Your Captivating Love (23 page)

“I’m not ready to be naked in your office right now.”

I grin. “Okay. I want you to be comfortable.”

I walk over to my desk, slumping in my seat. She glances around the office with curious eyes, finally joining me behind the desk, leaning against the counter. Knowing that she’s naked underneath the coat makes me so aroused I can barely think straight.

Still, I try.

“How come you decided to visit?”

“Pippa called me today asking if she can use my designs for the show, so I brought the dresses, and wanted to surprise you.”

“That was definitely a surprise.”

“I saw pictures of the new collection. The jewels are so beautiful, the sapphires especially.”

Sapphires would suit her; they’d match her blue eyes. I file that information in my mind for later.

Nadine smiles, her usual seductive spirit overpowering her lingering embarrassment. About time, because I’ll explode in my pants otherwise.

“Thank you for putting in a good word for me with Pippa, by the way.”

“Mmm.” Unable to resist anymore, I pull her in my lap and run my thumb across her lower lip. She takes it in her mouth. Jesus, this woman will kill me. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I know that I should talk to her about the bank situation, but I don’t want to spoil the moment. In fact, I’ll wait until after the show. She has enough on her mind as it is.

“I thought you’d be difficult.” Her tone is playful as she shifts over the bulge in my pants.

“What are you talking about?” I manage to ask.

Her eyes widen. “You have a very strict ‘no sex at the office’ rule. Ava told me about it.”

I pause in the act of opening the belt of her coat. I do have that rule, but I haven’t even thought about it. The office has been my sanctuary for years. I never brought women here. But Nadine belongs here, just as she belongs in every area of my life.

“You make me want to break all the rules. Or at least change them. My office. My rules. Strip.” I kiss her passionately, enjoying her soft lips.

I won’t mess this up.

T
he opportunity to mess things up presents itself two days later, in the form of a call from Blake.

“I have info about Archer,” Blake says instead of good morning
.
“I ran a background check on him.”

“What? Blake, Nadine specifically asked—”

“
You
to stay out of it, yeah. But I’m not you—thank God, by the way. Not sure I could handle so many cufflinks. She didn’t forbid me anything, so I did some digging.”

“Are you trying to kill me?” Gritting my teeth, I rub my forehead. I’m in my office and have a million things to do.

“Actually, I’m trying to be of service to my older brother. I don’t expect a thank you, don’t worry.”

“I suppose you wouldn’t call if you’d found out he’s the Dalai Lama.”

“That’s my brother. I knew there must be some truth to the rumor that you’re smart. And you’re right, I wouldn’t have called.”

“What did you find on him?”

Blake has nothing good to share. Archer Daring is a scam artist. He’s doing it smartly, which is why his stores have operated for years, leaving a trail of scammed designers in his wake. There are many roads to success, but crushing the other people in your way is the lowest one to take.

“I can dig up more dirt,” Blake finishes.

“No need, I’ll have one of my men in Europe do it.”

“By the way, now I finally understand your desire to commit. Nadine is hot.”

“If you ever mention that again, I will punch you.”

“No deal. I’ll gladly take the punch to see your annoyed face. You’ll never hear the end of it.”

“Very mature, Blake. Thank you, by the way. For helping with this Archer business.”

“Welcome. See you at the show.”

“Bye.”

I make a few phone calls to some people I know in Europe, requesting a full background check on Archer. The report comes at the end of the day, and I find out how he operates down to the dirtiest detail. It’s all I can do not to smash the guy’s face, or ruin him. That’s what he deserves. He ruined countless unsuspecting designers starting out, and now he’s after Nadine. But he’s in for a nasty surprise. He won’t hurt my woman, not on my watch. I’ve been in the business world a lot longer, and I know all the shades scam artists come in. She doesn’t, but I’ll protect her from it, even if she doesn’t want me to.

I can crush the bastard and his business in a matter of days.

***

I
’m mapping out the best course of action when my phone rings.

“Hi, Dad.”

“Hi, Logan. Everything all right, son?”

“Sure. We’re busy with the collection launch, but that’s not news.” Dealing with Archer is news, though. An idea strikes me—Dad always gives good advice. “Do you and Mom mind if I stop by for dinner tonight?”

“Sure. We’d love to see Nadine as well.”

“I’m afraid that won’t be possible.” I chuckle. “She’s with Pippa and Ava in Creative, setting the finishing touches for the show on Friday. They’ll be here until midnight.”

“All right.”

“See you in a few hours.”

“Okay—Wait, your mom is asking if you want her to cook something specific.”

“N—actually, yes. Tell Mom I want apple pie.”

“Order taken,” Mom’s voice sounds in the background.

“See you two later.”

***

S
omehow, with only five hours’ notice, my mom cooked roast beef, turkey, and pie.

“Mom, you know it’s just me, right?” I ask, surveying the full table in my parents’ living room. “Not the entire clan?”

Dad shrugs.

Mom beams at me from her seat. “I wanted to make soup too, but your father convinced me there was enough food.”

Dad and I avoid each other’s eyes. Mom is a great cook... most of the time. But somehow, making soup completely escapes her. Dad never had the heart to tell her, and neither did the rest of us.

Over dinner, they tell me their plans to refurbish our old ranch, and turn it into a bed and breakfast. The ranch was all my parents had many years ago. My father built it with his own hands. When Sebastian asked them to sell it and hand him the money so he could set up Bennett Enterprises, they did it without blinking. It was a huge gamble, but we all trusted Sebastian. It paid off.

Last year, the ranch was up for sale, and Sebastian bought it back and gave it to my parents as an anniversary present.

“It’ll give us something to do, running the B&B,” Mom says happily.

“It’s a great idea,” I say. My parents don’t need the money, but I understand where they’re coming from. They are used to hard work, yet the second Bennett Enterprises turned a profit, Sebastian and I took care of all their financial worries, basically forbidding them to work. It seemed like a good idea to us at the time, but it wasn’t the best for our parents.

“I’ll leave you boys to talk,” Mom says after we finish the pie. My puzzlement must register on my face because she adds, “You always request pie when you want to talk to your dad.”

“I do?” The things parents notice will never cease to amaze me.

“Yes,” she confirms, leaving the room with a smile.

“Spit it out, son,” Dad says.

I tell him everything about the situation with Nadine and Archer. That I discovered Archer’s a bastard, and that Nadine asked me not to get involved, but it’s hard for me not to step in and flat-out ruin that son of a bitch.

“Son, you were always overprotective. When you were young and were watching Blake and Daniel learning to walk, you were hovering around them, catching them every time they were about to fall.”

I raise my eyebrows. My memories don’t go that far back. The only memories of Daniel and Blake I have from our childhood are that Sebastian and I pranked them to no end. When they grew up, the twins pranked our asses off as revenge. They got much better at it than Sebastian and I. But I trust my dad to have a more extensive memory of those early days.

“You know what happened?” he continues. “It took them a lot longer to learn how to rise back up on their tiny feet after falling because you were constantly keeping them from doing so. You’ve always been protective, and it’s commendable. Sometimes, though, it’s good to let people make mistakes so they can learn from them. ”

“Are you suggesting I let Archer scam Nadine?” My words come out harsher than I intended.

“No, of course not. Not in this case. What I meant was that you always try to solve everyone’s problems, and it’s not always for the best. Sometimes, all you have to do is be by their side while they solve their problems, giving them your counsel. What I suggest is you tell her what you know and let her handle it. The secret to a happy marriage is honesty.”

I open my mouth to say Nadine and I are not married, and then it hits me. I
want
to marry this woman. I’ve never been more certain of anything. While I digest this epiphany, my dad goes on and on about him being honest with Mom.

“Dad,” I interrupt. “Drop the act. You went behind her back when you covered for Blake and Daniel at school.”

“Well,” Dad says. “Your mother can be very stubborn sometimes, and a man’s got to do what a man’s got to do.”

I chuckle. “So, the secret to a happy marriage is to be honest, except those times when you’re not honest.”

“You’re twisting my words, son.”

“I believe I’m just summing everything up. Did you ever tell Mom about covering for the twins?”

“No. And I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t either.”

“Don’t worry, Dad, I wouldn’t want to incur Mom’s wrath. But I did understand your point.”

“You love this woman.”

“I do,” I affirm.

He pats my shoulder. “We’re happy for you, son. After everything that happened with Sylvia, we feared you were going to swear on being a bachelor.”

The mention of Sylvia no longer brings the sour taste it used to. Nadine wiped that away too.

“We want you to be happy.”

“I know. Thanks, the talk helped. Now I have a plan.”

Like Dad said, a man’s got to do what a man’s got to do.

***

T
he pre-Nadine Logan would have done things the following way: I would’ve ruined the bastard’s business with a few phone calls, and stormed into his office to tell him to stay away from Nadine.

The current Logan will wait until after the show to talk to Nadine, and then decide together what the best punishment for this asshole is. I still hope to convince her that wiping his business out is the best thing.

But I
am
still going to his office to warn the moron to stay away from Nadine. I walk into his office the day before the show. His office is in a slimy neighborhood. Fits him, I guess. His secretary inspects me in surprise. No shit. My suit is more expensive than everything in this room.

“Logan Bennett,” I say before she opens her mouth. “I’m here to see Archer Daring.”

“Do you have an appointment, sir?”

“No.”

“Then you—”

She breaks off mid-sentence as the door to her right opens, and Archer fucking Daring himself comes out.

“Logan Bennett, what a surprise,” he says.

So he knows who I am. Perfect.

“I will make this quick. I ran a background check on you and found out all about your scam business. Stay away from Nadine, or I will destroy you.”

“You’re all talk,” he says through gritted teeth.

“I can close your miserable stores with one phone call.”

“Archer. . .” the secretary pleads. At least she has the decency to worry.

“You son of a bitch,” Archer spits. “You and your family run around, thinking you own the world because you have more money than me? You think that makes you better?”

“I never screwed anyone over. No one in my family has.
That
makes us better than you.” I roll my palm into fists, fighting to keep my control.

“I screwed plenty of people, and I’m not sorry. Give me a few more weeks, and I might literally screw Nadine too. She seems stupid enough.”

“You have a death wish.” I lose my last shreds of self-control. My punch connects with his jaw. Taken by surprise, he stumbles backward. I throw in another punch, aiming to give him a black eye, so the moron has something to remind him how stupid he is when he looks in the mirror tomorrow. He hits me back with a vengeance, and we don’t stop until the secretary steps between us, her eyes wide and fearful.

“Mr. Bennett, please, leave,” she pleads.

“Don’t worry, I’m done here,” I tell her. Turning to Archer, I say, “Stay away from Nadine.”

At that, I stomp out of the office. The chilly air cools my nerves on the way to my car. Once inside, I inspect my reflection in the mirror. I bear no signs of a fight, except for my very prominent split lip. Damn it.

When Nadine asks me about it, I’ll have to do the one thing she asked me not to: lie to her. Coupled with the bank story I still haven’t told her about, I’m treading on dangerous territory.

“O
kay, everyone, we’re done. Let’s all go home,” Ava says. We’re in the ballroom, where the show will take place tomorrow, having just wrapped up the very last rehearsal. Everyone is exhausted. Pippa tells me that they usually have the last rehearsal at least one week before the show. Since they replaced the designer with me, the schedule became even crazier.

“I can’t believe it’s midnight,” I tell Pippa.

She yawns as we head to the door. “I’m glad the show is tomorrow. I’ll sleep for a week afterward.”

“Me too,” Ava says.

“Let’s rest for a few hours tonight,” I suggest.

We step out of the venue and find Logan propped against his car, waiting for me.

“Someone won’t sleep tonight,” Ava tells me. She winks and leaves with Pippa.

“How long have you been standing here?” I ask Logan.

“Not long. Pippa texted me fifteen minutes ago that you were about to be done.”

Stepping closer to him, I notice his lip is split. “What happened to your lip?”

“I cut myself on a nicked glass.”

Before I can ask anything more, Logan pulls me into a kiss. I immediately give in, opening my mouth, welcoming the possession, craving it. My body flattens against his, needing more points of contact. I always need more when it comes to Logan.