What a Westmoreland Wants - By Brenda Jackson Page 0,34
Denver had a high-speed Internet connection, a fax machine and whatever else was needed to keep in touch with his team in Australia. And due to the difference in time zones, six in the evening in Denver was ten in the morning the next day in Sydney. He’d been able to call it a day with Ramsey around five, go home and shower and be included in a number of critical business meetings by way of conference call by seven.
“This area is historic Bellevue Hills and this house was once owned by one of the richest men in Australia. Shaun told me about it, thought I should take a look at it and make the seller an offer. I did.”
“Just like that?” she asked, snapping her fingers for effect.
He met her gaze. “Just like that,” he said, snapping his.
She couldn’t help but laugh. “I like the way you think, Callum, because, as I said, this place is a beauty.”
He shifted his gaze away from her to look back at the house. “So, it’s a place where you think the average woman would want to live?”
She placed her hands on her hips. “Callum, the average woman would die to live in a place like this. This is practically a mansion. It’s fit for a queen. I know because I consider myself the average woman and I would.”
“You would?”
“Of course. Now, I’m dying to take a look around and make some decorating suggestions.”
“As extensive as the ones you made at lunch regarding that conference room at Le’Claire?”
“Probably,” she said with a smile. “But I won’t know until I go through it and take measurements.” She pulled her tape measure out of her purse.
“Let’s go.”
He touched her arm and the moment he did so, she felt that tingling sensation that always came over her when he touched her, but now the sensations were even stronger than before.
“You okay, Gemma? You’re shivering.”
She drew in a deep breath as they moved from the foyer toward the rest of the house. “Yes, I’m fine,” she said, refusing to look at him. If only he knew the truth about how she was feeling.
Callum leaned against the kitchen counter and stared over at Gemma as she stood on a ladder taking measurements of a particular window. She had long ago shed her jacket and kicked off her shoes. He looked down at her feet and thought she had pretty toes.
They had been here a couple of hours already and there were still more measurements to take. He didn’t mind if he could continue to keep her up there on a ladder. Once in a while, when she moved, he’d get a glimpse of her gorgeous legs and her luscious-looking thighs.
“You’re quiet.”
Her observation broke into his thoughts. “What I’m doing is watching you,” he said. “Having fun?”
“The best kind there is. I love doing this and I’m going to love decorating this house for you.” She paused a second. “Unfortunately, I have some bad news for you.”
He lifted a brow. “What bad news?”
She smiled down at him. “What I want to do in here just might break you. And, it will take me longer than the six weeks planned.”
He nodded. Of course, he couldn’t tell her he was counting on that very thing. “I don’t have a problem with that. How is your work schedule back in Denver? Will remaining here a little longer cause problems for you?”
“No. I finished all my open projects and was about to take a vacation before bidding on others, so that’s fine with me if you think you can handle a houseguest for a little while longer.”
“Absolutely.”
She chuckled. “You might want to think about it before you give in too easily.”
“No, you might want to think about it before you decide to stay.”
She glanced down at him and went perfectly still and he knew at that moment she was aware of what he was thinking. Although they had enjoyed each other’s company, they had practically walked on eggshells around each other all day. After lunch he’d taken her on a tour of downtown and showed her places like the Sydney Opera House, the Royal Botanic Gardens and St. Andrew’s Cathedral. And they had fed seagulls in Hyde Park before coming here. Walking beside her seemed natural, and for a while they’d held hands. Each time he had touched her she had trembled.
Did she think he wasn’t aware of what those shivers meant? Did she not know what being close to her was doing