Brenda Jackson - The Westmoreland Legacy - The Rancher Returns (The Westmoreland Legacy) / His Secret Son (The Westmoreland Legacy) / An Honourable Seduction (The Westmoreland Legacy)

Gavin reluctantly broke off the kiss. Drawing his mouth away from hers was one of the hardest things he’d had to do. He saw the look of denied need in her eyes before she leaned back, dropped her head against the headrest and closed her eyes. He figured she was as in awe of what just happened as he was.

What they’d shared wasn’t just a kiss. It was an acknowledgment of deep sexual desires. He knew what was driving his and he thought he had figured out what was driving hers. She just refused to accept it. She was stubborn. It would take a lot more kisses like this one to bring her around. They’d felt an intense attraction to each other from the first, and from all appearances, things had gotten worse.

He continued to stare at her as heat curled inside of him. He wanted her. Bad. And that pushed him to say, “So tell me again why we can’t sleep together.”

* * *

Layla heard his words but she couldn’t respond. Neither could she open her eyes to look at him. There was no point. She knew what she would see in the depths of his dark gaze. A sexual need so hot it was likely to sizzle her insides. It would make her fully aware of her own sexual need. A need he stirred to life inside her whether she wanted him to or not.

“Open your eyes, Layla. I’m not going anywhere.”

At least not today. She suddenly remembered Ms. Melody mentioning he had to go to Mississippi on business. “When are you leaving?” she asked, opening her eyes.

Just as she’d expected. The eyes staring at her were dark and seductive.

He lifted a brow. “Leaving for where?”

“Mississippi. Your grandmother mentioned you had important business to take care of there.”

“Trying to get rid of me, are you?”

“It wouldn’t hurt,” she said and saw his eyes get even darker when she moistened her bottom lip with the tip of her tongue. “So when are you leaving?”

He moved his gaze from her mouth to her eyes. “I changed my mind about Mississippi. I’m not leaving here any time soon.” She couldn’t stop the disappointment that flashed through her.

“But I thought you had important business to take care of.”

“My plans have changed. Do you have a problem with that?”

“I just hope you don’t plan to get underfoot.”

“I’ll try not to. Now show me the exact spot where you plan to dig,” he said, opening the truck door to get out.

No matter what he said, Layla knew Gavin would try getting underfoot.

* * *

When Gavin pulled an odd-looking camera from his backseat, Layla lifted a brow. “What is that?”

He smiled. “A Vericon 12D. It’s a high-tech camera that’s mainly used underwater. Flipper messed around with it so we could use it on land, as well.”

“Flipper?”

“Yes, Flipper. One of my team members. He’s into technology and all that high-tech stuff,” Gavin said as they walked side by side.

“Surely Flipper isn’t his real name.”

Gavin chuckled. “His real name is David Holloway. His code name is Flipper.”

“Oh,” she said, glancing up at him. “Do you have a code name?”

“Yes.”

“What is it?”

He saw no reason not to tell her since his grandmother was well aware of it, too. His teammates called Gavin by his code name whenever they came to visit. “Viper.”

Layla scrunched up her features. “Viper?”

“Yes, Viper.”

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why do they call you Viper?”

He stopped walking to answer her, and when he stopped, she did, too. He hadn’t noticed before how small she seemed, standing close to him. He figured he’d never noticed because usually when he faced her he was fixated on her mouth.

“The reason I’m called Viper is because when I set my sights on a target, I don’t give up until I make a hit. I love taking the enemy down.”

She tilted her head to look up at him. “Do you consider me an enemy?”

He didn’t hesitate. “No.” She wasn’t the enemy, but he had every intention of taking her down...right into his bed.

Evidently satisfied with his response, she looked around him, back toward where the truck was parked. Then she turned around. She did it several times and each time he saw her confusion deepen.

“Is something wrong?” he finally asked.

She whipped around to look at him. “Yes, something is wrong.”

He glanced around before returning his gaze to her. “What?”

“Someone moved my marker. It’s gone.”

He lifted a brow. “What do you mean your marker is gone?”

She frowned. “Just what I said. Someone moved my marker. It’s not here.”

Gavin released a deep sigh. “Why would anyone move your marker? Are you sure you put one down?”

“Of course I’m sure,” she answered in an annoyed tone. “Someone moved it.”

Gavin raised his gaze upward. “And who would do that?”

“I don’t know, but someone did.”

He shook his head. “Layla, the Silver Spurs is out in the middle of nowhere. And this particular spot is considered way outside our working area, almost six miles from the main house. No one would deliberately come on this land to remove your marker.”

“Well, someone did, Gavin. I marked the digging site,” she said with deep irritation in her voice.

Gavin stared down at her. “Are you sure? Maybe your mind is clouded right now. I can understand my kiss leaving you that way.”

Her frown deepened. “I’m serious, Gavin.”

“So am I, Layla.”

Exasperation darkened her expression. “Will you get your mind off sex for a minute?”

A smile touched his lips. “My mind wasn’t on sex,” he said. “It was on that kiss we shared. But since you’ve pulled sex into the conversation...it’s hard to think of anything other than getting you in my bed when you look so good.”

Layla pushed to the back of her mind that she’d deliberately taken more time with her appearance just so he would think she looked good. That was before she’d come out here and discovered her marker had been removed.

“You moved it, didn’t you?” she asked with an accusing glare.

“Now why would I want to do that?”

When she didn’t say anything but continued to stare at him, his amusement was replaced with a deep frown. “I have no reason to mess with any marker you claim to have put down. This is the first time I’ve been out this far from the house since returning home.”

He rubbed a hand down his face in frustration. “If that marker has in fact been removed, then that means someone trespassed on this land to do it. Although for the life of me I can’t imagine who would have cared enough to do such a thing. I just think you’re confused as to where you placed the damn marker,” he said, glancing around. “The south pasture is rather large. Maybe it’s all the way on the other side.”

“I am not confused and it’s not on the other side. Not only did I map its coordinates, I recall parking near those tree stumps and walking twenty to thirty feet to my right. The marker was a wooden stake with a red flag on it, and I planted it exactly where we would dig.”

“If you’re sure of that, then you need to consider who knows you’re here. And who would want to see you fail.”

She lifted her chin. “And why wouldn’t your name head the list? The deal we agreed on means I would have to sleep with you if I fail.”

Gavin took a step closer to her. “Whether you fail or succeed means nothing to me because I have every intention of sleeping with you regardless of the outcome of this dig.”

Layla was taken aback by Gavin’s words. Of all the audacity. She placed her hands on her hips. Anger poured through her. “And how do you figure that?”

“Because, like I explained to you earlier, I’m Viper. I set my sights on a target. I don’t give up until I make a hit. You are my target, Layla, and I plan to break down your resolve.”