“This is nuts,” she mumbled. “I don’t even know how to bring this up to him. Should I?” Crystal chewed her bottom lip and continued to pace. As she was about to walk into the kitchen to get a glass of water, the doorbell rang, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin. She was happy she didn’t break another glass.
Crossing over to the door, she wasn’t entirely pleased to see Douglas there. “Hi,” he said. “Hope you’re ready for dessert.”
Crystal tried to smile, but her heart wasn’t in it. “We need to have a serious discussion.”
“I know,” he said as he stepped inside. “With or without chocolate?”
“I think we’re going to need all the chocolate in that cake and some wine,” she said as she took the box from his hand and headed into the kitchen. Crystal set the cake on the counter and crossed over to the cabinet to grab a bottle of Chardonnay.
“Got anything stronger?” he asked as she handed him the bottle and corkscrew.
“We don’t need anything stronger,” she said. “Douglas, what are we actually doing?”
“I don’t know,” he replied honestly, the conversation he had with Waylon replaying in his mind.
“You’re the CEO, the boss, just kill the deal,” Crystal pleaded, silently adding, And prove my dad wrong about you.
“I wish it were that simple,” he moaned.
“What happens now?” she asked. “We have a court date tomorrow and one of us is going to be unhappy about the outcome.”
Douglas sighed and took a sip of the wine. “That’s true. Are we going to be able to separate business and pleasure or are we going to be like Batman and Catwoman?”
“Catwoman?”
He set his wineglass down and tilted his head to the side. “I’d love to see you in leather with a whip.”
Crystal raised her eyebrow at him. “You’re disgusting,” she said, then broke out in laughter.
Douglas wished things could remain that way between them. She was going to hate him when the court case played out because he couldn’t back away from the site now, not until he got to the bottom of why his father wanted Hughes Farm so badly. He needed to find that diary. If for no other reason than to show the board that this had been a bad idea because of his father’s inane hatred for the Hughes family.
“Are you going to cut the cake or stand here and look at it?” she asked after catching his gaze.
“Let’s take it outside. You were supposed to show me some mythical place here on the farm,” he said.
“All right,” she said, licking her lips and making Douglas’s teeth chatter with longing. “I’ll get a blanket and you cut two big slices of cake.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said, offering her a mock salute.
When Crystal dashed down the hall, Douglas couldn’t take his eyes off her shapely backside, couldn’t stop staring at her long legs. She was exquisite.
“Ready?” she asked when she returned to the kitchen with a blanket. “And you might want to leave those loafers here.”
Douglas looked down at his shoes and then caught a glimpse of Crystal’s bare feet. The red polish on her toes made him think of cherries and he wanted nothing more than to lick and suck her perfect toes.
When she noticed that he wasn’t taking his shoes off, Crystal shrugged her shoulders. “Suit yourself, but it’s going to be really hard to get that dirt and mud off your thousand-dollar shoes.”
“And how do you know they were a thousand dollars?” he asked as he kicked them off.
“Because anything less would be so unlike you.”
“Is that so?” he said as he placed the shoes in the corner.
“You are the picture of a silver spoon boy,” Crystal retorted as she opened the back door. She stopped short and Douglas’s hot body pressed against her and she gasped when he wrapped his arms around her waist.
“I guess it’s a good thing I forgot the cake on the counter or I’d have to lick chocolate from your neck and back.”
She turned around quickly, poised to say something, but Douglas took advantage of having her in his arms and kissed her—slow, deep, passionate. Crystal held him tightly as she sucked his sweet tongue and moaned. This, she told herself, would be the last time she would be able to kiss him like this. The last time they could give in to passion without thinking about consequences.
Douglas broke the kiss and stared deep into her eyes. “Crystal,” he intoned. “We’d better get out of here before I turn around and take you back to your bedroom and never let you go.”
Turning her head away from him, she said, “Get the cake.” Crystal wished she could allow him to take her into her bedroom and hide away from the court case, the personal vendettas, and her parents. Her parents! They couldn’t find Douglas on the farm. Not after what her dad told her. The last thing she’d be able to explain to them was how she fell in love with the enemy.
But was he really her enemy? Maybe Douglas was simply doing the same thing she was doing—carrying on a family legacy. But why did the two things their families wanted mean they couldn’t have each other?
Douglas opened the door and grabbed the cake while Crystal chewed her bottom lip and stared off into the woods. “Are you all right?” he asked, putting an arm around her shoulder.
“Douglas, we’re fighting a losing battle. I can’t fall in love with you at night and fight you in court during the day,” she said as they walked slowly.
“So, what are you saying?”
“This is the end,” she said. “This weekend was a wonderful distraction, but I can’t let you stop me from saving my family’s land.”
“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to stop you. But the truth of the matter is, I don’t want to lose you either.”
“Then stop this madness. You can’t have me and my land,” she said. “Stop right here.”
Douglas glanced around the rose garden, inhaling the fragrant perfume of the flowers and smiling. “I guess a man should never send you roses to impress you.”
“If a man wants to impress me, all he has to do is understand my love for this land.”
Douglas sighed. “Can we simply eat the cake? Nothing can change today. Trust me, I’ve tried.”
Crystal, against her better judgment, unfurled the blanket and sat down. Douglas joined her and reached over and pulled a rose from a bush.
“Cutting roses is prohibited in the garden,” she said when she took it from his hand.
“Is that why you have a vase full every morning?” he asked, grinning.
God, why did he have to have such amazing dimples? Crystal turned away from him and grabbed the cake slices. “I can do that,” she said as she broke off a piece of the cake. Douglas leaned in and sucked the cake from her fingers.
“Hey!” she exclaimed as he licked the chocolate icing from her finger. “Ooh, you shouldn’t do that.”
“The icing is the best part,” he said, then reached for a piece of cake and brushed it across her lips. “Now, let me get a taste of that.” He leaned into her and slowly licked the chocolate from her lips. Then he nibbled her bottom lip, causing her to moan and forget about eating the cake. Douglas leaned her back on the plush blanket, breaking the kiss and stroking her cheek.
“If this is the end for us, then shouldn’t we make it count?” he asked as he nimbly unbuttoned her blouse.
Before Crystal could protest or push away his hand, Douglas’s hot mouth covered her breast. She silently chided herself for not wearing a bra and that lasted about thirty seconds before she gave in to the pleasure of his tongue. Douglas eased his hand between her thighs, touching her femininity through her wet panties. She screamed his name and arched her hips into his touch. He pushed the crotch of her panties to the side and slipped his finger between her wet folds of flesh until he found her throbbing pearl. Leaning into her, he replaced his finger with his tongue, licking, sucking, and kissing her passionately until she howled in delight.
Grasping the back of his head, Crystal e
xpelled a satisfied sigh as she exploded from the inside. “Don’t stop,” she cried.
“I’m just getting started,” he said as he took a brief break from tasting her sweetness. “Lift your hips.” Crystal followed his command and Douglas slipped her panties off, stashing them in his pocket. Then he quickly shrugged out of his slacks and wrapped her legs around his waist. The moment he felt her wetness against the tip of his erection, Douglas wanted to bury himself deep inside her and forget the court case, forget the business park, and forget everything but the woman in his arms.
“I need you,” she moaned. “Want you.”
Douglas responded with a hot kiss, covering her mouth with his and drawing her tongue into his mouth. She pressed her body against his and he forgot about protection. He spread her thighs and pressed into her. Reveling in the hot wetness between her thighs, drowning deep in the flesh to flesh contact. Her moans punctuated the air as Douglas pumped in and out. She matched his strokes, adding a twist or grind to make him scream out her name. Crystal wowed him, thrilled him, and made his toes curl. And as much as he knew he needed to pull back, needed to pull out, he couldn’t and wouldn’t. He reached his climax inside her, unprotected. Douglas had never been so reckless, so careless, and so calm. He even thought about seeing Crystal’s belly swelled with his son or daughter. He’d never had those thoughts about a woman—ever.
Crystal, on the other hand, was mortified. Had she really just had unprotected sex with Douglas? With a man who she was sure had his share of women all over the county and possibly the country? “Why didn’t you protect us?” she demanded as she punched him in the center of his chest.
“Look,” he exclaimed as he grabbed her wrist when she went to slug him again. “I just had an insurance physical a month ago and I have a clean bill of health.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “I don’t imagine you were told that you’re sterile.”
Douglas shook his head and chuckled softly. “What about you? Healthy and sterile?”
“I’m healthy, but that’s not the point. I don’t want to have your baby,” she exclaimed as she pushed him off her and rose to her feet quickly. For a moment, she’d forgotten that she was naked. “This is not good.”
Douglas handed her the blouse they’d discarded earlier. “Maybe you ought to cover up and calm down.”
“Calm down?” she hurled as she snatched her shirt from his hand. “My life could be really . . . Oh my God, how would I explain this to my parents?”
“Aren’t you a grown woman?”
“Yes, and I certainly didn’t act like one being all irresponsible with you. I . . .”
Douglas stood up and closed the space between them. “What’s the problem? If you were pregnant with my child do you think it would ruin your life?”
“Yes. And I wouldn’t put it past you to use my womb as a bargaining tool in this land grab of yours!” she spat.
“That’s not fair.”
“This was another mistake. No wonder my parents think they have to come here and fight this battle. You have to go, Douglas.”
“Wait a minute.”
Crystal snatched her skirt on and stomped back to the main house.
Chapter 12
Douglas should’ve known when to say when. He should’ve just gotten dressed, headed back to the cottage, packed his clothes, and left. Crystal made it clear that the connection they had was a shallow physical one, and with what Waylon told him, he knew trying to be with her wasn’t the best idea ever. But as soon as he zipped his pants, Douglas dashed toward the house, not giving a damn about the logical things he should’ve done. He banged on the back door as if he was trying to warn Crystal about a fire. In a way he was—the fire of longing and desire that was building like an inferno deep inside him. He wanted her more than he wanted the land, the CEO title at Welco, or his next breath. She had to understand that, even if that meant he had to lock her in that house until she realized that he genuinely loved her.
Crystal snatched the door open, her eyes red from crying, and asked, “Why are you here?”
“Because you don’t understand what I’m feeling right now,” he said.
“And just what are you feeling and why should I give a damn?” she snapped.
Douglas moved closer to her until they stood inch to inch. “You should give a damn because I know that I’m falling for you and I’ll do whatever it takes to make you see that.”
She tilted her head to the side, thinking about the words Dena said to her hours ago. Was this all a part of the grand plan? Under different circumstances, she would’ve fallen into his arms, told him that her heart was beating the same song. But she couldn’t trust what he said nor what she felt. Lust. That’s all it was. Plain and simple, it was a lustful yearning that she felt for him and that would never be enough to make her give him the main thing he wanted.
“You’re a liar,” she whispered. “You’re falling for this land and falling for the future business park you have planned. You’re falling for the idea of me being silly enough to say I love you and sign those papers. That’s not going to happen and you should leave before I call the sheriff to escort you off my property.”
“Oh, yeah, call Ron and see how that works out for you,” Douglas spat. “You invited me here, remember?”
“My mistake,” she said. He took her face into his hands and forced her to look at him. “This was a huge mistake,” she insisted.
“Why? Because you’re feeling something more for me, just like I am for you?” he asked as he stroked her cheek.
“Stop,” she said as she turned her face away from him. Douglas didn’t stop. Instead, he sought out her full lips, kissing her tenderly and slowly. He wished his kiss told her the truth about what he was feeling, told her that he wasn’t trying to use her, wasn’t trying to play with her emotions. He wished he could take her away from this farm, this town, and go someplace where they could simply be Crystal and Douglas. A place where her parents and his parents never met and never had their battle. When he released her lips, he read something in her eyes that gave him hope.
“Douglas,” she whispered.
“Yes?”
“I just can’t . . .” Crystal stopped when she heard a commotion on the front porch.
“Just what in the hell are you doing here?” Crystal heard Dena exclaim as she and Douglas rushed to the front door.
“It’s wonderful to see you as well,” Waylon said as he gave Dena a slow once-over. He smiled at her, and Crystal could see that her attorney was fuming underneath his gaze.
“Up to your same old tricks?” Dena snapped as she looked from Douglas to Waylon.
“I’d like to talk to you,” Waylon said, stepping closer to Dena.
She threw her hand up in his face. “Don’t come a step closer to me,” she snapped.
“What’s going on?” Crystal asked. “And who are you?”
Waylon glanced up at Crystal and Douglas. “You must be Crystal Hughes,” Waylon said. “Waylon Terrell.” He never took his eyes off Dena, who was dressed in a simple pair of black slacks and a sleeveless ivory shirt. Waylon remembered days when she showed off those lovely legs in cut-off denims. This serious Dena was still beautiful, but how could he convince her that he wasn’t playing the cruel games that his best friend was known for? How could he explain to her that he too was a victim of Douglas Wellington Jr.?
“You should take your godson and leave,” Dena said. “Crystal may not know the truth about you two, but I do.” She jabbed her finger in his face and Waylon grasped her wrist. Crystal heard Dena gasp and saw a flicker of something—desire—cross her face. Really? Crystal wondered as she looked from Dena to Waylon. As if she remembered that the others were around, Dena snatched away and stalked over to Crystal. “Have you lost all that’s left of your mind?”
“What do you mean?” Crystal asked.
“I mean that these two are trying to play you and you’re just being a welcome mat for them.”
“I’m doing no such thing,” Crystal cried incredulously.
“Why do you think Waylon is here? He’s giving his godson pointers and I’m willing to bet my practice on the fact that he’s using the same dirty tricks his father used all of those years ago,” she said, hurling her thumb in Waylon’s direction. “They don’t fight fair and you’re a lightweight. Do you want to lose your family’s land?”
“Of course not, but—”
“Then get them off this property and let me handle this through the courts,” she snapped.
Waylon walked over to Crystal and Dena. “Does this have to be ugly?” he asked, focusing on Dena.
Crystal saw a change in her attorney’s body language as she whirled around and faced the tall ebony man. There was more than a legal battle going on between those two—that much was clear.
“I have nothing to say to you,” Dena said.
Like Billy Dee Williams in a classic movie, Waylon stroked her cheek and smiled. “I have something to say to you. I’m sorry.”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” she snapped. “Why don’t you take your tired-ass apology and leave?”
“I’m not going to do that because you need to hear the truth, finally,” he said forcefully. Douglas and Crystal watched in rapt attention.
“Your friend told me the truth when you disappeared and left your check.”
“My check?”
Dena glanced over her shoulder at Crystal. “I’m not doing this here.”
“I never walked out on you—you left me first,” Waylon said. “And why would I leave you a check?”
She glared at him, and as if something clicked in her head, she sighed. “You never knew, did you?” Dena asked quietly.
“Never knew what?”
As if she’d forgotten they had an audience, the unflappable Dena started to cry. “I was pregnant and he said you wanted nothing to do with my bastard child and that was why you left.”
Forces of Nature Page 13
