Lena leaned her hips against her desk. “Do you?”
“Yes, my cousin Jamie. You probably remember her from the ball that night.”
Now it was Lena who smiled. “Oh yes. Isn’t that the same cousin you tried pushing off on Chance?”
Cassandra frowned. “Chance disappointed me. I always thought he appreciated the finer things in life.”
“He does. That’s why he married Kylie. In fact I think he’s a man who recognizes top quality when he sees it.”
Cassandra’s frown deepened. “Well, I wish them the best. But getting back to Morgan.”
“And your cousin?”
“Yes. Did you know she was his date at the governor’s inaugural ball last year?”
Lena smiled. She had heard it a different way from Kylie. It seemed the young woman was in attendance and had asked Morgan to take her home when she began not feeling well. “And?”
“And I thought he was rather taken with her.”
“Really?”
Cassandra smiled. “Yes. Money marries money. What can I say?”
Nothing, Lena thought. The woman had basically said it all. Now it was her time to speak, and what she had to say would definitely burst the woman’s bubble. Maybe it was the fact that she was sick and tired of the Cassandras and Jamies of the world who thought good things should happen only to them because they were born with silver spoons in their mouths, or perhaps it was because Cassandra, as usual, had rubbed her the wrong way.
Whatever the reason, Lena had had enough. “I hate to disappoint you and your cousin, but when Morgan returns to town we’ll be announcing our engagement.”
Cassandra blinked and then burst out laughing. “If you think Morgan is going to marry you, then you are a fool. Everyone knows he wants the perfect woman, and trust me you’re far from perfect. Your lack of pedigree, your appearance, your profession. You are definitely not what Morgan Steele needs in a wife, so if he asked you to marry him it had to be during a weak moment when he wasn’t thinking rationally. Men marry women they will be proud to be seen with. Although I really don’t care for Kylie or that woman Bas married, I have to admit they look decent enough. I can’t say the same for you.”
Anger tore through Lena and she came close to slapping that smile off Cassandra Tisdale’s face, but she wouldn’t let the woman know how much her words bothered her. Instead she said, “Thanks for dropping by, Cassandra, and unless you have a house you want me to sell or you’re looking to buy one, I really have work to do, so please leave.”
“Less than a month.”
Lena raised a brow. “Excuse me?”
Cassandra tilted her head back and gave Lena a haughty look. “Jamie has moved here, and like I said, she and Morgan have dated before and if I recall they got rather cozy. I bet that, engaged or not, in less than a month she’ll have Morgan and you won’t.”
And then she turned and breezed out of the office with the same air of phoniness that she’d breezed in with.
“What a witch,” Jocelyn Steele said, putting down her cup of tea. “I can’t believe Bas could have been engaged to marry such a creature.”
Jocelyn had joined Kylie and Lena for lunch and Lena told them about Cassandra Tisdale’s visit.
“Honestly,” Kylie said, sipping her tea. “I think the brothers knew Bas would come to his senses before the wedding. Chance even told me such. And he was right. When we got back from our honeymoon we found out that Bas had broken the engagement.”
“Well, I’m glad I’m the woman he chose,” Jocelyn said, smiling. She then turned her attention to Lena and smiled. “So, are you and Morgan really getting married?”
Lena wanted to hold her head down in frustration. She hadn’t told Morgan of her decision, but she hadn’t wasted any time throwing it in Cassandra’s face in anger. “I never gave Morgan an answer. I’m supposed to tell him what I’ve decided when he returns.”
“Well, you might as well have told the entire town,” Kylie said, grinning. “I bet it will be spread all over Charlotte by morning. And I hope you don’t believe that garbage Cassandra said about her cousin being able to turn Morgan’s head in less than a month.”
Lena sighed. She had seen Cassandra’s cousin and had to admit the woman was a beauty. How would Morgan react if the woman did turn her attention his way?
“Don’t think it, Lena.”
Lena lifted her head and met Kylie’s gaze. “Don’t think what?”
“That anything Cassandra said is true. Morgan is not the type of man who would be interested in a woman like Jamie Hollis. I told you what really happened that night at the governor’s ball. She claimed a headache and asked Morgan to take her home.”
“They’ve dated before,” Jocelyn said.
“But still,” Lena said softly, “Jamie Hollis is pretty, she’s a socialite, her father is a senator, she comes from money…”
“Evidently none of those things matter to Morgan, Lena. He’s made his choice,” Kylie interjected. “And as far as I’m concerned you’ll be bringing far more to the table, something that Morgan admires. Genuineness. You’re not superficial. What people see is what they get. I personally think that’s the best quality of all.”
Later that night before getting into bed Lena decided she needed to call Morgan. She preferred that he hear about her conversation with Cassandra from her than from someone else. She braced herself when she began dialing his cell phone.
“Hello.”
The greeting was whispered huskily and sent sensuous chills through her body. “Morgan, this is Lena.”
“I know.”
She raised a brow. “You do? How?”
“Caller ID.”
“Oh.” She rolled her eyes, calling herself a ninny for not figuring that out.
“How are you doing, Lena?”
She cleared her throat. “I’m fine. What about you?”
“I’m doing okay. How’s your mom?”
“She’s doing fine. Thanks for asking.” Then without missing a beat she said, “Morgan, there’s something I need to tell you.”
“Yes?”
“About your proposal?”
“What about it?”
“Something happened today that I think you should know about.”
“All right, what happened?”
Lena decided to lie back on the bed. “Cassandra Tisdale dropped by my office today and…”
“And what?”
Lena sighed. “She said some things that really rubbed me the wrong way, and before I could catch myself I told her that you and I would be announcing our engagement when you returned to town.”
She heard Morgan’s chuckle. “I’m sure that shut her up.”
Lena shook her head. “Not quite.” But Lena had no intention of telling him what else Cassandra had said, especially the part about her cousin Jamie. Instead she added, “I have a feeling it did just the opposite. I bet she’s spreading it all around town now and I thought you should know.”
“Okay, thanks for telling me.”
“You don’t sound bothered by it.”
“By what?”
Lena stared up at the ceiling. “By what I told her.”
“I’m not. I asked you to marry me. You just hadn’t given me your answer. Does this mean you’ll be accepting the terms of my proposal, Lena?”
She ran a hand over her face. “What do you want, Morgan?”
“You know what I want. I want you. I want you to have my baby. I want us to get married and be best friends. I want your mother to be an integrated part of our lives. I guess you can say I want it all.”
Everything but love, she thought, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. In all their conversations he never had mentioned love. She forced that thought from her mind. There were times in life when you couldn’t get everything you wanted.
“Well, I’ll let you go now. I just wanted you to know,” she said softly.
“Okay, we’ll talk more about it when I return to Ch
arlotte.”
“All right. Good night, Morgan.”
“Good night, Lena.”
Morgan didn’t release the phone until he heard the click of Lena’s disconnecting the line. Although he was overjoyed that she had decided to accept his proposal, he was curious as to what had driven her to make that decision. He couldn’t help wondering exactly what Cassandra had said to her.
Morgan was astute enough to know that there was more to the story than Lena had told him. He knew of only two people who could possibly know. Kylie was one, but when it came to Lena she had a tendency to be tight-lipped. The other person was Donovan. Donovan usually hung around in the right circles, and if there was something amiss he would be the one to know it.
He quickly keyed in Donovan’s number, and his brother picked up on the first ring. “Yes?”
“Okay, Donovan, what’s going on?”
He heard his brother’s chuckle before he said, “You tell me. Rumor has it that you’re about to become an engaged man.”
Morgan smiled. So word was out already. “Yes, that’s right.”
“Congratulations. It seemed you got the woman you wanted. I’m not going to ask how you managed and maybe it’s best if I don’t know. But I better tell you the masses are taking bets.”
Morgan frowned. “Bets?”
Donovan chuckled again. “Yes. It seems a certain part of Charlotte’s elite society group can’t imagine you and Lena as a couple. In fact they’re taking bets that before it’s over you’ll come to your senses and marry a woman they feel is more suitable to your breeding.”
Morgan’s frown deepened. “And who’s that supposed to be?”
“Jamie Hollis. It’s my understanding Cassandra is certain her cousin can replace Lena. I understand she’s even bold enough to tell Lena that.”
“Oh, I see.” Now he really did. So that’s what had pushed Lena into action. He shook his head. He would take Lena over Jamie any day. And he intended to do that very thing.
“It appears that all those times you’ve stated you were looking for the perfect woman, everyone was forming their own opinions as to what you wanted.”
Morgan sighed. “Evidently. Seems like I have a lot to straighten out when I return to Charlotte tomorrow.”
“I would have to agree. You know Cassandra and her better-than-thou group.”
Yes, he did know Cassandra and her group. He would have thought her broken engagement with Bas would keep her quiet for a while. Evidently now that she had returned to town she was trying to take the spotlight off her and place it on someone else.
“And before you come back to town to roll any heads, I need to remind you of something,” Donovan said, breaking into his thoughts.
“What?”
“If you’re still thinking about running for public office I wouldn’t have my name linked to any negative publicity by stirring up trouble. You know the woman you intend to marry. I wouldn’t worry about what is being said.”
Morgan frowned. “I will worry about it if it involves Lena,” he said roughly. “I won’t have people assuming she’s competing against Jamie for my attention, because she’s not.”
“Then show it in other ways. You know what they say about action speaking louder than words. Besides, once it’s officially announced that you’re engaged to Lena, if Jamie has any class she will bow out of the picture and put an end to this foolishness that Cassandra has started.”
Moments later Morgan hung up the phone. All he had to do was show back up in Charlotte and put this foolishness to rest by announcing his engagement. He knew what woman he wanted and it wasn’t Jamie Hollis.
Chapter 11
It occurred to Lena during lunchtime the following day that she hadn’t made a pit stop by Morgan’s house to clean up those chocolate smudges.
After talking to him on the phone last night and telling him what to expect when he returned she had immediately felt a sense of relief. But upon waking this morning a lot of doubt now filled her mind. Had she really made the right decision? Had she allowed Cassandra’s words to push her into a situation she shouldn’t really be in?
Morgan made it seem like a “marriage of purpose” was nothing new, and maybe it wasn’t to celebrities, high profilers and those Hollywood types. But she was someone who dealt with reality and she didn’t know of any woman in her inner circle who would agree to marry a man and have his baby as part of a business deal. The media would have a field day with that bit of news if they ever got wind of it. And what would his brothers think? His parents? His own friends?
Not knowing what to think herself, Lena brought her car to a stop after pulling into Morgan’s driveway. Unsnapping her seat belt she got out and proceeded to check his mailbox before getting the door key from the lockbox. The least she could do was bring in any mail since it seemed the box was overflowing.
Moments later she was walking inside his foyer and closing the door behind her. She smiled as she glanced around, distinctively remembering the first time he’d brought her here for that tour. And each time she had returned to his home she couldn’t help but think how massive it was for one person. But then, the one he was thinking of buying was just as huge. And now that she’d decided to accept the terms of his proposal, that meant she and her mother would be sharing with him whatever house he purchased.
There were a number of framed portraits that hung on the walls, detailing the vast extent of his valuable art collection. She thought, and not for the first time, that his house smelled like him, a robust scent of man.
Walking into the living room she placed Morgan’s mail on the table in a spot where he would be able to see it when he returned on Sunday. After taking off her jacket and slipping out of her shoes, she noticed a chocolate smudge on the door handle of the French door leading out to the pool and so she walked into the kitchen to get a wet cloth. She hoped and prayed there weren’t too many others.
Standing at the kitchen sink she bit back a smile. One of Ms. Emily’s daughters had called a couple of nights ago saying she planned to take their mother out to dinner and a movie for her birthday and had invited Odessa along. At first Lena had had mixed emotions about her mother going, but after talking to Cora Jessup and seeing how excited Odessa had gotten with the invitation, she had agreed. Hopefully, this would be the start of some sort of social life for her mother.
“You certainly have a way of brightening up my kitchen.”
Lena spun around, holding a hand to her chest, as her gaze connected to Morgan’s. And speaking of chest…his was broad, hairy, well defined and at the moment, naked. In fact it was obvious he had just stepped out of the shower. The only thing covering the bottom half of his body was a velour towel and it wasn’t all that thick. From the look and shape of things, it was obvious he worked out regularly, which was something she herself had begun doing but not with as much zeal and dedication as some people. But she was determined to get there.
She cleared her throat after her racing heart slowed down a bit. “When did you get back?” she asked, after she was finally able to speak. The fact that he was standing in the middle of the room looking sexy as hell was making her skin feel heated.
He cracked a gorgeous smile. “About an hour ago.”
“B-but I talked to you last night. Why didn’t you tell me you were coming back today?”
Striding toward her with a smile so hot it could melt butter, he said, “I wanted to surprise you.”
Well, he had certainly succeeded in doing that. She tried averting her gaze from that smile only to have it fall on his chest, and she quickly decided that wasn’t good. And if she moved it lower it would hit another spot. Although that area was covered, staring at it wasn’t a smart idea, either. Definitely not a decent thing to do, but who could think of decency in the presence of a half-naked man?
When he came to a stop directly in front of her, pinning her between his body and the counter, she forced a smile to her lips and cleared her throat yet again before saying, �
��So, how was your trip?”
His smile became even sexier when he said, “Mmm, let’s talk about my trip later. Right now I’d like the perfect homecoming.”
And before she could blink, he leaned forward and captured her lips with his.
The moment Morgan’s tongue took control of hers Lena’s world turned topsy-turvy and blazing hot all at the same time. This was what spontaneous combustion was all about, she quickly decided. He hadn’t given her time to react, to resist, or to think. When he had coaxed her lips apart and seized her tongue, he had been the one to take control. He was a master at what he was doing, and the sensations his skilled lips, tongue and mouth were causing shot straight to areas of her body that hadn’t been touched in a long time or ever. He made the last kiss they’d shared in her office seem tame compared to this. Their tongues were mingling, tangling, mating in a private, sensual and heat-blistering dance.
She wanted to wrench her mind back from all the erratic emotions he was making her feel, all the heated lust invading her body. Instead she was being overtaken by some primal elemental force that sent vibrations of deep need all through her.
The air they were breathing seemed to change and she felt her entire body attune to that change. She heard herself moan. She felt herself surrender, and she felt herself being pulled more and more under the mastery of a Morgan Steele kiss.
Then as if that wasn’t enough, his hands moved to her waist, then upward to slip beneath her blouse, unclip her bra and trace hot fingertips to caress her breasts—kneading their softness and then playing, torturing and tantalizing their taut tips. She heard herself whimper when she became entrenched in desire so strong, potent and deliberate she couldn’t breathe.
It was then that he broke off the kiss. While trying to force air through their lungs their gazes held, locked, with a need that almost bordered on obsession, and she knew what he wanted. She knew what she wanted as well. Here and now.
She didn’t care that they were standing in his kitchen during midday. All that mattered, the only thing that was important, was to finish what they started. Any regrets would come later but not now. Something had taken over, held them in a sensual grip. It was something they couldn’t explain, nor did they want to or feel the need to. It was enough that they both felt it. They both wanted it. And they both intended to have it.
Forged of Steele Bundle Page 52
