The Proposal / To Tempt a Sheikh: The Proposal

He took another sip of wine. “That’s what everyone is trying to find out. We need to know if there are any more Westmorelands out there. Megan is hiring a private detective to help solve the puzzle about Raphel’s wives. We’ve eliminated two and now we have two more to check out.”

When they finished the main course Jason used his cell phone to call downstairs to say they were ready for dessert. Moments later banana pudding was delivered to them. Bella thought the dessert was simply delicious. She usually didn’t eat a lot of sweets but once she’d taken a bite she couldn’t help but finish the whole thing.

A short while later, after they’d devoured the dessert with coffee, Jason checked his watch. “We’re right on schedule. I’ll take you back in time to get your car so you can make your meeting with Marvin.”

Jason stood, rounded the table and reached for her hand. The instant they touched it seemed a rush of heated sensations tore through the both of them at the same time. It was absorbed in their bones, tangled their flesh and he all but shuddered under the impact. The alluring scent of her filled his nostrils and his breath was freed on a ragged sigh.

Some part of his brain told him to take a step back and put distance between them. But then another part told him he was facing the inevitable. There had been this blazing attraction, this tantalizing degree of lust between them from the beginning. For him it had been since the moment he had seen her when she’d entered the ballroom with Kenneth Bostwick. He had known then he wanted her.

They stared at each other and for a second he thought she would avert her gaze from his but she didn’t. She couldn’t resist him any more than he could resist her and they both knew it, which was probably why, when he took a step closer and began lowering his head, she went on tiptoes and lifted her mouth to meet his.

The moment their lips connected, a low, guttural sound rumbled from deep in his throat and he deepened the kiss the moment she wrapped her arms around his neck. His tongue slid easily into her mouth, exploring one side and then another, as well as all the areas in between before tangling with her own, mating deeply, and when she reciprocated the move sent a jolt of desire all through his bones.

And then it was on.

Holy crap. Hunger the likes he’d never felt before infiltrated his mind. He felt a sexual connection with her that he’d never felt with any woman before. As his tongue continued to slide against hers, parts of him felt primed and ready to explode at any moment. Never had he encountered such overwhelming passion, such blatant desire and raw primal need.

His mouth was doing a good job tasting her, but the rest of him wanted to feel her, draw her closer into his arms. On instinct he felt her lean into him, plastering their bodies from breast to knee and as Jason deepened the kiss even more, he groaned, wondering if he would never get enough of her.

Bella was feeling the same way about Jason. No man had ever held her this close, taken her mouth this passionately and made sensations she’d never felt before rush through her quicker than the speed of light.

And she felt him, his erection, rigid and throbbing, against her middle, pressing hard at the juncture of her thighs, making her feel sensations there—right there—she hadn’t felt before. It was doing more than just tingling. She was left aching in that very spot. She felt like a mass of kerosene and he was a torch set to ignite her, making her explode into flames. He was all solid muscle pressing against her and she wanted it all. She wanted him. She wasn’t sure what wanting him entailed but she knew he was the only man who made her feel this way. He was the only man she wanted to make her feel this way.

When at last he drew his mouth away from her, his face remained close. Acting by instinct, she took her tongue and licked around his lips from corner to corner, not ready to relinquish the taste of him. When a guttural sound emitted from his throat, need rammed through her and when she tilted her lips toward his, he took her mouth once again. He eased his tongue into her mouth like it had every right to be there and at the moment she was of the conclusion that it did.

He slowly broke off the kiss and stared into her face for a long moment before caressing his thumb across her lips then running his fingers through the curls on her head.

“I guess we better leave now so you won’t miss your meeting,” he said in a deep, husky tone.

Unable to utter a single word she merely nodded.

And when he took her hand and entwined her fingers in his, the sensations she’d felt earlier were still strong, nearly overpowering, but she was determined to fight it this time. And every time after that. She could not become involved with anyone, especially someone like Jason. And especially not now.

She had enough on her plate in dealing with the ranch and her parents. She had to keep her head on straight and not get caught up in the desires of the flesh. She didn’t need a lover; she needed a game plan.

And as Jason led her out of his office, she tried sorting out all the emotions she was feeling. She’d just been kissed senseless and now she was trying to convince herself that no matter what, it couldn’t happen again.

Only problem with that was her mind was declaring one thing and her body was claiming another.

Three

He was in serious trouble.

Jason rubbed his hand across his face as he watched Bella rush off toward her car. He made sure she had gotten inside and driven off before pulling out of the parking lot behind her. The Westmoreland men were known to have high testosterone levels but his had never given him pause until today and only with Bella Bostwick.

He wouldn’t waste his time wondering why he had kissed her since he knew the reason. She was walking femininity at its finest, temptation not too many men could resist and a lustful shot in any man’s arms. He had gotten a sampling of all three. And it hadn’t been a little taste but a whole whopping one. Now that he knew her flavor he wanted to savor it again and again and again.

When he brought his truck to a stop at a traffic light he checked his watch. Bella wasn’t the only one who had a meeting this afternoon. He, Zane and Derringer had a conference call with their partners in Montana in less than an hour. He hadn’t forgotten about the meeting but spending time with Bella had been something he hadn’t been willing to shorten. Now with the taste of her still lingering in his mouth, he was glad he hadn’t.

He shook his head, still finding it hard to believe just how well they had connected with that kiss, which made him wonder how they would connect in other ways and places … like in the bedroom.

The thought of her naked, thighs opened while he entered her was something he couldn’t get out of his mind. He was burning for her and although he’d like to think it was only a physical attraction he wasn’t sure that was the case. But then if it wasn’t the case, what was it?

He didn’t get a chance to think any further because at that moment his cell phone rang. He pulled it off his belt and saw it was his cousin Derringer. The newlywed of just a little over a month had been the last person he’d thought would fall in love with any woman. But he had and Jason could see why. Lucia was as precious as they came and everyone thought she was a great addition to the Westmoreland family.

“Yes, Derringer?”

“Hey, man, where are you? Did you forget about today’s meeting?”

Jason couldn’t help but smile as he remembered how he’d called to ask Derringer the same question since he’d gotten married. It seemed these days it was hard for his cousin to tear himself away from his wife at times.

“No, I didn’t forget and I’m less than thirty minutes away.”

“Okay. And I hear your lady is joining the family for dinner on Friday night.”

He considered that for a moment. Had anyone else made that comment he probably would have gotten irritated by it, but Derringer was Derringer and the two people who knew more than anyone that he didn’t have a “lady” were his cousins Derringer and Zane. Knowing that was the case he figured Derringer was fishing for information.

“I don’t have a lady and you very well know it, Derringer.”

“Do I? If that’s the case when did you become a tea sipper?”

He laughed as his gaze held steady to the road. “Ah, I see our precious Bailey has been talking.”

“Who else? Bella might have mentioned it to the ladies when they went visiting, but of course it’s Bailey who’s decided you have the hots for the Southern belle. And those were Bailey’s words not mine.”

“Thanks for clarifying that for me.” The hots weren’t all he had for Bella Bostwick. Blood was pumping fast and furious in his veins at the thought of the kiss they had shared.

“No problem. So level with me, Jason. What’s going on with you and the Southern Bella?”

Jason smiled. The Southern Bella fit her. But then so did the Sensuous Bella. The Sexy Bella. The Sumptuous Bella. “And what makes you think something is going on?”

“I know you.”

True. Derringer and Zane knew him better than any of the other Westmorelands because they’d always been close, thick as thieves while growing up. “I admit I’m attracted to her but what man wouldn’t be? Otherwise, it’s not that serious.” “You sure?”

Jason’s hand tightened on his steering wheel—that was the crux of his problem. When it came to Bella the only thing he was sure about was that he wanted her in a way he’d never wanted any other woman. When they’d kissed she kissed him back in a way that had his body heating up just thinking how her tongue had mated with his. He had loved the way her silken curls had felt flowing through his fingers and how perfect their bodies fit together.

He was probably treading on dangerous ground but for reasons he didn’t quite understand, he couldn’t admit to being sure right now. So instead of outright lying he decided to plead the fifth by saying, “I’ll get back to you on that.”

Irritation spread all through his gut at the thought that he hadn’t given Derringer an answer mainly because he couldn’t. And for a man who’d always been decisive when it came to a woman’s place in his heart, he could just imagine what Derringer was thinking.

He was trying not to think the same thing himself. Hell, he’d only set out to be a good neighbor and then realized how much he enjoyed her company. And then there had been the attraction he hadn’t been able to overlook.

“I’ll see you when you get here, Jason. Have a safe drive in,” Derringer said without further comment about Bella.

“Will do.”

Bella stood staring out her bedroom window at the mountains. Her meeting with Marvin had been informative as well as a little overwhelming. But she had been able to follow everything the man had said. Heading the list was Hercules. The horse was restless, agitated and it seemed when Hercules wasn’t in a good mood everybody knew it.