Kitabı oku: «The Garrisons: Cassie, Adam & Brooke», sayfa 6

Her back became ramrod straight. “You can think again!”

He suddenly realized how that might have sounded. “Calm down, Cassie,” he said, running his hand down his face. “That’s not what I meant. I was suggesting it would be nice to get out of these wet things so you can dry them for me. Otherwise, I might catch pneumonia.”

Cassie bit down on her lip to keep from telling him that when and if he caught pneumonia she hoped he died a slow, agonizing death, but then dished the thought from her mind. She wasn’t a heartless or cruel person, although he was the last human being on earth who deserved even a drop of her kindness.

“Fine,” she snapped. “The laundry room is this way,” she said, walking out of the room knowing he had to walk briskly to keep up with her. “And I suggest you stay in that room until your clothes are dry.”

“Why? Don’t you have a towel I could use while they’re drying?”

She shot a look at him that said he was skating on thin ice and it was getting thinner every minute. “I have plenty of towels but I prefer not seeing you parade around in one.”

“Okay.”

She abruptly stopped walking and turned to face him. “Look, Brandon. Apparently everything you’ve done in the last three days was nothing but a joke to you but I hope you don’t see me laughing. You don’t even see me smiling.”

The humor that had been in Brandon’s eyes immediately faded. When he spoke again his voice was barely audible. “No, I don’t think the last three days were a joke, Cassie. In fact I think they were the most precious I’ve ever spent in my entire life. The only thing I regret is coming to this island thinking you were someone you are not and because of it, I screwed up something awful. The only thing I can do is be honest with you now.”

She refused to let his words affect her in any way. There was no way she could trust him again. “It really doesn’t matter what you say when we talk, Brandon. I won’t be able to get beyond the fact that you deliberately deceived me.”

“Not all of it was based on deceit, Cassie. When I made love to you it was based on complete sincerity. Please don’t ever think that it wasn’t.”

“You used me,” she flung out with intense anger in her voice.

He reached out and gently touched the cleft in her chin and said in a low voice, “No, I made love to you, Cassie. I gave you more of myself than I’ve ever given another woman, freely, unselfishly and completely.”

Knowing if she didn’t take a step back from him she would weaken, she said, “The laundry room is straight ahead and on your right. And since you’re so terrified of catching pneumonia, there’s a linen closet with towels in that room. But I’m warning you to stay put until your clothes dry. I have enough to do with my time than worry about a half-naked man parading through my house. I need to fill all the bathtubs with water in case I lose electricity.”

“And if you do lose electricity, the thought of being here in the dark won’t bother you?”

“For your information, I won’t be here. As soon as your clothes dry and you have your say, I’m going to the hotel to help out there.”

“You’re going out in that weather?” he asked in a disbelieving tone.

“I believe that’s what I said,” she said smartly.

“Weren’t you listening when I said the authorities are asking people to stay off the streets?” he asked incredulously, refusing to believe anyone could be so pigheaded and stubborn.

She lifted her chin. “Yes, I was listening with as much concentration as you were when I was telling you to leave.” She narrowed her eyes and then said, “Now if you will excuse me, I have things to do. When your clothes are dry and you’re fully dressed again, you should be able to find me in the living room.”

Narrowing his eyes, Brandon watched as she turned and walked away.

Cassie kept walking on shaky legs, refusing to give in to temptation and glance over her shoulder to look at Brandon once again. The man was unsettling in the worst possible way and the last thing she needed was having him here under her roof, especially when the two of them were completely alone.

She shook her head. At least he was taking off those wet jeans. She hadn’t missed seeing how they had fit his body like a second layer of skin. She was glad he hadn’t caught her staring at him when he had been putting the shutters up to the windows. Every time he had moved his body her eyes had moved with it. Not only had his wet jeans hugged his muscular thighs but they had shown what a nice tush he had, as well as a flat, firm stomach.

She sighed deeply, disgusted with herself. How could she still find the man desirable after what he had done? And she’d had no intention of accepting his help with the shutters but he hadn’t given her a choice in the matter. He did just whatever he wanted. Even now his behavior and actions were totally unacceptable to her.

After filling up all the bathtubs and making sure there were candles in appropriate places and extra batteries had been placed beside her radio, she called the hotel. Simon had assured her that he had everything under control and for her to stay put and not try to come out in the weather. The majority of the people who had wanted to leave had checked out of the hotel without a hitch. The ones that had remained would ride the weather out at the Garrison Grand-Bahamas. If the authorities called for a complete evacuation of the hotel, then they would use the hotel’s vans to provide transportation to the closest shelters that had been set up. Simon had insisted that she promise that if needed, she would leave her home and go to the nearest shelter, as well.

Satisfied her staff had everything under control, she walked into the living room, over to the French doors and glanced out. The ocean appeared fierce and angry, and the most recent forecast she’d heard—at least the most positive one—said that Melissa would weaken before passing over the Bahamas. But Cassie had lived on the island long enough to know there was also a chance the hurricane would intensify once it reached land as well.

She glanced up at the sky. Although it was mid-afternoon the sky had darkened to a velvet black and the clouds were thickening. Huge droplets of rain were drenching the earth and strong, gusty winds had trees swaying back and forth. She rubbed her arms, feeling a slight chill in the air. Even if Melissa did become a category four, Cassie wasn’t afraid of losing her home. Her father had built this house to withstand just about anything.

Except pain.

It seemed those words filtered through her mind on a whisper. And she hung her head as more pain engulfed her, disturbed by the emotions that were scurrying through her. She drew in a deep breath, thinking she hadn’t shed a single tear for what Jason had done to her, yet earlier today she had cried for the pain Brandon had caused her. Inwardly her heart was still crying.

Cassie lifted her head. She smelled Brandon’s scent even before she actually heard him. She knew he was there and had known the exact moment he had entered the room. However, she wasn’t ready to turn around yet, at least not until she had her full coat of armor in place. For a reason she was yet to understand, Brandon Jarrett Washington had gotten under her skin and even with all the anger she felt toward him, he was still embedded there.

“Cassie?”

She stiffened when the sound of his voice reached her. She tried ignoring the huskiness of his tone and the goose bumps that pricked her skin. Saying a silent prayer for strength, as well as the retention of her common sense, she slowly turned around. Because all the windows were protected by shutters, the room appeared slightly dark, yet she was able to make him out clearly. He stood rigid in the doorway and thankfully, fully dressed. He took a step into the room and heat coursed through her, and to her way of thinking she might have been thankful way too soon.

Although she didn’t want to admit it, even in dry jeans and a shirt, Brandon looked the picture of a well-developed man. And she was reacting to his presence in a way she didn’t want to and that realization was very disconcerting. The silence shrouding them within the room was a stark contradiction to the fury of the storm that was raging outside.

She tightened her hands into fists at her side when he slowly crossed the room to her. His gaze continued to touch hers when he reached out his hand to her and said in a soft voice, “Come, Cassie, let’s sit on the sofa and talk.”

Seven

Cassie glanced down at the hand Brandon was offering her. That hand had touched her all over last night, as well as participated in their no-holds-barred lovemaking. Finding out about his betrayal had hurt and she wasn’t ready to accept anything he offered her. She would listen to what he had to say and that would be it.

Refusing to accept his hand, she returned her gaze to his face and said, “You can sit on the sofa. I’ll take the chair.” Her lips tightened when she moved across the room to take her seat.

Brandon was still considering Cassie’s actions just now when he headed toward the sofa. It was apparent she didn’t intend to make things easy for him and he could accept that. He had wronged her and it would be hard as hell to make things right. He wasn’t even sure it was something that could be done, but he would try. Nervous anxiety was trying to set in but he refused to let it. Somehow he had to get her to understand.

Once he was settled on the sofa he glanced over at her, but she was looking everywhere but at him. That gave him a chance to remember how she had looked that first night he’d seen her on the beach. Even before knowing who she was, he had been attracted to her, had wanted to get to know her, get close to her and make love to her.

He shifted in his seat. Intense desire was settling in his loins, blazing them beyond control. Now was not a good time for such magnetism and he figured if she were to notice, she wouldn’t appreciate it. Not needing any more trouble on his plate than was already there, he shifted on the sofa again and found a position that made that part of his body less conspicuous, although his desire for her didn’t decrease any.

“Before you get started would you like something to drink?”

He glanced up and met her gaze, surprised she would offer him anything. “Yes, please.”

She left the room and that gave him a few moments to think. In a way it was a strange twist of fate that had brought him and Cassie together. Their fathers’ friendship had extended from college to death and unless he cleared up this issue between them, he and Cassie could very well become bitter enemies. He didn’t want that and was unwilling to accept it as an option.

She returned moments later with two glasses of wine, one for him and the other for herself. Instead of handing him his wineglass directly, she placed it on the table beside him. Evidently, she had no intention of them touching in any way. He picked up his glass and took a sip, regretting he was responsible for bringing their relationship to such a sorrowful state.

“You wanted to talk.”

Her words reminded him of why she was there, not to mention the distinct chill in the air. He took another sip of his wine and then he began speaking. “As you know, the Garrisons didn’t know about your existence until the reading of John’s will. I’m not going to say that no one might have suspected he was involved in an affair with someone, but I think I can truthfully say that no one was aware that a child had resulted from that affair. You were quite a surprise to everyone.”

When she didn’t make any comment or show any expression on her face, he continued. “But what came as an even bigger surprise was the fact that John left you controlling interest to share with Parker. That was definitely a shocker to everyone, especially Parker, who is the oldest and probably the most ambitious of John’s sons. It was assumed, as well as understood, that if anything ever happened to John, Parker would get the majority share of controlling interest. Such a move was only right since John had turned the running of Garrison over to Parker on his thirty-first birthday. And Parker has done an outstanding job since then. Therefore, I hope you can understand why he was not only hurt and confused, but also extremely upset.”

He could tell by the look on Cassie’s face that she didn’t understand anything, or that stubborn mind of hers was refusing to let her. “As I told you earlier,” he continued, “my father is the one who drew up John’s will, so I didn’t know anything about you until I read over the document a few days before I was to present the will to the family. Once I discovered the truth, I knew the reading of it wouldn’t be pretty.”

He took a deep breath and proceeded on. “Pursuing normal legal action in this case, we took moves to contest the will but found it airtight. And—”

“I guess Parker smartened up and thought twice about pushing for a DNA test, as well,” she interrupted in a curt tone.

Brandon nodded. “Yes, I advised him that nothing would be gained from it. John claimed you as his child and that was that. Besides, there was no reason to really believe that you weren’t. You and Parker made contact and he offered to buy out your share of the controlling interest. You turned him down.”

“And that should have been the end of it,” she snapped.

Brandon couldn’t help the smile that touched the corners of his lips. “Yes, possibly. But that’s where you and Parker are alike in some respect.”

At the lifting of her dark, arched brow, he explained. “You’re both extremely stubborn.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “That’s your opinion.”

He decided not to waste time arguing with her by telling her that was what he knew, especially after spending time with her. Although she and Parker had never officially met, the prime reason they didn’t get along was because they were similar in a lot of ways. Besides being stubborn, both were ambitious and driven to succeed. Apparently John had recognized that quality in the both of them and felt together they would do a good job by continuing the empire he’d created.

“I’m waiting, Brandon.”

He glanced over at Cassie and saw her frowning in irritation. “I want to apologize for assuming a lot of incorrect things about you, Cassie, and I hope you will find it in your heart to forgive me.”

Cassie wasn’t ready to say whether she would or would not forgive him. At the moment she was close to doing the latter. However, she was curious about something. “And just what did you assume about me?”

Brandon inhaled before speaking. “Before answering that, I need to say that when you decided to be a force to reckon with by not responding to my firm’s letters or returning any more of Parker’s phone calls, it was decided that I should come and meet with you and make you the offer in person. It was also decided that I should first come and see if I could dig up any interesting information on you and your past, to use as ammunition to later force your hand if you continued your refusal to sell.”

By the daggered look she was giving him, he knew she was surprised he had been so blatantly honest. He could also tell she hadn’t liked what he’d said. “You might be stubborn, Cassie, but I’m a man who likes winning. I’m an attorney who will fight for my clients, anyway that I can … as long as it’s legal. Garrison Incorporated is my top client and I had no intention of Parker not getting what he wanted. My allegiance was to him and not to you.”

Cassie straightened in the chair and leaned forward. Her eyes were shooting fire. “Forget about what’s legal, Brandon. Did you consider what you planned to do unethical?” she snapped.

He leaned forward, as well. “At the time, considering what I assumed about you, no, I didn’t think anything I had planned to do as being unethical. By your refusal to even discuss the issue of the controlling shares in a professional manner with Parker, I saw your actions as that of an inconsiderate, spoiled, willful, selfish and self-centered young woman. And to answer your earlier question, that’s what I assumed about you.”

That did it. Cassie angrily crossed the room to stand in front of him. With her hands on her hips, she glared at him. “You didn’t even know me. How dare you make such judgments about me!”

He stood to face off with her. “And that’s just it, Cassie. No one knew you and it was apparent you wanted to keep things that way, close yourself off from a family that really wants to get to know you. And if my initial opinion—sight unseen—of you sounds a bit harsh then all I have to say in my defense is that’s the picture you painted of yourself to everyone.”

Cassie turned her head away from him, knowing part of what he said was true. She’d still been grieving her mother’s death when she’d gotten word of her father’s passing. He had been buried without her being there to say her last goodbye and a part of her resented that, and had resented them for letting it happen. But then the truth of the matter was that they hadn’t known about her, although she had known about them. They would not have known to contact her to tell her anything.

“Imagine my surprise,” she heard Brandon say, “when I arrived here and met you. You were nothing like any of us figured you to be. It didn’t take long for me to discover that you didn’t have an inconsiderate, spoiled, willful, selfish or self-centered bone in your body. The woman I met, the woman I became extremely attracted to even before I knew her true identity that night on the beach, was a caring, giving, humane and unselfish person.”

He took a step closer to her when Cassie turned her head and looked at him. “She was also strikingly beautiful, vivacious, sexy, desirable and passionate,” he said, lowering his voice to a deep, husky tone. “She was a woman who could cause my entire body to get heated just from looking at her, a woman who made feelings I’d never encountered before rush along my nerve endings every time I got close to her.”

He leaned in closer. “And she’s the woman whose lips I longed to lock with mine whenever they came within inches of each other. Like they are now.”

An involuntary moan of desire escaped as a sigh from Cassie’s lips. Brandon’s words had lit a hot torch inside of her and as she gazed into his eyes, she saw the heated look she had become familiar with. And she couldn’t help but take note that they were standing close, so close that the front of his body was pressed intimately against hers, and the warm hiss of his breath could be felt on her lips. Another thing she was aware of was the hardness of his erection that had settled firmly in the lower center of her body.

She shuddered from the heat his body was emitting. Luscious heat she was actually feeling, almost drowning in. And then there was the manly scent of him that was sending a primal need escalating through her. It was a need she hadn’t known existed until she had met him and discovered that he had the ability to take her to a passionate level she hadn’t been elevated to before.

She knew he was about to kiss her. She also knew he was stalling, giving her the opportunity to back up and deny what the two of them wanted. But that wasn’t what she wanted. Although they still had a lot more talking to do, a lot more things to get straight, she felt at that particular moment that they needed time out to take a much needed break from their stress.

And indulge in a deliriously, mind-boggling kiss.

When to her way of thinking he didn’t act quickly enough, she stuck out her tongue, and with a sultry caress, she traced the lining of his lips from corner to corner. She saw the surprise on his face and the darkening of his pupils just seconds before a deep guttural groan spilled forth from his throat. He reached out and wrapped his arms around her waist, and like a bird of prey, he swooped down and captured her lips with his.

He had a way of devouring her mouth with the finesse of a gazelle and the hunger of a wolf, sending shivers all the way through her. And when he began mating with her tongue with a mastery that nearly brought her to her knees, she released a moan deep in her throat.

He tasted of the wine he had drunk and had the scent of man and rain. And he was consuming her with such effectiveness that she could only stand there and purr. His kiss was turning her into one massive ball of desire and she felt a dampness form between her legs.

He pulled his mouth free. His breathing was heavy when he said huskily, “If you don’t want what I’m about to give you, stop me now, Cassie. If you don’t, I doubt I’ll be able to stop myself later.”

She had no desire to stop him. In fact she intended to help. To prove her point, she pulled his shirt from where it was tucked inside his jeans, before freeing the snap and easing down his zipper. And with a boldness she’d only discovered she had last night, she slipped her hand inside his jeans and felt her fingers grip the rigid hardness of him. She cupped him, fondled him and felt him actually grow larger in her hand.

“I want to be inside of you, Cassie,” he whispered hotly in her ear. “I want to feel your heat clamp me tight, squeeze me and pull everything I have to give out of me. I want to make love to you until neither of us has any energy left. And then, when we regain our strength I want to do it all over again. I want to bury myself inside you so deep, neither of us will know at what point our bodies are connected.”

His erotic words sent fire flaming through her body. The dampness between her legs threatened to drench her thighs. “Then do it, Brandon. Do me. Now.”

As far as Brandon was concerned, her wish was his command and he eased her down on the Persian rug with him and quickly began removing their clothes. The logical part of his brain told him to slow down, she wasn’t going anywhere, but another part, that part that was throbbing for relief said he wasn’t going fast enough.

When he had her completely naked he turned his attention to removing his own clothes. And she was there helping him by pulling his shirt over his head and tugging his jeans down his legs after she had removed his shoes and socks.

He made a low growl in his throat when she straddled him and began using her tongue to explore him all over, starting with the column of his neck. She worked her way downward, tasting the tight buds on his chest before easing lower and giving greedy licks around his navel. She left a wet trail from his belly button to where his erection lay in a bed of tight, dark curls.

Cassie paused only long enough to raise her head to look at Brandon before gripping the object of her desire in her hands again. Lowering her head, she blew a warm breath against his shaft before clamping her mouth over him. Then she simply took her time, determined to give him the same kind of pleasure he had given her last night.

His body arched upward, nearly off the floor, and he released a deep groan before reaching down and grabbing hold of her hair. She thought he was going to jerk her away from him. Instead he entwined his fingers in her hair and continued to groan profusely. And then he started uttering her name over and over from deep within his throat. The sound had her senses reeling and made the center part of her wetter than before.

“No more,” he said, using his hands to pull her upward toward him to capture her lips. And then he was kissing her with a need she felt invading her body. And suddenly she found herself on her back, her legs raised over his shoulders, nearly around his neck. He then lifted her hips and before she could catch her breath, he swiftly entered her, going deep, embedding himself within her to the hilt.

And then he began those thrusts she remembered so well, she tried grabbing hold on his buns, but they were moving too fast, pumping inside of her too rapidly. So she went after the strong arms that were solid on both sides of her and held on to them.

Their eyes met. Their gazes locked. The only thing that wasn’t still was the lower part of their bodies as he kept moving in and out of her, filling her in a way that had sweat pouring off his forehead and trickling down onto her breasts. And then she felt her body shudder into one mind-blowing orgasm, the kind that made her go wild beneath him while screaming out his name and digging her fingernails into his arms.

And then he threw his head back and screamed out her name, as well. She felt him explode inside of her and she clenched her muscles, pulling more from him and knowing what had just happened could have very well left her pregnant with his child if she weren’t on the pill. But the thought of that didn’t bother her like it should have because she knew at that moment, without a doubt, that she had fallen in love with him.

“The power’s out.”

Cassie’s head snapped up when she felt a movement beside her. She quickly remembered where she was. On the floor in the living room in her home, naked. She had dozed off after making love to Brandon, several times and then some.

She squinted her eyes in the darkness, missing the warmth of his body next to hers. “I put the candles out. I just need to get up and light them.”

“Can you see your way around in the dark?”

“With this I can,” she said, reaching for a large flashlight nearby. She smiled. “I figured we might lose power so I was ready.”

She turned the light toward him and, seeing his naked body, she deliberately aimed it on a certain part of him. She chuckled. “Does that thing ever go down?”

He grinned. “Not while you’re around.” He walked over toward her. “Where’s your radio?”

“On that table over there.”

“Let me borrow this for a second. I don’t know my way around in your house in the dark as well as you do.” He took the flashlight and slowly moved around the room. When he located the radio he turned it on. It was blasting a current weather report that turned out to be good news. The island had been spared the full impact of Melissa but another tropical island hadn’t been quite as lucky. The worst of the storm was over and everyone without power should have it restored by morning.

Cassie crossed the room. “I want to call to make sure everything is okay at the hotel.”

“All right. I’m going to get dressed and check to see how things are outside.”

By the time Brandon returned he found Cassie in the kitchen. She had put back on her clothes and was standing over a stove … with heat. Seeing his raised brow she said, “Mom preferred gas when it came to cooking, so if nothing else, we won’t starve.”

He nodded as he leaned in the doorway. “How are things at the hotel?”

“Fine. The power went out but the generator kicked in,” she replied. “A few fallen trees but otherwise nothing major. How are things outside?”

“The same. A few fallen trees but otherwise nothing major. And it’s still raining cats and dogs.” He crossed the room to look into the pot she was stirring. “What are you cooking?”

She smiled up at him. “The conch chowder from the other night. I grabbed it out of the freezer. You said you liked it.”

“I do. It’s good to know you plan on feeding me.”

She chuckled. “That’s not all I plan to do to you, so I have to keep your strength up.”

He came around and grabbed her from behind and pressed her against him. “For you I will always keep my strength up. What can I help you do?”

“Put the bowls and eating utensils on the table and pour some tea into the glasses.”

Moments later they sat to eat and Brandon decided to use that time to finish the talk he had started earlier. “So now you know why I did what I did, Cassie. I’m not saying it was right.” At her narrowed eyes he changed his strategy and said, “Okay, it was wrong but you weren’t making things easy for anyone.”

She leaned back in her chair. “Tell me, Brandon. What part of ‘no’ didn’t Parker understand? No means no. He asked to buy me out and I said no, I wasn’t interested. What was the purpose of him calling when my answer wasn’t going to change?”

“The reason he refused to let up is because he’s a staunch businessman, Cassie. Parker is a man who is used to going after what he wants, especially if it’s something he felt was rightfully his in the first place. Besides, you never took the time to hear what he was offering.”

“It would not have mattered. What Dad left me was a gift and there’s no way I’d sell my shares, no matter how much Parker offered me. And if he keeps it up, you’ll be representing him on harassment charges.”

Brandon stared at her for a moment, knowing she was dead serious. He chuckled. She lifted a brow. “What’s so funny?”

“You, Parker and all the other Garrison siblings, but specifically you and Parker. At first I wondered what the hell John was thinking when he put that will into place. Now I think I know, although I didn’t before coming here and meeting you.”

“Well, would you like to enlighten me?”

“Sure. Like I said earlier, you and Parker are a lot alike and I think John recognized that fact. Besides the fact that both of you are stubborn, the two of you have an innate drive to succeed. Apparently John recognized that quality in both of you and felt together you and Parker would do a good job by continuing the empire he’d started.”

She shook her head. “That can’t be it. Dad knew how much I loved it here. He of all people knew how I missed the islands while attending college in London. To do what you’re insinuating would mean moving to Miami and he knew I wouldn’t do that. I told him after returning from college that I would never leave the island again. It’s my home and where I want to stay.”