Ignited by Passion

by Brenda Jackson

  He lifted a brow as he slid out of bed. “Oh? What will you be doing?”

  Jayla nervously licked her lips. There was no way she could tell him that she would be preparing for motherhood. “There’s this project that I’m going to start working on.”

  “Oh, and what kind of project is it?”

  She sighed deeply; he would ask. She decided to brush off his question and forced out a chuckle, saying, “Nothing you’d be interested in, trust me.”

  He smiled as he studied her for a long moment, then said. “I might surprise you. If you ever need my help, don’t hesitate to call.”

  She smiled. “Thanks for the offer, but I have everything under control.”

  “All right. I’ll be back in a second.”

  She watched as he walked into the bathroom and closed the door. She rolled over on her stomach and buried her face in his pillow, enjoying his lingering scent. Had she been dreaming or had Storm just offered to help with her project? She felt it was pretty safe to assume that the last thing Storm Westmoreland would want was to be a daddy. Besides, she had no regrets in going solo. A man like him as the father of her child would definitely cramp her style. He’d already stated his belief that a woman couldn’t work outside the home and raise a family. She didn’t envy the woman he would end up marrying, since it was evident that he would be a controlling husband.

  She got out of bed, slipped into her robe, walked over to the window and glanced out to watch the impending sun rise. Tomorrow, she and Storm would bring an end to their short affair and she hoped when they returned to Atlanta that they didn’t run into each other anytime soon. It would be difficult to see him and not think about the intimacy they had shared here in The Big Easy. There definitely wouldn’t be anything easy about that.

  Storm slid his hands around Jayla’s waist and pulled her snugly against him. “An hour?” he asked with a puzzled lift of his brow. “Are you saying it will take you an entire hour to pick out an outfit for tonight?”

  She smiled up at him. “Yes. Already I see a number of things in this dress shop that I want to try on. It has to be just perfect.”

  “Jayla,” he began, but she cut him off.

  “Please, Storm. I want a new outfit for tonight.”

  He studied the excitement in Jayla’s face, thinking she was even more beautiful than before, if that were possible. When he had met her for breakfast, he’d told her of the phone call he had received from his cousin Ian. Ian, a good friend of New Orleans’s mayor, had been invited to a huge gala being given in the man’s honor. Ian had invited Storm as his guest and Storm had gotten the okay to bring Jayla as his date. Instead of going sightseeing as they had originally planned, Jayla had insisted that the first thing she needed to do was go shopping for something to wear that night.

  “All right, I guess I can find something to kill time while you shop,” he said releasing her. “But I’ll be back in a hour, Jayla.”

  She grinned, nodding. “And I’ll have everything I need by then.”

  A short while later, Storm took his time as he strolled around Jackson Square. It was a beautiful day and a lot of tourists were out and about. He smiled when he thought of how excited Jayla had been when he’d mentioned tonight’s affair. He had enjoyed seeing her happy. He was also enjoying her company…almost a little too much. She was definitely someone he liked being with, both in and out of bed. More than once he had to remind himself not to make more of what they were sharing than there was.

  It was no big deal that over the past few days, they’d discovered that they enjoyed many of the same things. She liked jazz, and so did he; she enjoyed watching bone-chilling thriller movies and so did he. She was one of the few people who lived in Atlanta whose favorite football team wasn’t the Atlanta Falcons. His favorite team was the Dallas Cowboys and she was a fan of the Philadelphia Eagles.

  It seemed the only thing they didn’t agree on was his belief that a woman’s place was at home raising her kids and not in an office all day. Jayla insisted that a man who held such traditional views would be too controlling in a marriage. He didn’t see himself as wanting to control, but rather he saw himself as someone who wanted to be the sole provider for his family in the purest sense of the word.

  He glanced at his watch. He still had over forty-five minutes to go before he went back to that dress shop for Jayla. Damn, but he missed her already. A warning bell suddenly went off in his head. He’d never admitted to missing a woman before, so why was he doing it now? He sighed deeply, deciding to be honest with himself. The honest truth was he liked having Jayla around and for him that didn’t bode well.

  He frowned as he continued to walk around Jackson Square, wondering what was there about her that was get ting to him and playing games with his mind. They were games he had no desire to play. She knew the score and so did he. Neither of them wanted anything beyond what they were sharing here in New Orleans. Getting together and developing some sort of relationship when they returned to Atlanta was unacceptable, totally out of the question, a definite bad idea.

  Then why was he allowing such thoughts to invade his mind?

  “You’re confused, aren’t you?”

  Storm turned to the sound of the craggy voice and saw an old woman sitting on the bench less than five feet from where he stood. He lifted a brow. “Excuse me. Did you say something?”

  The old woman smiled serenely. “Yes. I said you’re confused. Nothing like this has ever happened to you be fore, has it?”

  Storm tilted his head to the side as he studied the woman, wondering if she was operating with a full deck. She was talking as if she knew him. “I think you might have me mixed up with someone else.”

  “No, I don’t,” she muttered with a shake of her head. “And I’m not crazy,” she said, as if reading his mind. “I’d tell you more if you let me look into your future.”

  Storm nodded as understanding dawned. The old woman was a fortune-teller. New Orleans was full of them. He crossed his arms over his chest amused. “And what do you think you can tell me that I don’t already know?”

  “Oh, you’d be surprised.”

  Storm didn’t think so but decided to humor the old woman. “Okay, then surprise me. What do you have to work with? Tarot cards or a crystal ball?”

  The older woman met his gaze and looked at him with a scrutiny that Storm found unnerving. Finally, she responded. “Neither. I’m a palm reader.”

  Storm nodded. That figured. “Okay, how much to read my palm?”

  “Twenty dollars.”

  He sighed as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a twenty-dollar bill while wondering why he was wasting his time. He glanced at his watch. He still had a good thirty minutes left before Jayla was ready and having his palm read was just as good as anything else to pass the time away.

  He sat down next to the woman on the bench and stretched out his hand to her. “Okay, what does my palm say?”

  He watched as the woman took his hand into her frail one and studied his palm. Moments later, when she lifted her gaze, the intensity in the depth of her dark eyes almost startled him. She smiled sympathetically. “I can see why you’re confused.”

  He frowned. “Meaning what?”

  “You are about to make unexpected changes in your life and although you yearn for peace, turbulence is in your future. Keep your sights high, be patient and let destiny take its course.”

  Storm’s frown deepened. He had just gotten a promotion three months ago, so what changes was the woman talking about? He had thought about moving out of his present house and buying a larger one, but what problems could a decision like that bring on? There had to be more.

  He lifted his brow. “Is that it?”

  She stared at him and sighed deeply. “Trust me, son. That will be enough.”

  He shook his head, a part of him found the entire thing outright amusing. “Ahh, can you be a little more specific?”

  “No, I’ve told you everything you need to know.�
�

  He slowly stood. He couldn’t wait until he and his brothers had their next card game so he could tell them about this experience. Knowing them, they would probably find the whole thing hilarious. “Well, it was nice getting my palm read,” he said, not knowing what else to say.

  She shook her head slowly. “I wish you the best of luck.”

  Storm looked at the woman. She’d said it like she had truly meant it. “Thanks,” he said before walking off, not sure just what he was thanking her for.

  “Tell her you like the red one.”

  He turned back around and lifted a brow. “Excuse me?”

  The old woman smiled. “Tell her you like the red one the best.”

  Storm frowned, not understanding what she meant. He decided it would be best not to ask, so he nodded, turned back around and kept walking. Moments later, when he returned to the dress shop, he saw Jayla standing at the check out counter waiting for him. His face lit into a smile as he walked over to her. “Did you find anything?”

  “Yes,” she answered excitedly. “I found two really nice outfits and they’re both beautiful. I want you to pick out the one you like the best.”

  He watched as she turned and grabbed two dresses off the counter, one blue and the other red. Storm blinked twice and his throat suddenly went dry when he remembered what the old woman had said. Tell her you like the red one. He stared at the two outfits that Jayla was holding up in front of her.

  “Well, which do you like the best, Storm?” she asked, looking from one dress to the other.

  “The red one,” he replied promptly, feeling somewhat dazed, like he was a participant in The Twilight Zone.

  Jayla didn’t notice his consternation as she handed the red dress to the smiling saleswoman behind the counter. A huge grin touched her lips. “I like the red one best, too.”

  Later that night, Storm had to admit that he definitely liked the red dress, especially on Jayla. His tongue had nearly fallen out of his mouth the moment she had stepped off the elevator to meet him in the lobby.

  Instantaneous. Immediate. A jolt of mind-wrenching desire had shot straight to his groin. There was nothing like an eye-catching, incredulously sexy, tight-fitting dress on a woman who definitely had sleek and delectable curves. Her silver accessories made her look sophisticated, elegant and hot, all at the same time. The dress was short, really short, but then she had legs that transformed the dress from provocative to mind-blowing. Her breasts sat high and looked full, lush and ready to tumble out of the low-cut neckline at any given moment.

  “I had a lot of fun tonight, Storm, and I like your cousin Ian.”

  He glanced at her. They were sitting in the back of a cab on their way back to the hotel. It was dark, but the moonlight, as well as the bright lights from the buildings they passed, provided sufficient light for them to see each other’s features clearly. But even if he hadn’t been able to see her, he would have definitely been able to smell her. The perfume she was wearing was a luscious, blatantly sensual scent and it was doing downright crazy things to his libido.

  “Yeah, and I could tell he liked you,” he responded huskily. Almost a little too much, he thought. He smiled when he remembered the look on his cousin’s face the moment he and Jayla had walked into the party. Ian’s expression of appreciation was also shared by most of the other men present. His heart had swelled with pride that she was with him.

  And he couldn’t forget how Ian had pulled Jayla to him and planted a kiss on her lips when they’d been leaving. He grinned, knowing Ian had intended to give him a dose of his own medicine. Ian had wanted to get a rise out of him, the same way he enjoyed getting a rise out of his brothers whenever he kissed their wives. Now he knew how it felt.

  “I can’t wait to get to the hotel to get out of these shoes. They are killing my feet.”

  Storm smiled and was glad that because of the darkness, Jayla couldn’t see the heated gleam in his eyes. He couldn’t wait to get her back to the hotel to get her out of something else. The sight of her in that dress had nearly driven him mad all night. He couldn’t wait to see just what she had or didn’t have underneath it.

  “Lift your feet into my lap and I’ll be glad to give you some temporary relief,” he murmured, wanting to touch her any way he could. She didn’t waste time taking him up on his offer and she shifted her body to slide her legs across his lap. He knew there was no way she could not feel the hardness of his groin with her legs resting across his thighs.

  He went about removing the silver stiletto heels and began massaging her feet. Her panty hose felt smooth and silky to his touch, and the thought that he’d never pampered another woman this way suddenly hit him. He tossed the thought from his mind as he continued to gently and methodically stroke her feet, thinking there was nothing like a great pair of legs and she had a pretty nice pair.

  “Umm, I could get used to this. You have gifted hands, Storm.”

  He smiled. “Anything to make you happy.” He thought about what he’d said and shook his head. He wondered what it would take to make a woman like her completely happy.

  “We got back too soon,” Jayla said, and he glanced out of the cab’s window to see they had arrived back at the hotel. He strapped her shoes back on her feet and felt an immediate sense of loss when she pulled her legs out of his lap.

  He glanced over at her, determined to remove that disappointment from her voice. He leaned over, pulled her against him and captured her lips. The taste of her was arousing…as if he needed to be aroused more than he al ready was. In minutes, he had her groaning and liked the sound of it.

  “My room or yours?” he whispered softly against her lips.

  She stared at his mouth a moment before answering in a voice that increased his heart rate another notch. “I’ve never been inside a man’s hotel room before and since this trip to New Orleans has been a first for me in a lot of ways, let’s go to your room tonight.”

  He kissed her again, devouring her soft lips and thinking he could definitely get used to this.

  Jayla awoke when she heard the ringing of the telephone. A quick glance at the clock on the nightstand indicated it was the wake-up call she had ordered. She watched as Storm reached over, picked up the receiver and, with out answering, hung it back up. He then met her gaze and for a moment she thought she saw a quick instant of regret in his eyes when he said, “I guess it’s time.”

  “Yeah, it seems that way,” she said softly, not wanting to get out of bed and get dressed, although she knew that she should. She needed to go to her room and pack. Her flight was scheduled to leave in a few hours and she had to make sure that she arrived at the airport on time.

  Heat spread low in her belly when Storm continued to look at her. Whenever he looked at her, it did things to her. She would remember every moment of last night. She had entered his hotel room and he had closed the door behind them. She had walked into his embrace and the kiss they’d shared had been blazing and within seconds he had removed her dress and panty hose, leaving her wearing only a thong.

  She would never forget the way he had looked at her, how he had swept her up into his arms and carried her over to the bed and made love to her as if pleasing her were the most important thing in his life. The lovemaking that they had shared had been simply amazing.

  “Do you need help packing?” he asked, looking breathtakingly handsome, sleep-rumpled and delicious. He smiled as he braced himself up on one elbow and looked down at her. He reached out and gently touched the nipples of her breasts. They hardened with his touch and she felt a warmth begin to build between her legs.

  She returned his smile, knowing if she were to take him up on his offer she would never finish packing. “Thanks for the offer, but I believe I can manage.”

  She felt her smile slowly fade away as reality set in. Al though she did not regret any of the time she had spent with him, she knew it was about to end. There was no other way, and it would be for the best. She had to shift her focus away from
Storm and back to the baby she wanted more than anything. As soon as she got home, she would schedule an appointment with the fertility clinic to get things started. A continuation of Storm in her life would only complicate things and she didn’t do well with complications. Besides, she knew there was no Mr. Right for her, especially one by the name of Storm Westmoreland.

  So why was it so hard for her to get out of his bed? And why did she want to make love to him again, one last time before she finally walked out the door?

  “I enjoyed our time together, Jayla.”

  His words interrupted her thoughts and she met his gaze, studied his eyes. “I did, too, and still no regrets, right?”

  He reached out and threaded his fingers through her hair. “No regrets. We’re adults and we did what we wanted to do.”

  A smile curved her mouth. “Thank you Storm for showing me how great lovemaking can be.”

  He looked at her, countered her smile. “You’re welcome.”

  “But life goes on,” she decided to say when more than anything she wanted to kiss him.

  He nodded. “Yes, life goes on, but it won’t be easy. If I were to run into you anytime soon,” he said, gently smoothing his fingertips across her cheek, “there’s no way I’ll see you and not think about that red dress and those killer high heels, not to mention the only thing you were wearing under that dress.”

  She chuckled. “Shocked you, huh?”

  A huge smiled tipped one corner of his mouth. “Yeah, you shocked me. You also pleased me.”

  Storm decided that what he couldn’t tell her was that she was unlike any woman he had ever known. She was some one who could laugh with him, tease him and talk to him just about anything. And the sex had been amazing and there was no way he could let her go without making love to her again. He needed this one last time to seal the memory of their time together into his mind forever.