Sleeping with the Enemy's Daughter (10 page)

She could hear the confusion in his voice at her distant tone when they spoke, but he held back from questioning her. She was glad that he did. She wasn't sure how she would answer him. She didn't know what was happening between them and it scared her. She wanted to let down her guard with him, but she just didn't trust him—and the more time she spent away from him the more convinced she became that she shouldn't.

She shook her head trying to clear her mind and lifted her glass of wine to her lips. She would not ruin her celebration dinner with thoughts of Jacob. She'd come to Houston two days ago to enter contract negotiations with a publisher. 88

Sleeping with the Enemy's Daughter

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Impressed with her column, they'd offered her a contract to write a self-help book for divorced women, looking to enjoy life and their new found
singledom.
At times she felt like such a fraud as a columnist because she hadn't begun to live that life until recently, and yet she wrote about it each and every week. Still, fraud or not, she'd secured a book deal, so she'd decided to treat herself to dinner and lots of booze that night. She lowered her head to scan the menu when suddenly a chill slithered down her spine. She instantly looked up. Her eyes widened and she clutched the menu tighter as her gaze zeroed in on a familiar face. She quickly lowered her head, shielding her face with the menu.

"That bastard," she muttered to herself as she peaked from behind the menu, her eyes following his every movement as he escorted his stunning blonde date to their table in a secluded section on the other side of the restaurant. Her hands began to tremble while her heart beat frantically inside her chest.

She remembered in their last conversation that he'd said he would be travelling to Houston for a few days before returning home.

She frowned. He'd left out the part where he would be visiting his girlfriend in the process.

She stared transfixed at the stunning couple, her blood boiling with anger when he leaned towards the woman, his eyes riveted on her as he laughed at something she said. A pang of jealousy ripped through her as she watched them. Jacob sat across from the lovely woman, seemingly completely relaxed and comfortable, wearing an easy smile. It 89

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was obvious the two were
intimately
familiar with each other to have such a rapport.

"The bastard," she hissed again as she threw down her menu and stood up. Opening her purse she placed a bill on the table to cover her glass of wine, before she turned on her heel and stormed out of the restaurant. As she rode in the back of the cab to her hotel, tears burned the backs of her eyes, but she refused to cry.

She was not Jacob's woman, so there was no reason to feel betrayed. She was his mistress, there to serve his sexual needs. That was her place in his life, so she could not question him if he had other women in his life. Still the pain sliced through her like a sharp knife.

She'd known all along that Jacob had set out to hurt her. She just never realised that it would come in such a classic form.

* * * *

Camille's breasts jiggled wildly as she bounced on Jackson's cock. Throwing her head back, a long moan escaped her lips.

"Camille," he growled as he clutched her ass in his firm hands.

She opened her eyes to stare down into his face. His eyes were shut and his jaw was clenched tight as the muscles in his neck and shoulders bunched and strained while he valiantly tried to stave off his orgasm.

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"Let go Jackson. Come inside me." She cried out, as she bounced her ass against him, riding his cock harder, taking him deeper inside her.

Her words sent him over the edge as a loud roar rumbled through his chest, before he erupted in a hoarse shout of completion. Pumping his cock up into her on short, stabbing strokes, his seed poured into the condom that encased his hard length buried deep inside her.

She followed right behind him, screaming his name as she came on a tortured moan.

Exhausted, she slumped forward, her head resting against his chest.

"I thought you weren't feeling well." A startled yelp tore past her lips. Whipping her head towards the door, her shocked gaze collided with Jacob's angry one.

She swallowed deeply, before her eyes narrowed to angry slits.

"I wasn't," she snapped as she shifted off of Jackson. She watched his eyes follow her nude form. The desire that burned in his gaze caused her to shiver, but she ignored the soft tingles of pleasure as she reached for her silk robe and shrugged it on.

Folding her arms under her breasts, she stood before Jacob.

"What do you want?" She asked, almost wincing at the icy tone of her voice.

Jacob didn't miss the chilly edge in her voice either because his eyebrows instantly snapped upwards. 91

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"I came to see how you were doing. But I can see that you're feeling just fine," he muttered dryly, his cold eyes sliding over her with derision.

She stiffened.

Abruptly he spun on his heels and stalked off. She followed him out. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw him dump a large brown paper bag on her kitchen table before slamming out of her apartment door.

She crept to the table and peaked inside the bag. Waves of guilt washed over her when she saw that he'd brought an array of soups and DVDs to help her feel better. She hadn't felt sick before, but she did now. She was not a cruel person, but for the past two weeks that's exactly what she'd been to Jacob, and it was wearing on her. She cared for him, and the more he extended himself, despite her rejection, the worse she felt. Yet every time she felt herself softening towards him, the mental picture of him escorting the gorgeous blonde to dinner flashed into her head.

"I don't know what he did to you, but if I know my brother, he isn't going to take your rejection much longer." She spun around to see Jackson standing in her living room, now fully dressed.

She let out a long sigh and turned her back to him. She didn't feel like discussing this with him.

"I have to go, but remember what I said. Jacob has too much pride to allow you to just cast him aside." She grimaced at his choice of words. "I'm not casting him aside."

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He kissed her deeply for several moments before he leaned back and said. "Well that's not how it looks to the rest of us. Trust me, if I thought Jacob would let you go, I would be the first one to cheer, but I know that it isn't in his nature to let something he wants slip from his grasp so easily," he said, quietly before he turned from her and strolled out of her apartment, leaving her even more confused than she normally was as she stared at the closed door. Jacob didn't want her, at least not in the way Jackson hinted at. What did he mean
by he'd be the first to cheer if
Jacob let her go
? The way Jackson talked, one would think that they
both
cared about her. Jackson was a wonderful man, and while she did care for him, she knew her feelings for him would never rival what she felt for Jacob. But Jacob was a lost cause. He belonged to someone else, but he was too much of a bastard to just come out and say it. No, he continued to play these games, pretending that he cared as he strung her along, but she was done with him and his games. Contract or not, she refused to allow him to use her. Now all she had to do was figure out a way to make it through the last month of her contract without him touching her.

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Jacob flung open the door to enter his bedroom before slamming it shut with a thunderous crash. He wanted to rush back into Camille's apartment and shake her he was so furious with her. More importantly he was furious with himself.

He'd let his guard down and let her in, and now he felt like a fool. She'd been distant ever since he'd gone away on business. He knew despite the time they'd spent together that she was still having a hard time trusting him. He couldn't blame her. He was struggling with his own trust issues towards her as well. He'd thought they'd been making progress though, but when he returned from Houston she'd not only been distant, she'd been cold.

He'd made a mistake by leaving so abruptly without an explanation, but he'd thought it was for the best at the time. They both needed time away from each other to reflect on what was happening between them. He'd spent the time apart doing just that and had returned from his trip realising he wanted to pursue a
real
relationship with Camille. He was ready to face the demons of their murky past and work to let it all go if that meant he and Camille could build a relationship together. She on the other hand had come to an entirely different realisation during their time apart. He'd only been gone for a few weeks but in that short time she'd apparently replaced him with Jackson, since her affection now centred solely on him.

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He clutched his hands into tight fists as jealousy gripped him. He never should have left her alone with Jackson. His brother was falling in love with her too, and now it would seem the feeling was mutual.

He flopped down onto his bed and dropped his head in his hands. Everything about this contract had gone all wrong, and now he wanted out. He had grown to care for her, more than he wanted to, and certainly more than he should. He had no doubt that at the end of the month she would take the deed to her property in her hands and walk away from him and his ranch without looking back. He would be powerless to stop her. He dreaded the thought that when she left she would carry Jackson in her heart and not him. How had he allowed this to happen? How had she crawled inside his heart without him knowing it? Was this how his father had felt about Adel? Did he crave her to the point that he was willing to accept that she would never leave her husband to be with him? Did she have such a powerful influence over his dad that he hadn't even cared?

He'd never understood why if his father loved Adel as he'd claimed, that he'd never insisted she leave Earl. But now he was starting to get the picture. The Douglas women obviously had the power to cast a spell over men to the point that they would say or do anything just to keep them, in any way they could, because he was certainly about to do everything in his power to keep Camille.

Whether Camille realised it or not, she belonged to him. Her body certainly knew that, now all he had to do was sway 95

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her heart and mind because he had no intention of losing her, not to Jackson, not to any man.

* * * *

Camille's hands balled into fists as she stood there trembling with rage.

"You're just like your father. You take what's not yours, heedless of the consequences, lashing out when you don't get what you
really
want."

Jacob's blue eyes hardened. "For someone who wants
me
to let go of the past, you're apparently having a hard time doing it yourself," he bit out, his voice dripping with ice.

"Besides, this has nothing to do with my father. You're just trying to change the subject because you can't face that you're not a woman of your word."

With no defence against the truth of his words she lashed out at him. "I hate you," she spat.

"We had a deal Camille, and you're not holding up your end," he said smoothly, clearly unfazed by her bitter words. She shook her head. "Yes I am." His jaw tightened. "You only sleep with my brothers."

"That
is
what I was commanded to do," she said icily.

"And me as well," his voice was low as he bit out the words through clenched teeth.

She shrugged then. "I can't help it if every time you stop by, I'm tired. You need to plan better." His eyes narrowed. "See, I don't believe you're tired at all, which is why I'm enforcing the contract." 96

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"No. You're
forcing
me to sleep with you or else you're going to renege on our agreement."

His eyes turned cold as he stared down at her. "You agreed to the terms. If you can't fulfil your end then the contract is null and void."

She shook her head again, her blood boiling with rage.

"You are a spoiled, selfish bastard who never learned how to deal with rejection."

"I'm just restating the terms."

"Fuck you and your terms," she shouted before she turned and stormed out of his office.

Furious, she stomped out of the house and hopped into her car.

She drove the ten minutes it took to get to the Douglas ranch. Piling out of her car, she strolled towards the low wooden fence and just stood there staring out at the endless stretches of land that was her family legacy. Tears slipped down her cheeks as she seriously considered walking away from Jacob and his demands.

She couldn't do it. She couldn't lose what rightfully belonged to her family because of her stupid pride. He was right. She'd agreed to his ridiculous terms. She only had one month left. She could see this through to the very end.

* * * *

"Where have you been?"

She jumped at the unexpected voice. She'd come in through the front door of the house instead of through her apartment garage because it was more well lit and she hated 97

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the dark garage at night. Even with the small light, she found it creepy. She now regretted her decision. Closing the door, she met Jacob's questioning gaze.

"What? Did you add another clause to the contract that I have to check in now? You must have done that while I was gone," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She watched as he exhaled a deep breath, before dragging his hand through his dark hair.