Which I started doing in my head as I sipped on my drink.
19
Daniel
I knocked on Layla’s apartment door and was shocked when she let me in. She looked tired. Haggard. Forlorn. Which was exactly how I felt inside. I hated seeing her like that, but we needed to talk.
Especially since it was apparent she was going to work these last two weeks from her place.
She sighed. “What are you doing here?”
“I need you to have a seat because I want to talk with you,” I said.
“Can you make it quick? I’ve got a lot of work on my plate today.”
“Sit down, Layla.”
My command must have resounded with her, because she slipped over to the couch and took a seat. I moved her laptop and papers over to a chair, then sat down on the coffee table in front of her. I reached for her hand, and she let me take it. Her skin was clammy. Pale. She was neglecting herself, and that would stop now.
This train wreck of misunderstandings stopped now.
“I love you,” I said.
Layla snickered as she shook her head. But I reached up and gripped her chin, forcing her gaze back to mine as I looked into her eyes.
“I love you, Layla.”
Her eyes filled with tears as I cupped her cheek.
“In the beginning, yes, it was a fling. A very inappropriate one, at best. But as we kept seeing each other, and then when things happened with Drew, it grew exponentially. When you swooped in and took charge, helping me when my mind was too scrambled to help myself, I fell head over heels for you, Layla.”
A tear worked its way down her cheek, finding its death on the tip of my thumb.
“The pause the last time we saw each other wasn’t because I didn’t feel the same way, but because I was shocked you jumped so heartily into the topic. I expected buildup. Working up to it. I didn’t expect you to drop it into my lap right then and there,” I said.
“I’m sorry,” Layla whispered.
“Don’t you dare be. I love you more than anything on this planet, Layla Hale, and I’ve been wanting to tell you for a while now. I didn’t know how you’d react, and I didn’t know if you would accept me. But the feelings I feel now more than ever have been there for weeks now.”
“Why didn’t you say anything, Danny?”
She nuzzled into my palm, and I considered her question.
“Fear, I guess would be the best word,” I said.
“You’re Daniel Levingston. You never get scared,” she said, giggling.
Such a beautiful sound I was so thankful to hear.
“Yeah, well. I cover it up good enough,” I said, winking.
“You love me?” she asked.
I stood to my feet, bringing her with me as my lips hovered over hers.
“More than life itself,” I whispered.
And when I kissed her, I felt her give herself over to me. Not just her body, but her heart. Her soul. Her life. Her presence. I wrapped her up into my arms and picked her off her feet, then carried her into her bedroom. I wanted to taste her, enjoy her—ravish her and lose myself in her.
“I love you, Layla,” I murmured as I laid her down in bed.
“I love you too, Daniel. Always.” Then, our lips collided, and our hearts became one.
Epilogue
Layla
Nine Months Later
I smiled as Daniel stood and pulled my chair out for me. I eased down into the chair, smoothing my black cocktail dress underneath me. He scooted me closer to the table, a glass of wine already there to greet me.
“You look stunning,” he said.
“You don’t look so bad yourself, handsome,” I said, winking.
The last nine months had been incredible. I stayed employed at Living Sun, but I gave up my office there. I did all of my work for them out of my office at my small business, and business was booming. So much so that I was able to take all of my staff from part-time to full-time as well as give them raises and additional health benefits.
Things were really looking up.
The dinner was nice. Five courses, with a hefty dessert at the end. I smiled when it came out. It must have easily been a triple dose of what the chef usually made. But Danny always did know I had a sweet tooth. And a massive one at that.
But when I went to cut into my tiramisu, I saw something shining on top of it.
“Danny?” I asked.
“Yes, Layla?”
His voice emanated from my side, and I looked down. My eyes watered when I did, too. He was down on one knee, and I watched as his hand reached up and plucked the engagement ring from the top of the dessert. I brought my hands to my mouth and gasped. He wiped the ring down with a smile on his face before he held it up.
Then, he launched into his speech.
“Layla Hale, you are the perfect woman. You’re intelligent. You’re independent. You’re capable. And you’re funny. There isn’t an ounce of me that doesn’t love every ounce of you, and I have been waiting so long to ask you this question,” he said, smiling.
“Ask,” I whispered.
“I’m truly myself with you. I’m not judged by you, or hovered over with you. I can rely on you for anything and everything without ever feeling emasculated. Layla Hale, I don’t ever want to lose you. Any part of you. So, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
I slipped from my chair and dropped to my knees. I wrapped my arms around him and planted a kiss straight onto his lips. He stood up, holding me against him as the restaurant cheered for us. I nodded my head against him as he chuckled down my throat. Our foreheads fell together as he brought my hand up, slipping the ring onto my finger. I smiled down at it, wiggling it around on my finger before I gazed up into his eyes.
Those beautiful eyes I’d look into for the rest of my life.
“Let’s get out of here,” I said, grinning
“Oh, sweet woman. You read my mind,” he murmured.
Daniel
We didn’t even get to the bedroom. We stumbled into my penthouse, kissing and caressing while we tore at each other’s clothes. We stumbled over the back of the couch, our naked bodies falling against one another. Our lips locked. Our bodies collided. Her slit dripped for me as I slid in and out from between her legs. I folded her in half and fucked her until she couldn’t breathe. I let her wrap her legs around me and pull me so deeply into her body I had no idea where I ended and she began. Sweat dripped down our bodies. I sucked at patches of skin on her neck and shoulders. I marked her as mine, wrapping my lips around her nipples. And when I felt her finally trying to milk me, I slammed into her before the two of us came undone.
“I love you. I love you. I love you, Danny.”
“Fuck, Layla. My love. My life. I love you from the bottom of my heart.”
I collapsed on top of her, blanketing her with my body as her nails raked down my sides. Our sweat intermingled as I sat between her legs, my manhood still sheathed within her. I loved lying like that, dwindling inside of her while she pulled me closer. Our intermingled juices dripped down my balls, making me shiver as I slid off to the side.
I pulled her close to me on the couch, feeling my heart beat against her back.
“I’m thinking a fall wedding for next year,” Layla breathed.
I kissed her shoulder before I pulled a blanket over us.
“Anything you want,” I murmured.
“With reds and yellows and oranges,” she said.
“Sounds perfect.”
“But not an outside wedding. No bugs, please.”
I chuckled against her ear. “I’ll hire us a wedding planner, and you can toss all of these ideas to her.”
“What? You don’t want to hear them?” she asked.
She turned around into my arms, and I gazed into those big green eyes.
Eyes I hoped our children had.
“No, I don’t,” I said.
“Why not?” Layla asked.
“I want to hear abo
ut when you’ll move in.”
“Ah, you want to know when you can have me all the time.”
“Yes. I want to know when you’ll move in. When I’ll have to clear out a side of my closet for you. I want to know what nights I need to cook dinner and what nights you will.”
“What if I don’t want to cook?” she asked.
“Then, I’ll have my chef cook for us,” I said.
She smiled at me before kissing the tip of my nose.
“I want to know how we’ll coordinate our work schedules, so we see the most of each other. I want to know what we’ll do together in this very penthouse during our lazy Saturdays. I want to know where you want to take our first family trip. When you want to start having kids. How many children you want us to bear,” I said.
“You want all the juicy stuff that comes after the wedding,” Layla said, giggling.
“Yes. I don’t care about the details of our wedding, sweetheart. I care about the details of our future. That’s what I want to know.”
She cupped my cheek, her thumb stroking my skin as her eyes danced between mine.
“We have our entire life to figure it out,” she said.
And as I captured her lips with mine, my heart filled with delight at the prospect.
An entire life with Layla Hale.
What a fucking dream come true.
The End
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About the Author
Chloe is a hometown girl from Tennessee who loves a great short romance, drinking coffee most of the day, and hanging out with family. When she's not writing, she can be found playing the piano or surfing Facebook!
Having been a reader all her life, she's hoping that you'll find yourself lost to time, laughing and falling in love all over again with her books.
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Professionals with Benefits
Copyright © 2018 by Chloe Morgan.
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
The novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and plot are all either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons – living or dead – is purely coincidental.
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