No, you didn’t come at a bad time. Come on, Cal, let’s have that meeting.” He then sat the coffee cup he’d been holding on the counter with a thud and headed out of the room. He stopped and glanced over his shoulder at Callum who had halted beside her.
“You sure look nice this morning, Chloe,” Callum said in a husky tone with his deep Australian accent.
Chloe glanced up at the handsome man whom she figured was a year or two younger than Ramsey and couldn’t help wondering what he was about. Had he just delivered a polite comment or a blatant flirtation?
“You’re wasting my time, Cal. Are we meeting or what?” Ramsey called out in a sharp tone.
Callum looked across the room at Ramsey and smiled. “We’re meeting.”
And then he moved to follow Ramsey out of the room.
Ramsey clenched his jaw until he was in the office and then he all but slammed the door shut before facing Callum. The other man had the nerve, the very audacity, the damn gall, to smile. “What the hell was that about?” he asked through gritted teeth.
Callum gave him an innocent look, one Ramsey wasn’t buying or selling. “I don’t know what you mean, Ram.”
Ramsey leaned back against his desk and frowned. “You were flirting with her.”
Callum shrugged as another smile formed at the corners of his lips. “What if I was?”
Ramsey crossed his arms over his chest. “If you did it to get a rise out of me, then—”
“It worked,” Callum taunted as he eased his muscular frame into a chair across from the desk. “Come on, Ram. Go ahead and admit you want the woman, which is why you’re trying to get rid of her. When you know for yourself, even after eating just one meal, that she’s a lot better cook than Nellie and her temperament is a vast improvement to what we’re used to. I hate to say it but Nellie hasn’t been missed around here and you know why.”
Ramsey drew in a deep breath. Yes, he did know why. Nellie’s disposition had begun deteriorating months ago after discovering her husband had been unfaithful to her. It was as if she had taken her hurt and anger out on the entire male population and his men knew it. They had tried being understanding, even sympathetic. But then after a while they’d become annoyed and just plain irritated. There was nothing worse than pissing a man off about his food.
Although Nellie’s unexpected trip had placed him in a bind, he thought she needed the distance from his men for a while and vice versa. She still had a job when she returned, but the two of them would have a long talk first.
“Okay, so Nellie hasn’t been missed, but when she comes back, she still has a job,” he decided to speak up.
“Fine. Great. But in the meantime I think your men deserve a nice smile and friendly words every now and then, not to mention food they can eat without worrying about it being burned or overly seasoned.”
Ramsey was silent.
“Look, I understand your problem with Chloe, Ram. Welcome to the club. I know how it is to want a woman so bad you ache,” Callum said.
Ram frowned. He then narrowed his eyes on his friend. “You’re
referring to my sister,” he said in a warning tone.
Callum snorted. “I’m referring to the woman I intend to marry who refuses to give me the time of day and it’s getting damn near frustrating. Don’t be surprised one day if you wake up and find us both gone.” A smile touched Callum’s lips. “I might resort to kidnapping.”
Ram’s frown deepened. “You’d better be joking.” He then shook his head at Callum’s outrageous threat. And then he couldn’t help but chuckle. “Go ahead and kidnap her. I’ll give you less than a week and you’ll be bringing her back. Gemma will make your life a living hell if you did such a thing and I wouldn’t be one to close my eyes on her if I were you. She likes getting even.”
Ram smiled. Although he’d gone a little overboard he knew Callum got the picture. Of his three sisters, Gemma was the one who had a knack for not only speaking her mind but for backing up her thoughts. Callum knew this and was still in love with her. Go figure.
“Are you really thinking about letting Chloe go?” Callum asked and Ramsey figured he was now desperate to change the subject from Gemma back to Chloe. “I think it’s a sin and a shame that your men will have to suffer just because you can’t control your urges,” Callum said.
Ramsey knew there was really no reason to deny what Callum had just said. It was true. He was finding it hard to control his urges around Chloe. And they were urges he’d been controlling just fine before she’d shown up.
“The men are taking a bet as to how long we’ll keep her.” Callum grinned and said, “I bet some will be surprised to find her still here this morning.”
Ramsey didn’t see anything amusing. He didn’t like being reminded that others had noticed his interest in her yesterday. “She’s not the only good cook around these parts.”
“I’m sure she isn’t, but not many would want to have to live on the ranch. Most would probably have homes of their own; families they had to take care of when they left here like Nellie.” Callum rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Um, that makes me wonder.”
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