FOREVER SERIES: COMPLETE BOX SET

by Lynn, Sandi

  “Stupid? You think me marrying the woman that I love more than life is stupid?”

  “That’s not what I meant,” my dad yelled.

  “How could you do this to us?” A tear fell from my mother’s eye.

  “Do what to you, Mom? Take away your dreams of planning the perfect wedding for us? I didn’t want to wait to marry Amelia. I love her and I wanted her to be my wife. I’m sorry, but you and Dad of all people should know that. You know how it feels to be so in love with someone that you can’t bear to be without them even for a split second.”

  “We understand that, son, but you should have waited,” my dad spoke.

  “Why? Why should we have waited?”

  “Because I’m your mother and I wanted to watch my son get married!” my mom screeched.

  “I’m sorry, Mom. Dad. But this is my life and I did what felt right for us. Amelia is my wife and I am her husband and it’s done. If you want to throw us a wedding reception, that’s fine. But I will not apologize for marrying the woman I love most in this world. She’s my life. I’m sorry we hurt you. That was never our intention. We’re happy with or without your support. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to get out of here and get some fresh air.”

  I pulled Amelia behind me and when we approached the door, I stopped and turned to my parents.

  “If Mom wasn’t sick when you proposed to her, you probably would have done the same thing. The only reason why you waited was because Mom wouldn’t commit until she knew she was going to be okay.” We walked out of the penthouse. I knew damn well this was the reaction we were going to get, but I was still angry and sad. They were disappointed in me, but I was also disappointed in them.

  Chapter 4

  Ellery

  I stood there with tears streaming down my face and my heart ripped in half. Connor walked over and wrapped his arms around me. I let him console me for a few moments and then I broke our embrace, walked over to the bar, and poured a shot of Jack. I threw it back and the slow and steady burn grazed the back of my throat. Connor paced back and forth across the room. The air was thick with tension and silence.

  “I hope the two of you are happy,” Julia snapped as she got up and put Brayden down in his playpen. “Did you see the look on poor Amelia’s face? Not to mention your son’s?”

  “How the hell could he have been so stupid?” Connor raised his voice.

  I placed my hand on my head to try and control the tears that were once again steadily rising up in my eyes.

  “Why is he stupid? What did he do that was so wrong? He married the one person in the world that he loves most.”

  Julia walked over to Connor and pressed her finger into his chest. “I am so disappointed in you, Daddy. And you too, Mother.” Her eyes glared over at me. “Collin and Amelia got married, big deal. It’s not the end of the world. For the both of you to be so selfish makes me uncomfortable.”

  “Princess, we’re in shock!”

  “Julia, how would you feel if Brayden came home one day and told you he got married?” I walked over to where her and Connor were standing and placed my arm around his waist.

  “If he married the girl of his dreams and couldn’t live without her and she felt the same way, I’d be happy for them. I wouldn’t have called them stupid. Listen, I understand how you both feel, but you need to stop and think about how Collin feels.”

  “He’s young. He should have waited.” I began to cry.

  “Why? He isn’t any younger than I was when I married Jake and you were all for that. You both love Amelia, so I don’t understand why you’re behaving like this.”

  “We’re hurt that he chose to do something so sacred and special without his family there,” I spoke as my heart ached something fierce.

  “He was very selfish,” Connor chimed in.

  “Wow, Dad. I think the two of you are the ones being selfish right now.”

  “Julia, we’re hurt. Why can’t you understand that?” I spat.

  “I do understand, Mom. But you know what? You can’t control everything that happens in life. You of all people should know that. Collin is a man who made an adult decision. He’s not your little boy anymore.”

  “He’ll always be my little boy, just like you’ll always be my little girl.”

  “Think long and hard about this before you do any more damage to the relationship with your son and daughter in-law. I have to get Brayden home. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

  She took Brayden from the playpen and walked out the door. The tears that I’d held back came rushing forth and spilled all over Connor as he held me tight and I buried my head into his chest.

  * * *

  Connor

  Once Ellery and I calmed ourselves down, we grabbed a bottle of wine and a couple of glasses and climbed into bed.

  “We should call them,” Ellery said as I filled her glass.

  “Not tonight. Everyone is upset and we all need to calm down.”

  “How could he just up and get married like that, Connor?”

  I looked into her sad blue eyes and placed my hand on her cheek. “He’s my son, Ellery, and we both know that he inherited more from me than he did you. I would have married you right there on that beach in California the night I proposed to you. I didn’t want to wait, and if you recall, I kept pressuring you about setting a date. But being the stubborn girl you were, you wouldn’t hear of it until we got the results back from your final treatment. I know how Collin feels because I still feel that way about you today.”

  “And I still feel that way about you, my love.” Her lips softly brushed up against mine. “But still, Connor. Our son got married without us.”

  “I knew something was off with him today. I even asked him about it this morning and he said he was fine. He was acting nervous and I found it odd. I never dreamed in a million years he would have gotten married.”

  “I bet he hates us now,” Ellery pouted.

  “He doesn’t hate us, but he’s probably really pissed off and hurt.”

  “So is Julia. Can you believe she talked to us that way?”

  I chuckled. “I do because she’s your daughter, Ellery.”

  I grimaced at the light smack against my chest. “Can you believe both our children are married? It seems like yesterday I was holding Julia in my arms.”

  I sighed. “I know, baby. Where did the years go?” I took the wine glass out of her hand and set it next to mine on the nightstand.

  “What are you doing, Mr. Black?” Her eyes gave off a glimmer of light.

  “I’m going to make sweet love to you before we go to sleep and then, when tomorrow comes, we’ll talk with Collin and Amelia and apologize for what we said.”

  “But—”

  I brought my fingers to her lips and softly pressed against them. “No buts. If things were different and you weren’t sick, we would have done the same thing and you know it.”

  “I suppose you’re right.”

  “Of course I am.” I smiled as I kissed her soft lips.

  “Don’t push it, Connor.”

  I hovered over her and held her arms above her head. “Oh I’m going to push it, Elle, and it’s going to be hard and deep. That I can promise.”

  Chapter 5

  Collin

  I took off my pants and sat down on the edge of the bed, cupping my face in my hands. Amelia emerged from the bathroom and sat down next to me, placing her hand on my back and rubbing it softly.

  “Are you okay? I hate seeing you like this.”

  I turned my head so I was facing her as my elbows stayed planted on my knees. “I’m fine, I guess. I knew they were going to be pissed, but to call what we did ‘stupid’ was crossing the line.”

  “They’re in shock, Collin. They need time to process it all. You know people say things they don’t mean when they’re angry. Your family is so tight knit, and I understand where they’re coming from.”

  “So you think the things they said were okay?” I asked as I got up
from the bed.

  “No. I don’t think that at all. Give them time. I’ve gotten to know your mom and dad over the last several months and they’ll forgive us. They’re hurt right now, and they feel betrayed.”

  I sighed as I stared down at her and took her hands in mine. “I know. But I don’t regret marrying you in Vegas and I never will. I love you so much.”

  “And I love you.” The corners of her mouth curved into a beautiful smile. A smile that would be forever etched into my heart and soul.

  I looked down at her as I ran my finger across her lips. “I want you so bad. You still owe me from earlier when you ruined my hard-on.”

  She grabbed my shirt and pulled me on top of her. “What are you waiting for, Mr. Black? You can have me anytime you want, and I promise I won’t mention—”

  My mouth crashed into hers before she had the chance to say it. I could feel her smile against my mouth, and it excited me even more. Making love to her as my wife was even better. She was mine and I was hers and no one was going to take that away from us, especially my parents.

  * * *

  The alarm went off as I rolled over and put my arm around Amelia, giving her head a soft kiss as she reached over and shut it off. An uneasy feeling erupted inside of me, knowing that I’d have to face my dad today. I was still upset, and I had no intention of talking to him, at least not yet. Hell, I didn’t even know if he had any intention of talking to me. I sighed as I gave Amelia a light squeeze.

  “Do we have to get out of this bed?”

  “Yep. We sure do.” She turned over, gave me a kiss, and then climbed out of bed. “I’ll start the coffee.”

  I smiled as I watched her walk away in the silk nightie, I had bought her in Vegas.

  Stepping into Black Enterprises, my stomach was twisted at the thought of seeing my dad. I was in no mood and the first thing I had to do was fire Cara. When I walked up to her desk, she was sitting there on her phone. I shook my head.

  “Is he here yet?” I asked in a stern voice.

  “Nope.”

  “I need to see you in my office.” I motioned for her to go in.

  I followed behind and set my briefcase down on the chair next to my desk. I sat down and looked at her as she looked at her phone.

  “Do you think you can put your phone away for two seconds and look up at me while we have a discussion?”

  “Sure. What’s up?”

  “Things aren’t working out and we need to let you go.” I got straight to the point.

  “What’s the problem? I think I’m doing a great job.” She chomped on her gum.

  “You make consistent errors, you’re on your phone all day, you chomp your gum like some wild animal, and you sent my mother black roses.”

  “Oh.” She smiled. “Did she love them?” She was clueless.

  I sighed because I didn’t have time for her stupidity. “No, Cara, she didn’t. Who sends black roses?”

  “I thought it was cute, considering your last name is Black and all.”

  “Well, my father had a different opinion. And really? Did you just really say that?” I couldn’t believe the mentality of this girl. I am never going to live this one down with my dad.

  “Yeah. You didn’t think it was cute?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Cara, you’re fired. Please go collect your things and leave or I’ll have security escort you out.”

  “Whatever. I didn’t like working here anyway. You’re all really uptight and boring.” She got up from her seat and I followed her out, making sure she didn’t steal anything.

  She collected her things and just as she was walking down the hallway, my dad was walking to his office. It was a shit morning already and I didn’t need it to get any worse. I turned away, went into my office, and shut the door. Before I made it to my desk to sit down, the door opened.

  “I take it you fired Cara?”

  “Yeah.” My nerves got the best of me as I prepared for his next words and took a seat at my desk.

  “I think we need to talk, son.”

  “Sorry, Dad, but I have a meeting to go to in a few minutes.” I picked up the files from my desk and got up from my chair.

  He stood in the doorway with his hand on the knob and stared at me. “Fine. We’ll talk later. I’m sorry, Collin.” His voice was sincere.

  “Yeah, well, I don’t want to discuss it now.” I walked past him and down the hall, heading to Julia’s office.

  * * *

  Julia

  As I was sitting at my desk sipping on a cup of coffee, Collin walked in and sat down in the chair across from me.

  “Good morning. How are you?” I asked with sympathy.

  “I’m fine.”

  “And Amelia?”

  “She’s fine too, but I can tell she’s just as hurt by Mom and Dad’s reaction last night.”

  The sadness in his eyes was overwhelming and I hated seeing my brother like this. “Just to let you know that after you left last night, I told Mom and Dad off.”

  “You did?”

  “Yep. I sure did, but you knew they were going to react like that.”

  He shifted in his chair. “I know, but I had a tiny piece of hope that they would welcome our marriage with open arms without calling me stupid.”

  “They didn’t mean it, Collin. They’re upset. Hopefully, they calmed down and had a chance to think about it last night.”

  “After I fired Cara, Dad came to my office and said we needed to talk.”

  “What did he say?”

  “I didn’t give him the chance. I told him I had a meeting to go to and I left the office.”

  I got up from my desk and walked over to him, giving him a kiss on the cheek. “You’re going to have to face him at some point. Your office is right next to his.” I smiled. “I have to get these designs down to the print department. Wanna come?”

  He gave me a small smile. “No. I better get back to my office. Thanks, Julia, for sticking up for me and Amelia.”

  After dropping off the designs to the print department, I stopped by my dad’s office. When I opened the door, I saw him sitting and facing out the window. He turned around.

  “Good morning, princess. Are you here to yell at me some more?”

  “No, Daddy.” I walked over and kissed his cheek. “I wanted to know how you and Mom are doing.”

  He threw the pen down on his desk and shook his head. “We had a long talk last night. Your mom is still really upset, but she’ll be okay.”

  “And you?” I asked as I poured myself a cup of coffee and took a seat.

  “I understand to some extent and I don’t blame him. I just wish he would have waited.”

  “We can wish till the cows come home, but it won’t change anything.”

  “Till the cows come home, Julia?” He chuckled.

  I shrugged.

  “We’ll make this right, princess. Don’t worry. Are you still bringing Brayden over for the night?”

  “Yes, Daddy. You and Mom can have your grandson all to yourselves tonight.” I got up from my chair. “By the way, Collin told me he fired Cara. What are you going to do for a secretary? Are you calling the temp agency?”

  He sighed. “No. I’m stealing Collin’s secretary for the time being.”

  “Maybe Mom can come fill in for a while.”

  “That’s not a good idea. I wouldn’t get any work done if she was here. She’d spend more time in my office and on my desk than at her desk.” He winked.

  “Ugh. Why do you say those things? If you need me, I’ll be in my office wiping what you just said from my mind.”

  “Bye, princess. Have a good day.” He laughed.

  I secretly smiled because I loved the way my parents still felt about each other after all these years, and I hoped that Jake and I would be the same way.

  Chapter 6

  Connor

  As I sat at my desk, I couldn’t take the silence between me and my son anymore. I walked to the closet, grabbed my gym bag, a
nd went to Collin’s office.

  “Grab your gym bag and let’s go. We’re hitting the gym.”

  He looked up at me and then looked back at his computer. “I can’t. I’m busy.”

  “Bullshit. You’re busy if I say you’re busy. Work can wait. I can’t, and we need to talk. Now get your bag and let’s go. Ralph is waiting for us.”

  He sighed as he got up from his desk and grabbed his bag. The ride to the gym was silent. After changing into our workout clothes, we hit the treadmill.

  “I’m sorry, son, and I want you to know that I fully understand why you married Amelia in Vegas.”

  “Somehow, I don’t believe you, Dad. You and Mom said some really hurtful things.”

  “I know and we’re sorry. We just need you to understand how hurt we are. Do you understand that?”

  “Yeah, I do. But you need to understand how much I love Amelia and I didn’t want to wait. I don’t see what the big deal is. You and Mom can throw us a wedding reception if you want and we can celebrate.”

  “That’s not the point. We weren’t there to watch you and Amelia say your vows. We didn’t get to witness one of the most important things you’ll ever do in your life. We’ve been there for you, helped and watched you grow into a man and it’s something we planned on and couldn’t wait for. We couldn’t wait to watch our only son marry the woman of his dreams. To witness the union of you two becoming one. I guess your mom and I are being very selfish people right now.”

  “You are, but so am I. I’m sorry, Dad, that I hurt you both, but I’m not sorry I married Amelia the way I did. I will never apologize for that.”

  “I know and I wouldn’t either. You were right; I would have married your mom right on the spot when I proposed to her without giving my family a second thought. You’re a lot like your old man whether you want to be or not.” I gave him a small smile.

  He smiled back. “I know I am and, to be honest, that’s not a bad thing. I look up to you, Dad. I always have. How was Mom this morning?”