The Proposal & Solid Soul (14 page)

“And,” Megan continued, “I spoke with Casey yesterday and she’s checked with the other Westmorelands and that will give them plenty of time to make plans to be here, as well. I’m so excited.”

Jason glanced over at Bella again thinking he was glad someone was. There was something going on with his wife that he just couldn’t put a finger on and whatever it was had put him at a disadvantage. He knew she was upset with the outcome of the Bostwick twins. With all the evidence mounted against the twins, their attorney had convinced their parents to enter a guilty plea in hopes they would get a lesser sentence.

However, given prior mischievous pranks that had gotten the pair into trouble with the law before, the judge was not all that lenient and gave them two years. Bella had insisted on going to the sentencing hearing and he’d warned her against it but she’d been adamant. Things hadn’t gone well when Kenneth, who still refused to accept blame for his part in any of it, made a scene, accusing Bella as the one responsible for what had happened to his grandsons. Since that day Jason had noted a change in her and she’d begun withdrawing from him. He’d tried getting her to talk, but she refused to do so.

“So what do the two of you think?” Megan asked, drawing his attention again.

He glanced at Bella. “What do you think, sweetheart?”

She placed a smile on her lips that he knew was
forced. “That time is fine with me, but I doubt Mom and Dad will come either way.”

“Then they will miss a good party,” Jason replied. He then turned to Megan. “The first weekend in August is fine.”

Later, on the ride back to their place, Jason finally found out what was troubling Bella. “I rode over to my ranch today, Jason. Why didn’t you tell me work hadn’t begun on the house yet?”

“There was no reason to tell you. You knew I was taking care of things, didn’t you?”

“Yes. But I assumed work had gotten started already.”

“I saw no reason to begin work on the place yet, given we’re having a lot of rainy days around here now. It’s not a good time to start any type of construction. Besides, it’s not like you’re going to move into the house or anything.”

“You don’t know that.”

He had pulled into the yard and brought the truck to a stop and turned the ignition off. He glanced over at her. “I don’t? I thought I did.”

He tilted his hat back from his eyes and stared over at her. “Why would you need to move back into the house?”

Instead of holding his gaze she glanced out the window and looked ahead at his house, which he now considered as their house. “Our marriage is only supposed to last a year and I’m going to need somewhere to live when it ends.”

Her words were like a kick in the gut. She was already planning for the time when she would be leaving
him? Why? He thought things were going great between them. “What’s going on, Bella?”

“Nothing is going on. I just need to be realistic and remember that although we enjoy being bed partners, the reason we married stemmed from your proposal, which I accepted knowing full well the terms. And they are terms we must not forget.”

Jason simply looked at her as he swore under his breath. She thought the only thing between them was the fact they were bed partners? “Thanks for reminding me, Bella.” He then got out of the truck.

T
HAT WAS THE FIRST NIGHT
they slept in the same bed but didn’t make love and Bella lay there hurting inside and wasn’t sure what she could do about it. She was trying to protect her heart, especially after the results of the pregnancy test she’d taken a few days ago.

Jason was an honorable man. Just the kind of man who’d keep her around just because she was the mother of his child. She wasn’t particularly thinking of herself per se but of her child. She had grown up in a loveless household and simply refused to subject her child to one. Jason would never understand how that could be because he’d grown up with parents who’d loved each other and had set a good example for their children to follow. That was evident in the way his cousins and brother treated the wives they loved. It was easy to see their relationships were loving ones, the kinds that last until death. She didn’t expect that kind of long-term commitment from Jason. That was not in the plan and had not been in his proposal.

She knew he was awake by the sound of his breathing but his back was to her as hers was to him. When he
had come up to bed he hadn’t said anything. In fact, he had barely cast a glance her way before sliding under the covers.

His family was excited about hosting a wedding reception for them but she had been tempted to tell them not to bother. Their year would be up before she knew it anyway. However, she had sat there and listened while plans were being made and fighting the urge to get pulled into the excitement.

The bed shifted and she held her breath hoping that, although she’d given him that reminder, he would still want her. He dashed that hope when instead of sliding toward her he got out of the bed and left the room. Was he coming back to bed or did he plan on sleeping somewhere else tonight? On the sofa? In his truck?

She couldn’t help the tears that began falling from her eyes. She only had herself to blame. No one told her to fall in love. She should have known better. She should not have put her heart out there. But she had and now she was paying the price for doing so.

“O
KAY, WHAT THE HELL
is wrong with you, Jason? It’s not like you to make such a stupid mistake and the one you just made was a doozy,” Zane stormed. “That’s the sheikh’s prized horse and what you did could have cost him a leg.”

Anger flared up inside of Jason. “Dammit, Zane, I know what I did. You don’t have to remind me.”

He then glanced over at Derringer and waited to see what he had to say and when he didn’t say anything, Jason was grateful.

“Look, guys, I’m sorry about the mistake. I’ve got a lot on my mind. I think I’ll call it a day before I cause
another major screwup.” He then walked off toward Zane’s barn.

He was in the middle of saddling his horse to leave when Derringer walked up. “Hey, man, you want to talk about it?”

Jason drew in a deep breath. “No.”

“Come on, Jas, there’s evidently trouble in paradise at Jason’s Place. I don’t profess to be an expert when it comes to such matters, but even you will admit that me and Lucia had a number of clashes before we married.”

Jason glanced over at him. “What about
after
you married?”

Derringer threw his head back and laughed. “Want a list? The main thing to remember is the two of you are people with different personalities and that in itself is bound to cause problems. The most effective solution is good, open communication. We talk it out and then we make love. Works every time. Oh, and you need to remind her every so often how much you love her.”

Jason chuckled drily. “The first two things you said I should do are things I can handle but not the latter.”

Derringer raised a brow. “What? You can’t tell your wife you love her?”

Jason sighed. “No, I can’t tell her.”

Derringer looked confused. “Why? You do love her, don’t you?”

“Yes, more than life.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

Jason stopped what he was doing and met Derringer’s gaze. “She doesn’t love me back.”

Derringer blinked and then drew back slightly and said, “Of course she loves you.”

Jason shook his head. “No, she doesn’t.” He paused for a moment and then said, “Our marriage was based on a business proposition, Derringer. She needed a husband to retain her trust fund and I wanted her land—at least co-ownership of her land—and Hercules.”

Derringer stared at him for a long moment and then said, “I think you’d better start from the beginning.”

I
T TOOK
J
ASON LESS THAN
ten minutes to tell Derringer everything, basically because his cousin stood there and listened without asking any questions. But once he’d finished the questions had begun…as well as the observations.

Derringer was certain Bella loved him because he claimed she looked at Jason the way Lucia looked at him, the way Chloe looked at Ramsey and the way Pam looked at Dillon—when they thought no one was supposed to be watching.

Then Derringer claimed that given the fact Jason and Bella were still sharing the same bed—although no hanky-panky had been going on for almost a week now—had significant meaning.

Jason shook his head. “If Bella loves me the way you think she does then why hasn’t she told me?”

Derringer crossed his arms over his chest. “And why haven’t you told her?” When Jason couldn’t answer, Derringer smiled and said, “I think the two of you have a big communication problem. It happens and is something that can easily be corrected.”

Jason couldn’t help but smile. “Sounds like you’ve gotten to be a real expert on the subject of marriage.”

Derringer chuckled. “I have to be. I plan on being a married man for life so I need to know what it takes
to keep my woman happy and to understand that when wifey isn’t happy, hubby’s life can be a living hell.”

Derringer then tapped his foot on the barn’s wooden floor as if he was trying to make up his mind about something. “I really shouldn’t be telling you this because it’s something I overheard Chloe and Lucia discussing yesterday and if Lucia found out I was eavesdropping she—”

“What?”

“Maybe you already know but just hadn’t mentioned anything.”

“Dammit, Derringer, what the hell are you talking about?”

A sly smile eased across Derringer’s lips. “The ladies in the family suspect Bella might be pregnant.”

B
ELLA WALKED OUT OF THE
children’s hospital with a smile on her face. She loved kids and being around them always made her forget her troubles, which was why she would come here a couple of days a week to spend time with them. She glanced at her watch. It was still early yet and she wasn’t ready to go home.

Home.

She couldn’t help but think of Jason’s Place as her home. Although she’d made a stink with Jason about construction on her ranch, she didn’t relish the thought of going back there to live. She had gotten accustomed to her home with Jason.

She was more confused than ever and the phone call from her mother hadn’t helped. Now her parents were trying to work out a bargain with her—another proposal of a sort. They would have their attorney draw up a legal document that stated if she returned home they would
give her the space she needed. Of course they wanted her to move back onto their estate, although she would be given the entire east wing as her own. They claimed they no longer wanted to control her life, but just wanted to make sure she was living the kind of life she was entitled to live.

Their proposal sounded good but she had gotten into enough trouble accepting proposals already. Besides, even if things didn’t work out between her and Jason, he deserved to be around his child. When they divorced, at least his son or daughter would be a stone’s throw away.

She was crossing the parking lot to her car when she heard someone call her name. She turned and cringed when she saw it was her uncle Kenneth’s daughter, who was the mother of the twins. Although Uncle Kenneth had had an outburst at the trial, Elyse Bostwick Thomas had not. She’d been too busy crying.

Drawing in a deep breath Bella waited for the woman to catch up with her. “Elyse.”

“Bella. I just wanted to say how sorry I was for what Mark and Michael did. I know Dad is still bitter and I’ve tried talking to him about it but he refuses to discuss it. He’s always spoiled the boys and there was nothing I could do about it, mainly because my husband and I are divorced. My ex moved away, but I wanted a father figure in their lives.”

Elyse didn’t say anything for a moment. “I hope Dad will eventually realize his part in all this, and although I miss my sons, they were getting too out of hand. I’ve been assured the place they are going will teach them discipline. I just wanted you to know I was wrong for listening to everything Dad said about you and when
I found out you even offered to help pay for my sons’ attorney I thought that was generous of you.”

Bella nodded. “Uncle Kenneth turned down my offer.”

“Yes, but just the thought touched me deeply, considering everything. You and I are family and I hope that one day we can be friends.”

A smile touched Bella’s lips. “I’d like that, Elyse. I really would.”

“B
ELLA, ARE YOU SURE
you’re okay? You might want to go see the doctor about that stomach virus.”

Bella glanced over at Chloe. On her way home she had dropped by to visit with her cousin-in-law and little Susan. Bella had grown fond of the baby who was a replica of both of her parents. The little girl had Ramsey’s eyes and skin tone and Chloe’s mouth and nose. “Yes, Chloe, I’m fine.”

She decided not to say anything about her pregnancy just yet until after she figured out how and when she would tell Jason. Evidently Chloe had gotten suspicious because Bella had thrown up the other day when Chloe had come to deliver a package to Jason from Ramsey.

Bella knew from the bits and pieces of the stories she’d heard from the ladies that Chloe was pregnant when she and Ramsey had married. However, Bella doubted that was the reason Ramsey had married her. Anyone around the pair for any period of time could tell how in love they were.

Bella never had a best friend, no other woman to share her innermost feminine secrets with. That was one of the reasons she appreciated the bond she felt toward all the Westmoreland women. They were all friendly,
understanding and supportive. But she was hoping that because Chloe had been pregnant when she’d married Ramsey, her in-law could help her understand a few things. She had decisions to make that would impact her baby’s future.

“Chloe, can I ask you something?”

Chloe smiled over at her. “Sure.”

“When you found out you were pregnant were you afraid to tell Ramsey for fear of how he would react?”

Chloe placed her teacup down on the table and her smile brightened as if she was recalling that time. “I didn’t discover I was pregnant until Ramsey and I broke up. But the one thing I knew was that I was going to tell him because he had every right to know. The one thing that I wasn’t sure about was when I was going to tell him. One time I thought of taking the coward’s way out and waiting until I returned to Florida and calling him from there.”