Brenda Jackson The Westmoreland Series Books 16-20

by Brenda Jackson

  “Hello, everyone,” she called out, waving, while glancing around as if she had every right to show up at a family function uninvited. Her face lit up in a huge smile when she saw Derringer, and she immediately headed toward him.

  “Derringer, sweetheart, I’ve missed you.” She leaned over, wrapped her arms around his neck and placed a kiss on his lips in full view of everyone.

  He took her arms from around his neck and stared down at her. “What are you doing here, Ashira?”

  She gave him a pouty look. “I came to see you.”

  “This is not where I live,” he said in an annoyed voice.

  “I know, but you weren’t home and we need to talk.”

  “About what?”

  She leaned up on tiptoe and whispered close to his ear, “About that horse you’re trying to sell Daddy. Since he’s buying it for me, I think we need to discuss it, don’t you?”

  “I’m busy right now, Ashira.”

  “But you want to make that sale, don’t you? Daddy is ready. He wants to see you now, at the ranch.”

  Derringer knew he needed to put Ashira in her place once and for all, but here was not the place to do it. “Okay, let’s go,” he said, gripping her hand and pulling her with him toward her car. “I’ll be back later,” he called over his shoulder to everyone. “I’ve got some business to take care of.”

  He was angry. He didn’t care about the horse sale as much as Ashira assumed that he did. If she thought it was a carrot she could dangle in front of him to make him do what she wanted then she had another thought coming. What ticked him off more than anything was her underhanded behavior. He should have put her in her place regarding him years ago.

  He was so intent on taking her off somewhere to give her a piece of his mind, that he didn’t notice the haughty look of victory the woman shot over her shoulder at Lucia.

  * * *

  Chloe drew in a deep breath. “I don’t think you should leave, Lucia.”

  Lucia wiped the tears from her eyes. “There’s no reason for me to stay,” she said, gathering up her things. “You saw it for yourself. Ashira shows up and he leaves. She wanted to prove what she told me that day was true and she did.”

  Chloe shook her head. “But I don’t think that’s the way it was. According to Zane and Jason, Derringer said it was about business and probably had to talk to her about that horse he’s trying to sell her father.”

  “And it couldn’t wait? Please don’t make excuses for what I saw with my own eyes, Chloe. She snaps her finger and he takes off. He was leading her over to the car and not the other way around. And I truly don’t want to be here when they come back.”

  She reached out and hugged Chloe and whispered in a broken voice, “I’ll call you later.”

  Lucia knew it would be hard telling the others goodbye. They would see the hurt in her eyes and they would pity her. Or it might be one of those you-should-have-known-better-than-to-fall-in-love-with-Derringer looks. In her book, one was just as bad as the other.

  Somehow she made it through, but nearly broke when Zane pulled her into his arms and asked her to stay a while longer. She forced a smile up at him and told him she couldn’t, before rushing to her car, getting inside and driving away.

  * * *

  Derringer returned over an hour later. He hadn’t meant to be gone that long, but when he’d arrived at the Lattimores’ place he had encountered more drama. Ashira had given her father the impression things were serious between them and he had to first break the news to Phillip Lattimore that they weren’t. And then he had to let Ashira know that he didn’t consider her a candidate as a wife, at least not for him since there was no way in hell he would ever get shackled with someone as spoiled and selfish as she was. Those words hadn’t been too well received, and Derringer had found himself stranded on the Lattimore land. He’d had to call Pete to give him a lift back here.

  The moment he got out of Pete’s patrol car he knew something was wrong. He could understand everyone staring at him, probably wondering why Pete, instead of Ashira, had brought him back. But they weren’t just staring at him. They were openly glaring.

  “Looks like your family is pissed off at you for some reason,” Pete said.

  “Yes, looks that way,” he responded. “Thanks for bringing me here.”

  Once the patrol car had driven off, Derringer’s gaze roamed over the group that were outside in the yard cleaning up from today’s activities. He looked for one person in particular, but he didn’t see her. “Where’s Lucia?”

  It was Canyon who answered in a belligerent tone, “Oh, so now you remember that she does exist?”

  Derringer frowned. “What are you talking about?”

  Dillon folded his arms over his chest. “You invited Lucia here, yet you took off with another woman without giving her a backward glance. I expected better of you, Derringer.”

  Derringer’s frown deepened. “That’s not the way it was.”

  It was Ramsey who spoke up. “That’s the way we saw it.”

  “And that’s the way Lucia saw it,” Bailey snapped, losing her cool. “I can’t believe you would leave here with one of those ‘silly’ girls—in fact, the silliest of them all—deserting Lucia and then showing back up an hour later expecting her to still be here waiting on you. You are so full of yourself.”

  “Like I said, that’s not the way it was,” he said, glancing around at all his family circling around him.

  “You’re going to have a hard time convincing Lucia of that,” Chloe said, not with the same snappish tone Bailey had used, but there was no doubt in everyone’s mind that if given the chance she would clobber this particular brother-in-law right about now.

  “Especially when just a couple of weeks ago Ashira paid Lucia a visit at Simply Irresistible and warned her that she could get you back anytime she wanted, and that the two of you have an understanding and that she would be the one who would eventually become your wife,” Chloe added in disgust.

  “Like hell,” Derringer snarled.

  “Doesn’t matter. Ashira came here today to prove a point and in Lucia’s eyes, she did.”

  “But like I said, it wasn’t that way,” Derringer implored. He then outlined everything that had happened once he’d left with Ashira and the reason that he’d left with her in the first place. “And I won’t let that sort of misunderstanding come between me and Lucia,” he said, moving toward his truck. “I need to go see her.”

  She wasn’t home when Derringer got there, but according to her neighbor, Mrs. Noel, she had been there, rushing in and then leaving with an overnight bag. Derringer had no idea where she had gone. And she wouldn’t answer her cell phone, although he had left several messages for her. He knew her parents were still in Tennessee and wouldn’t be returning for another week or so. Thinking she’d possibly driven out to their place to stay for the night, he had gone there too, only to find the Conyers’s homestead deserted.

  It was after midnight when he returned to his place and rushed over to his phone when it began ringing the moment he opened the door. “Hello?”

  “This is Chloe. I just got a call from Lucia. She’s fine and asked that you not try seeing her or calling her. She needs time.”

  “No, she needs me just like I need her. She should have told me about Ashira’s visit and I would have straightened things out then. I need to talk with her, Chloe. I can’t stand to lose her.”

  “And why can’t you stand to lose her, Derringer? What makes her so different from the others?”

  He knew why Chloe was goading him. He was well aware what she was trying to get him to admit, not only to himself, but to her as well, just how he felt about Lucia. “I love her.” He drew in a deep breath. “I love her so damn much.”

  “Then somehow you’re going to have to convince her of that, not only in words, but with actions. Good night, Derringer.”

  Chloe then hung up the phone.

  Twelve

  Lucia sat behind her desk
and stared at the beautiful arrangement of flowers that had arrived that morning. She then glanced around her office at the others that had arrived during the week. The cards all said the same thing: You are the only woman I want.

  She drew in a deep breath wishing she could believe that, but for some reason she couldn’t. Maybe it had to do with the haughty I-told-you-so look Ashira had had on her face when she had left that day with Derringer. The two of them had a history. The woman had been after Derringer for years and it seemed as if she had him. And according to Ashira, no matter who he messed around with, she would be the woman he married.

  So, Lucia couldn’t help asking herself, why was she wasting her time and her heart? The latter she knew there was no answer for. She would continue to love him, no matter what. Always had and always would. But she could do something about the former. To spend any more time with him was heartbreak just waiting to happen. Of course, he wouldn’t see it that way. Men had a tendency to look at affairs differently. They didn’t have a clue when it came to emotions.

  At least he was respecting her wishes and hadn’t tried contacting her again. She figured he and Ashira were now a hot item, although Chloe insisted otherwise. Of course, she had come up with an excuse for the reason he’d left, which Lucia was certain was the one he’d told everyone. Little did he know that Ashira was spreading another story. She wanted to make sure word got back to Lucia through mutual acquaintances that she and Derringer had left the party to go to his place and have hot, blazing sex. It deeply pained Lucia that he could leave her bed that morning and hop into bed with another woman less than twelve hours later.

  Lucia glanced up when she heard the knock at her office door. “Come in.”

  Chloe stuck her head in and smiled. “Word is around the office that you got more flowers.”

  She came in and closed the door behind her, admiring the arrangement sitting on Lucia’s desk. “They are gorgeous, but then, all the bouquets Derringer has sent have been gorgeous. You have to admit that.”

  Lucia smiled slowly. “Yes, they’ve all been gorgeous, but they don’t mean a thing.”

  Chloe took the chair across from her desk. “Because of what Tanya McCoy called and told you yesterday? That she’d heard Ashira and Derringer left my place and had hot, rousing sex over at Derringer’s Dungeon? I don’t believe that and neither should you. Ashira is just trying to save face. I was there when Derringer returned in Pete’s patrol car. Don’t let Ashira continue to mess with your mind like that. You need to take Derringer’s message on those cards you’ve been getting with the flowers to heart.”

  Lucia fought back tears. “I wish I could, but I can’t. All these years I’ve loved him and was fine with loving him from a distance. But then I had to go ruin everything by admitting I loved him and letting him into my space. From now on it’s going back to status quo.”

  “Does that mean you won’t ever visit your god-daughter at my place, for fear of running into Derringer?”

  “No, but I’m trying to get beyond that.”

  “Then I think this coming Saturday is the perfect way to start. I suggest you change your mind about coming to the Westmoreland Charity Ball. If you see Derringer, no big deal. Now is your time to show him once and for all that you’ve gotten over him and you’re moving on and won’t be hiding out to avoid him.”

  Lucia nervously nibbled on her bottom lip. “And what if he’s there with Ashira?”

  “And what if he is? It’s his loss. And if he wants her instead of you then more power to him. But if I were you, I would definitely let him see what he gave up. Um, I think you and I should go shopping.”

  Lucia wasn’t convinced making an appearance at the charity ball this weekend would be the right thing to do.

  “Just because you think one Westmoreland acted like an ass is no reason to ostracize yourself from the rest of us,” Chloe added.

  Lucia knew what Chloe just said was true. Gemma had called her this morning and she had yet to call her back. So had Megan and Bailey earlier in the week. They had been friends long before she’d met Derringer. It wasn’t their fault that she had fallen head over heels in love with their brother, a man who would never settle down, fall in love and marry any woman. Except maybe Ashira one day when he got tired of playing the field.

  She tossed her pen on the desk and met Chloe’s gaze. “Maybe you’re right. I can’t avoid the other Westmorelands just because my affair with Derringer went sour.”

  A smile touched Chloe’s lips. “No, you can’t. So are we going shopping this weekend?”

  Lucia chuckled. “Yes, and I know this is more about you than me, Chloe Burton Westmoreland. You’ll do anything, come up with any excuse, to shop.”

  Chloe stood, smiling. “Hey, what can I say? A woman has to do what a woman has to do.”

  * * *

  Derringer glanced around. He was surrounded by Westmorelands and he couldn’t help but smile. Once a year all the Westmorelands—from the south and west—got together for a family reunion rotating between Atlanta, rural Montana and Denver. At other times they got together to support each other for various events. Earlier this year they had traveled to Austin to be with their cousins: Cole, Clint and Casey Westmoreland had honored their deceased uncle during the Sid Roberts Foundation annual charity ball. And usually every year there seemed to be a Westmoreland wedding. The last one had been Gemma’s a few months back.

  And now all the Atlanta and Montana Westmorelands were gathered here in Denver with their wives for the Westmoreland Charity Ball. They had begun arriving a few days ago and were all accounted for as of noon today when Thorn and Tara had arrived. Thorn had come straight from Bikers’ Week in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

  “Thanks for putting us up for the next couple of days, Derringer.”

  He glanced around and smiled at his cousins, the twins—Storm and Chase. But then there were several sets of twins in the Atlanta Westmorelands’ group. Storm and Chase’s father had been a twin, and his cousins, Ian and Quade, were twins as well.

  “Hey, no problem. If there’s anything you need, just let me know.” At that moment his cell phone went off and when he saw it was Chloe he smiled. “Excuse me while I take this.”

  He went outside to sit on the porch. “Yes, Chloe?”

  “You owe me big-time, Derringer, and I swear, if you screw up, I’m coming after you myself.”

  He believed her. “Trust me, I’ve got everything planned. I’m just grateful you got Lucia to agree to come to the charity ball.”

  “It wasn’t easy. Ashira and her girls are out spreading lies, claiming that when you left the cookout, you took her to Derringer’s Dungeon and got busy.”

  Derringer’s mouth dropped. They hadn’t gone near his home. “That’s a lie.”

  “I know, but she’s intent on spreading that rumor. I don’t know what you have planned for the ball, but it better be good, and hopefully it will put a stop to Ashira once and for all.”

  Derringer nodded. “Trust me. It will.”

  * * *

  “You sure you’re all right, sweetheart?”

  Lucia glanced over at her parents, namely, her dad, who had a concerned look on his face. “Yes, Dad, I’m fine.”

  He smiled. “Well, you look simply beautiful.”

  And considering everything, she felt beautiful. Chloe had nearly worn her out last weekend. They hadn’t just shopped in Denver but had caught one of those commuter planes to Boulder to do some shopping there as well. In the end, she felt like Cinderella entering the ball. And just like good ole Cinderella she feared she would leave the ball without her man.

  The moment she and her parents entered the huge ballroom she drew in a deep breath at the number of people in attendance. But then, she really wasn’t surprised. The Westmoreland Foundation provided funds to a number of charities and for that very reason the people of Denver were always supportive.

  It didn’t take long to pick out all the Westmorelands, especially the males.
Whether they were from the north, south, east or west, they had similar looks and builds. In their black tuxes, they were all tall, dashing and ultrahandsome and, not surprisingly, even with their wives on their arms most of the other women present had their eyes on them with wishful expressions on their faces.

  She had met all of them at Chloe’s wedding and again at Gemma’s. They were a nice group of people and she thought Chloe was blessed to be a part of the Westmoreland clan.

  It seemed Chloe spotted her the moment she arrived and eagerly pulled her from her parents’ side, telling her over and over just how ravishing she looked. So did Bailey, Megan, Gemma and a number of the other Westmoreland women. All the men spoke to her and as usual Zane gave her a naughty wink, which made her chuckle.

  She released a deep breath, glad no one was acting or behaving any differently toward her, although all that might change once Derringer arrived with Ashira on his arm. She was just speculating and couldn’t help doing so when both he and Ashira didn’t appear to be present. No sooner had that thought left her mind than she glanced up and Ashira walked in with a couple of her girlfriends. Lucia was surprised she wasn’t with Derringer.

  A short while later, Lucia was dancing with Jason when Derringer cut in. She glanced up and tried her best not to narrow her gaze at him. The last thing she wanted was to let him know just how badly he had hurt her, although she was sure he had a clue, which was the reason for the flowers. But if he thought he could woo her and sleep with Ashira at the same time then he had another thought coming.

  “Lucia.”

  She wished he didn’t say her name quite that way. With that same throatiness she remembered so well. “Derringer.”

  “You look beautiful.”

  “Thanks. You look handsome yourself.” That was no lie. For some reason, tonight he looked more handsome than ever.