Ignited by Passion

by Brenda Jackson

  “Thanks.”

  Jayla sighed deeply as she began putting her clothes back on. She’d had a sleepless night and hadn’t been as excited about the appointment this morning as much as she’d wanted to be because of thoughts of Storm. And it hadn’t helped matters that she’d been crying most of the morning.

  She walked over to the mirror in the room and looked at herself. She looked pathetic. Her reflection revealed a woman who was truly drowning in her own misery. And it was a misery well deserved. Even Lisa hadn’t given her any slack when she’d called this morning and she’d told her about the argument she’d had with Storm. And when she’d mentioned that Storm had told her that he loved her and wanted to marry her, her best friend had actually gone off on her. But then, what was a best friend for if she couldn’t give you hell when you needed it?

  The sad thing about it was that everything both Storm and Lisa had said was true. She wouldn’t recognize her Mr. Right if he came to stand right in front of her.

  She sighed deeply as she slipped back into her panty hose. So what if Storm was one of those men who wanted to take care of his woman? Wasn’t it better to have a man who wanted to take care of you than to have a man who expected you to take care of him? And was it so awful that he was a little on the conventional side? She would be the first to admit that she found some of his old-fashioned ways sweet. Besides, if his conventional way of thinking became too much for her, couldn’t she just make it her business to modernize him? And so what if he had ways like her father? Adam Cole had been a great parent and a part of her could now say she appreciated her strict upbringing. A couple of the girls she had wanted to hang around with in high school had either gotten pregnant before graduating or had gotten mixed up with drugs.

  Upon waking this morning, it had taken several hours of wallowing in self-pity, as well as being forced to listen to Lisa’s tirade, before she’d finally taken the blinders off. Storm loved her and he was her Mr. Right and she loved him. She couldn’t fight it, nor could she deny the truth any longer. She loved him and had always loved him.

  Oh, she understood now why he had kept his distance so many years ago but still, it had been a bitter pill for a young girl to swallow. A part of her had built up an immunity against ever being rejected by him again. But now she was a woman and she wanted what any other woman would want—a man to love her. And that man had offered to marry her and give her the baby she wanted. How blessed could a woman be?

  Her feeling of euphoria quickly disintegrated when she remembered she had thrown his words of love back in his face. She had a feeling that Storm was a man who wouldn’t take rejection well. What if he never wanted to see her again?

  She quickly slipped into her skirt, thinking she had to work fast to correct the mistake she’d made or she would lose him completely. And the first thing she had to do was to cancel her plans to get inseminated. The only man she wanted to father her child was Storm.

  She turned when she heard a knock at the door. “Come in.” She smiled apologetically when Dr. Susan Millstone walked in. Before the doctor could say anything she quickly said, “I’ve changed my mind.”

  After closing the door behind her, Dr. Millstone tilted her head and looked at her. “You’ve changed your mind?”

  “Yes. I’ve decided not to go through with the artificial insemination procedure after all.”

  The doctor leaned against the closed door. “May I ask the reason you’ve changed your mind?”

  Jayla smiled. “Yes. The man that I love wants to marry me and give me his child, and I want that, too, more than anything.” And I hope and pray I haven’t lost him, she thought.

  Dr. Millstone chuckled as she shook her head. “What you’ve just said will make what I have to tell you a little easier.”

  Jayla raised a brow. “Oh?”

  “I just went over the results of your physical and it seems you’re already pregnant.”

  The news was so shocking that Jayla dropped into a nearby chair. She looked back up at the doctor, not believing what she’d been told. “I’m pregnant?”

  The doctor chuckled again. “Yes. You’re almost a month along.”

  Jayla shook her head, as if trying to keep it from spinning. She was almost a month pregnant! “New Orleans,” she said softly, as a smile touched her lips.

  “Excuse me?”

  She met Dr. Millstone’s grin. “I said New Orleans. I got pregnant in New Orleans. But how is that possible when we were careful?”

  A smiled played at the corner of Dr. Millstone’s mouth. “I deliver a lot of babies whose parents thought they were careful, too. No birth control is one hundred percent.”

  Jayla chuckled. “Evidently not.”

  “So, can I assume that you’re happy with the news?”

  Jayla jumped up as the feeling of euphoria took control of her again. “Yes, I’m happy! I am ecstatic!” she said, laughing joyously. She just hoped and prayed that Storm would be happy and ecstatic, as well, when she told him that she loved him and was having his baby.

  Chapter 11

  Everyone who was somebody in Atlanta had turned out for the Kids’ World charity benefit. There were politicians, CEOs of major corporations, celebrities and well-known sports figures, all of whom considered Atlanta home.

  There was also a sheikh in attendance, the very handsome Prince Jamal Ari Yasir, who was dressed in his native Middle Eastern attire and causing quite a stir among the ladies, single or otherwise. Jayla smiled, knowing the stir was a waste of time and effort since it was well known that Prince Yasir was happily married to the former Delaney Westmoreland, Storm’s sister.

  Jayla glanced across the room at the group of men standing together laughing and talking. Although Storm hadn’t arrived yet, it didn’t take much to recognize the men as Westmorelands. Their kinship was clearly evident in their facial features, their height as well as their sex appeal.

  She began wondering if perhaps Storm had changed his mind about coming. After leaving the clinic yesterday, she had decided to take the rest of the day off. Too excited to work, she had gone home and called Lisa and invited her to lunch.

  She’d barely gotten the words out after Lisa arrived when she burst into tears of happiness. Then she told Lisa of her fears about telling Storm. What if he no longer loved her? What if her rejection had killed his feelings for her?

  Lisa, in her usual optimistic way, had assured her that although Storm might be a little angry with her right now, she doubted his love could have died so quickly.

  Jayla had wanted to call and ask him to come over, but then she’d remembered he was on duty at the fire station. So, instead of talking to him yesterday, she had walked around the house wondering what she would say when she saw him tonight.

  “Everything looks beautiful, doesn’t it?”

  Jayla turned when she recognized the voice of Tara Westmoreland. Tara was accompanied by three other women whom Jayla didn’t immediately recognize. At first, Jayla thought each of the women was beautiful in a unique way. Like Tara, they were smiling and each of their smiles reflected a sincere friendliness. Jayla returned their smiles as Tara made the introductions.

  The women were Shelly Westmoreland, who was married to Sheriff Dare Westmoreland; Madison Westmoreland, who was married to Stone Westmoreland; and Storm’s sister, Delaney Westmoreland Yasir. Jayla swallowed deeply. All three women, like Tara, were part of the Westmoreland clan. Somehow, Jayla found her voice to respond to Tara’s earlier comment. “Yes, everything is beautiful and your committee should be proud of what they’ve accomplished.”

  Tara chuckled. “Yes, but your company also played a huge role. The food is wonderful. Everyone is talking about the catering service that is being used. It’s quite evident that Sala Industries went out of their way tonight.”

  “Thanks.”

  “And I have to say the dress you’re wearing looks simply gorgeous on you,” the woman who had been introduced as Madison Westmoreland said.

  “
Thank you,” Jayla said smiling, beginning to feel more relaxed.

  She and the women launched into a discussion of styles in clothing and movies they’d recently seen when they heard a sudden buzzing from a group of single women standing not far away. A quick glance at the entrance to the ballroom revealed why. Storm and his cousin Ian had walked in and were crossing the ballroom floor to join the other Westmoreland men. Both men looked dashing and handsome dressed in black tuxedos.

  Part of Jayla wished Storm would look her way; then, seconds later, she decided maybe it would be best if he didn’t when she overheard the conversation between two women standing not far away.

  “Hey, I’m going to make it my business to go after ‘The Perfect Storm’ tonight,” the more statuesque of the two said.

  The other woman giggled and said, “Storm Westmoreland has a reputation of not doing the same woman twice.”

  “Yeah, but I heard that just once is all it takes to blow your mind and I definitely intend to have that one time,” the statuesque one countered.

  A flash of jealousy raced through Jayla, and she started to turn to the woman and tell her that when it came to Storm, hands off. But she couldn’t do that. She didn’t have the right.

  She glanced up when she felt someone gently touch her arm. “I wouldn’t worry about what the ‘hottie duo’ are saying if I were you,” Shelly Westmoreland whispered, smiling. “I heard from a very reliable source that Storm has found a special lady and only has eyes for her.”

  Jayla blinked in surprise at Shelly’s words and glanced at the other women standing beside her. They all nodded; evidently, they’d heard the same thing. Was it possible that they knew she and Storm had been seeing each other? And who was this reliable source Shelly Westmoreland was talking about? Had Storm mentioned her to members of his family?

  Her heart stopped and she wasn’t sure what to say to the four women who were staring at her with such genuine and sincere smiles on their faces. Tears pressed at the corner of her eyes.

  “I may have lost him,” she whispered, as her mind was suddenly filled with doubt and regret.

  Delaney Yasir chuckled and placed an arm around Jay la’s shoulder. “I doubt that. My brother hasn’t taken his eyes off of you since he arrived.”

  Hope ran through Jayla. “Really?” She was standing with her back to Storm so she couldn’t see him.

  Madison Westmoreland grinned. “Yes, really.”

  “Hey, Storm, you want something to drink?” Jared Westmoreland asked his cousin as he grabbed a glass a wine off the tray of a passing waiter.

  “Storm doesn’t want anything to drink,” Ian said, grinning. “The only thing Storm wants is that woman who’s standing over there talking to the Westmoreland women.”

  Stone Westmoreland lifted a brow and glanced across the room. The woman’s back was to them, so he couldn’t get a look at her. “You’ve met her?” he asked in surprise.

  Ian chuckled. “Yes, Storm introduced us in New Orleans.”

  That comment got everyone’s attention. Chase stared at Storm. “You took her to New Orleans with you?”

  Before Storm could respond, not that he would have anyway, Ian spoke up. “Of course he didn’t take her to New Orleans with him,” he said, as if the thought of Storm taking any woman out of town with him were ludicrous. “They just happened to be in the same place at the same time. Her father was Storm’s old boss, Adam Cole.”

  Thorn Westmoreland took a slow sip of his drink and said, “Her parentage is old news, Ian, but her being in New Orleans with Storm is definitely something that we didn’t know about.”

  “And something all of you are going to forget you heard,” Storm said. The tone of his voice matched the look on his face. Highly irritated. Totally annoyed. Deadly serious. “And I thought I told you guys that I don’t like you discussing my business like I’m not here.”

  Chase gave his twin a dismissive shrug and said, “Yeah, whatever.” He then turned his attention back to Ian. “So what else can you tell us about Storm’s lady?”

  Ian met Storm’s gaze and got the message loud and clear, although it was obvious his brothers hadn’t…or they chose no to. Ian grinned and decided to play dumb. “I forget.”

  Storm smiled. He knew he could count on Ian to keep his secrets, just as Ian knew he could count on him to keep his. Things had always been that way between them. He then turned his attention back to Jayla and wished the crowd would thin out so his view wasn’t as blocked, or that she would at least turn around so he could see her. He wanted to look into her eyes to let her know that no matter how much she might want him out of her life, he was there to stay.

  Moments later, as if he had willed it to be so, the crowd thinned out and she turned and met his gaze. His heart al most stopped when he saw how radiant she looked. And what made her even more beautiful was the fact that she was wearing that red dress.

  His dress.

  It was the same one he had picked out for her in New Orleans. He wondered, hoped and prayed that there was a hidden meaning behind her wearing that dress. Could he dare hope she might realize that he was her Mr. Right? Knowing there was only one way to find out, he walked away from the group.

  His destination was the woman he loved.

  Jayla’s breath caught in her throat when she saw Storm heading toward her. She couldn’t tell from his expression whether he was glad to see her or not, but one thing was certain—he wasn’t going to avoid her. But maybe she was jumping to conclusions. Although he was headed to where she was standing, he might be coming over to say hello to his sister and sisters-in-law since they were standing next to her.

  “Here comes Storm Westmoreland,” she overheard one of the women from the “hottie duo” say. “And I think he’s seen my interest and is coming over to talk to me.”

  “Fat chance of that happening,” Tara whispered. Jayla couldn’t help but smile and hoped Tara was right. As Storm got closer, her hope went up a notch when she saw he was still holding her gaze. She sighed deeply when he stopped in front of her.

  “Hi, Jayla.”

  She smiled up at him and tried to keep her heart from pounding erratically in her chest. “Hi, Storm.”

  It was only then that he released her gaze and glanced at his sister and sisters-in-law. “Good evening, ladies, and, as usual, all of you look beautiful and bestow much pride upon the Westmoreland name.”

  He glanced back at Jayla. “And you look beautiful, as well, Jayla.”

  “Thanks.” And before she lost her nerve, she asked, “Is there a chance I might speak with you privately for a moment?” The man standing before her looked so irresistibly handsome, so utterly gorgeous that it almost took her breath away.

  Her pulse quickened when he stared into her eyes with an intensity that made her shiver. He nodded, then said, “Sure.” He shifted his gaze from her to the others and said, “Please excuse us for a minute.” After taking her hand in his, Storm led her through the doors and outside into the lobby.

  “There’re a lot of people here tonight,” Storm said, as they continued walking down the elegant and immaculate hallway.

  “Yes, there are,” Jayla replied. The benefit was being held in the ballroom of the Atlanta Civic Center and the facility was the perfect place to host such an event. She wondered where Storm was taking her. It was obvious that wherever it was, he wanted them to have privacy.

  They stopped walking when they came to a beautiful atrium. All the greenery, flowering plants and the huge waterfall added warmth and even more grace and style to their surroundings. Jayla suddenly felt nervous, not sure of herself, but then she knew she had to say her piece. No matter what, he deserved to know about their baby, but she couldn’t tell him that now. If he wanted her back, it had to be because he still loved her and not because he would feel obligated because she was carrying his child.

  She cleared her throat. “Storm.”

  “Jayla.”

  She smiled when they had spoken at the same ti
me. She glanced at him and his features were expressionless and she had no idea what he was thinking.

  “Ladies first,” he said, meeting her gaze.

  Jayla swallowed. She knew that a lot was at stake here, but she remembered the words her father would often say—nothing ventured, nothing gained. She cleared her throat. “I kept my appointment at the clinic this morning.”

  He contemplated her silently for a moment, and then asked, “Did you?”

  She expelled a soft breath, still unable to read him. “Yes, but I’ve decided not to go through with the procedure.” She thought she saw relief flash through his gaze but wasn’t sure.

  He held her gaze steadily, studied her for a moment. “Why did you change your mind?” he asked.

  Jayla swallowed again as she lifted her chin. “Because I realized that you were right and that I did have blinders on. So I took them off and when I did, I could see things a lot clearer.”

  Tension hummed between them; she felt it. “And what do you see, Jayla?” he asked softly.

  She breathed deeply and decided to tell him just what she saw. “I see a tall man who is so strikingly handsome I can barely think straight, who has eyes so dark they remind me of chocolate chips and a voice so sexy it sends shivers down my spine. But most importantly, since taking my blinders off, I can see my Mr. Right standing right in front of me. Now. At this very minute. And I pray that I haven’t ruined things, and there’s a possibility that he still wants me, because, since taking off my blinders, I’ve also discovered just how much I love him and just how much I want him in my life.”

  Jayla held her breath, not knowing what he would say, not knowing if he would accept her words. Then, she saw a slow smile come into his face and spread from corner to corner on his lips. And those lips leaned down and came mere inches from hers and whispered, “I’m glad you quickly came to that conclusion, Jayla Cole, because I love you and there was no way in hell I intended to let you go.”