Your Forever Love (The Bennett Family #3)

by Layla Hagen

  “You’re protecting your bragging rights?”

  He chuckles, and the sound is music to my ears. “Can you blame me? You’re smart, beautiful—”

  I leap from his arms, rising to my feet and swinging my forefinger at him. “Don’t think you can sweet talk me into this.”

  “A man can try, can’t he?” Eric advances toward me with sure steps, and I feel like I’m about to be trapped. I backpedal as fast as I can, until I bump into my bookshelves. Eric places his arms at my sides. Trapped. “Besides, I’m not saying anything that isn’t true. How about Pippa Bennett-Callahan?”

  I pout, even though I know I’ll give in. His proximity is too much for my senses, and it’s hard to resist him when he pins me with his gaze like this.

  “It’s bad form to upset your pregnant wife-to-be.”

  He closes in on me. “We’re not even married yet and you’re trying to emotionally blackmail me.”

  I smile, wrapping one arm around his neck. “Not such a terrible negotiator after all, am I? Fine, let it be Pippa Bennett-Callahan.”

  “Our first compromise. To tell you a little secret, you’ll get away with almost everything else.” Eric pulls out of my hug, lowering himself until his eyes are level with my belly. “Little baby, you’d better be a boy, so you can be on my team. Otherwise, I won’t stand a chance against your mother and two girls.”

  “We’ll have so much fun, the four of us,” I say.

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Pippa

  “I’m fine,” I repeat, though I feel anything but fine. I’m curled up in Eric’s bed, afraid even to move, because it might trigger another wave of morning sickness. For the past few weeks, I’ve spent my mornings either in bed or with my head over the toilet. Sometimes the afternoons go the same way. I’m hoping things will get better after the first trimester.

  A flustered Eric sits at the edge of the bed, looking at me as if I’m about to break, moving his thumb in small circles on the back of my hand.

  “There has to be something I can do,” he says. “I feel powerless.”

  “Join the club. It should pass soon now,” I reply, smiling at him encouragingly. The door opens, and Julie peeks inside, then enters the room. She holds her open laptop in one hand, and she has our favorite online baby shop open in her browser. Ever since we broke the news to Julie, she’s been almost as obsessed with searching for baby items as I’ve been.

  Wordlessly, she climbs into the bed, next to me, showing me her newest findings. I push myself into a sitting position, offering my opinion.

  “So this is the cure to morning sickness?” Eric asks with a shake of his head. “Shopping?”

  I shrug, pinching his arm. “It helps. I already feel much better.”

  Julie sighs, bringing up the wish list she made, which is segmented into girl things and boy things.

  She’s thorough. I love this girl to pieces. Hugging her tightly, I wink at Eric. He and I have been doing our own lists. Buying a suitable house is high on our priorities list. My apartment is too small, and the owner of this house isn’t selling. Planning our wedding is also very high on our priorities list, though my family is helping with that.

  “Okay,” Eric announces, rising from the bed. “Time to go or we’ll miss the appointment.”

  Julie almost leaps from the bed, but I take my sweet time. Jerky movements don’t do my morning sickness any favors.

  Ten minutes later, we’re in the car on our way to have my first ultra-sound. Neither of us is speaking, but the excitement is palpable.

  “I can’t believe we still have to wait months to find out if it will be a boy or a girl,” Julie exclaims. In the rearview mirror, I notice she’s rubbing her palms in excitement.

  “We’re going to find out if everything is all right with the baby today,” I explain, “and we’ll hear the heart beating.”

  Julie beams, and Eric puts his hand over mine in an attempt to soothe me. He can feel I’m nervous.

  “Everything will be fine,” he murmurs to me, squeezing my fingers lightly.

  My doctor, a kind woman in her fifties, is all smiles when the three of us walk into her office. She explains the procedure and assures me that I will be completely comfortable.

  Lying on that exam table, though, I’m anything but comfortable. I drum my fingers on the surface beneath me, my heart in my throat as I watch the monitor. Eric stands next to me, holding my hand, and Julie is on his other side.

  Everyone is silent as the monitor comes alive, and the doctor nods.

  “This is the heartbeat,” she announces triumphantly. “Everything looks normal. Oh—”

  Eric’s hand goes rigid in mine, but he relaxes as the doctor chuckles. Pointing to the screen, she says, “Here is the second heartbeat.”

  Julie is the first to react. Squealing, she looks from the doctor to me and then to Eric. “Does this mean I’ll have two brothers? Or two sisters?”

  “Or a brother and a sister,” the doctor tells her. “It’s too early to say.”

  Julie squeals again, and this time I join her celebrations, laughing with her. A misty-eyed Eric murmurs, “I love you,” only for me to hear.

  “Are you sure you can’t tell if they are boys or girls?” Julie asks the doctor. “Not even if you look really close?”

  “I’m afraid not,” the doctor says.

  Julie gives me a hug as best as she can.

  “There’s a history of twins in your family, Pippa, right?” the doctor asks.

  “Yes.”

  “So, what do you figure we’ll have?” Eric asks. “Party twins? Serious twins?”

  I chuckle, thinking about the two set of twins in my family. “No idea, but I know one thing: they’ll be double trouble.”

  Epilogue

  One month later

  Pippa

  “To the first shotgun wedding in the Bennett family,” Alice exclaims. In the mirror, I see her and Summer clink glasses with champagne.

  “Girls, why don’t you focus on zipping up my dress now and drink later?” I plead, terrified they’ll spill champagne on my dress.

  “You’re the boss.” Alice puts the glass away immediately, and Summer follows her lead. Then they both turn their attention to my veil.

  I admire my dress in the mirror, sighing happily. It’s an A-line shaped ivory dress with delicate lace on the upper part and flowy organza from my waist down. Nadine designed it, and she’s outdone herself. There’s only a tiny baby bump in sight, but there’s still time for it to grow.

  The wedding is taking place at our old ranch, which looks brand new right now. Renovations were completed two weeks ago, but the B&B isn’t open for business yet.

  It made perfect sense to have the wedding here. For one, it’s a small wedding with only immediate family and our closest friends attending. It’s simple too, with a small ceremony officiated by a close friend who is ordained. The party will be in a beautiful and elegant tent outside in the garden.

  I have a connection with this place, which is hard to describe. The second I stepped inside, it felt like home, even though it looks nothing like it used to.

  The room we’re in right now used to be our bedroom. Alice and Summer had twin bunk beds, while I had one for myself, which garnered me progressively more jealous looks from both of them as they grew up. The walls were a light pink color with a stain next to the door that never went away. Even though it’s gone, I can point out exactly where it was. The walls are a beautiful yellow now, giving the room a bright and cheerful appearance, as does the king-size bed.

  “Nervous?” Summer asks, watching me in the mirror.

  “No.” I smile at my sister, who looks a little unconvinced. I can’t explain why I’m not nervous. Last time I did this, I was a wreck the entire time during the preparations and the wedding itself. I was borderline nauseous the entire day. Now, I’m oddly at peace. I have butterflies in my stomach and a grin I can’t seem to tone down, but I’m not nervous.

  A kn
ock at the door startles the three of us.

  “Can I come in?” Mom’s voice resounds from outside.

  “Sure,” I reply.

  The door opens, and Mom steps inside with Julie at her side. Julie is lovely. She’s wearing a white satin dress, looking like a princess.

  “Julie, you are so pretty,” I say.

  “So are you,” she replies.

  Mom doesn’t say anything, merely pulling me in to a hug. She was right, of course. There are several kinds of happiness. As I stand here, surrounded by my family with the man I love waiting on the other side of the door, I feel happier than I ever have.

  “Mom, don’t ruin her hair,” Summer calls.

  “It’s okay,” I assure her, and linger in my mom’s arms for a while longer. My blonde hair is styled in waves with a few pins here and there, so there’s not much to ruin about it.

  “Oh, look, I did undo one of your pins,” Mom says as I pull out of her hug. She focuses on righting my pin next, but I think it’s an excuse for her to regain her composure because she’s misty-eyed.

  “Mom,” I whisper. “I’m not nervous at all. Is that weird?” I look at her in the mirror, holding my breath.

  “No, honey. It means you know deep down it’s right.” She offers me a warm smile and squeezes my hand. Julie is quietly looking at me, as if she wants to say something but doesn’t have the courage.

  “What is it, sweetie?” I ask her. She glances at my sisters and Mom, then to her feet.

  “We’ll go outside to see if everything is okay,” Alice says, getting the drift. “But you should hurry up. It’s starting in ten minutes.”

  The three of them leave me alone with Julie.

  “Let’s both sit on the bed, and you can tell me what’s wrong,” I say, leading us both to the bed.

  “I asked Dad and he said yes, and I’m hoping you will too.”

  “Okay.”

  She licks her lips several times, wiping off some of her cherry lip gloss. “Can I call you Mom? I know I’m not going to be your baby the way they will be,” she says quickly, pointing to my stomach, “but—”

  I hold up my hand, stopping her. “You are my baby. Don’t think for a second that I will treat any of you differently. And I’ll be honored if you call me Mom.” I pull her in to a hug just like my own mother did with me moments ago. Damn it, I’m way past misty-eyed. I’m downright tearful.

  “Sister,” Max’s voice comes from the corridor. “You’d better come out soon.”

  “We’ll be right out.”

  Julie opens the door for me. I walk out of the room with small steps, careful not to step on my dress. Max is at the end of the short corridor, which opens into the spacious living room. My family waits there, along with Eric.

  He wears an elegant navy suit that highlights his blue eyes, and a small strand of his rebellious hair shadows his left eyebrow.

  The first part of the ceremony passes by in a haze. I don’t pay attention to one word being read to us, and neither does Eric. We are both too preoccupied stealing glances at each other and sharing accomplice smiles. It’s only when I hear the words “You can exchange your rings now” that I seem to come back to my senses.

  Julie brings us the rings on a pink, silky pillow. I take Eric’s with a trembling hand. I notice there is a slight tremor in his hand too as he reaches for mine. We interlace our fingers briefly, strengthening the other. Then we put the rings on.

  “And now, the vows.”

  Eric winks at me, his lip curling up to a smile. Writing my vows has been a true adventure, mostly because he was doing everything to find out what I was writing. I hid them well, I hope. I wanted this to be a surprise.

  He takes my hands in his, clearing his throat. Waiting for him to speak sends my pulse into overdrive.

  “Pippa, I promise to take care of you, love you, and respect you. I promise to anticipate your need for sugar and caffeine, and always have a quick fix at hand.”

  I chuckle and blink back tears of joy. Eric isn’t done, though.

  “I promise to be there through everything. Cheer with you on the good days, cheer you up on the bad ones. Work through everything and never give up. Love is an honor and a choice, and I will choose to love you every day.”

  I tear up, there’s no denying it, but my voice is remarkably steady as I recite my vows. “Eric, I promise to take care of you, love you, and respect you. I vow to only find appropriate nicknames and never give you reasons or opportunities to tickle me, though I do promise to give you reasons to laugh often. I vow to fight for our happiness every day.”

  He cups my cheeks in his hands, pulling me in for a kiss. His lips brush mine softly, lingering there too long for the kiss to be considered chaste. My body hums at his nearness, and he drags his fingers down my neck in an almost sinful touch, which is full of promise. Later.

  Hand in hand, Eric and I step outside the house, with the rest of the gang on our heels. We’re going to take a group photo.

  “Damn,” Max exclaims, squinting as the sun blinds him. “Too much light outside.”

  I chuckle, elbowing my brother. “Too much alcohol at the bachelor party. Why did you do it the day before the wedding?”

  “Hey.” Blake appears at my other side. “Shotgun wedding, shotgun bachelor party. What did you girls do for your party?”

  “None of us got a hangover the next day,” Alice answers from behind the boys. “But I have muscle cramps.”

  “Yeah,” Nadine chimes in. “Safe to say we can dub it The Night All Girls Went Wild.”

  Blake nods, impressed. “I’d call our party The Night the Party Brothers Behaved, and the Serious Brothers Went Wild.”

  Max scoffs. “I’m going to shortcut that to The Night I Can’t Remember.”

  “On my count,” the photographer says, and we all turn to him, smiling. He takes a number of shots, some with the group, some with just Eric and me.

  After the photo session, we all walk toward the tent, chatting happily.

  “Ready for the first dance?” Eric asks, wiggling his eyebrows.

  “No funny moves,” I warn him, remembering our wild dance at Sebastian and Ava’s wedding. We rehearsed the first dance, but who knows what ideas my man has.

  As Eric walks over to the DJ, Nadine appears by my side, rubbing her palms. “So, who’s next? I’m starting to like this matchmaking game.”

  “Logan and I made a bet,” Sebastian says, appearing at my other side with Logan.

  “Since when are you making bets on this?” I ask. Logan shrugs, a devilish smile on his lips. Since Alice’s guy is still a world away, and Summer is too young, I will concentrate on my brothers.

  Across the dance floor, the two sets of twins are engaged in a heated discussion. I wonder who’s ready for the next step. The party twins, Blake and Daniel, are still a tad too young. But I’m seeing possibilities for the serious twins, Max and Christopher, especially since Max is back from London for good. Nadine follows my gaze, grinning.

  “Max,” we say at the same time.

  ***

  Dear Reader,

  This is the end of Eric and Pippa’s story. Max’s book will be next. It will be released in November. Please sign up HERE to be notified about the release date for the book (you will also receive a FREE copy of my full-length romance Found in Us if you sign up. The retail price is $3.99).

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  Other Books by Layla Hagen

  The Bennett Family Series

  Book 1 in the Series: Your Irresistible Love

  Sebastian Bennett is a determined man. It’s the secret behind the business empire he built from scratch. Under his rule, Bennett Enterprise
s dominates the jewelry industry. Despite being ruthless in his work, family comes first for him, and he’d do anything for his parents and eight siblings—even if they drive him crazy sometimes. . . like when they keep nagging him to get married already.

  Sebastian doesn’t believe in love, until he brings in external marketing consultant Ava to oversee the next collection launch. She’s beautiful, funny, and just as stubborn as he is. Not only is he obsessed with her delicious curves, but he also finds himself willing to do anything to make her smile.

  He’s determined to have Ava, even if she’s completely off limits.

  Ava Lindt has one job to do at Bennett Enterprises: make the next collection launch unforgettable. Daydreaming about the hot CEO is definitely not on her to-do list. Neither is doing said CEO. The consultancy she works for has a strict policy—no fraternizing with clients. She won’t risk her job. Besides, Ava knows better than to trust men with her heart.

  But their sizzling chemistry spirals into a deep connection that takes both of them by surprise. Sebastian blows through her defenses one sweet kiss and sinful touch at a time. When Ava’s time as a consultant in his company comes to an end, will Sebastian fight for the woman he loves or will he end up losing her?

  AVAILABLE ON ALL RETAILERS. You can find the links HERE.

  Book 2 in the Series: Your Captivating Love

  Logan Bennett knows his priorities. He is loyal to his family and his company. He has no time for love, and no desire for it. Not after a disastrous engagement left him brokenhearted. When Nadine enters his life, she turns everything upside down.

  She’s sexy, funny, and utterly captivating. She’s also more stubborn than anyone he’s met…including himself.

  Nadine Hawthorne is finally pursuing her dream: opening her own clothing shop. After working so hard to get here, she needs to concentrate on her new business, and can’t afford distractions. Not even if they come in the form of Logan Bennett.