by Layla Hagen
I just need him.
The day after, I receive yet another package, just as small. Inside it, I find another package, and my heart skips a beat. It’s a jewelry box with the Bennett Enterprises logo on it. My palms instantly become sweaty, and excitement bubbles in my throat. I swear even Beanie gives a tiny leap behind my navel. On second thought, maybe it was just my stomach.
“Beanie,” I whisper, hand on belly, “I don’t know if you realize the momentousness of this, but your dad is proposing to your mom. Just thought I’d spell it out for you.” And for myself. I stare at the lovely box, admiring the delicate and classic velvet, the craftsmanship of the logo, working up the courage to open it.
It takes me so long to gather my wits that it’s almost time to head out to training when I finally take off the lid.
There is nothing inside. It’s absolutely empty.
Confused and apprehensive, I call the culprit.
“Blake Bennett, you do not play with the emotions of a pregnant woman this way. What is the meaning of this?”
“Hey, not my fault. Not the best idea to send jewelry through delivery services, because it could get stolen. I’m going to have to bring the ring in person.”
I break into a fit of laughter. Genius. Pure genius.
“You’re taking sneaky to a whole new level, Blake.”
“What was that? Reception’s not good. Sounded like you were asking me to fly out to Boston.”
“On the next plane, please.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
Clara
Six hours—length of the flight from San Francisco to Boston.
Twenty minutes—driving time from the airport to the hotel.
By my calculations, Blake arrived at the hotel about five hours ago, which is how long I’ve been glancing at the clock on my computer every ten minutes or so. Only two hours to go. I’m as jittery as can be, completing every task, taking the instructor’s feedback in stride, applying it dutifully. Twice I stop myself from blurting out some excuse to leave early.
When the day is over, I practically fly out the door. Run down that one block. There’s a commotion in front of the elevators, so I take the stairs. My room is on the second floor. The climb doesn’t do anything to wear out my energy. On the contrary; by the time I enter my room, I worked myself into a frenzy.
“Blake,” I whisper, taking it all in, vases upon vases of flowers spread around the small room. Candles in between, casting a warm and romantic glow. And the man. Oh, the man.
He meets me halfway, hooking an arm around my waist, pulling me flush against him, kissing me hard. Oh God, how I missed him. His scent, the feeling of being held in his strong arms, being pressed against his granite chest. I can’t get enough of his warm, determined mouth.
“I missed you,” he whispers when we pull apart to breathe.
“I missed you too.” That’s when I realize I’m level with him, and my feet are dangling in the air. The man lifted me off the floor. Now that’s what I call strong.
When he puts me back down, I stand on my toes, but since I’m wearing flats, I still only reach up to his chin. Honestly, I love that he towers over me. It gives me a sense of safety, as if nothing can happen while this mountain of a man has his arms around me. His solid build also has other benefits. There’s a lot of Blake to kiss and caress.
“As far as big, romantic gestures go, this is...wow.”
He kisses the tip of my nose, smiling before lowering himself on one knee and opening his fist. I shiver lightly as my heart seems to grow in size and then grow some more as I take in the clear-cut diamond and the intricately braided pattern of the white gold band.
“Clara, we’ve had many firsts, and we’ll have many more. But I also want to be your last. Your only. I want to be with you always. When you need someone to believe in you. When you need someone to love you. I’m yours, no matter what. I want you to go to bed with this certainty, and wake up with it too. Will you marry me?”
My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth, and all I can do is nod. This reckless and totally adorable man is mine. All mine. And I can’t wait for the entire world to know it.
I soak in every second of this, to memorize every single detail. I want to look back on this moment years from now and remember everything. I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life. It’s exhilarating.
“Yes, yes, yes!” I say when I find my voice, watching as he slides the ring on. Then I cup his face with both hands and kiss him.
Still on his knees, he takes control of the kiss, descending until he reaches my belly, rubbing his cheek against it, then whispering, “Beanie, I promise you’ll have a great name. Don’t mind your mom, she’s just being hormonal. Nicknames don’t count.”
He holds my hips in that wonderful way of his, which is both possessive and protective. When he looks up at me, his gaze is molten and wanton. I lean into his touch, closing my eyes. He guides me to the bed, gently laying me on it, removing my clothes one by one while I do the same with his until we’re both naked. I can’t stop touching him. His broad, strong shoulders, the ridges on his chest marking the defined muscles, and the V-shaped lines leading downward. He’s hard already, and kissing me everywhere. My neck, my shoulders.
“My nipples are too sensitive,” I whisper, hating to break his stride, but they’ve been unbearably sensitive for days now. The friction with any kind of fabric is excruciating.
Blake nods, kissing along the top of my breasts, then the underside. I roll my hips against him, and the tip of his erection touches right next to my navel. The hot point of contact sends a wave of shudders through me.
With a wicked smile, he moves, rubbing his erection along the length of my opening. I part my legs wider, needing him, but he doesn’t slide in, though I’m ready for him. Any readier than I already am and I will break out of my skin. I’m hot and bothered, and I need him inside me.
He pushes just the tip inside before pulling back out, gripping himself at the base, and circling my clit with the crown.
“Blake. Oh God. Oh God. I will—”
Words fail me as he circles around my clit again and again, working me into a frenzy until every cell in my body strums with energy, every nerve is connected to my center. I cry out his name when the first spasm rocks through me. And then he slides inside me, every inch of him, while I’m coming so hard I’m afraid I will pass out. My inner muscles clamp around him, and the sensation of being so full of him while I’m still riding my orgasm sends my vision into a tailspin.
When I come to myself, his arms cage me in at my sides.
“You feel amazing, Clara.” He’s shuddering lightly, as if he’s barely hanging on to his control. “This moment here is everything, and I want to make you some promises while we’re connected like this.”
Oh, this wonderful, charming man. He’ll never cease to surprise me. If I loved him any more, my heart might burst. I fight to calm my racing pulse because the rush of blood and adrenaline causes my ears to buzz, and I don’t want to miss one word of what Blake has to say. But the more I fight, the more frantic my pulse becomes, the louder the buzz in my ears. I swallow hard twice, and there is a tiny pop in my ears. Then Blake’s voice reaches me.
“I promise to take care of you, and love you. I promise to be the man you need and deserve, every day. I want you to have the best of everything, Clara, and I want to be the one to give you all that. I’ll be a happy man to spend my life fulfilling every single wish you have, raising a family. It’ll be my honor to grow old next to you. I love you.”
I’ve never heard anything more romantic, and my eyes are stinging.
I swallow yet again, preparing to make some promises of my own. Oh, I have so many things to say to him. Though I’ve always been a chatterbox, when it comes to matters of the heart, I’ve always tried to employ a filter, but not anymore. There is not one part of myself I haven’t given Blake already.
“I love you, Blake, and I promise to make your life better, in
the small things and the big things. I love you more than I can say, and I’ll show you. Every day.”
He touches my nose in a sweet Eskimo kiss and moves inside me.
“Hey,” I admonish. “I’m not done.”
“We have all the time for words later. Now I want to make love to my future wife.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Clara
“That was hands down the best proposal,” Pippa exclaims.
“An empty box?” Summer taps her manicured nails on her cocktail glass, as if assessing the merits of the tactic.
“Creative.” Alice nods, fighting a yawn. She and Nate flew in yesterday from London, and she’s still fighting jet lag.
“Oi, stop comparing how amazing your men are. We single ladies here are starting to get jealous,” Caroline says. Penny and Summer clink their glasses with her. “Hear, hear.”
Ah, this is one hell of a bachelorette party. All the Bennett women, whether by birth or marriage, are here, plus Caroline, Penny, and Kate—who flew in yesterday too. We started with a lazy spa day, which was lazier for the girls, because I received the head-to-toe bridal treatment, complete with foot massage and pedicure.
Right now, we’re in a lounge bar in the Marina district, sitting on a round, comfy couch. Behind us, the glass wall of the establishment offers a clear view of the city lights blinking in the night, the Golden Gate Bridge in the distance.
I’m listening intently to the girls’ chatter when Beanie kicks me hard. Whoa. Hand on my huge belly, I gently rub where I felt the kick. Since neither Blake nor I wanted a quick, shotgun wedding, we took our time, and now at seven months, I look like I’m going to have a baby elephant. Nope, no twins here, though I am asked that question about twice a week. I just eat a lot and Beanie is huge. Soon, Bean Bag will be more appropriate. We’re having a boy, and choosing a name is still an ongoing fight. At this rate, Beanie might go on his birth certificate.
When we went in for the ultrasound, Blake kept his eyes eagerly on the monitor, but his smile faltered for a split second when the doctor pointed to the heart. After a thorough interrogation—I might have resorted to underhanded techniques and a little emotional blackmail, but I’m not even sorry—he admitted he was hoping we’d have twins.
“Maybe we’ll get lucky next time. If not, we can practice until it happens. With my family genes, we’re bound to get lucky eventually.”
I agree one hundred percent with his plan. After Beanie is born, I will take a few months off from my job, and then I will work from home almost exclusively. At the end of the training period, I was one of the three illustrators the Ayaks team chose. So, surreal as it might sound, I—the woman whose middle name was practical, and didn’t put much stock in dreams—illustrate for a living. Then again, taking a leap of faith and fighting for my dream is much easier with a glorious man who believes in me by my side.
“I wonder what the guys are up to,” Pippa says, bringing me back to the present.
“I’m surprised Blake didn’t want to have his bachelor party in Vegas,” Alice comments, “considering how hard he lobbied for it for everyone else’s parties.”
I smile to myself. When I asked Blake why he’s not flying out to Vegas for a weekend, his exact words were “No way in hell am I going to be away from you and Beanie for a weekend.”
As we order a new round of drinks, Summer touches her earlobe, and Pippa nods almost imperceptibly. Aha, we’re entering the meddling part of the evening. Our target: Caroline. The operation shouldn’t be too complicated because we’re only looking for a confession—though a hint would also suffice—about her feelings for Daniel, see if there’s still something there. Summer and Pippa said that a bachelorette party is the perfect occasion for getting the scoop. Alcohol is involved, emotions are all over the place, secrets might be spilled...or lured out.
Of course, since I love meddling, I was completely on board with their plan. Gives me a chance to see the sisters at work on someone other than me, and sharpen my own meddling skills. Who knows when they’ll come in handy?
Plus, I’ve picked up a few tricks, and this is my moment to shine. While sipping on our drinks—just orange juice for me—I do my part, guiding the conversation toward everyone’s college days. Nostalgia should kick in any second now. As soon as everyone brings up fond memories, I stir them to college flames, since Caroline and Daniel were together during their senior year.
Caroline holds up her hand. “I say we talk about the wedding.”
Aha, that’s an evasive maneuver if I ever saw one. She also narrows her eyes at me, which pretty much means she saw right through my tactic.
Ahem, I still have a lot of sharpening to do when it comes to my meddling skills. Summer winks at me, as if saying, Don’t worry. We have a plan B.
I’m pretty sure the girls have as many plans as there are letters in the alphabet, and if not, they’ll make one up on the spot, because they’re creative like that.
Speaking of creativity, there’s something I meant to ask them, and I seize my opportunity, moving next to Summer.
“One question: Did you two have something to do with my building not being ready in time?” I’m still renting out the condo, and Blake and I broke down the wall between our apartments. We’ll keep living there until our little family becomes not-so-little.
Summer forms an O with her mouth. “Of course not. We’re matchmakers, not mean girls.”
I elbow her playfully. “Hey, I was just curious, that’s all.”
Just as I wonder what their plan B implies, Pippa turns to Caroline. “Speaking about the wedding, we still need to put someone in charge of handing out the thank-you gifts to the guests at the end. Daniel’s on it, but he needs assistance. Could you help him, Caroline? Or would it be too uncomfortable for you? You’d be doing us a huge favor.”
“When you put it like that, how can I say no?” Caroline sighs, a dreamy expression on her face. Pippa smiles triumphantly, and I bow to the master.
Epilogue
Clara
“No, you can’t come in. You’re not allowed to see the bride before the ceremony.” Jenna Bennett is employing her most stern motherly voice, talking to Blake through the cracked door.
“Mom, I don’t give a rat’s ass about antique traditions. I’m coming in.”
Jenna steps back, muttering about how he can’t respect rules even on his wedding day. I grin, beyond happy he isn’t one to respect traditions because I was hoping I’d get to spend a few minutes alone with him before everything kicks off.
“Fine, I’ll leave you two alone, but just for ten minutes.”
I admire my asymmetric, braided bun in a sideways mirror.
“Thanks, Mom.”
Once we’re alone, he closes the distance to me, slowly looking me up and down. My dress is magnificent, a princess-style white gown with a satin and lace bodice, and a voluminous skirt—satin only. I won’t deny I feel a bit like an elephant, what with my middle looking as if I swallowed a football, but that doesn’t keep me from grinning like a lunatic. I understand what Alice meant at her own wedding about not being able to stop grinning. Too much excitement and happiness bubble inside me for a simple smile to do them justice.
“You look beautiful, Clara.” Taking my hand, he lifts it, kissing my knuckles. “I wanted a few minutes alone with you.”
“Great minds think alike.”
“Mom driving you crazy?”
I shake my head, whispering, “Not at all.”
Biting the inside of my cheek, I fight against the wave of emotions...and lose. Everyone warned me not to cry because I’ll ruin my makeup, but I’m a pregnant woman getting married. It’d be weird if I weren’t crying. Still, I’m determined to keep the tears at bay for as long as possible.
“You know how much I love your family, and I’m very lucky to have all of them in my life. I like being smothered and loved, and everyone meddling in my business.”
Blake smiles, resting his hands on my bare s
houlders, his thumbs pressing gently just where the fabric of the bodice meets my skin.
“You’ve lucked out, because I’m going to smother and love you for the rest of our lives, and my family will meddle for that long as well.”
“Ah!”
“What’s wrong?”
“Beanie kicked hard. I think he loves romantic promises.”
Taking Blake’s hand, I put it exactly where Beanie kicked, on my lower left side. He’s still now, but then….
“You make me the happiest man, Clara. The happiest. I can’t believe I’m so lucky to have you. I promise I will take care of you, of our family. Any fears, I’ll be right here, fighting them with you. Any dreams, I’ll fight for them next to you.” Tap, tap, tap. Beanie kicks almost every third word, until I get misty-eyed and Blake’s voice becomes hoarse with emotion. “This is my promise to you, and to our son.”
“And I promise to always be all the things you need, even those you don’t know you need. The partner in crime, the shoulder you lean on. The one person you come to and open up to no matter what. I will take care of and spoil you. Both of you.”
Beanie kicks harder, right where his dad’s hand is on my belly, as if he knows we’re talking about him. Blake lowers himself on his haunches, kissing my belly.
“Don’t worry, buddy, I’ll teach you all the tricks about how to marry a great woman.”
“What would you have said if we’d had a girl?”
“I’d have told her no man will ever be good enough for her.”
“That’s a double standard if there ever was one.”
Blake rises, touching my nose with his. “I can’t wait for you to fight me on it.”
There is a knock at the door, and Nate’s voice reaches us. “Clara, it’s time.”
