Beyond Temptation Read online

  “Fantasy bathrooms?” Morgan couldn’t resist interrupting to ask, while raising a brow.

  Lena chuckled. “Yes. You’ll know what I mean when you see it. And because over three hundred acres of the land is set aside to preserve nature, there are plenty of hiking and equestrian trails.”

  “Sounds like a real nice place.”

  She smiled over at him after closing her folder. “I think you’re going to be pleased. It’s the ultimate in prestigious living. I really don’t think you’re going to find anything better.”

  He brought his SUV to a halt at a stop sign and glanced over at her, appreciating how the fabric of her sweater clung to her full breasts and how the rich coloring of her honey-brown hair fell in lustrous curls past her shoulders. It was his opinion that she had a mouth that was begging to be kissed, and he decided right then and there that she was wrong. He would find something better than the place she was taking him, and that was the place he intended to one day be, which was in her arms, in her bed, inside her body.

  “The turnoff is up ahead, Morgan.”

  Morgan was convinced he wasn’t imagining things when he heard that breathless catch in her voice. “All right.” He tried putting all his concentration on his driving but found he couldn’t. Even now his every breath was filled with the succulent scent of her as it floated through the confines of his vehicle. He decided to get control back before he blew things by pulling the truck to the side of the road and kissing the living daylights out of her.

  “You mentioned one of the Edwards children was handicapped. What happened?”

  “I didn’t want to appear insensitive by asking. I think possibly a birth defect but I’m not sure. But Sarah is the cutest thing, simply adorable. She was ready to get into your pool that day.”

  Morgan chuckled. “Was she? She sounds like Tiffany the first time she saw it,” he said of the niece he’d inherited after his brother’s marriage to Kylie. He knew Tiffany was also Lena’s godchild. His face formed in a thoughtful expression when he recalled how Chance’s son, Marcus, along with Tiffany, had managed to get their parents together. Too bad there was no one out there looking out for him and Lena.

  “Turn right at the next corner, please, and stop. I’ll get us passage through the gates.”

  Moments later Morgan brought his car to a stop at the gated entryway, and after Lena had talked to the guard to gain clearance, they were driving through. His breath actually caught at the impossibly beautiful homes he saw showcased, all custom designed and reflecting varying architectural styles. He immediately concluded that this was one extraordinary neighborhood from the lush landscaping to the pristine creeks that ran along the back properties of some.

  “Pull into the next driveway on your left.”

  He did and he had to stop the moment his vehicle pulled into the yard. Before him sat what had to be the most regal and provincial home he’d ever seen. Completely brick, the three-story structure was twice the size of his present home, definitely a lot for one man. But then, he didn’t intend to live in it alone. He would have a wife, a number of children and a mother-in-law whom he would gladly welcome with open arms.

  “So what do you think?”

  He turned to Lena when she asked the question. He smiled. “Umm, I’m curious to know what you think.”

  He watched as her mouth pursed. “I think this place has your name on it.”

  He chuckled, deciding not to tell her that if his name was on it, then her name was on it as well.

  Chapter 4

  So this was a fantasy bathroom, Morgan surmised as he studied the huge room that contained a Roman spa with trompe l’oeil walls, the Portuguese cork floors, the romantic recessed lightings, the cornice tile moldings that framed the wall mirror and the chrome fixtures. And then he couldn’t omit the stone fireplace, the first he’d ever seen placed in a bathroom where you could soak away a day’s worth of stress while enjoying the view of a blazing flame.

  The house contained four other bathrooms and they were just as elegant. The walls behind the bathtubs displayed a convergence of ceramic-tile styles against a backdrop of decorative squares and mosaic insets that appeared hand-carved.

  But the elegance didn’t stop there. The master suite connected to the main house by a glass breezeway with elevator access. There was also an in-law suite on the first floor that was the size of a small apartment. The massive great room with its thirty-foot ceilings and eight-foot-wide brick fireplace added an expressive intricate touch, and the huge kitchen with its granite-top island and ceramic tile floors did more than add a finishing touch. They provided enhancements not normally found in most custom homes, including the one he was living in now.

  He turned and leaned against a kitchen counter. Although when he’d made the request he hadn’t thought it was possible, Lena had done just what he had asked her to do. She had found a home more perfect than the one he now owned. “I really like this house, Lena,” he said quite honestly. “Not only is it a home but it’s also a private retreat.”

  He watched the smile that appeared on her face. “I like it, too, and hoped that you would. I have others to show you but I thought this one was yours.”

  Morgan shook his head. It definitely was his…and hers. “So what’s next?” he asked.

  “I prefer you not put a binder on it yet. I feel confident that I can work with the developer to get a few more amenities. I’m not saying he will give us any, but it’s worth a try, and I wouldn’t be doing my job as your Realtor if I didn’t get you the best bang for your buck.”

  He swallowed and wished she hadn’t said the word bang. At the moment he would gladly take the best bang for his buck. Even now with her standing across the room he couldn’t help but notice her bare legs and would do anything to get up close and personal just to run his hands up her voluptuous thighs. After getting a glimpse of her yellow bra that day he wondered if she always matched her underthings with her outerwear. He would love to investigate, to check things out for himself by going up under her skirt to see just what was beneath it.

  She glanced down at her watch. “Oops, I need to leave. I almost forgot I need to pick my mother up a little early today since they’re having a meeting at the center. I’ll barely have time to make it once you take me back to the restaurant to pick up my car.”

  “Then I won’t. I’ll just take you straight to the place to get your mother.”

  She shook her head. “You don’t have to do that, really.”

  “I’m sure I don’t but I don’t mind. Besides, I’d like to meet your mother.”

  She lifted a brow. “Why?”

  “Because I’ve heard a lot about her.”

  A bemused look touched Lena’s features. “You have?”

  “Yes.”

  “From who?”

  “Kylie, Tiffany. She wasn’t able to make it to Kylie’s wedding. I understand she was under the weather.”

  Lena nodded knowing it was a lot more than that. “It just so happened that Chance and Kylie got married on what would have been my parents’ fiftieth wedding anniversary had my father lived. They’d already been married twenty years before I was born.”

  “Wow, I didn’t know that. I’m sure losing your father was hard on her.”

  Lena nodded. “Yes, it was. They had a rather close relationship, and although he’s been gone for six years now, she still has some rough times. The holidays are extremely hard, especially Christmas since it was the day they married. And of course his birthday, which happens to be on the Fourth of July. She goes into a state of depression every year around those days.”

  Morgan nodded as he thought of his own parents. They would be celebrating their fortieth wedding anniversary in a few years. They, too, had a close relationship and he knew if anything were to happen to either parent, the remaining one would have a difficult time adjusting as well.

  At that moment he felt an astounding respect and admiration for Lena. She had technically placed her social life
on hold to take care of her mother. He and his bothers had unanimously decided when and if the time came not to place their parents in a nursing home if it was reasonably possible not to do so. Like Lena, they would become their parents’ primary caretakers.

  When he saw her glance down at her watch again, he said, “Come on. I want to make sure you’re there to pick up your mother on time.”

  It was on the tip of Lena’s tongue to tell him that she preferred that he not go. She could just imagine what her mother would think if a man accompanied her to pick her up as it had been over three years since she was actually out on a date. The last guy she’d dated had been Dr. Derek Peterson, who’d had the nerve to tell her that they could pick up their relationship once she put her mother in her own place and stop spending so much time with her. She was glad she hadn’t gotten any further with him than the first kiss. After saying what he’d said the man had really turned her stomach.

  Once they were back in Morgan’s SUV her lips quivered slightly with nerves. Maybe she needed to prepare Morgan in case her mother did something crazy like bring up the subject of grandbabies, her favorite subject lately. “Morgan?”

  He glanced over at her as he backed the vehicle out of the driveway. “Yes?”

  “My mother. I think I need to prepare you about something so you won’t be surprised, in case she brings it up.”

  “Okay, what is it?”

  “She wants grandkids.”

  “Oh, I see.”

  Even as he said the words, Lena doubted if he really saw at all and decided to explain. “She’s getting older and—”

  “Lena, you don’t have to explain. I have parents, too, remember. And when it comes to wanting grandkids they’re just as bad.”

  “They are?”

  “Yes. For years Marcus was enough for them, but then they started throwing out hints to the four of us again. They felt Chance needed to remarry and Bas, Donovan and I needed to find wives. Now with Bas married and Chance with a new baby on the way, they’re satisfied for now, but I’m not counting on it lasting too long. They’ll be looking at me and Donovan again in a few years.”

  A few moments later he asked, “What about you, Lena?”

  She lifted a brow. “What about me?”

  “I asked you before and you said you wanted kids…but. You never explained what that but meant.”

  Lena recalled that day a couple of weeks ago. She met his gaze when he halted at a stop sign. “But means that I would love to have children of my own one day and I would love for my children to know my mother while she’s still here with me in good health and a good frame of mind. But since I’m not married and don’t see myself getting married in my near or distant future, then it doesn’t matter how much I love kids or want them, does it?”

  Yes it did. Morgan’s jaw tightened and he wished to earth that he could tell her right then and there that it did matter because he was willing to give her as many babies as she wanted. He could provide their child a loving, stable environment that included two parents and grandparents. And he didn’t have a problem with Lena being her mother’s primary caretaker. They would do it together, share the responsibility. And he would be able to provide all the financial security she’d ever want.

  But at the moment he was too deep into his plan of pursuit to tell her that. He would have to show her better than to tell her. In the past men had disappointed her in such a way that it would be hard for Lena to put her complete trust in one again. So he would take his time and continue with his plan to build her trust and belief that he was different. He had to prove that all the other men in her life had been Mr. Wrong but he was her Mr. Right.

  When he brought the car to the gate to exit out of the subdivision he smiled and said, “Don’t worry. Your mother and I will get along great.”

  Lena inwardly sighed. That was exactly what she was afraid of. And then when Morgan stopped coming around the way the others had once they realized that her mother was a permanent fixture in her life, she wondered just what her mother was going to think.

  “Who are you, young man?”

  Before Morgan could respond Lena quickly answered as she snapped her mother’s seat belt in place. “Mom, this is a client of mine, Morgan Steele. I was out showing him a house and time slipped away. He was kind enough to offer to bring me here to pick you up.”

  “Oh.” Odessa, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, smiled over at Morgan, in the driver’s seat. “That was nice of you, Mr. Steele.” She then bunched her brows. “I know another Steele. Kylie’s husband.”

  Morgan smiled. “That’s Chance, my brother.”

  The woman’s face crinkled into an even wider smile. “So, you’re one of those Steele boys.”

  Morgan chuckled. He hadn’t heard him and his brothers referred to that way in a long time. “Yes, ma’am, I am.”

  “I heard there were four of you.”

  “Yes, there are.”

  “Another one got married recently, right?”

  “Yes, that was my brother Sebastian.”

  “You and your other brother are still single?”

  “Mom! Please don’t make Morgan feel like he’s part of an inquisition,” Lena said from the backseat as Morgan drove away from the adult day care center.

  Odessa glanced over at Morgan. “Sorry about that, son.”

  He chuckled again. “No harm’s been done, Ms. Spears. And to answer your question, yes, my brother Donovan and I are still single.”

  To avoid her mother asking Morgan any questions about his personal life, Lena quickly asked her how things had gone at the center today. Odessa then went into a lengthy explanation, filling everyone in on the happenings of that day. Lena sat in the backseat thinking most of it was an everyday occurrence, especially the information about Mr. Talbot trying to eat Ms. Meriwether’s lunch. But what was different today was that her mother had another set of ears, attentive ears. Lena knew Morgan was just being nice but he was hanging on to her mother’s every word; and the more he hung on, the more her mother had to say. She couldn’t recall the last time her mother was so chatty with a stranger.

  From her position in the backseat Lena watched Morgan. Although he kept his eyes focused on the road, he was still attuned to what her mother was saying and would make occasional comments. Lena finally decided to tune out the conversation and focus on him.

  The man had a very sexy mouth. That was one of the first things she had noticed about him the first night they met, which was probably the reason she kept having those fantasies of kissing it. Then there were his hands, the ones that were now gripping the steering wheel. She could just imagine him gripping her thighs in just the same way, while his fingers inched upward toward that heated place and—

  “Isn’t that wonderful, Lena?”

  She blinked, realizing her mother had spoken to her, had asked her a question. “Excuse me, Mom, what did you say? My thoughts were elsewhere.”

  “I said, isn’t it wonderful that Morgan is coming to dinner on Sunday?”

  “What!” Lena said, switching her gaze to Morgan and meeting his in the rearview mirror in wild confusion. What was her mother talking about? Morgan was not coming to dinner on Sunday.

  “Did I miss something?” she asked, trying to ignore the intensity in the dark eyes staring back at her in the mirror.

  “Your mother asked when the last time was that I had homemade chicken and dumplings, and I told her it’s been a while. She was kind enough to invite me over on Sunday since she’ll be cooking some then.”

  Lena snatched her gaze from Morgan to stare at the back of her mother’s head. “When did you decide to cook?” She couldn’t recall the last time her mother had been motivated to go into the kitchen to prepare dinner. Usually Lena did the cooking.

  “When Morgan said it’s been a while since he’d had chicken and dumplings. I think he should get a taste of mine at least once.”

  “That’s kind of you, Mom, and I’m certain Morgan appre
ciates the invitation, but I’m sure he has other things to do on Sunday.”

  “No, I don’t.”

  A surprised brow lifted as Lena met Morgan’s gaze in the rearview mirror again. She’d been trying to help him out of what she thought was a situation he hadn’t really wanted to be in. “You don’t?”

  He chuckled. “No, I don’t.”

  “Then it’s all settled,” Odessa Spears was saying with a smile in her voice. “And I think I’m going to bake a peach cobbler as well. Do you like peach cobbler, Morgan?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Good.”

  Kylie Steele smiled, seeing the look of grief on the face of the woman who’d been her best friend since high school. They were having their weekly lunch session at their favorite restaurant. “Come on, Lena. Morgan having dinner at your place can’t be that bad.”

  Lena frowned. “That’s what you think. You know that he asked me out a few times and I turned him down, and I had worked so hard making sure he understood there could never be anything between us but friendship. And with him being a client, I’ve been trying to keep things strictly business between us, and now thanks to Mom he might get the wrong idea and I don’t want that.”

  Kylie took a sip of her apple juice, her eyes meeting Lena’s over the rim of her glass. Once she set the glass down on the table she asked, “Okay, Lena. Tell me. What’s going on here? What is it that you really want?”

  Lena shrugged. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “No, I think that you do. This is Kylie, remember, the one person who knows you like a book. Pregnancy didn’t destroy any of my brain cells. I know the reason you turned Morgan down all those times. You’re convinced he’s no different than the Derek Petersons of the world.”

  Lena shook her head. “I never said he was anything like Derek. But then, I have to be fair and objective in dealing with men, Kylie. Taking care of an elderly parent is a huge undertaking, but I do it with pleasure and love because it’s my mom. I don’t see it just as a responsibility, I see it as a way to gladly give back all those things she’s given to me over the years.”