Read the book: «What a Westmoreland Wants / Stand-In Bride's Seduction: What a Westmoreland Wants»

What a

Westmoreland

Wants

Brenda Jackson

Stand-in Bride’s

Seduction

Yvonne Lindsay

www.millsandboon.co.uk

What a

Westmoreland

Wants

Brenda Jackson

He wasn’t sure exactly when he decided Gemma Westmoreland was destined to be his woman.

Probably the day she had arrived from college. The moment she got out of her car and raced over to her older brother’s arms for a huge hug, Callum had felt as if he’d been hit over the head with a plank—not once but twice. And when she’d turned that wonder-girl smile on him, he hadn’t been the same since.

Gemma, the one with the fiery temper. The one a man would least be able to handle.

Yes, Callum was more than certain that Gemma was the woman for him.

Now he had the job of convincing her of that … in an unsuspecting way, since she was also a woman who thought a serious relationship was not for her. Gemma Westmoreland was determined never to let a man break her heart.

But Callum knew that was the one thing she didn’t have to worry about.

Dear Reader,

When I first introduced Callum Austell in Hot Westmoreland Nights, I knew he would be a man to die for; a man who would know what he wanted and would do whatever it took to get it. I left no doubt in anyone’s mind that Callum wanted Gemma Westmoreland, and in this very special story he plans to get what he wants.

But first he has to be gracious enough to give Gemma what she wants, or what she thinks she wants. Gemma and Callum’s story is a special love affair that shows the love and devotion of a man determined to win the heart of the woman he loves, although that woman is determined to keep her heart to herself.

I hope all of you enjoy reading Callum and Gemma’s story as much as I enjoyed writing it.

And I want to thank all of you who helped to make Hot Westmoreland Nights a New York Times bestseller!

Happy reading!

Brenda Jackson

About the Author

BRENDA JACKSON is a die “heart” romantic who married her childhood sweetheart and still proudly wears the “going steady” ring he gave her when she was fifteen. Because Brenda believes in the power of love, her stories always have happy endings. In her real-life love story, Brenda and her husband of thirty-eight years live in Jacksonville, Florida, and have two sons.

A New York Times bestselling author of more than seventy-five romance titles, Brenda is a recent retiree who now divides her time between family, writing and traveling with Gerald. You may write to Brenda at PO Box 28267, Jacksonville, Florida 32226, by e-mail at WriterBJackson@aol.com or visit her website at www.brendajackson.net.

To my husband, the love of my life and my best friend,

Gerald Jackson, Sr.

To everyone who enjoys reading about the

Westmoreland family,

this one is for you!

Esteem her, and she will exalt you; embrace her,

and she will honour you.

—Proverbs 4:8

Prologue

Callum Austell sat in the chair with his legs stretched out in front of him as he stared at the man sitting behind the huge oak desk. He and Ramsey Westmoreland had become friends from the first, and now he had convinced Ramsey that he was the man who would give his sister Gemma the happiness she deserved.

But Callum knew there was one minor flaw in his plans. One that would come back to haunt him if Gemma Westmoreland ever discovered that the trip to Australia he would offer her would be orchestrated for the sole purpose of getting her off familiar turf so that she would finally come to realize just how much he cared for her.

“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Ramsey said, interrupting Callum’s thoughts. “Gemma will give you hell when she finds out the truth.”

“I’ll tell her before then, but not before she falls in love with me,” Callum replied.

Ramsey lifted a brow. “And if she doesn’t?”

To any other woman Callum’s intense pursuit might seem like a romantic move, but Ramsey was convinced his sister, who didn’t have a romantic bone in her body, wouldn’t see things that way.

Callum’s expression was determined. “She will fall in love with me.” And then the look in his eyes almost became one of desperation. “Damn, Ram, she has to. I knew the first moment I saw her that she was the one and only woman for me.”

Ramsey took a deep breath. He wished he’d had the same thoughts the first time he set eyes on his wife, Chloe. Then he would not have encountered the problems he had. However, his first thoughts when he’d seen Chloe weren’t the least bit honorable.

“You’re my friend, Callum, but if you hurt my sister in any way, then you’ll have one hell of an angry Westmoreland to deal with. Your intentions toward Gemma better be nothing but honorable.”

Callum leaned forward in his chair. “I’m going to marry her.”

“She has to agree to that first.”

Callum stood. “She will. You just concentrate on becoming a father to the baby you and Chloe are expecting in a couple of months, and let me worry about Gemma.”

One

Gem, I am sorry and I hope you can forgive me one day.

—Niecee

Gemma Westmoreland lifted a brow after reading the note that appeared on her computer after she’d booted it up. Immediately, two questions sailed through her mind. Where was Niecee when she should have been at work over an hour ago and what was Niecee apologizing for?

The hairs on the back of Gemma’s neck began standing up and she didn’t like the feeling. She had hired Niecee Carter six months ago when Designs by Gem began picking up business, thanks to the huge contract she’d gotten with the city of Denver to redecorate several of its libraries. Then Gayla Mason had wanted her mansion redone. And, last but not least, her sister-in-law, Chloe, hired Gemma for a makeover of the Denver branch of her successful magazine, Simply Irresistible.

Gemma had been badly in need of help and Niecee had possessed more clerical skills than the other candidates she’d interviewed. She had given the woman the job without fully checking out her references—something her oldest brother, Ramsey, had warned her against doing. But she hadn’t listened. She’d figured that she and the bubbly Niecee would gel well. They had, but now, as Gemma quickly logged into her bank account, she couldn’t help wondering if perhaps she should have taken Ramsey’s advice.

Gemma had been eleven when Ramsey and her cousin Dillon had taken over the responsibility of raising their thirteen siblings after both sets of parents had been killed in a plane crash. During that time Ramsey had been her rock, the brother who’d been her protector. And now, it seemed, the brother she should have listened to when he’d handed out advice on how to run her business.

She pulled in a sharp breath when she glanced at the balance in her checking account. It was down by $20,000. Nervously, she clicked on the transaction button and saw that a $20,000 check had cleared her bank—a check that she hadn’t written. Now she knew what Niecee’s apology was all about.

Gemma dropped her face in her hands and felt the need to weep. But she refused to go there. She had to come up with a plan to replace that money. She was expecting invoices to come rolling in any day now from the fabric shops, arts and craft stores and her light fixtures suppliers, just to name a few. Clearly, she wouldn’t have enough funds to pay all her debts. She needed to replace those funds.

She stood and began pacing the floor as anger consumed her. How could Niecee have done this to her? If she needed the money, all she had to do was ask. Although Gemma might not have been able to part with that much from her personal account, she could have borrowed the money from one of her brothers or cousins.

Gemma pulled in a deep frustrated breath. She had to file a police report. Her friendship and loyalty to Niecee ended the minute her former worker had stolen from her. She should have suspected something. Niecee hadn’t been her usual bubbly self the last few days. Gemma figured it had to do with her trifling live-in boyfriend who barely worked. Had he put Niecee up to this? It didn’t matter because Niecee should know right from wrong, and embezzling from your employer was wrong.

Sitting back down at her desk, Gemma reached for the phone and then pulled her hand back. Dang! If she called Sheriff Bart Harper—who had gone to school with both Ramsey and Dillon—and filed a report, there was no doubt in her mind that both Ram and Dillon would hear about it. Those were the last two people she wanted in her business. Especially since they’d tried talking her out of opening her interior design shop in the first place.

For the past year, things had worked out fairly well with her being just a one-woman show with her sisters, Megan and Bailey, helping out if needed. She had even pulled in her brothers, Zane and Derringer, on occasion, when heavy lifting had been involved. But when the big jobs began coming in, she had advertised in the newspapers and online for an administrative assistant.

She stood and began pacing again. Bailey was still taking classes at the university and wouldn’t have that much money readily available, and Megan had mentioned just the other week that she was saving for a much-needed vacation. Megan was contemplating visiting their cousin, Delaney, who lived in the Middle East with her husband and two children, so there was no way she could hit her up for a loan.

Zane and Derringer were generous and because they were bachelors they might have that kind of ready dough. But they had recently pooled all their funds to buy into a horse-breeding and -training franchise, together with their cousin, Jason. She couldn’t look in their direction now, due to that business venture. And all her other siblings and cousins were either in school or into their own businesses and investments.

So where was she going to get $20,000?

Gemma stood staring at the phone for a moment before it hit her that the thing was ringing. She quickly picked it up, hoping it was Niecee letting her know she was returning the money to her or, better yet, that the whole thing was a joke.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Gemma, this is Callum.”

She wondered why the man who managed Ramsey’s sheep farm would be calling her. “Yes, Callum?”

“I was wondering if I could meet with you sometime today to discuss a business proposition.”

She lifted a brow. “A business proposition?”

“Yes.”

The first thought that crossed her mind was that engaging in a business meeting was the last thing she was in the mood for today. But then she quickly realized that she couldn’t let what Niecee did keep her from handling things with her company. She still had a business to run.

“When would you like to meet, Callum?”

“How about today for lunch.”

“Lunch?”

“Yes, at McKay’s.”

She wondered if he knew that McKay’s was her favorite lunch spot. “Okay, that’ll work. I’ll see you there at noon,” she said.

“Great. See you then.”

Gemma held the phone in her hand, thinking how much she enjoyed listening to Callum’s deep Australian accent. He always sounded so ultrasexy. But then he was definitely a sexy man. That was something she tried not to notice too much, mainly because he was a close friend of Ramsey’s. Also, according to Jackie Barnes, a nurse who worked at the hospital with Megan and who’d had a bad case of the hots for Callum when he first arrived in Denver, Callum had a girl waiting for him back in Australia and it was a very serious relationship.

But what if he no longer had that girl waiting for him back in Australia? What if he was as available as he was hot? What if she could forget that he was her oldest brother’s close friend? What if …

Dismissing all such thoughts with a wave of her hand, she sat back down at her computer to figure out a way to rob Peter to pay Paul.

* * *

Callum Austell leaned back in his chair as he glanced around the restaurant. The first time he’d eaten here had been with Ramsey when he first came to Denver. He liked it then and now this would be the place where he would put into motion a plan some would think was way past due being executed. He would have to admit they were probably right.

He wasn’t sure exactly when he decided that Gemma Westmoreland was destined to be his woman. Probably the day he had helped Ramsey build that barn and Gemma had arrived from college right after graduation. The moment she got out of her car and raced over to her older brother’s arms for a huge hug. Callum had felt like he’d gotten hit over the head with a two-by-four, not once but twice. And when Ramsey had introduced them and she’d turned that wondergirl smile on him, he hadn’t been the same since. His father and his two older brothers had warned him that it would be that way when he found the woman destined to be his, but he hadn’t believed them.

That had been almost three years ago and she’d been just twenty-two years old. So he’d waited patiently for her to get older and had watched over her from afar. And each passing day she’d staked a deeper claim to his heart. Knowing how protective Ramsey was of his siblings, especially his three sisters, Callum had finally gotten up the nerve to confront Ramsey and tell him how he felt about Gemma.

At first Ramsey hadn’t liked the idea of his best friend lusting after one of his sisters. But then Callum had convinced Ramsey it was more than lust and that he knew in his heart that Gemma was “the one” for him.

For six months, Ramsey had lived with Callum’s family back in Australia on the Austell sheep ranch to learn everything he could so he could start his own operations in Denver. He had hung around Callum’s parents and brothers enough to know how dedicated the Austell men were once they fell in love.

His father had given up on falling in love and was on his way back to Australia from a business meeting in the United States to marry an Australian woman when he’d met Callum’s mother. She was one of the flight attendants on the plane.

Somehow the already engaged Todd Austell had convinced the Detroit-born Le’Claire Richards that breaking off with his fiancée and marrying her instead was the right thing to do. Evidently it was. Thirty-seven years later the two were still married, remained very much in love and had three sons and a daughter to show for it. Callum was the youngest of the four and the only one who was still single.

His thoughts shifted back to Gemma. Ramsey claimed that of his three sisters, Gemma was the one with the fiery temper. The one a man would least be able to handle. He’d suggested that Callum pray long and hard about making the right decision.

In the end, Callum had convinced Ramsey that he had made the right decision and that a hard-to-handle woman with a fiery temper was the kind he liked. He was more than certain that Gemma was the woman for him.

Now he had to convince Gemma … He’d have to be stealthy about his pursuit. He knew Gemma had no intention of engaging in a serious relationship after she had witnessed how two of her brothers, and several of her womanizing cousins, had operated with women over the years, breaking hearts in their wake. According to Ramsey, Gemma Westmoreland was determined never to let a man break her heart.

Callum straightened up in his seat when he saw Gemma enter the restaurant. Immediately, the same feeling suffused his heart that always settled there whenever he saw her. He loved the woman. He no longer tried to rationalize why. It really didn’t matter at this point.

As she walked toward him, he stood. She was probably 5’8”, but just the right height for his 6’3” frame. And he’d always thought she had a rather nice figure. Her dark brown, shoulder-length hair was pulled back in a ponytail. He thought she had dazzling tawny-brown eyes, which were almost covered by her bangs.

Callum had worked hard not to give his feelings away. Because he’d always been on his best behavior around her, he knew she didn’t have a clue. It hadn’t been easy keeping her in the dark. She saw him as nothing more than her brother’s best friend from Australia. The Aussie who didn’t have a lot to say and was basically a loner.

He studied her expression as she got closer. She seemed anxious, as if she had a lot on her mind.

“Callum,” she said and smiled.

“Gemma. Thanks for agreeing to see me,” he said as he took her oustretched hand.

“No problem,” she said, sitting down once he released her hand. “You said something about meeting to discuss a business proposition.”

“Yes, but first how about us grabbing something to eat. I’m starving.”

“Sure.”

As if on cue, a waitress strolled over with menus and placed glasses of water in front of them. “I hope this place is acceptable,” Callum said, moments later after taking a sip of his water.

“Trust me, it is,” Gemma said smiling. “It’s one of my favorites. The salads here are fabulous.”

He chuckled. “Are they? “

“Yes.”

“That might very well be, but I’m not a salad man. I prefer something a lot heavier. Like a steak and the French fries I hear this place is famous for.”

“No wonder you and Ramsey get along. Now that he’s married to Chloe, I’ll bet he’s in hog heaven with all those different meals she likes to prepare.”

“I’m sure he is. It’s hard to believe he’s married,” Callum said.

“Yes, four months tomorrow and I don’t recall my brother ever being happier.”

“And his men are happy, too, now that Nellie’s been replaced as cook,” he said. “She never could get her act together and it worked out well for everyone when she decided to move closer to her sister when her marriage fell apart.”

Gemma nodded. “I hear the new cook is working out wonderfully, although most of the guys still prefer Chloe’s cooking. But she is happy just being Ramsey’s wife and a mother-in-waiting. She doesn’t have long now and I’m excited about becoming an aunt.

“Are you an uncle yet?”

It was his turn to smile. “Yes. My two older brothers and one sister are married with a child each. I’m used to being around kids. And I also have a goddaughter who will be celebrating her first birthday soon.”

At that moment the waitress returned. Callum resented the interruption.

Gemma appreciated the interruption. Although she had been around Callum plenty of times, she’d never noticed just how powerfully built he was. Her brothers and male cousins were all big men, but Callum was so much more manly.

And she had to listen carefully to what he said and stop paying so much attention to how he said it. His thick Australian accent did things to her. It sent a warm, sensual caress across her skin every time he opened his mouth to speak. Then there were his looks, which made her understand perfectly why Jackie Barnes and quite a number of other women had gone bonkers over him. In addition to being tall, with a raw, masculine build, he had thick chestnut-brown hair that fell to his shoulders. Most days he wore it pulled back into a ponytail. He’d made today an exception and it cascaded around his shoulders.

Gemma had once overheard him mention to her sister, Megan, that his full lips and dark hair came from his African-American mother and his green eyes and his square jaw from his father. She’d also heard him say that his parents had met on an airplane. His mother had been a flight attendant on his father’s flight from the United States back to Australia. He’d told Megan it had been love at first sight, which made her wonder if he believed in such nonsense. She knew there was no such thing.

“So what do you think of Dillon and Pamela’s news?”

Callum’s question cut into her thoughts and she glanced up to meet his green eyes. She swallowed. Was there a hint of blue in their depths. And then there was his dimpled smile that took her breath away.

“I think it’s wonderful,” she said, suddenly feeling the need to take a sip of cold water. “There haven’t been babies in our family in a long time. With Chloe expecting and now Pamela, that’s two babies to spoil and I can’t wait.”

“You like children?”

She chuckled. “Yes, unfortunately, I’m one of those people who take to the precious darlings a little too much. That’s why my friends call on me more often than not to babysit for them.”

“You could always marry and have your own.”

She made a face. “Thanks, but no thanks. At least no time soon, if ever. I’m sure you’ve heard the family joke about me never wanting to get serious about a man. Well, it’s not a joke—it’s the truth.”

“Because of what you witnessed with your brothers while growing up?”

So he had heard. Any one of her brothers could have mentioned it, especially because she denounced their behavior every chance she got. “I guess you can say I saw and heard too much. My brothers and cousins had a reputation for fast cars and fast women. They thought nothing about breaking hearts. Ramsey usually had a steady girl, but Zane and Derringer were two of the worst when it came to playing women. As far as I’m concerned, they still are.” Unfortunately, she’d overheard one of Zane’s phone calls that very morning when she had stopped by to borrow some milk.

“I can clearly recall the times when Megan and I, and sometimes even Bailey, who was still young enough to be playing with her dolls, would be the ones to get the phone calls from love-stricken girls in tears after being mercilessly dumped by one of my brothers or cousins.”

And they were females determined to share their teary-eyed, heart-wrenching stories with anyone willing to listen. Megan and Bailey would get them off the phone really quickly, but Gemma had been the bleeding heart. She would ease into a chair and take the time to listen to their sob stories, absorbing every heartbreaking detail like a sponge. Even to the point at which she would end up crying a river of tears right along with them.

She’d decided by the time she had begun dating that no man alive would make her one of those weeping women. And then there was this inner fear she’d shared with no one, the fear of falling in love and having the person abandon her one day … the way she felt whenever she thought about her parents. She knew she had no logical reason for feeling abandoned by them because she was certain if they’d had a choice they would have survived that plane crash. But still, as illogical as it might be, the fear was there for her and it was real. She was convinced there was no man worth a single Gemma Westmoreland tear or her fears, and intended to make sure she never shed one by never giving her heart to anyone. She would be celebrating her twenty-fifth birthday in a few months and so far she’d managed to keep both her heart and her virginity intact.

“And because of that you don’t ever plan to get seriously involved with a man?”

She drew in a deep breath. She and her sisters had had this conversation many times and she was wondering why she was sitting here having it with Callum now. Why was he interested? It dawned on her that he probably wasn’t; he was just asking to fill the time. “As far as I’m concerned that’s a good enough reason. Those girls were in love with my brothers and cousins and assumed they loved them back. Just look what that wrong assumption did to them.”

Callum took a sip of his water, deciding not to respond by saying that as far as he was concerned her brothers’ behavior was normal for most men, and in some cases women. Granted, he hadn’t been around Zane and Derringer while they had been in their teens and could just imagine some of the things they had gotten in to. Now, as grown men, he knew they enjoyed women, but then most hot-blooded men did. And just because a man might be considered a “player” somewhat before finally settling down with one woman—the one he chose to spend the rest of his life with—that didn’t necessarily mean he was a man who totally disrespected women. In fairness to Zane and Derringer, they treated women with respect.

He wondered what she would think if she knew how his behavior had been before he’d met her. He hadn’t considered himself a womanizer, although he’d dated a slew of woman. He merely thought of himself as a man who enjoyed life and wanted to have a good time with the opposite sex while waiting for the girl destined to share his life to come along. Once she had, he’d had no trouble bringing his fun-loving, footloose and fancy-free bachelor lifestyle to an end. Eventually, the same thing would happen to her brothers and cousins.

No wonder her brothers thought she was a lost cause, but he refused to accept that. He was determined to show her how things could be if she were to fall in love with a man committed to making her happy.

In a way, he felt he knew Gemma. He believed that beneath her rough and tough “I’ll never fall in love” exterior was the heart of a woman who not only loved children but loved life in general. He also believed that she was a passionate woman. And that she was unknowingly reserving that passion for the one man capable of tapping into it. The same man destined to spend the rest of his life with her. Him.

The waitress delivered their food, and they engaged in chitchat while they ate their meal.

After they had finished eating and the waitress removed their plates, Gemma leaned back in her chair and smiled at Callum. “Lunch was wonderful. Now, about that business proposition?”

He chuckled, reached over and picked up the folder he had placed on an empty chair. He handed it to her. “This is information on the home I purchased last year. I would love you to decorate it for me.”

Callum saw how her eyes lit up. She loved her work and it showed in her face. She opened the folder and carefully studied every feature, every detail of the house. He knew exactly what he was doing. He was giving her 9,200 feet of house to do with as she pleased. It was an interior designer’s dream.

She lifted her gaze with a look of awe on her face. “This place is beautiful. And it’s huge. I didn’t know you had purchased a house.”

“Yes, but it’s still empty and I want to turn it into a home. I like what you did with Ramsey’s place and thought you would be the ideal person for the job. I’m aware that because of the size of the house it will take up a lot of your time. I’m willing to pay you well. As you can see I haven’t picked out any furniture or anything. I wouldn’t know where to begin.”

Now that much was true, Callum thought. What he didn’t tell her was that other designers had volunteered to decorate his new house, but he had bought it with her in mind.

She glanced back down at the papers in front of her. “Umm, eight bedrooms, six bathrooms, a huge kitchen, living room, dining room, family room, theater, recreation room and sauna. That’s quite a lot of space for a single man.”

He laughed. “Yeah, but I don’t plan on staying single forever.”

Gemma nodded, thinking that evidently Callum had decided to settle down and send for that girl back home. She glanced down at the papers again. She would love taking on this project, and he was right in thinking it would take up a lot of her time. But then she definitely needed the money.

“So, what do you think, Gemma?”

She glanced back up at him and smiled. “I think you just hired yourself an interior designer.”

The smile that touched his face sent a tingling sensation flowing through her stomach. “I can’t wait to see it.”

“No problem. When can you get away?”

She pulled out her cell phone to check her calendar and her schedule for this week. Once she saw the place and gave him an official estimate, she could ask for a deposit, which would make up some of what Niecee had taken from her. “What about tomorrow around one?”

“That might be a bit of a problem.”

“Oh.” She figured he would probably be tied up at Ram’s ranch doing something at that time, so without looking up she advanced her calendar another day. “What about Wednesday around noon.”

He chuckled. “Twelve noon on Monday would be the earliest availability for me.”

She nodded when she saw that time was free for her, although she wished she could see it sooner. “Monday at noon will be fine.”

“Great, I’ll make the necessary flight arrangements.”

She put her phone back into her purse and glanced over at him. “Excuse me?”

“I said that I will make the necessary flight arrangements if we want to see the house Monday at noon. That means we’ll need to fly out no later than Thursday morning.”

Gemma frowned. “Thursday morning? What are you talking about? Just where is this house located?”

Callum leaned back in his chair and gave her one kilowatt smile. “Sydney, Australia.”

Two

Gemma didn’t have to look in the mirror to know there was a shocked look on her face. And her throat felt tight, as if sound would barely pass through it if she tried to speak. To prove the point, she tried to utter a word and couldn’t. So she just sat there and stared across the table at Callum like he had lost his ever-loving mind.

“Now that that’s all settled, let’s order some dessert,” Callum said, picking up the menu.

She reached out, touched his hand and shook her head. “What’s the matter?” he asked. “You don’t want dessert?”

She drew in a deep breath, made an attempt to speak once more and was glad when sound came out. But to be absolutely sure he understood, she held up her hands in the shape of a T. “Time-out.”

He lifted an eyebrow. “Time-out?”

She nodded. “Yes, time-out. You lost me between the flight on Thursday and Sydney, Australia. Are you saying this house that you want me to decorate is in Sydney, Australia?”

“Of course. Where else would it be?”

She fought hard not to glare at him; after all, he was a potential client. “I thought possibly in the Denver area,” she said in what she hoped was a neutral tone.

“Why would you think that?”

She couldn’t hold back her glare any longer. “Well, you’ve been in this country for almost three years now.”

“Yes, but I’ve never said or insinuated to anyone that I wouldn’t return home. I was here helping Ramsey out and now that he has the hang of things, I’m no longer needed. Now I can get back home and—”

“Get married,” Gemma supplied.

He chuckled. “As I said earlier, I don’t plan on staying single forever.”

“And when do you plan on marrying her?”

“Her who?”

Gemma wondered why some men suddenly went daft when their girlfriends were mentioned. “The woman waiting for you back in Australia.”

“Umm, I didn’t know there was such a creature.”

Gemma stared at him in disbelief. “Are you saying you don’t have a fiancée or a sweetheart back in Australia?”

He smiled. “That’s exactly what I’m saying. Where did you hear something like that?”

Normally Gemma wouldn’t divulge her sources, but typically, Jackie knew what she was talking about, and that wouldn’t be anything the woman would have made up. “Jackie Barnes. And everyone figured she got the information from you.”

Callum shook his head. “She didn’t get that from me, but I have an idea where it came from. Your brother, Zane. I complained about Jackie making a nuisance of herself and he figured the best way to get rid of a woman like Jackie was just to let her believe I was already taken.”

“Oh.” She could see Zane doing something like that. If for no other reason than to shift Jackie’s interest from Callum to him. Her brother was a womanizer to the nth degree. And Derringer wasn’t any better. It was a blessing that the twins, Adrian and Aidan, were away at college, where the only thing on their minds was making the grade. “I assume Zane’s plan worked.”

“It did.”

“In that case you were lucky,” Gemma decided to say. “Some women would not have cared that you were spoken for. They would have taken it as a challenge to swing your interest their way.”

Callum couldn’t help but think of just where his interest had been for the past three years and knew no one could have succeeded in doing that. The woman sitting across the table was the one he intended to marry.

“And you actually assumed I have someone of interest back home?”

She shrugged. “Hey, that’s what we all heard and I had no reason to assume differently. As far as I knew, you weren’t dating anyone and whenever we had events you always came alone.”

And tried hanging around you every chance I got, he thought.

“You were almost as much of a loner as Ramsey,” Gemma added. “If your goal was to keep the women away, then it evidently worked for you.”

He took a sip of his drink, wondering if the reason she had yet to pick up on his interest in her was because she figured he was already taken.

“Callum, about this trip to Australia?”

He knew where she was about to take the discussion and was prepared with a spiel to reel her in. “What about it? If you’re having second thoughts, I understand. No sweat. I’ve already contacted a backup in case you couldn’t do it. Jeri Holliday at Jeri’s Fashion Designs has indicated she would love the job and will have her bags packed for Australia before I can blink an eye.”

Over my dead body, Gemma thought as she sat up straight in her chair. Jeri Holliday had been trying to steal clients from her for years.

“I think she liked the fact that I’m offering $50,000, and half of that upfront.”

His words froze her thoughts. “Come again?”

He smiled. “I said, considering that I’m asking the decorator to give up at least six weeks, I’m offering $50,000, just as a starting price.”

Gemma could only stare at him once again in disbelief. She leaned closer to the table and spoke in a hushed tone, as if anyone sitting in close range could overhear their top-secret conversation. “Are you saying that you’re paying $25,000 on acceptance of the job and the other half on completion; and that $50,000 does not include any of the materials? That’s just for labor?”

“Yes, that’s what I’m saying.”

Gemma began nibbling on her bottom lip. The $25,000 would definitely boost her bank account, replacing what Niecee had stolen. And then to think there would be another $25,000 waiting when she completed everything. However, as good as it sounded there were a few possible conflicts.

“What do you see as the time line for this project, Callum?” she decided to ask him.

He shrugged wide shoulders. “I’ll tell you the same thing I told Jeri. I think it will take a month to six weeks to take down all the measurements and get things ordered. I’d also like that person there to coordinate the selection of all the furniture. However, there’s no rush on that.”

Gemma began nibbling on her lips again. “The reason I asked is because there are two babies who will be born within a few months of each other and I’d like to be here for both births. If I can’t make it back at the time of delivery then at least within a few days.”

“No problem. In fact, I’ll spring for the flight.”

Gemma couldn’t help but wonder why he was being so generous and decided to ask him.

“I’ve always believed in being fair when it came to those who worked for me,” he said.

“In any case, I’m going to need to return myself to help out because Ramsey will be busy with Chloe and the baby,” he continued. “I don’t want him to worry about the ranch during that time, so I’ve already promised him that I would return. And although Dillon probably won’t need me to do anything, he and Pamela are like family and I want to be here for their baby’s arrival, too.”

Gemma felt relieved. But still—Australia? That was such a long way from home. And for a month, possibly six weeks. The only other time she’d been away from home for so long was when she left for college in Nebraska. Now she was considering trekking off to another country. Heck, it was another continent.

She was suddenly filled with an anticipation she’d never felt before. She’d never been a traveler, but if she took Callum’s job offer, she would get to see a part of the world she’d only read about. That was exciting.

“So are you still interested or do you want me to go with Jeri Holliday?”

She didn’t hesitate. “I don’t have a problem traveling to Australia and will be ready to fly out on Thursday. I just need to get my business in order. I’ll be gone for a while and I’ll need to let my family know.”

It then occurred to her that her family might not like the idea of her going so far away. Ramsey had a tendency to be overprotective. But he had his hands full with Chloe expecting their baby at the end of November. He would be too busy to try to micromanage her life … thank goodness.

“Terrific. I’ll make flight arrangements and will let you know when I have everything in order.”

“All right.”

Callum lifted up his soda glass in a toast. “Here’s to adventures awaiting you in the outback.”

Gemma chuckled as she lifted her glass in a toast, as well. “Yes, here’s to adventures in the outback.”

A few hours later back at her house, despite her outer calm, Gemma was trying to keep things together on the inside while she explained everything to her sisters, Megan and Bailey, as they sat together at the kitchen table. Megan was the oldest at twenty-six and Bailey was twenty-two.

“And why didn’t you file a police report? Twenty thousand dollars isn’t a little bit of money, Gem,” an angry Megan wanted to know.

Gemma drew in a deep breath. “I’m working with the bank’s security team in trying to recover the funds. The main reason I didn’t get Sheriff Harper involved is because he’s close friends with both Dillon and Ramsey. He’ll probably get a report of the incident from the bank, eventually, but I think he’d be more inclined to keep his mouth shut about it. It would appear more of an official matter then.”

“Oh.”

From the look on her sisters’ faces and their simultaneous responses, she knew they had forgotten that one important piece of information. There wasn’t too much a Westmoreland did in these parts that Dillon and Ramsey didn’t know about. Sheriff Harper, who had gone to high school with Dillon and Ramsey, made sure of that.

“And I didn’t want to hear, ‘I told you so’ from those two. Neither of them wanted me to start my own business when I did. So there was no way I was going to tell them what Niecee had done. Hiring her was my mistake and I’ll have to deal with it in my own way.”

“But will you make sure she doesn’t get away with her crime? I’d hate for her to steal from some other unsuspecting soul.”

“Yes, I’m going to make sure she doesn’t do this again. And to think that I trusted her,” Gemma said with a nod.

“You’re too trusting,” Megan said. “I’ve always warned you about that.”

And she had, Gemma thought. So had her older brothers. “So what do you think about me going to Australia?” She needed to change the subject.

Megan smiled. “Personally, I think it’s cool and wish I could go with you, but I’m saving my time off at the hospital for that trip to visit Delaney in Tehran.”

“I think that’s cool, as well,” Bailey said. “I’m still reeling over the fact that there’s no woman waiting for Callum back in Sydney. If that’s true, then why isn’t he dating? I don’t ever recall him having a girlfriend while he’s been here in the States. He’s nothing like Zane and Derringer.”

“And he’s such a cutie-pie,” Megan added.

Gemma couldn’t help smiling as she recalled how sexy he looked sitting across from her at lunch. “He’d already mentioned the job to Jeri Holliday, but it was contingent on whether or not I would accept his offer.”

“And I’m sure she was ready to grab it,” Bailey said with a frown.

“Of course she was. I wish the two of you could see the size of his house. I can’t believe he’d buy such a place as a single man. Now that I’ve made up my mind about going to Australia, I need to let Ramsey know.”

Gemma inhaled sharply at the thought of doing that, but knew it needed to be done. However, under no circumstances did Ramsey need to know that Niecee had embezzled $20,000 from her. She would let the bank’s security team handle things.

“You don’t have any appointments or projects scheduled for the next six weeks?” Megan asked as they helped her pack.

“No. This job offer came at a good time. I had thought about taking a well-deserved vacation anyway, but now it’s back to work for me. I’ll take some time off during the holidays.”

“If Callum bought a house in Australia, does that mean he’s moving back home?”

Gemma glanced over at Bailey. That thought hadn’t occurred to her. “I guess so.”

“What a bummer. I’ve gotten used to seeing him,” Bailey said with a pout. “I’d begun thinking of him as another big brother.”

Gemma drew in a deep breath. For some reason she’d never thought of him as another big brother.

She’d never felt the need to become as friendly with him as Megan and Bailey had, but she never knew why she’d been standoffish with him. She’d only accepted that that was the way things were. Why now, all of a sudden, did the thought of him returning to Australia to live and her not seeing him ever again seem like such a big deal?

The very thought made her uneasy.

Three

“Are you okay, Gemma?”

Gemma turned her head to glance over at Callum. What had the pilot just said? They were now cruising at an altitude of 36,000 feet. Was Callum inquiring as to how she felt because she’d suddenly turned green?

Now was not the time to tell him that she had an aversion to flying. Although she’d flown before, that didn’t mean she liked it. In fact, she didn’t. She’d told herself while packing that she could handle the eighteen hours it would take to get to Australia. Now she was having some pretty serious doubts about that.

“Gemma?”

She drew in a deep breath. “Yes, I’m fine.”

“You sure?”

No, she wasn’t sure, but he would be the last person to know. “Yes.”

She turned her head to look out the window and wondered if asking for a window seat had been a wise choice. All she could see were clouds and Callum’s reflection. He smelled good, and she couldn’t help wondering what cologne he was wearing. And he looked good, too. He had arrived to pick her up wearing a pair of jeans, a blue chambray shirt and Western boots. She’d seen him in similar outfits plenty of times, but for some odd reason he seemed different to her today.

“The attendant is about to serve snacks. Are you hungry?”

She turned and met his eyes. They were a beautiful green and she could swear that a strange expression shone in their dark depths. “No, I ate a good breakfast this morning with Ramsey and Chloe.”

He lifted a brow. “You got up at five this morning to do that?”

She smiled. “Yes. All I had to do was set the alarm. I figured if I got up early, then by the time this plane leveled off in the sky I would be ready to take a nap.”

He chuckled. “Does flying bother you?”

“Let’s just say it’s not one of my favorite things to do,” she answered. “There’re other things I prefer doing more. Like getting a root canal or something else equally as enjoyable.”

He threw his head back and laughed, and she liked the sound of it. She’d known him for almost three years and this was the first time she recalled hearing him laugh. He’d always seemed so serious, just like Ramsey. At least that was how Ramsey used to be. She would be one of the first to say that marriage had changed her brother for the better.

“And then,” she added in a soft, thoughtful tone. “My parents were killed in a plane crash and I can’t help but think of that whenever I’m in the air.” She paused a moment. “There was a time after their deaths that I swore I’d never get on a plane,” she said quietly.

Callum did something at that moment she hadn’t expected. He reached out and took her hand in his. His was warm and large and completely covered hers. “How did you overcome that fear?”

She shifted her gaze away from their joined hands to his face and sighed deeply. “I refused to live my life in fear of the unknown. So one day I went to Ramsey and told him I was ready to take my first plane ride. He was working with Dillon at Blue Ridge Land Management at the time and made arrangements to take me on his next business trip. I was fourteen.”

A bright smile touched her lips. “He signed me out of school for a few days and I flew with him to New Mexico. My first encounter with turbulence almost sent me through the roof. But he talked me through it. He even made me write an essay on my airplane experience.”

The flight attendant came around serving drinks and snacks, but Gemma declined everything. Callum took a pack of peanuts and ordered a beer. Gemma had asked for a pillow earlier and adjusted it against her neck as she reclined comfortably in her seat. She had to admit that the first-class seats on this international flight were spacious. And Callum had booked a double-seat row for just the two of them.

Gemma noticed that the attendant had given Callum one or two smiles more than was necessary. The attendant’s obvious interest in her passenger made Gemma think of something. “Is it true that your parents met on a flight to Australia?”

He inclined his head to look at her. “Yes, that’s true. Dad was actually engaged to someone else at the time and was returning home to Australia to help plan his wedding.”

“And he fell for someone else when he was already engaged? “

Callum heard the shock in her voice. Considering what she thought about men deliberately breaking women’s hearts, he decided to explain. “From what I was told, he had asked this woman to marry him and it was to be a marriage of convenience.”

She lifted a brow. “A marriage of convenience for whom? “

“The both of them. She wanted a rich husband and he wanted a wife to start a family. They saw it as the perfect union.”

Gemma nodded. “So love had nothing to do with it?”

“No. He didn’t think such a thing could exist for him until he saw my mother. He was hit between the eyes with a ton of bricks.” Callum chuckled. “Those are his words, not mine.”

“And what happened to the other woman? The one he’d been engaged to at the time?”

He could hear pity in her voice. “Not sure. But I know what didn’t happen to her.”

Gemma lifted a curious brow. “What?”

A smile touched his lips. “She didn’t get the wedding she planned.”

“And you find that amusing?”

“Actually, yes, because it was discovered months later that she was pregnant with another man’s child.”

Gemma gasped sharply and leaned her head closer to Callum’s. “Are you serious?”

“Very much so.”

“The same thing almost happened to Ramsey, but Danielle stopped the wedding,” Gemma said.

“So I heard.”

“And I liked her.”

“I heard that, too. I understand that your entire family did. But then that goes to show.”

She looked over at him. “What?”

“Men aren’t the only ones who can be heartbreakers.”

Surprise swept across her face at his remark. Gemma leaned back against her seat and released her breath in a slow sigh. “I never said they were.”

“You didn’t?” he asked smiling.

“No, of course not.”

Callum decided not to argue with her about it. Instead, he just smiled. “It’s time for that nap. You’re beginning to sound a bit grouchy.”

To Callum’s surprise, she took one, which gave him the opportunity to watch her while she slept. As he gazed at her, he experienced the same intense desire that he’d always felt whenever he was close to her. At the moment, he was close, but not close enough. He couldn’t help but study her features and thought her moments of peaceful bliss had transformed her already beautiful face into one that was even more striking.

He would be the first to admit that she no longer looked like the young girl he’d seen that first day. In three years, her features had changed from that of a girl to a woman and it all started with the shape of her mouth, which was nothing short of sensuous. How could lips be that full and inviting, he wondered, as his gaze moved from one corner of her mouth to the other.

Callum’s gaze drifted upward from her mouth to her closed eyes and the long lashes covering them. His gaze then moved to her cheekbones and he was tempted to take the back of his hand and caress them, or better yet, trace their beautiful curves with the tip of his tongue, branding her as his. And she was his, whether she knew it or not, whether she accepted it or not. She belonged to him.

He then noticed how even her breathing was, and how every breath drew his attention to the swell of her breasts that were alluringly hidden inside a light blue blouse. He’d always found her sexy, too sexy, and it had been hard not to want her, so he hadn’t even bothered fighting the temptation. He had lusted after her from afar, which was something he couldn’t help, since he hadn’t touched another woman in almost three years. Once her place in his life had become crystal clear, his body had gone into a disciplined mode, knowing she would be the one and only woman he would make love to for the rest of his life. Now, the thought of that made his body go hard. He breathed in her scent, he closed the book he had been reading and adjusted his pillow. He closed his eyes and allowed his fantasies of her to do what they always did, take over his mind and do in his dreams what he couldn’t yet do in reality.

* * *

Gemma slowly opened her eyes at the same moment she shifted in her seat. She glanced over at Callum and saw that he had fallen asleep. His head was tilted close to hers.

She would have to admit that at first his close proximity had bothered her because she assumed they would have to make a lot of unnecessary conversation during the flight. She wasn’t very good at small talk or flirting. She’d dated before, but rarely, because most men had a tendency to bore her. She’d discovered that most liked talking about themselves, tooting their own horn and figured they were God’s gift to women.

She pushed all thoughts of other men aside and decided to concentrate on this one. He was sitting so close that she could inhale his masculine scent. She had enough brothers and male cousins to know that just as no two women carried the same scent, the same held true for men. Each person’s fragrance was unique and the one floating through her nostrils now was making funny feelings flutter around in her stomach.

Gemma found it odd that nothing like this had ever happened to her before, but then she couldn’t recall Callum ever being this close to her. Usually they were surrounded by other family members. Granted, they weren’t exactly alone now, but, still, there was a sense of intimacy with him sitting beside her. She could just make out the soft sounds of his even breathing.

She had been ready to go when he had arrived at her place. When she opened the door and he had walked in, her breath had gotten caught in her throat. She’d seen him in jeans more times than not, but there was something about the pair he was wearing now that had caused her to do a double take. When he’d leaned down to pick up her luggage, his masculine thighs flexed beneath starched denim. Then there were those muscled arms beneath the Western shirt. Her gaze had lingered longer than it should have on his body. She had followed him out the door while getting an eyeful of his make-you-want-to-drool tush.

She studied him now, fascinated by just what a good-looking man he was and how he’d managed to keep women at bay for so long. A part of her knew it hadn’t just been the story Zane had fabricated about a woman waiting for him back in Australia. That tale might have kept some women like Jackie away, but it would not have done anything to hold back the bolder ones. It was primarily the way he’d carried himself. Just like Ramsey. In his pre-Chloe days, most women would have thought twice before approaching her brother. He radiated that kind of “I’m not in the mood” aura whenever it suited him.

But for some reason, she’d never considered Callum as unapproachable as Ramsey. Whenever they had exchanged words, he’d been friendly enough with her. A part of her was curious about why if he wasn’t already taken; he’d held himself back from engaging in a serious relationship with a woman. Perhaps he wanted a wife who was from his homeland. That wouldn’t be surprising, although it was ironic that his mother was American.

“Oh.” The word slipped through her lips in a frantic tone when the plane shook from the force of strong turbulence. She quickly caught her breath.

“You okay?”

She glanced over at Callum. He was awake. “Yes. I hadn’t expected that just then. Sorry if I woke you up.”

“No problem,” he said, straightening up in his seat. “We’ve been in the air about four hours now, so we were bound to hit an air pocket sooner or later.”

She swallowed when the airplane hit a smaller, less forceful pocket of turbulence. “And they don’t bother you?”

“Not as much as they used to. When I was younger, my siblings and I would fly with Mom back to the States to visit our grandparents. I used to consider turbulence as exciting as a roller-coaster ride. I thought it was fun.”

Gemma rolled her eyes. “There’s nothing fun about the feel of an airplane shaking all over the place like it’s about to come apart.”

He released a soft chuckle. “You’re safe, but let me check your seat belt to be sure.”

Before she could pull in her next breath, he reached out to her waist and touched her seat belt. She felt his fingers brush against her stomach in the process. At that precise moment, sensations rushed all through her belly and right up her arms.

She glanced over at Callum and found her gaze ensnared by the deep green of his eyes and those sensations intensified. She knew at that moment that something was happening between them, and whatever it was, she wasn’t quite prepared for it.

She’d heard about sexual awareness, but why would it affect her now, and why with someone who was almost a total stranger to her? It wasn’t as if this was the first time she and Callum had been around each other. But then … as she’d acknowledged to herself earlier, this was the first time they had been alone to this degree. She wondered if her new feelings were one-sided, or if he’d felt it, as well.

“You’re belted tight,” he said, and to her his voice seemed a bit huskier … or perhaps she was just imagining things.

“Thanks for checking.”

“No problem.”

Since they were both wide awake now, Gemma decided it was probably a good idea to engage in conversation. That would be safer than just sitting here and letting all kinds of crazy thoughts race through her mind, like what would happen if she were to check on his seat belt as he’d checked on hers. She felt heat infuse her face and her heart rate suddenly shot up.

Then her anxiety level moved up a notch when she thought his gaze lingered on her lips a little longer than necessary. Had that really been the case? “Tell me about Australia,” she said quickly.

Evidently talking about his homeland was something he enjoyed doing if the smile tilting his lips was anything to go by. And they were a gorgeous pair. She’d noticed them before, but this was the first time she’d given those lips more than a passing thought.

Why all of a sudden was there something so compelling about Callum? Why did the thought of his lips, eyes and other facial features, as well as his hands and fingers, suddenly make her feel hot?

“You’re going to love Australia,” he said, speaking in that deep accent she loved hearing. “Especially Sydney. There’s no place in the world quite like it.”

She lifted a brow and folded her arms across her chest. She didn’t want to get into a debate, but she thought Denver was rather nice, as well. “Nicer than Denver?”

He chuckled, as understanding lit his eyes. “Yes. Denver has its strong points—don’t get me wrong—but there’s something about Sydney that’s unique. I’m not saying that just because it’s where I was born.”

“So what’s so nice about it?”

He smiled again and, as if on cue, those sensations in her stomach fluttered and spread through her entire midsection.

“I hate to sound like a travel ad, but Australia is a cosmopolitan place drenched in history and surrounded by some of the most beautiful beaches imaginable. Close your eyes for a moment and envision this, Gemma.”

She closed her eyes and he began talking in a soft tone, describing the beaches in detail. From his description, she could all but feel a spray of ocean water on her lips, a cool breeze caressing her skin.

“There’re Kingscliff Beach, Byron Bay, Newcastle and Lord Howe, just to name a few. Each of them is an aquatic paradise, containing the purest blue-green waters your eyes can behold.”

“Like the color of your eyes?” Her eyes were still closed.

She heard his soft chuckle. “Yes, somewhat. And speaking of eyes, you can open yours now.”

She slowly lifted her lids to find his eyes right there. He had inched his head closer to hers and not only were his eyes right there, so were his lips. The thoughts that suddenly went racing through her mind were crazy, but all she would have to do was to stick out her tongue to taste his lips. That was a temptation she was having a hard time fighting.

Her breathing increased and she could tell by the rise and fall of his masculine chest, that so had his. Was there something significantly dangerous about flying this high in the sky that altered your senses? Zapped them real good and sent them reeling off course? Filled your mind with thoughts you wouldn’t normally entertain?

If the answer to all those questions was a resounding yes, then that explained why her mind was suddenly filled with the thought of engaging in a romantic liaison with the man who was not only her client, but also her oldest brother’s best friend.

“Gemma …” It seemed he had inched his mouth a little closer; so close she could feel his moist breath on her lips as he said her name in that deep Australian accent of his.

Instead of responding, she inched her mouth closer, too, as desire, the intensity of which she’d never felt before, made her entire body shiver with a need she didn’t know she was capable of having. The green eyes locked on hers were successfully quashing any thoughts of pulling her mouth back before it was too late.

“Would either of you like some more snacks?”

Callum jumped and then quickly turned his face away from Gemma to glance up at the smiling flight attendant. He drew in a deep breath before responding. “No, thanks. I don’t want anything.”