What a Westmoreland Wants - By Brenda Jackson Page 0,57
her eyes and, like so many other times over the past weeks, Callum was in bed with her, and she was wrapped in his embrace. She snuggled closer and turned in his arms to find him watching her with satisfied passion in the depth of his green eyes.
She smiled at him. “I think we broke the bed.”
He returned her smile and tightened his arms around her. “Probably did. But it can be fixed.”
“If not, we can stay at my place,” she offered.
“That will work.”
At that moment the phone rang and he shifted their bodies to reach and pick it up. “That’s probably Mom, calling to make sure things between us are all right.”
He picked up the phone. “Hello.”
He nodded a few times. “Okay, we’re on our way.”
He glanced over at Gemma and smiled. “That was Dillon. Chloe’s water broke and Ramsey rushed her to the hospital. Looks like there’s going to be a new Westmoreland born tonight.”
It didn’t take long for Callum and Gemma to get to the hospital, and already it was crowded with Westmorelands. It was almost 3:00 a.m. If anyone was curious as to why they were all together at that time of the morning, no one mentioned it.
“The baby is already here,” Bailey said, excited. “We have a girl, just like we wanted.”
Callum couldn’t help throwing his head back and laughing. Good old Ram had a daughter.
“How’s Chloe?” Gemma asked.
“Ramsey came out a few moments ago and said she’s fine,” Megan said. “The baby is a surprise.”
“Yes, we didn’t expect her for another week,” Dillon said grinning. He glanced over at his pregnant wife, Pam, and smiled as he pulled her closer to him. “That makes me nervous.”
“Has anyone called and told Chloe’s father?”
“Yes,” Chloe’s best friend, Lucia, said smiling. “He’s a happy grandpa and he’ll be here sometime tomorrow.”
“What’s the baby’s name?” Callum asked.
It was Derringer who spoke up. “They are naming her Susan after Mom. And they’re using Chloe’s mom’s name as her middle name.”
Gemma smiled. She knew Chloe had lost her mother at an early age, too. “Oh, that’s nice. Our parents’ first grand. They would be proud.”
“They are proud,” Dillon said, playfully tapping her nose.
“Hey, is this an engagement ring?” Bailey asked loudly, grabbing Gemma’s hand.
Gemma glanced up at Callum and smiled lovingly. “Yes, we’re getting married.”
Cheers went up in the hospital waiting room. The Westmorelands had a lot to celebrate.
Zane glanced over at Dillon and Pam. “I guess now we’re depending on you two to keep us male Westmorelands in the majority.”
“Yeah,” Derringer agreed.
“You know the two of you could find ladies to marry and start making your own babies,” Megan said sweetly to her brothers. Her suggestion did exactly what she’d expected it to do—zip their lips.
Callum pulled Gemma closer into his arms. They shared a look. They didn’t care if they had boys or girls—they just wanted babies. There were not going to be any hassles getting a big family out of them.
“Happy?” Callum asked.
“Extremely,” she whispered.
Callum looked forward to when they would be alone again and he bent and told her just what he intended to do when they got back to the cabin.
Gemma blushed. Megan shot her sister a look. “You okay, Gem?”
Gemma smiled, glanced up at Callum and then back at her sister. “Yes, I couldn’t be better.”
Epilogue
There is nothing like a Westmoreland wedding, and this one was extra special because guests came from as far away as Australia and the Middle East. Gemma glanced out at the single ladies, waiting to catch her bouquet. She turned her back to the crowd, closed her eyes and threw it high over her head.
When she heard all the cheering, she turned around and smiled. It had been caught by Lucia Conyers, Chloe’s best friend. She glanced across the room and looked at the two new babies. As if Susan’s birth had started a trend, Dillon and Pam’s son, Denver, came early, too.
“When can we sneak away?”
“You’ve waited three years. Another three hours won’t kill you,” she jokingly replied to her husband of two hours.
“Don’t be so sure about that,” was his quick response.
Their bags were packed and he was going to take her to India, as they’d planned before. Then they would visit Korea and Japan. She wanted to get decorating ideas with a few Asian pieces.
Callum took his wife’s hand in his as they moved around the ballroom. He had been introduced to all the Atlanta Westmorelands before when he was invited to the Westmoreland family reunion as a guest. Now he would attend the next one as a bona fide member of the Westmoreland clan.
“How soon do you want to start making a baby?”
Gemma almost choked on her punch. He gave her a few pats on the back and grinned. “Didn’t mean for you to gag.”
“Can we at least wait until we’re alone?”
“To talk about it or to get things started?”
Gemma chuckled as she shook her head. “Why do I get the feeling there will never be a dull moment with you?”
He pulled her closer to him. “Because there won’t be. Remember I’m the one who knows what a Westmoreland wants. At least I know what my Westmoreland wants.”
Gemma wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m an Austell now,” she said proudly.
“Oh, yes, I know. And trust me—I will never let you forget it.”
Callum then pulled her into his arms and in front of all their wedding guests, he kissed her with all the love flowing in his heart. He had in his arms everything he’d ever wanted.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-6584-8
WHAT A WESTMORELAND WANTS
Copyright © 2010 by Brenda Streater Jackson
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*The Westmorelands