Your Captivating Love (17 page)

He leaves the room briefly, returning with his zipper open and his pants pushed slightly down, having already rolled the condom over his erection. He settles himself behind me again, cinching my dress up to my waist and parting my legs. God, I’m dripping for him.

“You’re so wet already,” he whispers, as he slides my thong to one side.

I lose myself in the sea of sensations and emotions as his big hands and hungry lips explore me. Logan more than touches me—he worships me. Every part of me. He nibbles my earlobe, moving the tip of his erection around my clit, his length pressing on my slit. He circles my clit with his tip again, and again, until my knees wobble.

“I need you inside me now,” I say between moans. “I want to feel all of you.”

“Oh, you will. You will feel me so deep inside you that you’ll pass out from pleasure.” His promise still on his lips, he thrusts inside me.

“Logan.” My legs tremble in earnest now as I take him in, stretching around his length. In this position, he’s deeper inside me than ever before. I give myself to him completely as he makes love to me hard and fast, grunting out my name as we climax.

***

L
ogan holds my hand when we enter the venue, minutes before the showing is about to begin. I’m still blushing from our sexy episode before we left his apartment. We exchange furtive glances every few seconds.

The venue is packed, but we find Pippa, Blake, and Daniel almost immediately, chatting animatedly near the entrance. Women throw the twins appreciative glances.

“So, the theater is one of your pickup places?” I ask jokingly.

“It can be.” Blake answers. “But tonight, we have a date with our sister.” In unison, the twins each take Pippa by an arm.

“Nadine, what are you wearing?” She inspects me from head to toe. “It’s gorgeous. I’m going to steal that.”

“It’s one of my designs.”

Pippa’s mouth opens, her gaze slipping to Logan for a brief second before returning to me. “Girl, I’ll come by on Monday the second you open and ravage your stock.”

“Can’t wait.”

“Seriously, I’d love to see some of your other dresses too.”

“Sure, I’d be happy to.” My heart soars with excitement at her appreciation. As we go into the box for the performance, Pippa whispers something I don’t catch to Logan, and both glance at me with a quizzical expression, like they’re sharing an inside joke.

Before we take our seats, Logan whispers to me, “I’m very proud of you.” He pinches my ass for good measure, doing that thing again when he makes me feel like a girl and a woman all at the same time.

I’ll never get enough of Logan, and that scares me even more than the opening on Monday.

***

T
wo hours later, we leave the box, chatting animatedly while making our way to the exit. We’re almost at the door when Pippa comes to an abrupt halt, turning white. The men stop too, but they are far from pale—all three of them are red in the face. Blake even clenches his fists.

A man in his late thirties with brown hair and green eyes stops in front of us.

“Pippa, what a surprise.” His tone is glacial. Next to me, Logan stiffens. The man surveys the party, stepping in front of me.

“I’m Terence Lancaster.”

Suddenly, I understand everyone’s reaction. He’s Pippa’s ex-husband, also known as asshole extraordinaire, ranking even above Thomas. He holds out his hand to me. I shake it shortly, not wanting to add to the tension.

“Coming with your brothers to the opera, Pippa? Couldn’t pay a man to join you?”

Pippa pales even more at his words. If I hadn’t already disliked Terence on principle alone, now I hate his guts.

“Let’s step outside and you make that remark again,” Logan says. “I don’t want to spoil the carpet here.”

“You always did have a temper,” Terence tells Logan.

“So do we,” Daniel says. He and Blake both have their hands in fists at their sides.

“You can’t talk to our sister like that,” Blake booms. Several people passing by throw us alarmed glances.

Terence rolls his eyes, though I detect a flicker of fear in them. “Where is Sebastian?”

“You’re out of luck today,” Logan says through gritted teeth. “Sebastian is the sensible one keeping us from knocking your teeth out, and he’s not here tonight. Step outside.”

“Stop it,” Pippa says. “All of you. Terence, leave.”

To my astonishment, Terence gives a mocking bow and heads for the door, clearly fearing the brothers. Not ten feet away, a blonde appears from a narrow corridor, taking his arm.

“Sorry to make you wait, love. There was a line to the ladies’ room.”

Pippa spares the pair one glance, but in the split second it takes for her to register that Terence and the blonde are a couple, the fire leaves her eyes. Discreetly, I squeeze her hand. She squeezes back then takes a deep breath, turning to her brothers.

“What the hell is wrong with all of you?”

“What do you mean?” Blake asks.

“Terence is a jerk,” Logan adds unhelpfully.

“
Now
you're overbearing, brother,” Pippa tells him. Turning to her two other brothers, she adds, “And you two, don’t piss me off. I can’t put the Terence episode behind me if every time we meet him, someone causes a scene.”

“Why are you mad at us? He was rude to you,” Daniel says. Next to him, Blake still has his hands fisted.

“I can handle myself.” She pulls herself to her full—and quite impressive—height. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, Nadine here is my favorite person tonight, so I’d prefer to spend the evening in her company. The rest of you can do whatever you want, away from us.”

“Pippa—” Logan begins, but his sister holds her hand up, shaking her head. Blake opens his mouth then closes it again. I can almost see the wheels turning in Logan’s mind. Should he call the sweets shop he has on speed dial? Or is it one of those rare instances where chocolate isn’t the answer? Finally, he holds up his hands in defeat. The man has excellent preservation skills. Daniel pulls his brothers away with an apologetic expression, and the three men leave.

Stunned by the turn of events, I gaze at Pippa expectantly.

“Well, tonight didn’t go as expected,” she says.

“Are you in the mood for an impromptu night out?” I suggest.

“Not really.” We wait a few minutes inside the building, until most of the ballet viewers exit, and then we leave too. Outside she adds, “But I don’t want to go home either.”

“Hey, I have an idea. Why don’t we go to the shop? It’s done, and I can show you some dresses.”

“Great.” She smiles, and I’m relieved to see that it reaches her eyes. “Make sure to show them to me before we down the bottle of wine.”

Perplexed, I observe her tiny purse. No way does she have a bottle in there. “Which bottle?”

“That one.” She points to the small souvenir shop across the street, which has wines on display. “While I buy it, why don’t you call up Ava and ask her if she wants to join us? I’ll call my sisters.”

“Done.”

I watch the sky while I speak to Ava. There are almost no stars in sight today, clouds hanging low and heavy. This is a good night for wine. Pippa returns with a bottle just as I finish the conversation with Ava.

“Alice and Summer are coming,” she announces.

“So is Ava.”

“Well, I call that a party.”

––––––––

P
ippa and I arrive at the store first. Once inside, I turn on the lights.

“Wow.” Pippa sits in one of the armchairs near the entrance, holding the bottle in her lap. In the front of the store is a small waiting parlor for husbands or friends accompanying the customers. It consists of a small table and two armchairs. Then there is the central area, where the dresses and lingerie are, and two changing rooms. The back room serves as my storage area. Ava, Alice, and Summer arrive a few minutes later. The girls wear jeans and T-shirts; we obviously pulled them away from a cozy night in. Upon closer inspection, I discover each brought a bottle of wine. Either they didn’t receive the memo that we already have a bottle, or they’re taking this girls’ night thing too seriously.
Four bottles for the five of us. This will not end well.

“I love the Christmas decorations. This place is great.” Summer peeks around appreciatively.

“Your dad and Logan helped a lot. I don’t have more chairs, though.”

Pippa waves dismissively. “No problem. Summer can sit in my lap, Ava in yours.”

“That still leaves me out,” Alice remarks. “You didn’t even have one sip of wine and you already can’t do math?”

All of us burst out laughing, which is just as good because there was a slight tension in the air since the girls arrived. They all found out about Terence’s scene tonight. Thank God for the wine.

“I’ll sit on the floor,” I say, lowering myself to the carpet, careful not to damage my dress. Ava and Alice join me, leaving Summer and Pippa in the armchairs.

As Pippa prepares to open her bottle, a realization strikes me. “Ugh, I don’t have any glasses.”

“I bought some on the way.” Alice retrieves a stack of paper cups from her bag.

“Paper cups and wine. How very Bennett of us,” Pippa says with a smile. “Nadine, you’ve had dinners with us, and we even worked on this shop along with you.” She holds the bottle in front of her as if she’s speaking into a mic. “Let’s not forget you’re sleeping with our brother,” she adds as an afterthought. I blush violently. “But you aren’t truly a Bennett until you’ve had wine with the girls.”

Truly a Bennett
... Her words hit me hard, squarely in the chest. God, I’d love to be part of this family, but I can’t let my mind wander that way. Logan and I agreed on fun and having a good time, both making it clear it would be temporary from the very beginning. At the time, I was relieved there was no permanency to
us
. Now, the thought of “temporary” suffocates me. Then again, so does the idea of “permanent.” Logan’s not ready for that, and neither am I, mainly because I don’t believe in permanent. Men don’t stick around forever.

“From paper cups,” Alice insists, snapping me back to the present. “That detail is crucial.”

“Yeah, it’s a tradition,” Summer says, “mostly born out of the fact that we decide to have impromptu nights out at the worst of times, so we never have glasses and end up buying paper cups.”

“You often have gatherings like this?” I smile at them, and Ava chuckles.

Summer purses her lips. “Only if our brothers piss us off or if we’re celebrating something.”

“I have an idea.” Pippa points at me. “Can you bring out some dresses before we start drinking?” Turning to the other girls, she explains, “Nadine designed the dress she’s wearing herself. She’s crazy talented. I suggest we each try one.”

The others nod enthusiastically, and I know I have what each of them needs. I disappear between my dresses, and everyone cheers when I return with them.

“Let’s try them on,” Summer says, rising to her feet.

“I only have two changing rooms, but you can take turns.”

In fifteen minutes, everyone’s ready. They twirl and laugh, complementing each other. I’m the only one who hasn’t joined in the fun, mainly because I’m too busy trying not to tear up. Seeing my designs on actual people feels surreal.

“This is gorgeous,” Ava gushes. “I can’t wait until you start working on my wedding dress.”

“Nadine, I love this dress,” Summer announces. “I want to wear this to my gallery show at the end of next week. As a matter of fact, I want all of you to wear these dresses to the show.”

“What?” I ask, my mouth suddenly dry.

“Summer is used to our brothers doing whatever she says,” Pippa says. “Alice and I usually don’t but, this time, I have to say I agree. These dresses are fantastic.”

“We’ll buy them,” Alice says, incorrectly interpreting my expression.

“No, I’ll be happy to gift them if you want to wear them to the gallery. That would be excellent marketing.”

“We’ll buy them,” Pippa says firmly.

Ava pulls me to one side. “First rule of business: don’t gift your products, not even to friends.”

“All right, people, we have our dresses.” Alice puts her hands on her hips, mimicking model poses. “I say we change back into our clothes and open that wine.”

“Can you shorten my dress a few inches?” Summer’s dress is the only one that doesn’t fit perfectly since she’s so petite. Dazzled by the fact that I made my first four sales, I nod, afraid that if I speak, I’ll tear up.

“Okay,” Pippa says. “Out of the dresses, in with the wine.”

Said and done. Fifteen minutes later, the girls are back in their clothes. Alice pours wine for everyone, and Summer plays some music on her phone. Within minutes, there is an energetic party vibe in the shop.

“Are you designing the bridesmaid dresses too?” Alice asks me.

I turn to Ava. “I don’t know. Am I?”

“I don’t want to take advantage of you, since you have a lot on your plate. But I’d love it, of course.”

“How many bridesmaids will you have?”

“Twelve.”

I do a double take. “What?”

“It’s our fault,” Pippa chimes in. “We have a few cousins who have to be in the wedding and a few of the adopted Bennetts too.”

“Will Caroline be one of the bridesmaids?” Summer asks with wide, hopeful eyes.

“Why do you want to know?” Alice teases. “So you can run and tell Daniel?”

Summer purses her lips but doesn’t deny the charges.

“What am I missing?” I ask Ava.

“I’ll tell you the short version,” Pippa answers. “Caroline is one of my best friends and a former adopted Bennett. Then Daniel dated her for a while. Things didn’t work out, and now she avoids family celebrations.”

“She and Daniel should get back together. He keeps asking about her,” Summer states.

“Oh, Summer, you’re so young,” Alice says. “Men must pay when they mess up, and Daniel messed up.”

“What Alice said,” Pippa adds.

“Just to be clear, yes, Caroline will be a bridesmaid,” Ava tells Summer.

“So, how about those dresses?” Alice asks me.

“Twelve,” I repeat, still stunned. “Sure, I’d love to do the dresses.”