Free A Wife for a Westmoreland by Brenda Jackson

just being kissed by him was almost unbearable. She slowly opened her eyes to calm the turbulent emotions inside her.
    For the second time that night, his hand lifted to capture her chin, lifting her face to meet his gaze. The look in his eyes was dark, intense, sexually hungry. At that moment, he looked as rugged as the landscape in which he lived. Westmoreland country. She never realized until now just how much that had defined him. She continued to hold his gaze. Mesmerized. Falling deeper and deeper in love.
    “You, Lucia Conyers, are more than I bargained for,” he said in a deep, husky tone that sounded intimate and overwhelming at the same time.
    She chuckled unevenly while wondering if this was how a kiss could easily get out of hand. Was this how a couple could take a kiss to another level without realizing they’d done so until it was too late to do anything about it?
    “Is being more than you bargained for a good thing or a bad thing, Derringer?” she asked him.
    He laughed softly at her question and released her chin, but not before lowering his head and brushing his lips across hers. “I’ll let you decide that later,” he whispered hotly against her lips. “Come on. Let’s get out of here while we can.”
     
    Tonight was not going the way he’d planned, Derringer thought. Even the smell of popcorn couldn’t get rid of her scent. His nostrils were inflamed with it. Thiswas their first date and he had fully intended for it to be their last.
    But…
    And there was a but in there someplace. For him there were probably several and each of them were messing with his mind. Making him not want to end their evening together. Or to spoil just how good things were going between them.
    After the movie he suggested they go to Torie’s for coffee. She was everything a man could appreciate in a date, while at the same time not fully what a man expected—but in a positive way. She had the ability to ease into a conversation that wasn’t just about her. And as he maneuvered his sports car through downtown Denver, he quickly reached the conclusion that he liked the sound of her voice and in the close confines of the car, her scent continued to overtake his senses.
    Derringer couldn’t help but wonder if there was something with this “scent of a woman” theory that men often talked about behind closed doors and in dimly lit, whiskey-laden poolrooms. Over his lifetime he had encountered a lot of women who smelled good, but the one sitting next to him right now, whose eyes were closed as she took in the sound of John Legend on his CD player, not only smelled good but was good to smell. And he decided then and there that there was a difference. He chuckled and shook his head at his conclusion.
    “Um, what’s so funny?” she asked, opening her eyes and turning her head to glance over at him.
    “I was just thinking about the movie,” he lied, knowing there was no way he would tell her what really had amused him.
    She laughed lazily. “It was good, wasn’t it?”
    When the car slowed in traffic, he gave her a sidelong glance. “Yes, it was. Are you comfortable?”
    “Yes. And thanks. This car is nice.”
    “Glad you like it.” He was certain his smile flashed in the dimly lit interior. He appreciated any woman who liked his car. A number of his former dates had complained that although his car was sleek and fast, it was not roomy enough.
    “Can you believe they are expecting snow next weekend?”
    He chuckled. “Hey, this is Denver. Snowstorms are always expected.” They passed a moment in silence. “Did you enjoy living in Florida those four years?”
    She nodded. “Immensely.”
    “Then why did you return to Denver?”
    She didn’t answer right away. “Because I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else,” she said finally.
    He nodded, understanding completely. Although he had enjoyed living in Phoenix while attending college, he never could wait to return home…to see her again. He hadn’t been