He nodded. “The first thing I noticed was the dye job.”
She lifted a brow. “The dye job?”
“Yes, you once mentioned you’d never dyed your hair and it was obvious the woman on the DVD jacket had. And then when I looked at it further, I noticed she had a mole on her inner right thigh. You don’t. And you don’t have a tattoo near your navel.”
She nodded. “I’m sorry about jumping to conclusions, Riley, but we had agreed on a sex-only relationship because the last thing I wanted was to get seriously involved with someone. I had before—twice— and things didn’t work out.”
“What is your sister doing now?”
“Omega is living in Paris and is happily married to a wonderful guy who knows about her past and loves her regardless. Marlon is a successful businessman and the two of them travel a lot. With his encouragement, she returned to school and now has her graduate degree. But even with her marriage and her other accomplishments and achievements, my parents still haven’t forgiven her.”
“And I take it your father wants you and Eddie to get back together.”
Her eyes widened. “How do you know that?”
“If you recall, I happened to call you one day and you thought I was your father. You said something that let me know he was trying to get you to reinstate your relationship with your ex-fiancé.”
“Yes, but only because Eddie thinks he still has a chance to convince me not to have anything to do with Omega. But like I told him, my sister and I are closer than ever.”
“I’m glad.”
She looked surprised. “You are?”
“Yes, and I’m disappointed you would think that I wouldn’t be. I love family, Alpha. I told you about Bane, the twins and Bailey and the reputation they had around town. Not once did any one of us think about disowning them. You don’t disown family, and I think it’s sad that your parents are doing that to your sister. Nobody is perfect.”
“Yes, but having a bad reputation around town for things you did while growing up is one thing, Riley. Being a porn star is another, and Eddie’s family let me know that families with good names wouldn’t want to have theirs tarnished by such a scandal. Why would I even assume your family would be any different?”
“Because you met them. We aren’t judgmental nor do we place ourselves on any type of pedestal. There are skeletons in every family closet. I told you all the stuff we’re uncovering on my grandfather Raphel.”
He paused a moment and then asked, “Have you ever heard of the Chamberlain gang?”
She nodded. “Yes. Father and two sons did a rash of bank robberies across the country some years back. I was in high school, and one of my classmates brought in an article about them. We all found it fascinating how they were able to pull things off, zigzagging across state lines and evading the FBI for as long as they did before finally getting caught.”
“What they did was pretty scandalous, wouldn’t you say?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Well, I happen to know one of their family members. Brooke Chamberlain. The Chamberlain gang consisted of her father and her two older brothers. They’re still serving time, and I doubt they will be getting out anytime soon.”
“You actually know someone related to them?”
“Yes, in fact I know her very well because she’s married to my cousin Ian Westmoreland, who owns a casino near Lake Tahoe. All of us know about Brooke’s family but none of us hold it against her. We’re also aware she keeps in contact with them and find no fault in that, as well. Family is family, Alpha. I would never have judged you by what your sister did. Nor would I have pushed you not to have any contact with her.”
“I see that now, but because I wasn’t sure, I didn’t want to take the chance.”
“Do you believe me?” he asked, holding her gaze steadily, with single-minded focus. He knew at that moment how much he wanted her to believe him. To believe in him.
“Yes. I didn’t know then,” she said softly. “But I do now.”
He nodded, satisfied with her answer. “Now that we’ve cleared up your issues, let’s discuss mine.”
* * *
Dread rippled down Alpha’s spine. She wondered just what kind of issues he could have. “All right.”
He slowly stood from the chair and paced a few times in front of the fireplace. The glow from the fire reflected on him. In jeans and a pullover sweater, he looked too sexy for her senses. She watched him move and her stomach tightened with each step he took. Moments later, he stopped and turned to face her. “I told you about Bane and Crystal, right?”
She nodded. “Yes.”
“What I didn’t tell you was how much their fiery relationship affected me. Bane loved Crystal with the passion and soul of a man beyond his years. I felt the love whenever he mentioned her or when he would look at her. We all did, and that worried us. In a way, I felt sorry for Mr. Newsome. The more he tried keeping them apart, the more they were determined to stay together at any cost.”
He was silent for a moment. “I saw the pain Bane went through when he and Crystal were forced apart. I can still see that pain whenever he comes home and asks about her or mentions her name. A love that fierce scared the hell out of me. I never wanted that kind of love for myself. Our lives were shattered when we lost our parents and uncle and aunt in that plane crash. I could not imagine falling in love with a woman and going through that sort of pain due to death or any other kind of separation.”
He went back and sat down. “So my issues were making it hard for me to ever consider a serious involvement with a woman. Until you. With you, it was hard to keep my emotions in check, and I found myself wanting things I felt I shouldn’t have.”
Alpha could barely breathe. Was he saying what she hoped he was saying? That at some point it had become more than just sex with no commitment? That he had been fighting his emotions for her like she had been fighting hers for him? “What are you saying?” she asked softly.
“I’m saying that as much as I wished otherwise, it stopped being just sex for me during our trip to Memphis. I wanted to tell you then but didn’t want to push you into anything. So I decided to give you hints about where I wanted our relationship to go. That’s why I started sending the flowers. Why I invited you to meet my family. They took the hint but you were slow. It angered me when Paula showed up at my place with that DVD. How could you have thought it had been a private joke between her and me?”
She tried to get her heart rate to slow down. Had he kind of said, in so many words, that he loved her? “I saw the exchange between you two that day at McKay’s, when I took off my coat and she saw my outfit.”
He smiled. “Oh, that. It wasn’t a private joke. It was egg on her face. The last time she saw you, you were overdressed because of the cold weather. She made a comment about me dating a frumpy woman. She got to see just how not frumpy you were and was almost rendered speechless. I liked the fact that she had to eat crow.”
“Oh.”
“I think we both had misgivings about allowing our relationship to go beyond anything other than just sex. So now I want to make it clear what I want. I want you, Alpha, and not just in a physical way. I love you so damn much it scares me. But I’m willing to take a chance on love and believe it was meant for us to be together, no matter what.”
Alpha tried to fight back the tears that filled her eyes. “Oh, Riley, I love you, too, but I had promised myself never to let anyone come between me and Omega. When I saw that DVD in your drawer, I thought the worst and I’m sorry.”
He eased from the chair and crossed the room to sit down beside her on the sofa. Reaching out, he wiped away her tears and then took her hand in his and held it tight. “So what do you think we should do about our issues?”
She was filled with so many emotions, she almost couldn’t speak. Then she said, “What do you suggest?”
“I think we need to communicate more when it comes to things that threaten the love we have for each other. The
thought of losing you for any reason is my worst nightmare and something I won’t let happen.”
“Oh, Riley.”
He leaned down and brushed a kiss across her lips. Then he pulled her into his arms and kissed her with all the intense emotion that he was feeling. When he finally released her mouth, he softly caressed her cheek. “Will you marry me?”
She reached up and caressed his chin. “Only if we can have a long engagement. We owe it to ourselves to build our relationship, develop open communication and trust. And besides, there’s no way we can marry before Megan’s big day in June.”
He nodded in agreement. “Then you decide when and I shall be there. I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
“I love you, too.” She stood. “Now I need to get back home before the storm hits.”
He stood, as well. “If you think for one minute I’m letting you go back out in that weather, then think again. It’s hard to believe you even ventured out.”
“We needed to talk and I wanted to do it face-to-face.”
“Well, we did, face-to-face, and you know what I think?”
“No.”
“That our very own one winter’s night should start now,” he said, standing and pulling her close to him. “What do you say to that?”
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I would say start the party.”
He swept her off her feet and headed upstairs toward the bedroom, intending on doing just that.
Epilogue
A beautiful day in June
Riley grabbed Alpha’s arm when she hurriedly walked by him and pulled her behind a huge planter to steal a quick kiss. “Hey, slow down. How long will I have to be without a date?”
Alpha wrapped her arms around Riley’s neck. “Just long enough for Megan and Rico to cut the cake. Don’t you think they made a beautiful bridal couple?”
“Yes, and thanks to Imagine, it was a storybook wedding. You truly outdid yourself. I thought everything was perfect.”
“I think you’re perfect.” And she really meant that. Over the course of the past six months, she and Riley had continued to build an even stronger relationship. Somehow he had talked her into that ski trip to Aspen in January and, as promised, he had kept her warm…most of the time. She hadn’t gotten the hang of being on skis but the evenings spent in his arms in front of the fireplace had given them plenty more winter nights to cherish.
He had flown home to Daytona Beach with her over Easter weekend to meet her parents. Before that, he had invited Omega and Marlon to a surprise party he’d given for Alpha at the end of February to celebrate her selection as Denver’s Small Businesswoman of the Year. She could tell he liked Omega and was one of the few who could tell them apart. And Alpha knew Riley liked Marlon Farmer, Omega’s husband. The two had hit it off immediately. Already plans were in the works for her and Riley to visit Omega and Marlon in Paris…especially since Omega was expecting. She had never seen her sister looking so happy and radiant.
She glanced down on the beautiful ring she wore. They had decided on an August wedding, and she was looking forward to becoming Mrs. Riley Westmoreland.
Alpha also knew that while in Daytona, Riley had talked with her parents and let them know that she had his full support in maintaining a close relationship with her twin. He further told them how much family meant to him and that he hoped one day they would be able to repair their relationship with Omega. She had fallen more in love with him at that moment.
The sound of loud laughter made Alpha look in the direction of the wedded couple. They had just cut the cake. After Megan fed Rico a slice it seemed he was still licking the icing off Megan’s fingers.
Alpha then glanced around the huge ballroom and her gaze settled on Riley’s cousin Zane. He was leaning against the wall and staring hard at Dr. Channing Hastings, the woman he hadn’t wanted Megan to invite.
“What are you looking at, baby?” Riley asked her.
She smiled up at him. “Your cousin Zane and how he’s staring at Channing Hastings. She’s beautiful.”
Riley nodded. “Yes, Channing is beautiful both in and out. She and Zane had an affair a couple of years back when she lived here in Denver.”
“Now she’s engaged to be married to the man with the roving eyes. I bet he’s checked out every single woman here today, even a few married ones.”
Riley nodded, looking over at the man at Channing’s side. “You noticed that, as well? She deserves better, which has me wondering why Channing is marrying the guy. I bet Zane is wondering that, as well. But as far as I’m concerned, when you snooze, you lose, and Zane was definitely snoozing when it came to Channing. I would bet any amount of money that he’s feeling the pain of his loss. We always warned him that his womanizing ways would cost him one day. So he won’t get any pity from me.”
Alpha couldn’t help but grin. “How can you talk? You were just as much a womanizer.”
Riley shook his head. “Nobody could top Zane when it came to women. And, as far as I’m concerned, you have to admit that when I met the woman I knew was for me, I had no problem making her mine and putting a ring on her finger,” he said, reaching out and taking her ringed hand in his. “Zane was too stubborn to do that. And I hate to say it, but he probably has lost the only woman he is capable of loving.”
“How sad.” She truly meant it. Now that she had Riley, she couldn’t imagine not having the person you loved in your life. But she had a feeling, from the way Zane was staring at Channing, that Zane would be changing that soon. Alpha couldn’t help wondering why Dr. Hastings would marry a man with wandering eyes.
“I’ve got to get back,” she whispered, before brushing a kiss across his cheeks. “My work isn’t completed until I get Megan and Rico off on their honeymoon. I think it’s wonderful that they’re going to Dubai for two weeks.”
“Yes, it is wonderful, isn’t it?”
She glanced around at all the Atlanta, Montana and Texas Westmorelands she had met over the past couple of days. The men all favored and the women were ultrafriendly. She felt blessed that she was marrying into such a warm and loving family. She smiled when she glanced over and saw Pam and Dillon with their daughter, who’d been born on Christmas Day. She was definitely a beauty.
She then saw Riley’s brother, Bane, whom she had just met earlier that day when he had arrived in town. He was such a handsome man she had to take a second look every time she saw him. Even though he was always smiling, she could detect sadness around his eyes. Now she understood Riley’s reasons for not wanting to feel the pain his brother was enduring.
“Alpha?”
She glanced up at Riley. Immediately, he lowered his mouth to hers, swiping any thoughts from her mind and kissing her with a hunger that she couldn’t help but reciprocate, capturing her tongue in his and doing all sorts of erotic and scandalous things to it.
Scandalous…
It seeped back into her brain just where they were and what she was supposed to be doing. Dislodging her mouth from his, which wasn’t an easy feat, she took a step back and drew in a deep breath. “Has anyone ever told you that you shouldn’t mess around with the hired help?” she said playfully.
“No, and I wouldn’t listen to them anyway. I have tunnel vision when it comes to you, sweetheart.”
He took a step closer to regain the distance she’d put between them, bringing his body to hers. She felt something else he had, an erection that was hard and thick. “I’m going now, and I think you need to stay behind this planter until you get yourself together.”
He chuckled. “As long as you’re close by, I’ll never be together—unless you’re sharing my bed. And I’ve been thinking.”
“About what?”
“We’ve had our one winter’s night so what about a summer one?” he asked, leaning down and nibbling her lips.
“Riley…” she whispered in a strained voice, “I do need to get back to the wedding.”
“No, you don’t,�
�� he said, wrapping his arms around her. “Lindsey is a great assistant and has everything under control.”
“Megan is going to fire me.”
“And I will hire you to plan my wedding,” he said as his mouth moved lower to nibble her throat.
“Behave,” she said, pulling out of his arms again.
“Only if you promise that as soon as this wedding is over you will meet me at Riley’s Station for our own after-wedding party.”
She gazed up at him. She had a million things to do, but he was right, Lindsey was a great assistant and Alpha had a fantastic staff. “Okay, I promise.”
She quickly moved away but couldn’t resist glancing back over her shoulder. She was one lucky woman, and later tonight, when she was through with Riley Westmoreland, he would be convinced he was one lucky man.
* * * * *
Keep reading for an excerpt from Up Close and Personal by Maureen Child
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One
“Laura, I know you’re in there!”
Ronan Connolly pounded on the brightly painted blue front door a few more times, then paused to listen. Not a sound from inside the house, though he knew too well that Laura was in there. Hell, he could practically feel her, standing just on the other side of the damned door.
Bloody hardheaded woman. How had he ever thought that quality attractive? Now that attractive hardheadedness had come back to bite him in the ass.
One Winter's Night Page 17
