With that he gazed down at her and feeling as if he was so overjoyed that he didn’t quite know what to do, he brought his mouth to hers and kissed her, holding her gently in his arms, but kissing her softly.
She was stunned at his reaction, but the feel of his mouth against hers sparked a sudden fire in her that seemed to catch like wildfire, spreading from her lips to other parts of her body even faster than her blood moved through her.
There was a brief moment when both of them were surprised by the kiss they were sharing, but also in that moment, they both discovered that they were becoming immediately lost in the kiss, and they began to move their lips slowly and sweetly together, tasting and feeling each other’s mouths a little more as the kiss grew deeper.
She slid her arms around his neck and felt him tighten his own arms around her back as he parted her lips with his ever so slightly, teasing the tip of her tongue with his before he began to taste her and really kiss her with a growing desire and hunger.
The door to the library was flung open and Cara came in with her head held high and a kind of victorious look on her face, which melted away like snow on a summer’s day when she saw Henry and Jamaica locked in each other’s arms and kissing.
She gasped, and both Henry and Jamaica were startled by the noise of the door and the gasp that sounded from Cara. They broke apart from their embrace, both of them breathless and embarrassed at having been caught, both of them realizing that they never should have kissed, especially the way that they did.
Cara glared hotly at Henry. “What in the world is going on in here?” she demanded with an intense tone. Henry’s face flushed and he looked over at her.
“I’m sorry, we didn’t mean to… We shouldn’t have… We were just… We were celebrating I guess, probably overly excited. You see, Mr. Bailey just signed the contract and the whole Scinter project is a go.” He grinned again as he thought of it. It had easily been one of the most significant and profound moments of his entire business career to that point. He knew that he would always remember it happily.
Cara stared at him in disbelief as she walked slowly toward him. “It’s… it’s signed? Are you serious?”
He nodded emphatically and bent over, reaching down to the table to pick up the papers and hold them out to her. “It’s done and signed. This is all of it. Complete with new designs by our Miss Jamaica here!” He glowed, looking over at her and feeling his own heart skip a few beats. Kissing her had been just as exciting as the meeting had been, and he knew that if Cara hadn’t walked in, he would definitely still be kissing her, with no intention of stopping anytime soon.
“We never would have had a success with him if it hadn’t been for her. I’m so pleased, so proud of her and excited that it all worked out. Thank goodness she came in here to see him. If she hadn’t come in here, none of this would have happened, and we’d have lost every bit of business with him, and we’d have lost a small fortune. She saved us millions and made us even more money that she will have saved us. I’m so glad that she came in here and talked to him. It’s like a real-life miracle. There is just nothing but good in her wake.” His eyes were shining at her and she felt her cheeks warm as she looked downward and felt a little shyness creeping up inside her.
Cara looked over at her and narrowed her eyes into near slits. “Is that so? Well, we certainly owe you a debt of gratitude, don’t we Miss Franklin? You’re just too good to be true, it seems.” Her voice was cool and her tone was even, but her eyes gave her away, although neither Jamaica nor Henry saw it, because they were so busy looking at each other.
***
David and Marina came by the house the next afternoon to see the babies and visit with Henry, checking to see how everyone was getting on. When they had visited for a brief while, they decided to invite Henry and Jamaica out to dinner with them that night.
Henry and Jamaica accepted happily, and Georgia was only too glad to babysit for them and give them a night off from their parenting duties. Marina and Jamaica discovered that they had a great deal in common as artists, though Marina’s art was music.
She told Jamaica about the instruments that she played and the way that she sang, and how she did shows now and then around the Seattle area. She loved singing and art and theatre, and she was only too glad to talk with Jamaica about her artwork; her paintings and sculptures and all of the work she did at the school. Marina told her that she absolutely admired Jamaica for the job she had taken on of teaching art to little ones. Jamaica told her about her star pupil Annalee, and how hard she was working and what great potential she had. Marina said she would love to see Jamaica’s work sometime, and that she should let her know if it happened that she ever had an art show.
They talked about the babies, and Marina and David were happy to announce that they were trying for a baby, wanting to start a family, and were sure that it was going to happen soon. Henry called for the best wine in the restaurant to celebrate, and together they toasted and drank, and then drank some more, and then called for a second bottle.
By the time Henry and Jamaica got home, it was quite late, and they were both a little tipsy. He walked her to her bedroom and stopped outside of her door, staring at her and giving her a sweet smile.
“I’m so glad that you’re here. I can’t begin to tell you. You just seem to make everything better and brighter just by being here. It’s amazing. I didn’t expect it at all. You saved the deal with Mr. Bailey, you get along so well with my friends… In fact, I’d go so far as to say that they are just as much your friends now as mine. There could be no denying that!” He laughed lightly and gazed deeper at her.
“You looked like an angel when you came into the welcome party for the babies… Wearing that white gown and seeming to have just stepped out of heaven, and I kind of felt like I was a little lost in you when I saw you, and I think I have been getting lost in you a little more every day as you’ve been here.” His voice softened and he locked his eyes on hers. “Does it feel like that to you?”
She nodded. “Yes, it does,” she admitted, wondering if it was the wine or her heart that was making her so lightheaded. “Except… the other way around. I feel lost in you a little more every day.” She giggled softly and he raised his hands to hold her face gently in them.
Without a word, he drew near to her and brushed his lips softly against hers, taking his time, savoring the moment, the feel of her so close to him, and the taste of her against his mouth. She responded to him right away, kissing him in return, opening her lips to him and drinking him in as he did the same with her, wrapping their arms around one another and sighing softly as the kisses enveloped them in bliss.
They kissed deeply and for a long, long few moments before he caught himself and pushed away from her breathlessly. “I’m so sorry… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. I wanted to… God I wanted to, but I shouldn’t have. I don’t want to compromise you at all,” he told her honestly. “You have a situation living here with the children, and I don’t have any business getting in the way of that. I’m sorry. Have a good night, and don’t worry about that. That kiss was on me. You just… you just enjoy yourself and be happy living here.”
He backed away from her, wishing that he hadn’t kissed her because he didn’t want to compromise her and have any awkward developments arise in the form of romantic relations between them. He wanted to make sure that she was comfortable and happy there in her home, and not bothered by his actions, or worried about them.
She laughed and smiled as he turned to go, waving at her and smiling back, and as he disappeared on the way to his own room, she touched her lips where he had kissed her and closed her eyes, savoring the feeling of his mouth against hers, and how truly delicious it had been. There were butterflies floating around in her in places where there had never been butterflies, and she loved feeling every one of them flutter through her and make her feel as if she was floating off the ground.
He took her out shopping for clothes and spo
iled her with an entire new wardrobe, which he stated flatly that she needed, and which he insisted that he was more than glad to give to her. He also had a room redesigned close to her quarters in the house that became her art studio.
Henry surprised her with it one afternoon when it was ready for her. He walked her into it with his hands over her eyes, and when he let his hands fall away from her face, she looked around stunned at the beautiful studio that he had built for her, and fully furnished not only with tables and chairs and stations all around it, as well as a large sink area and a full bathroom, but with products to create art as well. It was a tremendous gift, and she was overwhelmed, hugging him tightly in gratitude. Both of them were careful not to kiss each other then, but Georgia was with them, there to see the new addition to the house, and she watched closely as she saw the two of them interacting with one another, and she smiled happily.
He told her that he loved her artwork, and he wanted her to fill their home with it, and that the studio was one of the ways that she could do that. She promised to try.
Later that night when they were putting the babies to bed, they stood together in the doorway of the nursery, gazing at the cribs where the babies were sleeping and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and held her close to his chest. They sighed contentedly together, but as she turned to leave, she looked up at him, and they could feel each other’s breath upon their faces, and the closeness between them drew them in even more, and they closed their eyes and kissed softly a few times before he told her good night and let her go, walking alone to his own room and closing the door behind him.
She tried not to think too much on it, telling herself that the closeness between them was because of the babies, because they were living together in the house, and possibly because of all the hormones that were raging through her so much because of the pregnancy and nursing she was doing.
They were both drawn to each other, closer and closer, and the more they tried to keep themselves apart from one another, the more they seemed to want to be together, to share sweet moments, to hold hands or hold each other, and to kiss now and then in quiet moments when no one could see them.
Neither one of them was sure what was happening, but as the days passed, neither one of them was much interested in keeping apart or stopping what was changing, though they weren’t exactly sure what it was that was evolving between them.
The Final Chapter
Georgia called Jamaica into her room one day as she was resting in her bed after a chemotherapy treatment. She was weakened and tired, but still fighting for her health. They had also grown closer, like Jamaica and Henry had.
Georgia patted the empty space beside her in her bed, and Jamaica went to her and sat down beside her. “How are you doing today?” she asked with compassion and love. Few people in her life had been as kind to her as Georgia was, and she wanted to always do everything that she could for her.
“Oh, you know. I feel like hell, but that doesn’t mean that I’m about to quit fighting. Right?” She laughed quietly. “I wanted to let you know that I have done something for you.”
Jamaica tilted her head and looked at the older woman in surprise. “What do you mean? Gosh, you have already done so much for me. You certainly don’t need to do anything else for me.” She laughed a little and Georgia took her hand and held it warmly.
“I wanted to tell you that I’ve arranged for you to have your first art show in two weeks. A real gallery art show.” Georgia smiled at her. “I want to see your dreams come true.”
“Oh my god… You shouldn’t have done that!” Jamaica exclaimed in wonder and surprise.
“Of course I should have,” answered Georgia with a smile and more than a little defiance. “It’s a thank you gift from me to you for my beautiful grandbabies. I love them, and I love you, and I wanted to do something special for you while I’m here to do it.”
“I don’t know what to say…” Jamaica whispered as tears filled her eyes and spilled freely down her dark cheeks.
“Well, I think a ‘thank you’ is fine, and I also think that you’d better get to work in that studio of yours and get as much art created as you can in the next two weeks so that you have a full show. I know that people are going to want to buy what you have, and you don’t want to go into your first show as a minimalist. Have a lot to take with you. Get busy and fill up the gallery where your show will be. Can you do that for me please?” Georgia asked with a grin.
“Yes, I can definitely do that for you, and thank you so very much!” Jamaica wiped the tears from her face and leaned forward, hugging the older woman carefully and closely in deep gratitude.
***
Henry had been busier than normal at work, what with Cara trying her best to keep him in the office with late hours, late and early meetings, and anything else that she could think of to keep him out of the house.
Jamaica hadn’t seen much of him when he came to her room late one night after getting back from his office in the city late. He knocked on her bedroom door and she opened it, surprised but pleased to see him.
“Come in,” she bade him warmly, welcoming him into her bedroom. He stepped in and looked around, and a smile formed over his face.
“This looks good in here!” he said happily. “I’m so glad to see that you’re all settled in and you feel this much at home here. This is your home, you know. I want you to be happy here.” He looked at her intently and she nodded and smiled at him.
“I know that, and I am. I have never been happier. Things are wonderful. What is it that’s brought you in here tonight?” she asked, gazing at him curiously.
He took a step toward her, his eyes holding hers, though his gaze had already swept down the length of her as she stood there before him in a satin night gown. His heart had start to beat more swiftly, and he reminded himself to remain calm.
“Well, Cara has me going out of town on a business trip pretty early in the morning, and she didn’t really tell me about it until later today. I wanted you to know that I’m going to be gone for a while. A week, I guess, working on this deal on the other side of the country.” He didn’t like saying it to her. He didn’t like that he was going to go, but he knew that he had to. He had wanted to tell her that he was going, and he had only intended to stop into her room for a moment and do that, but as he stood there with her, near her in her bedroom, he found that it was much more difficult to tell her than he had realized that it would be, and he didn’t like the idea of being away from her for a week.
“I hope you have a safe and productive trip,” she answered him with a smile. “I don’t want you to worry about the kids; we’ll all be all right. There are enough people to here to take care of them.”
“And you…” he added, walking toward her, his eyes steady on hers. Her heart began to beat faster and her pulse quickened, as the blood she felt flowing through her seemed to heat to a near fiery temperature.
“Me?” she asked quietly, watching him as he reached a place just inches from her. She looked up into his face and wished for the millionth time that things were just a little different between them. She had begun to daydream about kissing him, and when he was that close to her, it was difficult for her to remember that they were trying to keep their bond platonic as much as they could.
“Yes, you,” he answered. “You’re part of this family, and I want you taken care of, well taken care of, just as much as the babies are. You mean a great deal to me,” he said quietly as he reached his hand up and stroked her face with his fingertips.
She closed her eyes and turned her face inward toward his palm, letting her lips brush his skin there. She drew in her breath and ever so gently kissed his palm. “You mean a great deal to me too,” she answered him.
He sighed softly at the feel of her kiss on the inside of his hand, and he couldn’t stop himself from lifting her mouth to meet his. Their kiss was light and sweet at first, but the moment heated, and the kiss became deeper as they both began to give in t
o what their desires really drove them to.
They grew breathless as their mouths moved together and over each other, followed by their hands which began to caress their arms and backs, and it wasn’t but a few moments later that she felt his hands cup her breasts, feeling the satin of her nightgown as it was the only thing separating her skin from his touch.
He groaned at the feel of her breast in his hand, and she grew breathless, feeling the need in her for him mounting to a point where she could no longer ignore it and try to turn it off.
“I’m sorry,” he breathed in a thick whisper as he kissed her mouth and her neck. “I should be… I shouldn’t…” he tried to say as she kissed him back, twisting her fingers in the locks of her hair as her lips moved over his skin.
“Yes, yes you should I want you to. God I want you to,” she whispered back to him and he stopped and looked down at her into her eyes.
“Do you really… Do you want to change this between us?” he asked in quiet wonder.
“Yes, I do,” she answered him, gazing up at him and smiling. “More than I have ever wanted to change it with anyone. I don’t think I can find another reason to make myself stop. I need you,” she told him honestly.
“I need you, too,” he answered, pulling her close to him again and kissing her passionately.
Their clothes slid from their bodies and puddle on the floor as they gazed at each other in wonder and need, moving to the bed in her room, tasting, touching, kissing, holding each other, and exploring every part of the two of them.
The need between the two of them ignited, and before long he had spread her legs and moved in between them, filling her with his thickness, gliding back and forth in her as they held each other tightly and found a level of joy and pleasure that neither of them had ever known before.
They rocked together, loving and crying out in their bliss until they both held fast to one another and let their orgasms overwhelm them. Then they fell asleep in each other’s arms, and when she awoke in the morning, he was gone. There was nothing but a note that he had left for her, saying that he wanted to talk with her about something important when he returned from his trip.
The Billionaire's Twin Fever (MANHATTAN BACHELORS Book 1) Page 27
