The Proposal & Solid Soul

by Brenda Jackson

  Zane chuckled. “Could have fooled me. Because you weren’t giving her your attention at dinner Friday night. We all felt that it was up to us to make her feel welcome, because you were ignoring the poor girl.”

  Jason rolled his eyes. “And I bet it pained all of you to do so.”

  “Not really. Your Southern Bella is a real classy lady. If you weren’t interested in her I’d make a play for her.”

  “But I am interested in her.”

  “I know,” Zane said, smiling. “It was pretty obvious. I intercepted your dirty looks loud and clear. In any case, I hope things get straightened out between you two.”

  “I hope so, too. I’ll find out in five more days.”

  Zane lifted a curious brow. “Five days? What’s supposed to happen in five days?”

  “Long story and one which I prefer not to share right now.” He had intentionally not contacted Bella over the past two days to give her breathing space from him to think his proposal through. He’d thought it through and it made perfect sense to him. He was beginning to anticipate her answer. It would be yes; it just had to be.

  But what if yes wasn’t her answer? What if even after the other night and the sample lovemaking they’d shared that she thought his proposal wasn’t worth taking the chance? He would be the first to admit that his proposal was a bit daring. But he felt the terms were fair. Hell, he was giving her a chance to be the first to file for a divorce after the first year. And he—

  Zane snapped a finger in front of his face. “Hellooo. Are you with us? Derringer is here with Fireball. Are you up to this or are you thinking about mating of another kind?” Zane was grinning.

  Jason frowned when he glanced over at Derringer and saw a smirk on his face, as well. “Yes, I’m up to this and it’s none of your business what I’m thinking about.”

  “Fine, just keep Prancer straight while Fireball mounts her. It’s been a while since he’s had a mare and he might be overly eager,” Zane said with a meaningful smile.

  Just like me, Jason thought, remembering every vivid detail of Bella spread out on her kitchen table for him to enjoy. “All right, let’s get this going. I have something to do later.”

  Both Zane and Derringer gave him speculative looks but said nothing.

  BELLA STEPPED OUT OF the shower and began toweling herself dry. It was the middle of the day but after going for a walk around the ranch she had gotten hot and sticky. Now she intended to slip into something comfortable and have a cup of tea and relax…and think about Jason’s proposal.

  The walk had done her good and walking her land had made her even more determined to hold on to what was hers. But was Jason’s proposal the answer? Or would she be jumping out of the pot and into the fire?

  After Friday night and what had gone down in her kitchen, there was no doubt in her mind that Jason was the kind of lover women dreamed of having. And he had to be the most unselfish person she knew. He had given her pleasure without seeking his own. She had read enough articles on the subject to know most men weren’t usually that generous. But he had been and her body hadn’t been the same since. Every time she thought about him and that night in the kitchen, she had to pause and catch her breath.

  She hadn’t heard from him since that night but figured he was giving her time to think things through before she gave him her answer. She had talked to her attorney again and he hadn’t said anything to make her think she had a chance of getting the hold on her trust fund lifted.

  She had run into her uncle yesterday when she’d gone into town and he hadn’t been at all pleasant. And neither had his son, daughter and two teenage grandsons. All of them practically cut her with their sharp looks. She just didn’t get it. Jason had wanted her land as well but he hadn’t been anything but supportive of her decision to keep it and had offered his help from the first.

  She understood that she and her Denver relatives didn’t have the same bond as the Westmorelands but she would think they wouldn’t be dismissing her the way they were doing over some land.

  She had dressed and was heading downstairs when something like a missile sailed through her living room window, breaking the glass in the process. “What on earth!” She nearly missed her step when she raced back up the stairs to her bedroom, closing the door and locking it behind her.

  Catching her breath she grabbed her cell phone off the nightstand and called the police.

  “WHERE IS SHE, MARVIN?” Jason asked, walking into Bella’s house with Zane and Derringer on his heels.

  “She’s in the kitchen,” the man answered, moving quickly out of Jason’s way.

  Jason had gotten a call from Pam to tell him what had happened. He had jumped in his truck and left Zane’s ranch immediately with Derringer and Zane following close behind in their vehicles.

  From what Pam had said, someone had thrown a large rock through Bella’s window with a note tied to it saying, “Go back to where you came from.” The thought of anyone doing that angered him. Who on earth would do such a thing?

  He walked into the kitchen and glanced around, dismissing memories of the last time he’d been there and his focus immediately went to Bella. She was sitting at the kitchen table talking to Pete Higgins, one of the sheriff’s deputies and a good friend of Derringer’s.

  Everyone glanced up when he entered and the look on Bella’s face was like a kick in his gut. He could tell she was shaken and there was a hurt expression in her eyes he’d never seen before. His anger flared at the thought that someone could hurt her in any way. The rock may not have hit her but she’d taken a hit just the same. Whoever had thrown that rock through the window had hit her spirit and left her shaken.

  “Jason, Zane and Derringer,” Pete said, acknowledging their arrival. “Why am I not surprised to see the three of you here?”

  Jason didn’t respond as he moved straight toward Bella and, disregarding the onlookers, he reached out to caress the soft skin beneath her ear. “Are you all right?” he whispered in a husky tone.

  She held his gaze and nodded slowly. “Yes, I’m fine. I was on my way downstairs when that rock came flying through the window. It scared me more than anything.”

  He glanced at the rock that someone had placed on the table. It was a huge rock, big enough to hurt her had she been in her living room anywhere near the window. The thought of anyone harming one single hair on her head infuriated him.

  He glanced over at Pete. “Do you have any idea who did it?”

  Peter shook his head. “No, but both the rock and note have been dusted for fingerprints. Hopefully we’ll know something soon.”

  Soon? He wanted to know something now. He glanced down at the note and read it.

  “I was just asking Ms. Bostwick if she knew of anyone who wanted her off this property. The only people she could think of are her parents and possibly Kenneth Bostwick.”

  “I can’t see my parents behind anything like this,” Bella said in a soft voice. “And I don’t want to think Uncle Kenneth is capable of doing anything like this, either. However, he does want me off the land because he knows of someone who wants to buy it.”

  Pete nodded. “What about Jason here? I think we all know he wants your land and Hercules, as well,” the deputy said as if Jason wasn’t standing right there listening to his every word. “Do you think he’d want you gone, too?”

  Bella seemed surprised by the question and moved her gaze from Pete to Jason. Jason figured she saw remnants of passion behind the anger in his eyes.

  “No, he’d want me to stay,” she said with a soft sigh.

  Pete closed his notepad, evidently deciding not to ask why she was so certain of that. “Well, hopefully we’ll have something within a week if those fingerprints are identified,” he said.

  “And what is she supposed to do in the meantime, Pete?” Jason asked in a frustrated tone.

  “Report anything suspicious,” Pete responded drily. He turned to face Bella. “I’ll request that the sheriff beef up security around he
re starting today.”

  “Thank you, Deputy Higgins,” Bella said softly. “I’d appreciate that tremendously. Marvin is getting the window replaced and I’ll be keeping the lights on in the yard all night now.”

  “Doesn’t matter,” Jason said. “You’re staying at my place tonight.”

  Bella tilted her head to the side and met Jason’s intense gaze. “I can’t do that. You and I can’t stay under the same roof.”

  Jason crossed his arms over his chest. “And why not?”

  A flush stole into her cheeks when she noted Jason wasn’t the only one waiting on her response. “You know why,” she finally said.

  Jason’s forehead bunched up. Then when he remembered what could possibly happen if they stayed overnight under the same roof, he smiled. “Oh, yeah.”

  “Oh, yeah, what?” Zane wanted to know.

  Jason frowned at his cousin. “None of your business.”

  Pete cleared his throat. “I’m out of here but like I said, Miss Bostwick, the department will have more police checking around the area.” He slipped both the rock and note into a plastic evidence bag.

  Zane and Derringer followed Pete out the door, which Jason appreciated since it gave him time alone with Bella. The first thing he did was lean down and kiss her. He needed the taste of her to know she was really okay.

  She responded to his kiss and automatically he deepened it, drawing her up out of the chair to stand on her feet in the process. He needed the feel of all of her to know she was safe. He would protect her with his life if he had to. He’d aged a good twenty years when he’d gotten that call from Pam telling him what had happened. And speaking of Pam’s phone call…

  He broke off the kiss and with an irritated frown on his features he looked down at Bella. “Why didn’t you call me? Why did I have to hear what happened from someone else?”

  She gazed right back at him with an irritated frown of her own. “You’ve never given me your phone number.”

  Jason blinked in surprise and realized what she’d said was true. He hadn’t given her his phone number.

  “I apologize for that oversight,” he said. “You will definitely have it from here on out. And we need to talk about you moving in with me for a while.”

  She shook her head. “I can’t move in with you, Jason, and as I said earlier, we both know why.”

  “Do you honestly think if you gave me an order not to touch you that I wouldn’t keep my hands off you?” he asked.

  She shrugged delicate shoulders. “Yes, I believe you’d do as I ask, but I’m not sure given that same scenario, in light of what happened in this very kitchen Friday night, that I’d be able to keep my hands off you.”

  He blinked, stared down at her and blinked again. This time with a smile on his lips. “You don’t say?”

  “I do say and I know it’s an awful thing to admit, but right now I can’t make you any promises,” she said, rubbing her hands together as if distressed by the very notion.

  He wasn’t distressed, not even a little bit. In fact, he was elated. For a minute he couldn’t say a word and then said, “And you think I have a problem with you not being able to keep your hands off me?”

  She nodded. “If you don’t have a problem with it then you should. We aren’t married. We aren’t even engaged.”

  “I asked you to marry me Friday night.”

  She used her hand to wave off his reminder. “Yes, but it would be a marriage of convenience, which I haven’t agreed to yet since the issue of the sleeping arrangements is still up in the air. Until I do decide I think it’s best if you stay under your roof and I stay under mine. Yes, that’s the proper thing to do.”

  He lifted a brow. “The proper thing to do?”

  “Yes, proper, appropriate, suitable, fitting—which of those words do you prefer using?”

  “What about none of them?”

  “It doesn’t matter, Jason. It’s bad enough that we got carried away the other night in this kitchen. But we can’t repeat something like that.”

  He didn’t see why they couldn’t and was about to say as much when he heard footsteps approaching and glanced over as Derringer and Zane entered the kitchen.

  “Pete thinks he’s found a footprint outside near the bushes and is checking it out now,” Derringer informed them.

  Jason nodded. He then turned back to Bella and his expression was one that would accept no argument on the matter. “Pack an overnight bag, Bella. You’re staying at my place tonight even if I have to sleep in the barn.”

  CHAPTER SIX

  BELLA GLARED AT JASON. It was a ladylike glare but a glare nonetheless. She opened her mouth to say something then remembered they had an audience and immediately closed it. She cast a warm smile over at Zane and Derringer. “I’d like a few minutes alone with Jason to discuss a private matter, please.”

  They returned her smile, nodded and gave Jason “you’ve done it now” smiles before walking out of the kitchen.

  It was then that she turned her attention back to Jason. “Now then, Jason, let’s not be ridiculous. You are not sleeping in your barn just so I can sleep under your roof. I’m staying right here.”

  She could tell he did not appreciate his order not being obeyed when she saw his irritation with her increase. “Have you forgotten someone threw a rock through your window with a note demanding you leave town?”

  She nibbled a minute on her bottom lip. “No, I didn’t forget the rock or the note attached to it, but I can’t let them think they’ve won by running away. I admit to being a little frightened at first but I’m fine now. Marvin is having the window replaced and I’ll keep lights shining around here all night. And don’t forget Marvin sleeps in the bunkhouse each night so technically, I won’t be here by myself. I’ll be fine, but I appreciate your concern.”

  Jason stared at her for a moment and didn’t say anything. He hadn’t lied about aging twenty years when he’d gotten that call from Pam. He had walked into her house not knowing what to expect. The thought that someone wanted her gone bothered him, because he knew she wasn’t going anywhere and that meant he needed to protect her.

  “Fine, you stay inside here and I’ll sleep in your barn,” he finally said.

  She shook her head after crossing her arms over her chest. “You won’t be sleeping in anyone’s barn. You’re going to sleep in your own bed tonight and I intend to sleep in mine.”

  “Fine,” he snapped like he was giving in to her suggestion when he wouldn’t do anything of the sort. But if she wanted to think it he would let her. “I need to take you to Pam’s to show her and the others you’re okay and in one piece.”

  A smile touched her lips. “They were worried about me?”

  She seemed surprised by that. “Yes, everyone was worried.”

  “In that case let me grab my purse.”

  “I’ll be waiting outside,” he said to her fleeing back.

  He shook his head and slowly left the kitchen and walked through the dining room to the living room where Marvin and a couple of the men were replacing the window. They had cleaned up all the broken glass but a scratch mark on the wooden floor clearly showed where the rock had landed once it entered the house.

  He drew in a sharp breath at the thought of Bella getting hit by that rock. If anything would have happened to her he would have…

  At that moment he wasn’t sure just what he would do. The thought of anything happening to her sent sharp fear through him in a way he’d never known before. Why? Why were his feelings for her so intense? Why was he so possessive when it came to her?

  He shrugged off the responses that flowed through his mind, not ready to deal with any of them. He walked out the front door to where Zane and Derringer were waiting.

  “You aren’t really going to let her stay here unprotected?” Derringer asked, studying his features.

  Jason shook his head. “No.”

  “And why can’t the two of you stay under the same roof?” Zane asked curiously. />
  “None of your business.”

  Zane chuckled. “If you don’t give me an answer I’m going to think things.”

  That didn’t move Jason. “Think whatever you want.” He then checked his watch. “I hate to do this but I’m checking out for the rest of the day. I intend to keep an eye on Bella until Pete finds out who threw that rock through her window.”

  “You think Kenneth Bostwick had something to do with it?” Derringer asked.

  “Not sure, but I hope for his sake he didn’t,” Jason said in a voice laced with tightly controlled anger.

  He stopped talking when Bella walked onto the porch. Not only had she grabbed her purse but she’d also changed her dress. At his curious look, she said, “The dress I was wearing wasn’t suitable for visiting.”

  He nodded and decided not to tell her she looked good now and had looked good then. Whatever she put on her body she wore with both grace and style. He met her in the middle of the porch and slipped her hand in his. “You look nice. And I thought we could grab dinner someplace before I bring you back here.”

  Her eyes glowed in a way that tightened his stomach and sent sensations rushing through his gut. “I’d like that, Jason.”

  IT WAS CLOSE TO TEN AT night when Bella returned home. Jason entered her house and checked around, turning on lights as he went from room to room. It made her feel extra safe when she saw a police patrol car parked near the turnoff to her property.

  “Everything looks okay,” Jason said, breaking into her thoughts.

  “Thanks. I’ll walk you to the door,” she said quickly, heading back downstairs.

  “Trying to rush me out of here, Bella?”

  At the moment she didn’t care what he thought. She just needed him gone so she could get her mind straightened out. Being with him for the past eight hours had taken its toll on her mind and body.

  She hadn’t known he was so touchy and each time he’d touched her, even by doing something as simple as placing a hand in the center of her back when they’d been walking into the movies, it had done something to her in a way that had her hot and bothered for the rest of the evening.