Now and Forever (16 page)

“What should we do this weekend?” he asked, clearing away his visions of pulling the shirt over her head to see what color her bra was. And then, ridding her of that, too.

“It’s been such a crazy week at work,” Layla said, sighing. “I’d love to just cuddle on the couch with you and watch movies.”

“Sounds nice, but that’s past your doorstep,” Ben said. Layla groaned her disapproval. Part of him loved the way she tempted him and pouted when he didn’t give her what she wanted. But it was getting harder and harder to resist.

“No worries, I’m inviting Cole and Emma. It’s not like we’ll have sex with them in the room.”

Ben considered. “Yeah, that’d be okay. But I have to leave when they do.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Layla said in a low tone. “I’m a proper lady, after all – not one who wants to straddle you on my couch and ride your cock until we’re both sweaty and satisfied.”

His erection was threatening to burst out of his jeans. Ben closed his eyes. “Uh . . . you ready to go?”

“Sure.”

He adjusted himself under the table. Fuck, he was throbbing. He’d have to jerk off the second he walked in his door tonight.

The waiter returned with his debit card and Ben filed it in his wallet. Layla’s gaze went straight to his crotch when he stood up. He forced himself not to smile. She liked what she saw, he knew that.

They walked to the car slowly. This dating thing was actually kind of nice. They’d missed out on this stuff early on due to their deep physical attraction. He laid a hand on her thigh during the drive home. He missed just being close to her like this. Taking in her sweet smell and the taste of her soft skin, sensations reserved for him alone.

“Did I tell you I got a good judgment today?” She rubbed his hand with hers and turned to him.

“No. That’s great, babe. Let’s hear about it.”

“It was for a client who came up with a business idea with a partner and then the partner walked away with it and left him high and dry. He’ll get half of the profits now.”

“Is it a lot of money?”

“Only $60,000 so far, but more in the future I think.”

“That’s great. Bet he was happy.”

Layla smiled. “He was. His wife is sick and they really need the money.”

“I love that you’re an ass kicker with a big heart,” Ben said, squeezing her thigh.

With a warning look, Layla shushed him. “That’s our secret. It’s best if the world thinks I’m a calculating shrew.”

Ben laughed lightly. “Baby, no one thinks that.”

He looked down at her hand on his, where her ring sparkled back at him. He’d never imagined a roughneck Marine turned cop like him would have the heart of such a smart, strong, beautiful woman. And hard as it was to admit it, he was starting to see that her work was part of that strength.

The silence between them as he parked and walked her up to the apartment door was comfortable. He clasped the lapels of her wool winter coat and pulled her close to him.

“Dinner again tomorrow night?” he said against her lips.

“Yes. And movie night Friday.” She tucked her hands inside his coat and wrapped her arms around his waist.

He brushed his lips against hers and tugged her bottom lip gently with his teeth. She pressed her mouth against his, but he toyed with her lips instead of deepening the kiss. He touched just the tip of his tongue to hers and pulled back to kiss the corner of her mouth. Soft and slow. Their kissing-only deal had allowed him to discover new things about Layla. He could turn her on with no hands now.

She moaned slightly into his mouth and he slid a hand behind her neck and into her hairline. He pressed his hips into hers and she moaned even louder at the contact with his very stiff cock. Just a couple more seconds, he told himself, unable to break the kiss yet. He let himself taste her more deeply and feel all the lines of her body against his before he pulled away slowly.

“Ben,” she said, closing her eyes and smiling. “You kiss better than most men fuck.”

He pulled her hand to his lips and pressed his lips over her engagement ring. “Goodnight, future wife. I love you.”

“I love you, too. I can’t wait to see you tomorrow night.”

Ben couldn’t help his smile as he watched her unlock the door and walk inside. He felt so good as he strolled back to his car. Hard and horny as fuck, sure, but at the same time, light and happy. This step back was good for them. He wouldn’t take sleeping next to her for granted anymore. These nights of jerking off in his cold, lonely bed would ensure that.

***

Lunch with her sister at the bakery was the first break Layla had gotten today. She’d slipped out of her heels and was relaxed -- feeling no guilt about having sugar for lunch.

“God, this cupcake is good. I think I’m having a mild orgasm right now.”

Emma laughed and sipped her iced tea. “They’re not quite that good. But I did eat two for breakfast.”

Layla rolled her eyes. “A strong breeze could get me off right now. It’s been a while since I’ve had the real thing.”

“You and Ben? I thought you guys screwed like rabbits. Or is the argument about you quitting your job still an issue?”

“Yeah, that’s still not settled. And now he’s decided we should save ourselves for marriage, so that’s . . . frustrating.”

Emma arched her brows with amusement. “What? Isn’t it a little too late for that?”

“I know, right? I get a goodnight kiss on my doorstep every night now and that’s it. He thought we should step back and focus on the non-sexual parts of our relationship.”

“That’s kinda sweet. How’s that going?”

“It’s good, actually. I have a new appreciation for our chemistry. Maybe it’s like alcohol and the withdrawal will gradually get better.”

“When are you guys getting married?”

Layla shrugged. “We haven’t talked about a date. And things are going really well at the firm. I’m working for a new client and billing lots of hours. I feel like I can either have a great relationship with Ben, or a successful career, but not both. I don’t want to be afraid to have kids because I know he expects me to quit my practice, you know?”

Emma nodded. “Makes sense. What are you going to do?”

“I’ve been wondering if maybe we just moved too fast. Stepping back to just dating has helped me see that. Maybe we’re meant to be together, but not married.”

“But . . . for how long?”

“I don’t know. I can’t bear the thought of giving up Ben or my career, so I’m trying to think of ways to keep them both.”

“You want to get married, though. And you want kids.”

“Maybe I can’t have it all.” Layla ran a finger down the beads of sweat on her iced tea glass.

“I never thought I’d hear you say that,” Emma said, laying a hand on her belly. “I certainly plan to try.”

“Are you guys getting married, though?”

“I hope so. I was stupid about that. Why didn’t I say yes? I’m madly in love with Cole and we’re having a baby together. But now I can’t go to him and say, hey, will you propose again?”

“He hasn’t asked again?”

“He brought it up casually in the kitchen here the other day, but we got interrupted before I could say yes.”

Layla groaned. “He’ll ask again, don’t worry.”

“Hey, how’s his case going?”

Layla mentally checked her schedule. “We’re meeting about it this afternoon.”

Emma looked down at the table, tracing an invisible pattern on it with her finger. She was troubled. Layla knew her younger sister well enough to know the signs.

“What’s up, Em?”

“I thought Cole proposed when we found out I was pregnant because he thought he had to. But he never had to. I see now that . . . when I’m at my lowest, he’s there to hold me up. He wanted us to get married so we could face that challenge head-on, together. Just like when I wanted to buy this place and remodel it. He was all in, no questions asked. And his money has always been
our
money. When this place is in the hole, we bail it out with his salary. And he doesn’t resent me for it. In fact, he’s the one who builds me up about it.”

Emma stopped speaking and sighed, still staring at the table.

“That’s how it should be,” Layla said. “That’s what love is, Em.”

“Exactly. Which is why I feel like shit for saying we should wait until this case is over to talk about getting married. When I’m down, he’s right there picking me up. And now that he’s down, I want to be doing that for him. Letting him know that I’m all in, too.”

“You’ve been very supportive,” Layla said.

Emma looked up and met her sister’s gaze. “But it’s not enough. What if I’d told Cole I was pregnant and he’d been supportive? Offered to help with money and go to doctor appointments? That’s supportive, right? But instead he put it all on the line for me. And I passed. It was incredibly stupid of me.”

Emma’s forlorn expression pulled on Layla’s heartstrings. “But you guys are adults, Em. Go to him and tell him this. Put it all on the line now. He still wants to marry you.”

“Maybe I should. As crazy as I know this sounds, if you can’t get the charges against him dropped, I want to marry him before he goes to . . . you know.”

“With his lack of a criminal record, we could probably get him a light sentence. But we’re not going there yet, okay? I’ll fight my hardest for him.”

Emma met her gaze. “I know you will.”

“Will you guys please come over for movie night tonight? It’s the only way I can get Ben to come inside my apartment.”

“That’s messed up.”

“He knows I’d be in his pants within 30 seconds if he came in after one of our dates.”

“And that’s a problem for him?”

Layla rolled her eyes. “He’s trying to prove a point -- that he loves more than my tits and ass.”

“The rock doesn’t prove that?” Emma glanced at Layla’s engagement ring.

“I thought it did. I think he’s just trying to score enough points that I’ll get over him wanting me to quit my job. Or maybe he plans to starve me for sex and then fuck me senseless and marry me while I’m in an orgasmically-induced coma.”

“If I ever have to be a coma, may it be induced by orgasms,” Emma said, smiling. “I have to get back to work.”

“Okay.” Layla slid out of her chair in the bakery’s lobby. “See you guys tonight?”

“Sure. We’ll bring dinner. I made some amazing gumbo today.”

“Bring cupcakes, too.”

“I will. God, I can’t wait until we can share a bottle of wine again.”

“For now I’ll drink your share.”

Layla waved at Emma, wrapped her scarf around her neck and left the bakery. She needed to get back to the office and prepare for her meeting with Cole. Of all the cases she’d ever handled, she wanted to come through on this one so badly.

Chapter Nine

Cole clutched the file folder in his hands, checking his watch again. Where the hell was Layla? She was only five minutes late, but he was eager to share the information from Matt and Grayson with her. Whether the money was stolen by Grayson or someone else, Cole was most interested in proving it hadn’t been him.

“She’s having a lunch meeting with Brian Winston,” Daniel said. “He always keeps her late. You want some water or a soda?”

“No, thanks,” Cole said. Layla’s secretary eyed him, trying to be inconspicuous. Cole looked away. He grabbed a magazine and flipped through the pages absently until Layla flew in the side door of her office.

“Sorry I’m late,” she said breathlessly. “My lunch meeting ran over.”

Cole stood up and gestured at his jeans and long-sleeved t-shirt. “Lucky for you I don’t have lunch meetings these days, so I was on time.”

“You can deduct a quarter hour from my fee for this hour,” Layla said, smiling. “Come on in.”

Cole followed her in and waited until she closed the door. He pulled the papers out of the folder before either of them sat down. “I’ve got information a colleague found for me. Server logs that prove our case.”

“Don’t the police have these?” Layla took the papers from him and scanned them.

“I don’t know. Matt, the one who got these for me, said these show that Grayson Chamberlain was the one who did it.”

“I can’t stand Grayson Chamberlain,” Layla said in a disgusted tone.

“Me either. But Grayson came into the bakery the other day and told me the police questioned him. He’s in a panic.”

Layla gave Cole a sharp look. “The police questioned Grayson?”

“Yeah, and now he’s suspended, too.”

“Why the hell hasn’t anyone told me about this? This is important. Why wouldn’t Ben tell me?”

“I figured we’d talk about it today,” Cole said. “Nothing more annoying than a client who thinks you only work for them.”

“Yeah, that’s Brian Winston for me.”

“Huh?”

“Nothing. Anyway, what’d Grayson say when he came in?”

“That he didn’t do it. And as much as I hate the bastard, I believe him.”

Layla drew her brows together, looking concerned. “I think I need to go to the station and find out what’s going on with this investigation.”

“Okay. I haven’t told Em because I’m waiting to make sure it’s good information. I don’t want to get her hopes up for nothing.”

Layla stood up and put her coat back on. “I’ll let you know what I find out. Maybe we’ll have some good news for Emma tonight. You guys are coming over for movie night.”

Cole nodded. “Is this weird for you and Ben? Him being a detective and you representing me?”

“No, he mostly just refuses to talk to me about the case. That’s why I’m going down there in person, so I can get some answers from someone else.” She picked up the file Cole had brought. “I’ll make sure this gets to the investigating detectives, even though it sounds like they already know about it.”

“Thanks, Layla.”

“You know I expect you to name your kid after me, whether it’s a boy or girl, right?”

“Better talk to Emma about that.”

Cole followed her out of her office, pulling his coat closed against the bitter Chicago wind when they stepped outside. Pedestrians in coats, hats and scarves hurried past. They were probably all working. He missed the hustle of his corporate firm. Hopefully it wasn’t behind him forever.

***

Ben covered his mouth with a hand as he read the report. Flannigan was eyeing him from the chair across from Ben’s desk.