Brenda Jackson The Westmoreland Series Books 16-20

by Brenda Jackson

  “That’s good to hear. You had a busy day yesterday, right?”

  She pulled herself up in bed. “Yes, but Kathleen and I were able to make sure everything would be delivered as planned.”

  “Don’t forget, you promised to take a break and let me fly you to India when I get back.”

  “Yes, and I’m looking forward to it, although I hope there isn’t a lot of turbulence on that flight.”

  “You never know, but you’ll be with me and I’ll take care of you.”

  Her smile widened. “You always do.”

  A few moments later they ended the call, and she fluffed her pillow and stretched out in the bed. It was hard to believe that she had been in Australia four weeks already. Four glorious weeks. She missed her family and friends back home, but Callum and his family were wonderful and treated her like she was one of them.

  She planned to go shopping with his mother, sister and sisters-in-law again tomorrow, and then there would be a sleepover at Le’Claire’s home. She genuinely liked the Austell women and had had some rather amusing moments when they’d shared just how they handled their men. It had been hilarious when Le’Claire even gave pointers to Le’Shaunda, who claimed her husband could be stubborn at times.

  But nothing, Gemma thought, could top all the times she’d spent with Callum. They could discuss anything. When she’d received the call that Niecee had been arrested, she had let him handle it so that her emotions wouldn’t stop her from making sure the woman was punished for what she had done. And then there were the flowers he continued to send her every week, and the “I’m thinking of you” notes that he would leave around the house for her to find. She stared up at the ceiling, thinking that Callum was definitely not like other men. The woman he married would be very lucky.

  At that moment a sharp pain settled around her heart at the thought of any other woman with Callum, sharing anything close to what they had shared this past month. To know that another woman, his soul mate, would be living with him in the house she was decorating almost made her ill.

  She eased to the edge of the bed, knowing why she felt that way. She had fallen in love with him. “Oh, no!”

  She dropped back on the bed and covered her face with her hands. How did she let that happen? Although Callum wouldn’t intentionally break her heart, he would break it just the same. How could she have fallen in love with him? She knew the answer without much thought. Callum was an easy man to love. But it wasn’t meant for her to be the one to love him. He had told her about his soul mate.

  She got out of bed and headed for the bathroom, knowing what she had to do. There was no way she would not finish the job she came here to do, but she needed to return home for at least a week or two to get her head screwed back on straight. Kathleen could handle things until she returned. And when she got back, she’d be capable of handling a relationship with Callum the way it should be handled. She would still love him, but at least she would have thought things through and come to the realization she couldn’t ever be the number one woman in his life. She’d have to be satisfied with that.

  A few hours later she had showered, dressed and packed a few of her things. She had called Kathleen and given her instructions as to what needed to be done in her absence, and assured the older woman that she would be back in a week or so.

  Gemma decided not to call Callum to tell him she was leaving. He would wonder why she was taking off all of a sudden. She would think of an excuse to give him when she got home to Denver. She wiped the tears from her eyes. She had let the one thing happen to her that she’d always sworn would never happen.

  She had fallen in love with a man who didn’t love her.

  * * *

  Callum stood on the porch of the cabin and glanced all around. Nothing, he thought, was more beautiful than the Australian outback. He could recall the first time he’d come to this cabin as a child with his brothers, father and grandfather.

  His thoughts drifted to Gemma. He knew for certain that she was his soul mate. The last month had been idyllic. Waking up with her in his arms every morning, making love with her each night, was as perfect as perfect could get. And he was waiting patiently for her to realize that she loved him, too.

  It would be then that they would talk about it and he would tell her that he loved her as well, that he’d known for a while that she was the one, but had wanted her to come to that realization on her own.

  Callum took a sip of his coffee. He had a feeling she was beginning to realize it. More than once over the past week he’d caught her staring at him with an odd look on her face, as if she was trying to figure out something. And at night when she gave herself to him, it was as if he would forever be the only man in her life. Just as, when he made love to her, he wanted her to believe that she would forever be the only woman in his.

  “Callum. You got a call. It’s Mom.”

  Morris’s voice intruded on his thoughts and he reentered the cabin and picked up the phone. “Yes, Mom?”

  “Callum, it’s Gemma.”

  His heart nearly stopped beating. He knew the ladies had a shopping trip planned for tomorrow. “What’s wrong with Gemma? What happened?”

  “I’m not sure. She called and asked me to take her to the airport.”

  “Airport?”

  “Yes. She said she had to return home for a while, and I could tell she’d been crying.”

  He rubbed his forehead. That didn’t make any sense. He’d just spoken to her that morning and she was fine. She had two pregnant sisters-in-law and he hoped nothing had happened. “Did she say why she was leaving, Mom? Did she mention anything about a family crisis?”

  “No, in fact I asked and she said it had nothing to do with her family.”

  Callum pulled in a deep breath, not understanding any of this.

  “Have you told her yet that you’re in love with her, Callum?”

  “No. I didn’t want to rush her and was giving us time to develop a relationship before doing that. I wanted her to see from my actions that I loved her and get her to admit to herself that she loved me, too.”

  “Now I understand completely,” Le’Claire said softly.

  “You do?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then how about explaining things to me because I’m confused.”

  He heard his mother’s soft chuckle. “You’re a man, so you would be. I think the reason Gemma left is because she realizes that she loves you. She’s running away.”

  Callum was even more confused. “Why would she do something like that?”

  “Because if she loves you and you don’t love her back then—”

  “But I do love her back.”

  “But she doesn’t know that. And if you explained about waiting for a soul mate the way you explained it to me, she’s probably thinking it’s not her.”

  The moment his mother’s words hit home, Callum threw his head back in frustration and groaned. “I think you’re right, Mom.”

  “I think I’m right, too. So what are you going to do?”

  A smile cascaded across Callum’s lips. “I'm going after my woman.”

  Fourteen

  Ramsey Westmoreland had been in the south pasture most of the day, but when he got home he’d heard from Chloe that Gemma was back. She’d called for Megan to pick her up at the airport. And according to what Megan had shared with Chloe, Gemma looked like she’d cried during the entire eighteen-hour flight.

  He was about to place a call to Callum to find out what the hell had happened when he received a call from Colin saying Callum was on his way to Denver. The last thing Ramsey needed in his life was drama. He’d had more than enough during his affair with Chloe.

  But here he was getting out of his truck to go knock on the door to make sure Gemma was all right. Callum was on his way and Ramsey would leave it to his best friend to handle Gemma from here on out because his sister could definitely be Miss Drama Queen. And seeing that she was here at Callum’s cabin and not at her own
place spoke volumes, whether she knew it or not. However, for now he would play the dumb-ass, just to satisfy his curiosity. And Chloe’s.

  He knocked on the door and it was yanked open. For a moment he was taken aback. Gemma looked like a mess, but he had enough sense not to tell her that. Instead, he took off his hat, passed by her and said in a calm tone. “Back from Australia early, aren’t you?”

  “Just here for a week or two. I’m going back,” she said in a strained voice, which he pretended not to hear.

  “Where’s Callum? I’m surprised he let you come by yourself, knowing how afraid you are of flying. Was there a lot of turbulence?”

  “I didn’t notice.”

  Probably because you were too busy crying your eyes out. He hadn’t seen her look like this since their parents’ funeral. Ramsey leaned against a table in the living room and glanced around. He then looked back at her. “Any reason you’re here and not at your own place, Gemma?”

  He knew it was the wrong question to ask when suddenly her mouth quivered and she started to sob. “I love him, but he doesn’t love me. I’m not his soul mate. But that’s okay. I can deal with it. I just didn’t want to ever cry over a man the way those girls used to do when Zane and Derringer broke up with them. I swore that would never happen to me. I swore I would never be one of them and fall for a guy who didn’t love me back.”

  Ramsey could only stare at her. She actually thought Callum didn’t love her? He opened his mouth to tell her just how wrong she was, then suddenly closed it. It was not his place to tell her anything. He would gladly let Callum deal with this.

  “Sorry, Ram, but I need to be alone for a minute.” He then watched as she quickly walked into the bedroom and closed the door behind her.

  Moments later Ramsey was outside, about to open the door to his truck to leave when a vehicle pulled up. He sighed in relief when he saw Callum quickly getting out of the car.

  “Ramsey, I went to Gemma’s place straight from the airport and she wasn’t there. Where the hell is she?”

  Ramsey leaned against his truck. Callum looked like he hadn’t slept for a while. “She’s inside and I’m out of here. I’ll let you deal with it.”

  * * *

  Callum paused before entering his cabin. Ramsey had jumped into his truck and left in a hurry. Had Gemma trashed his place or something? Drawing in a deep breath, he removed his hat before slowly opening the door.

  He strolled into the living room and glanced around. Everything was in order, but Gemma was nowhere in sight. Then he heard a sound coming from the bedroom. He perked up his ears. It was Gemma and she was crying. The sound tore at his heart.

  Placing his hat on the rack, he quickly crossed the room and opened his bedroom door. And there she was, lying in his bed with her head buried in his pillows.

  He quietly closed the door behind him and leaned against it. Although he loved her and she loved him, he was still responsible for breaking her heart. But, if nothing else, he’d learned over the past four weeks that the only way to handle Gemma was to let her think she was in control, even when she really wasn’t. And even if you had to piss her off a little in the process.

  “Gemma?”

  She jerked up so fast he thought she was going to tumble out of the bed. “Callum! What are you doing here?” She stood quickly, but not before giving one last swipe to her eyes.

  “I could ask you the same thing, since this is my place,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

  She threw her hair over her shoulder. “I knew you weren’t here,” she said as if that explained everything. It didn’t.

  “So you took off from Australia, left a job unfinished, got on a plane although you hate flying to come here. For what reason, Gemma?”

  She lifted her chin and glared at him. “I don’t have to answer that, since it’s none of your business.”

  Callum couldn’t help but smile at that. He moved away from the door to stand in front of her. “Wrong. It is my business. Both business and personal. It’s business because I hired you to do a job and you’re not there doing it. And it’s personal because it’s you and anything involving you is personal to me.”

  She lifted her chin a little higher. “I don’t know why.”

  “Well, then, Gemma Westmoreland, let me explain it to you,” he said, leaning in close to her face. “It’s personal because you mean everything to me.”

  “I can’t and I don’t,” she snapped. “Go tell that to the woman you’re going to marry. The woman who is your soul mate.”

  “I am telling that to her. You are her.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “No, I’m not.”

  “Yes, you are. Why do you think I hung around here for three years working my tail off? Not because I needed the job, but because the woman I love, the woman who’s had my heart since the first day I saw her, was here. The woman I knew the moment I saw her that she was destined to be mine. Do you know how many nights I went to this bed thinking of you, dreaming of you, patiently waiting for the day when I could make you belong to me in every possible way?”

  He didn’t give her a chance to answer him. Figured she probably couldn’t anyway with the shocked look on her face, so he continued. “I took you to Australia for two reasons. First, I knew you could do the job, and secondly, I wanted you on my turf so I could court you properly. I wanted to show you that I was a guy worth your love and trust. I wanted you to believe in me, believe that I would never break your heart because, no matter what you thought, I was always going to be there for you. To give you every single thing you wanted. I love you.”

  There, he had his say and he knew it was time to brace himself when she had hers. She shook her head as if to mentally clear her mind and then she glanced back up at him. And glared.

  “Are you saying that I’m the reason you hung around here and worked for Ramsey and that you took me to Australia to decorate your house and to win me over?”

  She had explained it differently, but it all came down to the same thing. “Yes, that about sums it all up, but don’t forget the part about loving you.”

  She threw her hands up in the air and then began angrily pacing the room while saying, “You put me through all this for nothing! You had me thinking I was decorating that house for another woman. You had me thinking that we were just having an affair that would lead nowhere.”

  She stopped pacing and her frown deepened. “Why didn’t you tell me the truth?”

  He crossed the room to stand in front of her. “Had I told you the truth, sweetheart, you would not have been ready to hear it, nor would you have believed it. You would have given me more grief than either of us needed,” he said softly.

  A smile then crossed his lips. “I had threatened to kidnap you, but Ramsey thought that was going a little too far.”

  Her eyes widened. “Ramsey knew?”

  “Of course. Your brother is a smart man. There’s no way I could have hung around here for three years sniffing around his sister and he not know about it.”

  “Sniffing around me? I want you to know that I—”

  He thought she’d talked enough and decided to shut her up by pulling her into his arms and taking her mouth. The moment his tongue slid between her lips he figured she would either bite it or accept it. She accepted it and it began tangling with hers.

  Callum deepened the kiss and tightened his hold on Gemma and she responded by wrapping her arms around his neck, standing on tiptoes and participating in their kiss the way he’d shown her how to do. He knew they still had a lot to talk about, and he would have to go over it again to satisfy her, but he didn’t care. He would always give her what she wanted.

  Callum forced his mouth from hers, but not before taking a quick lick around her lips. He then rested his forehead against hers and pulled in a deep breath. “I love you, Gemma,” he whispered against her temple. “I loved you from the moment I first saw you. I knew you were the one, my true soul mate.”

  Gemma dropped her head to C
allum’s chest and wrapped her arms around his waist, breathing in his scent and glowing in his love. She was still reeling from his profession of love for her. Her heart was bursting with happiness.

  “Gemma, will you marry me?”

  She snatched her head up to look into his eyes. And there she saw in their green depths what she hadn’t seen before. Now she did.

  “Yes, I’ll marry you, but…”

  Callum chuckled. “There’s a but?”

  “Yes. I want to be told every day that you love me.”

  He rolled his eyes. “You’ve hung around my mom, sister and sisters-in-law too much.”

  “Whatever.”

  “I don’t have a problem doing that. No problem at all.” He sat down on the bed and pulled her down into his lap. “You never answered my question. What are you doing here and not at your place?”

  She lowered her head, began toying with the buttons on his shirt and then glanced up and met his gaze. “I know it sounds crazy, but I came home to get over you, but once I got here I had to come here to feel close to you. I was going to sleep in this bed tonight because I knew this is where you slept.”

  Callum tightened his arms around her. “I got news for you, Gemma. You’re still sleeping in this bed tonight. With me.”

  He eased back on the bed and took her with him, covering her mouth with his, kissing her in a way that let her know how much love he had for her. He adjusted their bodies so he could remove every stitch of her clothing and then proceeded to undress himself.

  He returned to the bed and pulled her into his arms, but not before taking a small box from the pocket of his jacket. He placed his knee on the bed and pulled her into his arms to slide a ring on her finger. “For the woman who took my breath away the moment I saw her. To the woman I love.”

  Tears clouded Gemma’s eyes when she gazed down at the beautiful ring Callum had placed on her finger. Her breath nearly stopped. She remembered the ring. She had seen it that day when she’d gone shopping with the Austell women and they had stopped by that jewelry store. Gemma had mentioned to Le’Claire how much she’d liked this particular one.