Westmoreland Desires: Riding the Storm / Jared's Counterfeit Fiancée / The Chase Is On

His features showed signs of surprise. “You do?”

“Yes, raising a family is a full-time job.”

He leaned back in his chair and studied her for a moment before asking, “So you would do it? You would be a stay-at-home-mom?”

“No.”

He sat up straight. “But you just said that you—”

“Admired women who did it, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that I would do it. I believe I can handle a career and motherhood and chose to have both.”

“It won’t be easy.”

Jayla chuckled as she pushed aside her plate. “Nothing about being a parent is easy, Storm, whether you work in the home or outside the home. The most important thing is making sure the child is loved and well taken care of. Now if you will excuse me, I think I will try some of that fruit.”

Storm watched as she stood and crossed the room. Wasn’t it just yesterday that he had decided to stay away from her because she was too much of a temptation? When he had walked into the restaurant, he had sensed her presence even before he had actually seen her. Then he had glanced around and his gaze had locked in on her sitting alone at a table, drinking her orange juice with a huge smile on her face, completely oblivious to anyone and anything around her. Even now, he couldn’t help but wonder what had put her in such a good mood.

He took a sip of his coffee, thinking she evidently didn’t want him to know since she hadn’t shared whatever it was with him. Electricity shot through him as he continued to watch as she put an assortment of fruit into a bowl. He liked the outfit she was wearing, a fuchsia sundress with spaghetti straps and a pair of flat sandals on her feet. She had gorgeous legs, and her hair flowed around her shoulders, emphasizing her beauty from every angle. She looked the very image of sexiness and at the same time she looked comfortable and ready for the New Orleans heat that was normal for a September day.

“The food in this place is good,” she said returning to the table and digging into the different fruits she had brought back with her.

He lifted his dark head and his stomach tightened as he watched her slip a slice of pineapple into her mouth and relish it as if it were the best thing she’d ever eaten. She chewed very slowly while his gaze stayed glued to her mouth, finding the entire ordeal fascinating as well as arousing.

“So, what are you plans for today?”

Her question reeled him back in. He set his fork down and leaned back in his chair. He met her gaze, or at least tried to, without lowering it to her mouth again. “Take in the sights. I checked with the person at the concierge’s desk and he suggested I do the Gray Line bus tour.”

Jayla smiled brightly. “Hey, he gave me the same suggestion. Do you want to do it together?”

Innocent as it was, he wished she hadn’t invited him to join her sightseeing expedition in precisely those words. Do it together. A totally different scenario than what she was proposing popped into his head and he was having a hard time getting it out of there. “You sure you don’t mind the company?” he asked searching her face. Although he got very few, he recognized a brush-off when he got one and yesterday, after asking her to dinner, she had definitely given him the brush-off.

“No, I’d love the company.”

He wondered what had changed her mood. Evidently the news she’d received had turned the snotty Jayla of last night into Miss Congeniality this morning.

“So what do you say, Mr. Fireman? Shall we hit the streets?”

Hitting the sheets was more to his liking, but he immediately reminded himself just who she was and that she was still off-limits. “Sure. I think it would be fun.” As long as we keep things simple, he wanted to add but didn’t.

She chuckled, a low, sexy sound, as she leaned forward. “And that’s what I need, Storm, some honest-to-goodness fun.”

He looked at her for a moment, then suddenly understood. The past six months had to have been hard. She and her father had been extremely close, so no doubt the loneliness was finally getting to her.

A jolt of protectiveness shot through him. Hadn’t he promised Adam that he would look after her? Besides, if anyone could show her how to have fun, he could. Because of his attraction to her, over the years he had basically tried to avoid her. Now it seemed that doing so had robbed him of the chance to get to know her better. Maybe it was time that he took the first step to rectify the situation so that a relationship, one of friendship only, could develop between them.

Having fun with a woman without the involvement of sex would be something new for him, but he was willing to try it. Since there was no way the two of them could ever be serious, he saw nothing wrong with letting his guard down and having a good time. “Then I will give you a day of fun, Jayla Cole,” he said and meaning every word.

A smile touched the corners of his mouth. “And who knows? You just might surprise yourself and have so much fun, you may not ever want to get serious again.”

Two

A rush of excitement shot through Jayla’s bloodstream when the bus made another stop on its tour. This time to board the Steamboat Natchez for a cruise along the Mississippi River. So far, she and Storm had taken a carriage ride through the French Quarter, a tour of the swamps and visited a number of magnificently restored mansions and courtyards.

The Natchez was a beautiful replica of the steamboats that once cruised the Mississippi. Jayla stood at the railing appreciating the majestic beauty of the river and all the historical landmarks as they navigated its muddy waters. She was very much aware of the man standing beside her. During the boat ride, Storm had kept her amused by telling her interesting tidbits of information about riverboats.

As he talked, she tipped her head and studied him, letting eyes that were hidden behind the dark lenses of her sunglasses roam over him. She enjoyed looking at him as much as she enjoyed listening to him. Soft jazz was flowing through several speakers that were located on the lower deck and the sound of the boat gliding through the water had a relaxing effect on Jayla.

When Storm fell silent for a few moments, Jayla figured she needed to say something to assure him that he had her full attention, which he definitely did. “How do you know so much about riverboats?” she asked, genuinely curious. She watched his lips curve into a smile and a flutter went through her stomach.

“Mainly because of my cousin Ian,” he replied as he absently flicked a strand of hair away from her face. “A few years ago, he and some investor friends of his decided to buy a beauty of a riverboat. It’s over four hundred feet long and ninety feet high, and equipped with enough staterooms to hold over four hundred passengers.”

“Wow! Where does it go?”

Storm leaned back against the rail and placed his hands in the pockets of his shorts. “Ian’s riverboat, The Delta Princess, departs from Memphis on ten-day excursions along the Mississippi with stops in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Vicksburg and Natchez. His crew provides first-class service and the food he serves on board is excellent. In the beginning, business was slow, but now he has reservations booked well over a year in advance. It didn’t take him long to figure out what would be a drawing card.”

Jayla lifted a brow. “What?”

“Gambling. You’d be surprised how many people have money they figure is worth losing if there’s a chance that they might win more.”

Jayla could believe that. A couple of years ago, she and Lisa had taken a trip to Vegas and had seen first hand just how hungry to win some people were.

When there was another lull in the conversation, she turned away from him to look out over the river once more. It was peaceful, nothing like the tempest that was raging through her at the moment. Storm had kept his word. She’d had more fun today with him than she’d had in a long time. He possessed a fun-loving attitude that had spilled over to her. There were times when he had shared a joke with her that had her laughing so hard she actually thought something inside her body would break. It had felt good to laugh, and she was glad she’d been able to laugh with him.

She tried to think of the last time she had laughed with a man and recalled that it had been with her father. Even during his final days, when she’d known that pain had racked his body, he’d been able to tell a good joke every now and then. She heaved a small sigh. She missed her father so much. Because he had kept such a tight rein on her, she had been a rebellious teen while growing up. It was only when she’d returned from college that she had allowed herself to form that special father-daughter relationship with him.

After his death, at the encouragement of the officials at the hospice facility, she had gone through grief counseling and was glad she had. It had helped to let go and move on. One of the biggest decisions she’d been forced to make was whether to sell her parents’ home and move into a smaller place. After much soul-searching, she had made a decision to move. She loved her new home and knew once she had her baby, it wouldn’t be as lonely as it was now. She was getting excited again just thinking about it.

“So what are your plans for later?”

Storm’s question invaded her thoughts and she tipped her head to look over at him. “My plans for later?”

“Yes. Yesterday, I invited you to join me for dinner and you turned me down, saying you’d already made plans. Today, I’m hoping to ask early enough so that I’ll catch you before you make other arrangements.”

Jayla sighed. She knew her mind needed a reality check, but she wasn’t ready to give it one. Spending the day with Storm had been nice; it had been fun and definitely what she’d needed. But she didn’t need to spend her evening with him as well. The only thing the two of them had in common was the fact they both loved and respected her father. That would be the common link they would always share. But spending more time with Storm would only reawaken all those old feelings of attraction she had always had for him.

She took off her sunglasses, met his gaze directly and immediately wished she hadn’t. His eyes were dark, so dark you could barely see the pupils. The jolt that passed through her was so startling she had to remind herself to breathe.

“I was wondering when you were going to stop hiding behind these,” he said, taking the sunglasses out of her hand when she was about to put them back on. He gave her a cocky smile. “But I didn’t mind you checking me out.”

Jayla couldn’t hide the blush that darkened her cheeks. Nor could she resist easing her lips into a smile. So he’d known she had been looking him over. “I guess it probably gets rather annoying to you after a while, doesn’t it?”

He arched a brow. “What?”

“Women constantly checking you out.”

He smiled again. “Not really. Usually I beat them to the punch and check them out, so by the time they decide they’re interested, I know whether or not I am.”

A grin tilted the corners of Jayla’s lips. “Umm, such arrogance.” She took her sunglasses from him and put them back on, preferring her shield.