You and I Forever (2 page)

“
Seriously?”

“
Seriously.” He smiles sweetly at me. “The club opens this weekend. There is nothing that will require me to be there full time. Shira will be there for the first couple of weeks and I am transferring one of my managers from Philadelphia there temporarily as well. Considering it's on the other side of the country, I need people there I can trust to get the job done. I will make sure that everything goes smoothly during the opening week and then I am all yours.” He raises his eyebrows suggestively at me, causing me to squirm slightly in my seat.

“
Which brings me to my next question.” He continues. “Would you like to join me in Seattle for opening night?” He asks, his eyes firmly on the road.

“
Are you kidding?” I ask, not trying to hide my excitement. “I mean, I will have to make sure they can cover me at the club.” I tack on.

“
They can cover you.” He says matter of fact, like it's not up for discussion.

“
Bentley.” I warn, having already had this conversation with him countless times before.

“
Don't give me that look Anna.” He says, shaking his head. “The only perk to you working at one of my clubs is that your work schedule will never be an issue for us.”

“
The
only
perk?” I cock my head to the side, silently reminding him of the private dance he received last night when he showed up unexpectedly.

“
Okay, maybe not the only.” He trails his tongue across his lower lip the same way he did last night after bringing me to orgasm with his mouth. I shift in my seat, heat suddenly flooding my body with the memory.

I open my mouth to give him a smart ass retort but then close it again when his cell phone buzzes to life in the center console, pulling his attention away from the road just long enough to grab it and swipe his finger across the screen. “Bentley Reed.” He says, his voice morphing into business mode. While I love every side of Bentley, I have to admit, there is something so sexy about a man who commands a multimillion dollar business the way he does.

He has this cool confidence that just oozes from him. And while he comes off very friendly to his staff and clients, there is also this powerful aura that surrounds him and makes him more than a little intimidating.

Turning my head towards him, I watch him talk to whoever is on the other line. If I had to guess, I would say it is either Shira or Ethan, as those are the only two employees that he talks to so casually. I don't even pay attention to what he's actually saying, I can just tell by his demeanor. I am too busy admiring his profile and imagining all the things I want to do to him when we get back to his hotel, to really care about anything else.

I don't even realize he has ended the call until his eyes meet mine and he laughs lightly. “Where did you go there?” He tosses his phone back into the console and reaches for my hand.

“
No where.” I smile up at his handsome face. “Just admiring the view.” I say, relaxing back into my seat. Entwining my fingers with his, I glance out of the window and take a deep breath, trying to process all of the things that have happened today.

Two weeks ago, I didn't know if I would ever see him again, and now, we are planning to build a house together. I can't quite seem to keep up with how quickly my life seems to jump from one point to the other where Bentley is concerned. It's like one wild roller coaster ride that is always changing its track. And while the ride can be a little scary and sometimes a bit nauseating, it's the biggest thrill I have ever experienced and I never want it to end.

Chapter
Two

“
Hey girl.” Andrea bounces up next to me after stopping by the desk located at the front of the class and dropping her paper off to our English Professor. “So Collin is busy this afternoon and I thought maybe we could hang out, grab a late lunch. What do you think?” She asks, throwing her bag over her shoulder as we make our way outside.

“
I can't.” I say, turning my eyes towards her the moment we step out into the perfect fall day. I love this weather. Not too hot, not too cold. I wish there was a place that existed where the temperature was like this everyday because I would totally live there. “I have plans with Bentley.” I say, throwing her an apologetic look.

“
Oh, I just assumed he left already.” She pouts out her bottom lip. “Well poo. Now what am I going to do?” She whines, following me across the lawn to the sidewalk.

“
I'm sure you will figure something out.” I laugh, my steps faltering slightly when I look up and see Bentley making his way towards us. “Hey.” I call to him, smiling widely as I jog over and jump into his arms.

He pulls me tightly against his body and drops his face into my hair, inhaling deeply. “I missed you.” He purrs, pulling back to lay a light kiss across my mouth.

“
I missed you.” I say, laughing when Andrea makes a gagging noise from behind me. Whipping my head around, I immediately stick my tongue out at her as she approaches.

“
Seriously, you two are just sickening.” She shakes her head, stopping directly next to me. “So what do you two love birds have planned?” She asks, adjusting her book bag on her shoulder.

“
Well.” Bentley pauses, looking down at me as if silently asking my permission. Nodding my head, I can see no reason not to just tell Andrea about the house now. It will save me from having to drop the bomb on her when we are alone. “We are meeting with a design team today to start the process of building our home.” He smiles down at me, not even paying attention to Andrea's reaction.

“
He purchased some land a few miles outside of the city.” I add on, not missing the way her eyes widen.

“
What?” She mouths to me, completely floored by the news.

I give her a tight smile and nod my head, reassuring her that it's true. “But it will be a few months.” I tack on. “So you're stuck with me for a while longer.”

“
We need to talk later.” She says, eyes still wide. I know what she's saying. She wants the dirt without Bentley here listening to our every word.

“
We will.” I promise, giving her an expression that I know only she will understand. One that says, I'm in shock too but I am also really excited. She smiles knowingly at me and then hits me with a look that strikes me as odd. Like a parent would look at a child who just made the honor roll or won the spelling bee. It's weird to think, but in some strange way, I feel like Andrea is proud of me.

“
But it will have to wait.” I tack on. “Bentley is taking me to Seattle for the weekend. His new club is opening there.” I bounce on the balls of my feet in excitement.

“
Shut up!” She exclaims, hitting Bentley with hateful eyes. “When are you leaving?” She asks, her lip puffing out into a full on pout.

“
Tomorrow afternoon.” He says, reaching out to tuck my hair behind my ear when I turn to face him.

“
And we will be back when?” I ask, simply out of curiosity since we haven't really discussed it.

“
Sunday.” He says, giving me a sweet smile.

“
You guys suck.” Andrea exhales, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “I want to go to Seattle.”

“
You're welcome to join us.” Bentley interjects, surprising both me and Andrea.

“
Seriously?” She gapes at him like she can't believe her own ears.

“
Seriously?” I say her words again, turning inward to face him head on.

“
Why not?” He laughs, his eyes flicking back and forth between the two of us. “It's not like she doesn't already know what type of club it is. Besides, while I would love to devote every moment to you, there will be business to attend to while we are there. It might be nice for you to have someone there to keep you company.”

“
Can you do it?” I turn towards Andrea. “Are you able to go?”

“
Um, hell yes.” She squeals, pouncing on Bentley in the matter of seconds. She wraps her arms around his waist and jumps up and down at the same time. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” She chants, dropping her grip on him to turn towards me. “Oh my god girl. This is going to be so much fun.” She squeals, pulling me in for a hug. “Shit. I gotta go shopping.” She says, backing away.

“
You do not need to go shopping Andrea. We are only going to be there for three days.” I laugh, shaking my head at her.

“
And?” She questions like it's the most ridiculous thing I could have said. “I gotta go.” She lets out another little squeal. “Thank you so much for the invite. I will text you later.” She says, pulling me in for one more quick hug before practically skipping away from us, her dark hair swooshing back and forth as she does, making her look very child like.

“
Well she's easy to please.” Bentley shakes his head, turning his dimple filled smile on me.

“
You have no idea.” I laugh. “You just made her year.”

“
Well, good.” He says. “Now come on. We have an appointment to keep.” He says, taking my bag from me and slinging it over his shoulder before entwining his fingers with mine and leading me towards his car.

****

“
There's no rush.” Bentley approaches me from behind and sits a cup of coffee in front of me on the kitchen island of his hotel room. I have been staring at floor plans and layouts for most of the evening and honestly, at this point, I feel like I have gone cross eyed.

Pushing the papers away, I rub my eyes and straighten my back, feeling like I have spent the day doing manual labor rather than looking at pictures and sketches. My whole body feels tight and I am completely exhausted.

“
I know.” I say, pushing my hair away from my face as I turn towards him. “I just hate leaving things unfinished.” I shrug, reaching out to run my hand along his chest.

“
Well I hate to tell you that you are just going to have to get over that.” He laughs, sliding his hand under my chin and lifting my face up towards him. “Just don't worry about it right now. We will look over it again in a couple of days when you've had a chance to think about it. Besides, our next meeting isn't for another couple of weeks so there's nothing we can do today anyways.” He drops his hand from my face and smiles sweetly at me.

“
I know.” I let out a long exhale. “Is it wrong of me to admit that thinking about it kind of freaks me out?” I give him an apologetic look.

“
Anna, we are building a house together. It's a big step.” He says, leaning forward to kiss my forehead before hitting me with a dazzling smile.

“
Then why do you seem so calm about the whole thing?” I pout, feeling like I am the only one making a big deal out of this.

“
I'm scared too.” He admits. “But at the end of the day, being with you is all I want. I know that while it's a big move in our relationship, it's also one that I want more than anything. I want to fall asleep with you in my arms every night and your face to be the first one that I see each morning.”

“
Now you're just making me look bad.” I whine, pouting my lip out.

“
I'd be disappointed if you didn't have reservations. It means that you are still you.” He laughs when I hit him with a confused expression.

“
What is that supposed to mean?” I don't know if I should be flattered or insulted by his choice of words.

“
You are not the type of girl to bend to anyone's will. You are challenging and frustrating and that is one of the things I love so much about you. You wouldn't be you if you didn't at least fight me a little along the way.” He gives me a lopsided grin, causing just one dimple to pop against his handsome face.

“
Listen.” He continues, backing me against the kitchen island, the counter pushing into my lower back. “There is no rush here. No pressure. I want you to help me design the house because I want it to be ours. But at the end of the day, it's just a house. All I really care about is that you're with me. We could live in a cardboard box for all I care. I just want you by my side. Always.” He says, dropping his face.

The moment his lips meet mine, I melt against him. No words can describe the way it feels to have a man like Bentley Reed say these things to me. And what's more, I know he means every word he says. I can tell by the way he looks at me, by the glimmer in his eyes and the heat in his touch. I know he wants this as badly as I do.

“
I love you Anna.” He breaks away from my mouth on a ragged breath and drops his forehead to mine. “It's me and you now.” He breathes.

“
Promise?” I can't help the question. I don't know why I need to hear him say it. It's like no matter how much I want this, I just can't let go of my reservations completely. I can feel them holding me back, binding me to my old life. A life where love like this was never a possibility. And then there's also the doubt. The little voice in the back of my head reminding me of all the bumps we have hit so far. Of the fact that just a couple of weeks ago, I was convinced that I had lost him forever.