Now and Forever (20 page)

“It’s not necessary, sir. I know our news was a shock, and I meant it when I said I’m sorry I disappointed you.”

Shawn pulled a pen from a cup on his desk and tapped it against the wood surface. “That’s gracious of you. But I am sorry. I embarrassed myself and Eliza that day, and I hurt my daughter. That’s not the kind of husband and father I want to be.”

Cole nodded. “I came to tell you that Emma and I are engaged. I would’ve liked to get your blessing beforehand, but it didn’t seem to be an option. Also, she was the one who proposed to me, so—”

Shawn’s eyes widened with amusement. “She did?”

“Yes, sir. But I’d already bought her a ring. I want you to know how much I love Emma. And also I want you to know that she’s hurting over this . . . rift between us and you guys.”

Eliza pushed the door open and brought in a tray with two glasses of sweet tea and a saucer of cookies. She set it on the desk and lifted a glass from the tray for each of them. Cole saw her eyes dart to her husband’s. She was probably trying to gauge how things were going.

“I need to apologize to Emma as well,” Shawn said, sighing and glancing at Eliza as she handed him his glass. “Thank you, dear.”

Eliza’s face sagged with relief.

“That would mean a lot to her,” Cole said. “Our wedding just wouldn’t be the same without the two of you there.”

“A wedding?” Eliza broke into a grin. “You and Emma are getting married?”

“She proposed to him,” Shawn said, shaking his head and grinning. “Kids these days.”

“Oh, Cole!” Eliza approached and he stood to accept her hug. “I’m so happy! You’re such a good man, and Emma’s so in love with you.”

“Eliza and I always knew Emma had a crush on you,” Shawn said. “She melted into a puppy-dog eyed puddle every time you were near. And you were always nice to her, for an older boy who probably didn’t have much concern for a girl so much younger than him. But when the two of you started dating, I could tell you saw our Emma the way we did. She has a spark -- an energy that you can’t help loving. You started looking at her the way she’s always looked at you. She’s never been happier. And my wife is right, you are a good man. So you’ve got my apology and my blessing. I’d be honored for you to be part of our family.”

“Thank you, sir. Can I ask you to come over and see Emma? She’d really love it.”

“Why don’t we come over and take the two of you out for dinner tonight?”

“That’d be great.” Cole rose and took Shawn’s outstretched hand, relieved to be getting a handshake instead of a right hook. This conversation had gone a lot better than he’d planned.

Eliza led Cole back to the front door, glowing with excitement. He headed for the bakery, where Emma was baking cupcakes. He remembered going there not so long ago and finding out she was pregnant. So much had happened since then. Hopefully the bumps in the road were behind them for good.

***

Emma and her dad had always shared a love of molten chocolate cake. It wasn’t until the waiter sat a saucer of cake in front of each of them and her dad smiled warmly at her that she realized things were truly okay again.

He’d apologized, and she’d accepted. She’d been relieved to hear he also apologized to the Marlowes, who had also forgiven him. Hearing her father contrite had been a first for Emma. He’d never had much reason to be sorry, as he was normally even-tempered and was completely devoted to his wife.

Cole’s hand rested on her thigh beneath the table, and she laced her fingers through his. When he’d told her he approached her father, she’d bristled at first. But now she could see he’d done the right thing. Now her parents would be back in their lives.

“Have you decided on wedding plans yet?” her mom asked, smiling.

“Not really,” Emma said. “We know we don’t want anything fancy.”

Her father wiped his mouth and returned his napkin to his lap. “We’d like to pay for whatever wedding you’d like to have. Be fancy, sweetheart. This is your big day.”

Emma felt color rising in her cheeks. “I know, but . . . well, for one, I don’t know that the church would want to have us with me being pregnant.”

“Then we’ll go somewhere else,” her dad said. “The Lord blesses marriages on every square inch of this earth.”

It was proof her traditional, religious dad was trying to meet her halfway. Emma was filled with warmth that he would make such strides just for her.

“I figured that was important to you guys,” she said. “Or is it enough if Layla gets married at the church?”

“We want you both to have what you want,” her mom said. “And Cole and Ben, too, of course.”

“Thank you. That really means a lot. But Cole and I genuinely don’t want anything big. The marriage is the important part, not the wedding.”

Cole squeezed her knee beneath the table. It really was going to be okay. All because of him. Her dream guy had turned out to be completely worthy of the title.

Chapter Eleven

Ben smiled when he looked at the screen of his phone and saw his sister’s name. They hadn’t spoken in a couple weeks. He slid his finger across the screen to answer it.

“Hey, Bree,” he said. “How are you?”

“Eh. Everyone’s good, but it’s raining constantly here.”

“England sucks, you should come home.”

She laughed. “We love it here, actually. The rainy spell will pass soon, I hope. You and Layla need to come visit before you get married. I’m dying to meet her, Ben.”

“Yeah,” he said weakly.

Bree was on him in an instant. “Ben. What’s up with you and Layla?”

He sighed deeply. “We had a falling out right after we got engaged, and it hasn’t been resolved.”

“Over what?”

“She overheard me telling her dad I thought she might want to go back to work after our kids are grown.”

There was a second of silence before Bree pounced. “Wait. She plans to quit her job? Isn’t she an attorney?”

“Yeah, and no, she wasn’t planning to quit it. It wasn’t something we’d discussed. I just assumed that since I’m financially secure, she’d want to raise our kids at home and let me be the one to work.”

Bree scoffed into the phone and Ben knew he was in for it. “How arrogant are you? Why don’t you quit your job and raise the kids while she works? She probably makes more money.”

“Yeah, she brought that idea up already, thanks. Why is a man who wants to be a gentleman a chauvinistic asshole? She likes me holding doors for her and changing her flat tires and holding her down in bed. Is it only okay for me to be the man if she enjoys it? We’re not fifty-fifty, Bree. I’m the dominant one.”

“No kidding,” Bree muttered. “But that doesn’t mean it’s okay to be backwards. God, she was probably hurt and insulted and . . . offended. The fact that you’d think that was your decision to make without even talking to her . . . What were you thinking?”

“I was thinking I want to be the man we never had in our lives. A husband and father who puts his family first.”

Bree sighed into the phone. “Ben . . . I get it. You know I do. But you can be a good husband and father, and she can be a good wife and mother, on your terms. Don’t let our fucked up childhood ruin your happiness. In a healthy marriage, you work together on everything. No one calls all the shots. And there are no rules. Moms can work or not work and it doesn’t make them a good or a bad mom.”

Ben considered, trying to come to a conclusion that didn’t involve him being an asshole who upset the woman he loved more than anything. But he came up empty.

“So I screwed this up, then?”

“Majorly, yes. You’re always gushing about what a great attorney she is. You can’t expect her to give up something she’s worked so hard for just because you guys have kids. Why didn’t you talk to me about this first?”

“Because it’s between me and Layla, not you.”

“Well, I can save her a lot of headache by knocking you upside the head when you need it.”

“How did you manage to come out of our upbringing so grounded and wise?” Ben asked.

“Ha. I’m not wise, little brother. But I do love you and I want you to marry the one woman who can make you stop being such a knuckle-dragger. Go apologize and buy her something pretty.”

“The ring’s not enough?”

Bree sighed heavily. “No, Ben. Don’t be that guy. And don’t ever say you told her you loved her on the day you got married so you don’t have to tell her again. Tell her every day.”

“I tell her all the time,” Ben said, aggravated. “I know what makes women happy. It’s just that most of what I know is done in the bedroom.”

“So what are you doing talking to me? Go find her and get apologizing in the bedroom.”

“Fortunately my talents extend beyond regular sex, so I’m on it.”

Bree started with confusion. “Sex, Ben. It needs to be sex. What’s with you?”

“We’re waiting until we’re married to have sex again.”

The screech on the other end of the line made him pull the phone away from his ear. “Whose idea was that?” Bree cried.

“Mine. I want her to know I love her for more than her body.”

Bree laughed lightly. “Good luck apologizing for such an epic screw up without sex. Let me know how that works out for you.”

“Hey. I can be sweet and shit.”

“Sweet and shit? Really?”

“You know what I mean.”

“Go make this right, Ben. Whatever that means between you and Layla. I don’t want you to lose her. She’s so good for you.”

Ben took a deep breath. “Okay. Yeah. Thanks, Bree.”

“Anytime.”

He hung up the phone and scrolled to Layla’s number. When he dialed and she didn’t answer, he remembered that she was at a stuffy dinner event with that asshole Winston.

He’d go blow off some steam lifting weights and wait for her at her place. No, fuck that. He was going to the hotel where the dinner was to see if he could find her without crashing the party.

For a guy who was shit at apologizing, Ben was suddenly anxious to do it. Knowing Layla was hanging out with a rich, refined gentleman type didn’t sit well with him. Winston was probably great at apologizing.

Ben headed for the bathroom to get a shower. He wasn’t a suit, but he’d need to look like one to blend in at this place.

***

Brian’s hand had started out resting on her lower back. Layla had shifted herself and moved to stand elsewhere, but he and his hand re-appeared quickly each time. And he’d gradually slid it lower, so now it was resting on her ass.

She finished her glass of wine. “I’m going to the bar to get some water.”

“That’s what the waiters are for, dear,” Brian said, taking her glass and waving it back and forth lightly. A waiter scurried over.

“Water for the lady, please,” Brian said. The waiter left, and Brian turned to Layla.

“It’s going well, don’t you think?” he asked.

“Sure. Everyone’s excited about the company and all your plans. But really, I don’t think you need me here. This is a social thing, so no reason to keep paying me $500 an hour to drink.”

“I do need you here.” Brian’s effort at a charming smile came out snake-like. “You’re one of the faces of my corporate team.”

“But I’m not an employee. I’m just a contractor. And I’m temporary.”

“For now, you’re my counsel,” Brian said tightly. Layla didn’t like his tone, or his use of the word ‘my’.

“I’m counsel for McHenry Enterprises,” she said. “And you need to remove your hand from my ass.”

“For $500 an hour I should be able to put my hands anywhere I want,” Brian said smoothly.

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

“Of course I’m kidding,” he said, sliding his hand away. “Lighten up.”

Layla was seething. Did she need this pompous bastard’s money that much? Working for his company was an incredible opportunity, but she was realizing it hadn’t been her legal skills that had landed her the job. She wanted to get Ben’s advice on whether she should just walk.

“I need to go make a call,” she said.

“Some big investors just walked in. I want you to meet them.” Brian took her hand and led her across the room.

“Patrick, Eleanor!” Brian clapped the man on the back and stepped to the side so they could see Layla. “My new counsel, Layla Carson.”

Layla was reaching out to shake hands with the couple when Brian’s hand landed between her hip and her ass. She shifted and glared at him. “I already told you, hands off.”

Brian’s eyes widened with disbelief. “Excuse me?”

“There’s no excuse for grabbing the ass of a woman you have no personal relationship with.”

His cynical laugh was laced with wonder that she would challenge him. She was about to quit before he fired her when she saw a dark figure moving across the room and realized this scene was on its way to becoming an altercation. Ben. And he was pissed.

***

Ben was
not
going to storm into this upscale hotel and drag Layla out of her dinner. He wanted to, but that would only reinforce Layla’s caveman image of him.

No, this place just happened to be as good a place as any to have a drink on a Friday night. There was nothing wrong with him being here to have a beer at the bar. It wasn’t like he was going into the ballroom they were in. He’d send her a text asking her to meet him in the bar, and hopefully she’d be able to cut out of her dinner early.

He’d left his tie in his car, and he wished he’d left the black suit jacket he was wearing with it. Within a minute of sliding onto a bar stool and ordering a beer, a blonde was perched next to him. She cleared her throat and he glanced over.

“Hi,” she said, smiling. “I’m Cara.”

“Hey. Ben.” He shook her outstretched hand and then pulled out his phone to type a message to Layla.

“What do you do?”

Ben looked up. “Huh? Oh, I’m a cop.”

“Ooh, really. Have you ever shot anyone?”

He was in no mood. “Uh, yeah, but only because they were shooting at me.”

“I’ve heard cops are good in bed. Is that true?”

She was officially annoying. “I’m engaged,” Ben said.

“Oh.” Her smile faded. “So where is this lucky girl you’re engaged to?”

“She’s in the ballroom.”

“I see. And you snuck in here for a break.”

Ben turned to watch the sports highlights on a small TV screen behind the bar. “Something like that.”