The Durango Affair (9 page)

“I like your swimming suit. At least what I’ve seen of it so far,” he said. His voice was low, intimate.

“Thanks.” She then glanced around. “So what made you decide to put this hot tub in?”

He gave her an intent look, knowing she was trying to change the subject. “It was an easy decision since I was taking advantage of one of the natural hot springs located on my property.”

“Oh, you have others?”

He grinned, knowing he had told her that already. “Yes, but don’t expect me to show them to you tonight,” he said, leaning back against the wall of the tub and deliberately stretching out one of his legs. He made it seem like an accident, an innocent mistake when his thigh touched her thigh. She gasped and slowly eased back to give him more space.

“Going someplace?” he asked with a totally innocent look on his face.

“No, I’m just trying to give you more room.”

“I don’t need more room.”

“Could have fooled me,” she muttered under her breath.

“You say something?”

She glanced over at him. “No, just thinking out loud.”

Before she could blink he had pushed away from the wall and had glided over to her, putting his face inches from hers. “Now what did you say, Savannah?”

Savannah pulled in a sharp intake of breath. Not only was Durango’s face near hers, but she could feel the heat from his entire body. He was within touching distance. He was making the already hot water that much hotter.

“Did I ever tell you how much I like kissing you, Savannah?” he asked.

A shudder of desire ran through her, first starting at her toes and easing its way to the top of her head. “I don’t recall if you have or not,” she said silkily, watching his lips inch even closer.

“Well, let me go on record and say that I do. You have a unique taste,” he said in a deep, husky tone.

“I do?”

“Yes. It’s so tantalizingly sweet that I can feast on it for hours.”

Another shudder ran through her. “No man has ever told me that before.”

He smiled. “Then maybe you haven’t kissed the right man.”

“Maybe.”

“And although you haven’t given me any bedroom rights while we’re married, you haven’t denied me kissing rights, have you?” he asked in a sensual tone.

“Ahh, no.”
But maybe I should,
she quickly thought.

“Good, because I’m going to enjoy kissing you whenever I can.”

She held her breath when he leaned forward, wrapped his arms around her waist and took the tip of his tongue and began slowly, sensuously, passionately tracing the outline of her mouth.

She moaned deep and eased his name from between her lips just moments before he slipped his tongue inside her mouth. Moaning more, she returned his kiss as their tongues met, mingled and stroked. The signals they were exchanging were intimately familiar, and all it took was the shift of their legs to bring their bodies right smack together, making her feel the very essence of his heat. She knew exactly what that huge, hot engorged body part pressed against her midsection meant.

Savannah wanted to pull back, stop playing with fire, cease indulging in temptation, but she couldn’t. Her legs felt weak, her thighs were becoming a quivering mass and her mouth was definitely getting branded the Durango way. And when he reached up and touched the tip of her breasts through the soft and clingy material of her swimsuit, she almost lost her bearing. She would
have done so if his hands weren’t still around her waist, holding her close.

He pulled back slightly and whispered hotly against her moist lips, “I also like touching you. You feel hot all over.”

It was on the tip of her tongue to say that thanks to him she
was
hot all over, but at that moment he leaned forward and took that same tongue into his mouth again, ending further conversation. Her heartbeat kicked up a notch when his hand moved from her waist and slid lower and when he shifted their bodies so he could sufficiently caress the area between her legs, through the soft material of her swimsuit, she almost cried out at the sensations he elicited.

“I know this part of you is off-limits,” he said in a deep, throaty voice that sent even more heat running through her. “But I can tell it wants me. It wants how I can make it feel, Savannah. It’s hot for me, the same way I’m hot for you. For two months I’ve lain in my bed at night and thought about us, how we were that night, how good we were together and how good we could be again.”

While he was talking, drumming up memories, his thumb continued to caress her, driving her mad, insane with desire and her head fell forward to his chest, her breathing became choppy and her mind was overtaken by passion.

“It’s going to be hard for us to share space being such passionate individuals and not want to do something about it, don’t you think?” he asked hotly against her ear.

“Yes, I’m sure it will be,” she agreed, easing the words from between her lips.

“But I’m honor bound to abide by your wishes and I will…unless you change your mind and give me the
word to do otherwise. And then there won’t be any stopping me, Savannah.”

Savannah didn’t know what to say. And when she thought of what would happen if she ever changed her mind as well as the movement of his fingers on her, a needy ache flamed to life between her legs. And when a shudder began passing through her again, igniting every cell in her body, sending sensations rushing through her, she called out his name. Just with the use of his fingers he had pushed her over the edge, giving her the big “O” without fully penetrating the barriers of her clothing.

Durango gently pulled on her hair to bring her face back to his and he kissed her, literally drank his name from her lips, as his hungry and demanding mouth devoured her, giving her a taste of what she would be missing, and giving him a thorough taste of her.

Savannah forced her mouth away from his when breathing became a necessity. The first thing she noticed was that sometime during their kiss she had wrapped her legs around him. She didn’t remember doing it but Durango
had
been kissing her senseless and the only thing she did remember was the magnitude of that kiss, the explosiveness of it.

She inhaled deeply. Jessica was right. This wasn’t a regular man. This was a Westmoreland and they didn’t do anything halfway. She had a pregnancy to prove it. What other man could make a woman scream his name in ecstasy while still wearing clothes?

She looked up at him to say something and he leaned forward and kissed her again. This kiss was slow, lingering and just as hot as the kisses that he’d lavished on her before.

When he pulled back his dark eyes held her with deep intensity. And his voice was strained when he said, “I meant what I said, Savannah. I want to make love to you again, but unless you give me the word, kissing is as far as it will go between us.”

She nodded and closed her eyes, knowing he would respect the boundaries she had set. But she also knew that he intended to use his kisses to break down her defenses. When she felt him easing away, she opened her eyes and watched him get out of the hot tub. His wet swimming trunks clung to his body like a second layer of skin, and the evidence of his desire for her was still evident.

He was silent while he toweled off, watching her watch him. He smiled knowingly. “Tomorrow is our wedding day and regardless of the reason that brought us to this point, Savannah, I intend to make it a special day for you. For the both of us.”

Moments later when the patio door closed behind him, Savannah sank deeper into the water, already feeling the loss of Durango’s heat. Whether she wanted to or not, a part of her couldn’t help but look forward to tomorrow, the day when—even though it would be temporary—she would become Mrs. Durango Westmoreland.

T
he following day when they pulled up to the entrance of the Rolling Cascade Casino and Resort, Savannah was at a loss for words. As a photographer she had traveled to many picturesque sites, but she thought nothing could have prepared her for the car ride from Reno to Ian Westmoreland’s exclusive resort on Lake Tahoe.

She and Durango had flown into Reno and had rented a car for the drive to Lake Tahoe. They decided to take what he declared to be the scenic route; the panoramic view was spectacular and more than once she had asked Durango to stop the car so she could take pictures of the snowcapped mountains, the enormous boulders and the clusters of shrubs and pine trees that grew almost down to the lake.

Just minutes from Stateline, Nevada, the Rolling Cascade looked different from the other sprawling
casinos they had passed. Ian’s resort was a beautifully designed building that overlooked Lake Tahoe and was surrounded by a number of specialty shops, clothing stores and a myriad of restaurants.

Durango had explained that the Cascade had been vacant for almost a year after it was discovered that the previous owner had been using the casino as a front for an illegal operation. When it had gone up for sale, Ian and his investors had been ready to bring their casino business on land. Hurricane Katrina had made it impossible to continue his riverboat’s route along the Mississippi from New Orleans to Memphis.

Ian had remodeled the establishment to be a small community within itself. Having been open for six months, the resort had already shown amazing profits and was giving plenty of stiff competition to the likes of the Las Vegas–style casinos situated close by.

“This place is simply beautiful,” Savannah said when Durango brought the car to a stop. Within seconds, members of the resort’s staff were there to greet them and to assist with their bags.

Durango smiled as he placed a muscled arm around her shoulders as they walked inside the building. The Cascade’s inside was just as impressive as its outside. Durango stopped and glanced around, letting out a low whistle. Moments later he said, “Ian really did it up this time. I think he’s found his calling.”

“I think so, too, brother.”

Both Durango and Savannah turned to find a smiling Ian standing directly behind them. He gave Durango an affectionate bear hug and leaned over and brushed a kiss
on Savannah’s cheek. “I’m glad you like what you see,” Ian said and smiled.

“We do,” Savannah replied, returning his smile and thinking that all the Westmoreland brothers and cousins resembled each other. They were all tall, dark and handsome; however, Ian’s neatly trimmed short beard added a rakish look to his features. “And I appreciate you having us here,” she added.

Ian grinned. “No reason to thank me. It’s about time Durango came down from the mountains and went someplace other than Atlanta. Besides, it’s not every day that a Westmoreland gets married. Come on and let me get the both of you checked in. I have the wedding chapel reserved for five o’clock. That will give you time to rest and relax a bit before the ceremony.”

“Have Chase and Jessica arrived yet?” Durango asked as he and Savannah followed Ian over to the check-in counter.

“Yes, they got in a few hours ago and last time I checked they were getting ready to take a stroll around the shops.”

A huge smile then touched Ian’s lips. “And I have a surprise for you, Durango.”

“What?”

“I got a call from McKinnon. That appointment he had scheduled for today got canceled and he was able to get a flight out and will be arriving just in time for the wedding.”

Durango smiled, pleased his best friend would make the wedding after all.

Less than ten minutes later Durango and Savannah were stepping inside what Ian had told them was a vacant owner’s suite, which to Savannah’s way of
thinking looked more like an exclusive condo with its three bedrooms, two full baths, gigantic fireplace, kitchen area and beautiful balcony that overlooked Lake Tahoe.

Savannah gave an inward sigh of relief at seeing the three bedrooms, although one of them she assumed due to its size was intended to be a master suite. She didn’t want a repeat of the temptation she had faced the previous night while in the hot tub with Durango, and was grateful for the spaciousness of the place.

“I’ll let you choose whichever bedroom you prefer,” Durango said, closing the door behind him.

She turned around and smiled sheepishly. “Because of all the stuff I brought along with me, I’ll take the biggest of the three bedrooms, if you don’t mind.”

He chuckled. “No, I don’t mind.” He glanced at his watch. “We have a few hours to kill. Do you want to take a walk around the lake?”

“I’d love to, and it was nice of Ian to let us use this suite, wasn’t it?”

Durango grinned. “Yes, he can be a nice enough guy when he wants to be. But there are times when he’s known to be a pain in the ass.”

Savannah knew he was kidding. Anyone who hung around the Westmorelands for any length of time could tell they were a close-knit group. “Give me a few minutes to freshen up, okay?”

“Sure.”

When she reached her bedroom, Durango called out to her.

“Ian mentioned there’s a private hot tub on the twelfth floor if we wanted to try it out,” he said.

Images of the two of them in the hot tub last night and the heated kiss they had shared floated into Savannah’s mind. Just the thoughts made a tingly feeling settle in the pit of her stomach. “I think I’ll pass on that.”

“You sure?” he asked, grinning, making her remember in blatant details their hot-tub antics of the night before.

“I’m positive.”

“If I didn’t know the score I’d think you and Durango were excited about getting married.”

Savannah glanced at her sister as she slipped into her wedding dress. She and Durango had run into Chase and Jessica while touring the grounds around the lake. Jessica had suggested that Savannah get dressed for the ceremony in the suite she and Durango shared. Durango would dress in Chase and Jessica’s room. That way the bride and groom wouldn’t see each other in their wedding attire before they were married.

“You’re imagining things. Durango and I came to an agreement to do what’s in the best interest of our child. That’s the only reason we’re getting married.”

Jessica Claiborne Westmoreland laughed, reached out and hugged her sister and said, “Hey, whatever, I still think the two of you look good together.”

Savannah looked at Jessica in mild exasperation. “And I told you not to get any ideas, Jess.”

“If you don’t want me to get any ideas, then how about explaining these?” she said, gesturing to all the sexy sleepwear Savannah had unpacked earlier. “If these aren’t for Durango’s enjoyment then who are they for?” she asked, picking up one of the negligees.

“For me. You know how much I like wearing sexy things to bed,” Savannah said, reaching out and taking the item from Jessica and tossing it back on the bed. “Since Durango and I won’t be sharing a bed, what I sleep in is no business of his.”

Jessica tipped her head, regarded Savannah thoughtfully and said, “You still haven’t gotten it yet, have you?”

“Gotten what?”

“The fact that a Westmoreland man isn’t anyone to play with. How long do you think the two of you will be able to fight this intense attraction? Even today he was looking at you when he thought you weren’t looking and you were looking at him when you thought he wasn’t looking. The two of you were doing the same thing at my wedding.”

“And your point?”

“The point is that you know what happened as soon as the two of you were alone and behind closed doors.”

“We indulged in too much champagne that night, Jess. That won’t happen this time because I don’t plan to consume any alcohol while I’m pregnant.”

“There’s another way a woman can get tipsy, Savannah. There is such a thing as being overtaken by sexual chemistry and losing your head,” she said, letting her gaze stray to the nightgowns once again.

“I don’t plan to lose my head.”

“What about your heart?”

“That, either. Now tell me how I look.”

Jessica glanced up and fell silent. She had seen the short, white lace dress on the hanger and thought it looked okay, but on Savannah the dress looked like it had been made just for her, and just for this special
occasion. Savannah looked so beautiful it almost brought tears to Jessica’s eyes.

“Well, what do you think?” Savannah asked when Jessica didn’t say anything.

“I think that you look simply beautiful and I’m sorry that Jennifer isn’t here to see you,” Jessica said, almost choking with emotion.

“Hey, knock it off, Jess. This wedding is no big deal. The only reason we’re getting married is because I’m pregnant…remember?”

Jessica reached out to pick up another skimpy piece of lingerie only to have Savannah shoo her hand away. She chuckled and then asked, “So when are you going to let Rico know you’re a married woman?”

Savannah closed her luggage with a firm click. “Durango and I will be calling and telling everybody the news when we get back. We had hoped to take off for Philly and Atlanta next week to drop the bomb in person, but because one of the park rangers is out on medical leave, it will be another month before Durango can take time off work. Maybe that’s just as well since it will give everyone a chance to get used to the idea.”

“I can’t wait to see the Westmorelands’ reaction when they hear the news. Durango is the last person anyone would have thought would marry.”

“Yes, but let me remind you again that the only reason he’s doing so now is because I’m pregnant, and don’t you forget it.”

Jessica laughed. “After seeing all those sexy things, the big question is whether after this weekend you’ll forget it.”

Durango turned around the moment he felt Savannah’s presence in the wedding chapel. Immediately his breath caught at the sight of how strikingly beautiful she looked in her dress. It was perfect. Typically you couldn’t improve on perfection, but in Savannah’s case she had by adding the string of pearls around her neck, as well as with the way her hair shimmered like a silk curtain around her face, making her hazel eyes that much more profound. She was a vision straight out of any man’s fantasy.

“Your bride is a beautiful woman, Rango. I’m not sure that’s a good sign.”

Durango arched an eyebrow and switched his gaze from Savannah to the man standing by his side, who’d leaned closer to whisper in his ear. McKinnon Quinn was the only person to whom he had told the real reason he was getting married, although he was sure Chase knew, as well. “Somehow I’ll deal with it, McKinnon.”

McKinnon chuckled. “I’m glad it’s you who’ll be doing the dealing and not me. A woman that beautiful might cause me to have a few weak moments.”

Durango hoped like hell that he would be a stronger man than McKinnon when and if those moments occurred. He glanced over at Chase and Ian, wondering if they had the same thoughts as McKinnon since they had shifted their gazes from Savannah to stare at him.

A few moments later Durango was standing beside Savannah as they faced the older man who was employed by the Cascade to perform wedding ceremonies. Durango had no problem saying
I do
to any of the things the man asked him since he planned to adhere to his marriage vows for the brief time the marriage lasted.

Although he had been fully aware of each and every question he’d been asked, he’d also been fully aware of the woman standing beside him. The subtle scent of her perfume was zapping his senses. She could arouse feelings in him that were better left alone. And today of all days, the flesh beneath his suit was burning with memories of the time they had spent in the hot tub together.

“I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss your bride.”

The man’s words intruded on Durango’s thoughts, giving him a mental start at the realization that the ceremony was over. He was now a married man and it was time to seal his vows with the traditional kiss. He turned to Savannah and saw her tense although she gave him a small smile.

At that moment he wanted to assure her that everything was going to be all right and they had done the right thing for their child. He reached out and touched her, gently ran the backs of his knuckles down her cheek while looking deeply into her eyes. And within seconds he felt her relax.

When a sigh of contentment eased from her lips he leaned forward. The kiss he’d intended was to be brief and light. But the moment his mouth touched hers, a strong sense of desire overtook him and he kissed her with a force that surprised even him.

His common sense told him that now was not the time for such a strong display of passion, but slipping his tongue into her mouth, wrapping his arms around her small waist and hungrily mating his mouth with hers seemed as natural as breathing. And the feel of her palms gliding over his shoulders wasn’t helping one iota.

It was only when McKinnon touched his shoulder
and jokingly said aloud, “I see these two are off to a good start,” that Durango pulled back.

“I’d rather the two of you not mention anything to the family about my marriage just yet,” Durango said to Ian and Chase a few minutes after the ceremony had ended and he could speak with them privately. “I want to be the one to tell them.”

Both men nodded. Then Ian said, “Mom isn’t going to be happy about not being here at your wedding.”

“Yes, but this is the way Savannah and I wanted to do things.”

“When are you going to tell everyone?” Chase inquired. It wasn’t easy keeping secrets in the Westmoreland family.

“I’m going to call the folks when we get back. Once I tell Mom, the news will spread like wildfire. But it will be another month before we’ll be able to travel home. One of the rangers is out on medical leave and we’re shorthanded.”

“When you do come home expect Aunt Sarah to have one hell of a wedding reception planned,” Chase said, grinning. “She might be upset at first about your elopement, but she’ll be ecstatic that another one of her sons has gotten married.”

Durango nodded, knowing that was the truth. “I don’t have a problem with her planning a reception,” he said, thinking his mother was going to be surprised when she did see Savannah because she’d be showing a little by then. Then Sarah Westmoreland would be happy for two reasons. Another one of her sons would have married and she would have her first grandchild on the way.