Your Inescapable Love (The Bennett Family Book 4)

by Layla Hagen

  “Ah, it’s a good thing I was a blithering idiot then and had the accident,” he exclaims. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t be here. Gives a whole new meaning to everything happens for a reason, right?”

  I smile at him, surprised to learn that he kept his self-deprecating humor. Reading in magazines about his family’s success always did make me wonder if he’d changed or if he’d become more arrogant. So far, it seems not. I wonder how his siblings turned out. There are nine in total. Sebastian, Logan, and Pippa were the older trio, and as far as I understood, they set up Bennett Enterprises—one of the biggest players in the jewelry market. Max and his identical twin brother, Christopher, also work at the company, but I don’t know what the other siblings are up to: Alice, Blake, Daniel, and Summer. Can’t wait for Max to fill me in.

  “How did you manage to get yourself into that mess?”

  “If I make up a heroic reason, will you believe me?”

  I burst out laughing. He cemented his status as my hero one lousy, rainy day after school. We were walking home when we heard howling. After sloshing around in the mud for a few minutes, we located the dogs. They were on the edge of the road, next to a ditch. I counted four pups and what looked like their dead mother. The pups desperately tried to get a reaction from her, pushing their little heads against her belly, and one of them licking her nose. I felt such an instant kinship with the pups who’d lost their mother that I couldn’t bear leaving them to fend for themselves. As Max and I bent to lift them, we noticed a fifth pup. He’d fallen into the ditch, which was very deep and narrow. Without hesitation, Max jumped inside it, pulling up the pup. It then took him nearly twenty minutes to get himself out. Grams and his mother, Jenna Bennett, nearly went into cardiac arrest when we returned home with five pups and covered in mud. I hero-worshiped him from that day on.

  “I know you can be a hero, all right. But the skydiving accident is in your file.”

  He groans, then tugs with his teeth at his lower lip, and I can’t help admiring his lush mouth. Had his lips always been this full? And why, in the name of all that is holy, am I having these thoughts? The training room suddenly feels too small, as does the distance between us.

  “I never took you for the skydiving type,” I continue.

  “I’m not. Just made a bet with Blake. I was flying with a trainer and still managed to crash land.”

  At the mention of his younger brother, I can’t help grinning.

  “Damn, I have so many questions for you, I don’t know how to get them out fast enough,” he says.

  “Pretty much describing my current dilemma.” I hold up a finger. “But, we need to start with the session. Kurt warned me that I should keep the relationship professional during our sessions.”

  Max cocks an eyebrow. “What did he think I’d do? Jump your bones the moment I saw you?”

  Heat rushes to my cheeks at his words, and I lower my gaze, suddenly flustered. Thank heavens we’re far enough from the others that they can’t hear us.

  “I see you still put your foot in your mouth every chance you get,” I inform him.

  “I do, but that came out wrong. I didn’t mean there’s anything wrong with jumping your bones. In fact, you filled out beautifully, Jonesie.” He grins at the use of the nickname his brother Blake gave me years ago. He found Campbell to be quite a mouthful, and said I looked like someone who should be called Jones, which was completely random. Max turned that into Jonesie, and it became my nickname in the Bennett household. “As your oldest friend, I’m allowed to say that without sounding like a pervert, or like I’m hitting on you. You are beautiful.” He utters those last few words in a lower tone and damn, it makes all my lady parts tingle.

  “You haven’t aged too bad either, Bennett. You wear a suit well,” I volley back, though my skin is simmering. Teasing each other was one of the backbones of our friendship, but now it feels different. Max wears a gray suit, and he wears it as if he’s been born into it, which couldn’t be further from the truth. I saw him running around in jeans or shorts and simple shirts our entire childhood, but there is something about him in a suit that is absolutely irresistible.

  “Now, go change into your workout gear so we can start training. The changing room is over there.” I point to the door at the far back of the room.

  “Be right back,” he says. “Pity we can’t get away with changing in front of each other like we used to, isn’t it?”

  I shouldn’t blush at his words, I really shouldn’t. But I do anyway.

  “No, we can’t.”

  I let out a slow breath when Max disappears into the locker room. As kids, Max and I often went swimming at a nearby pond. We discarded our clothes in front of each other and remained in our undies, and there was zero awkwardness. Except that memorable summer day when he hid my clothes while I was in the water, then he accidentally dropped said clothes in the water. I threw a fit and pushed him fully clothed into the pond. We made up as we walked home later, both looking like wet rats.

  It was all so easy between us back then. Now… well, we aren’t kids anymore. Seeing each other after all this time is bound to lead to some awkwardness… and apparently tingling in places I have no business tingling.

  I’m so immersed in my thoughts that I don’t realize Max is back until he calls, “Ready whenever you are, Jonesie.”

  Holy chocolate cake with whipped cream on top. Right. Max in a suit was irresistible, but Max in shorts and a formfitting shirt is sinful.

  “We’ll do a combination of mattress and machine exercises, and also aquatic ones. Obviously, no aquatic ones today, we’d have to be near a pool for that.” Oh God, I’m rambling. I blame his impossibly dark eyes and tongue-in-cheek smile for it.

  “For how long will the therapy last?”

  “I’d say four weeks, twice a week.”

  He groans, dragging his palms down his face. “Lucky one of my oldest friends is my therapist. Will give us lots of time to catch up.”

  The words “oldest friends” snap my mind out of the gutter. Friends don’t ogle each other.

  “Serves me right, I suppose.”

  “How did Blake convince you?” I inquire. “The boy I knew didn’t take such risks.”

  “I’ve become dumber with age.” He does one full turn of the room. “So, with which of these torture instruments are we starting?”

  “They’re not so bad,” I assure him. “They look like regular gym machines.”

  “Except creepier. Well, I’m all yours. Tell me what to do.”

  “Why, Max Bennett, I never thought the day would come when I get to boss you around. That was your role.”

  He shrugs, but the mischievous smile on his face tells me he hasn’t given up his ways. “Your gym. Your rules.”

  The rest of the session passes quietly, as I do the exercises with Max, patiently explaining every move.

  “Let’s go out to an early dinner,” Max suggests at the end.

  “No can do. I have two other sessions.”

  “I can pick you up later then?” he pushes.

  “After work is generally a bad time for me.” Taking a deep breath, I admit, “Grams has Alzheimer’s, and it’s come to the point where she needs a lot of supervision. She has a caregiver during the day, and sometimes a lovely neighbor helps out in the evening if I have seminars, but I like to spend the evenings with her.”

  “I’m sorry about Grams,” he says gently. “Especially since she’s so young.”

  “Yeah.” Grams is sixty-one. She had dad at eighteen and became a grandmother at thirty-four.

  “I always liked her. Except when she took you away to Montana.”

  “It’s hard seeing her like this,” I say in a small voice. “I’m used to her being this strong person, and now she’s just…. Anyway, I spend evenings with her. Sometimes I read to her or just rattle on about my day.”

  Max raises his hand to my cheek in a soothing gesture, the way he did when we were kids. Only now his touch doesn’t just bri
ng me reassurance, but also a wave of heat.

  “She does remember me, most of the time,” I say softly.

  “D’you think she’d remember me?”

  “You’re a hard man to forget. Even as a boy, you made an impression,” I say with a grin, which fades when my next patient walks through the door. “Oh crap, my next appointment is here. About your leg, you don’t have much swelling, but just in case, put some ice on it when you’re home.”

  “Will do, boss. See you on Thursday for our next appointment.” He leans down to me, his lips brushing my cheek. The light touch sets my skin on fire. I take a deep breath, inhaling his masculine scent, and all my senses go hyperalert. This is ridiculous. We were once best friends, and I hope we can be that close again. Lusting after him is out of the question. I have an unused wedding dress and years of dates gone bad to remind me that my romantic relationships always take a turn for the worse. I want Max Bennett in my life, and I want him as my best friend.

  Swallowing hard, I wave at him as he leaves the room. I was expecting our reunion to wreak havoc on my emotions, but not my hormones.

  Chapter Four

  Max

  “Thank you so much for coming with me,” Alice says as she climbs into my car. I parked in front of her restaurant, which is located high on the Twin Peaks. It’s highly successful, and I’m damn proud of her. She’s been scouting for a location to open a second restaurant and asked me to go see a place with her. She shoves a take-out bag in my lap as I gun the engine.

  “You brought me a turkey sandwich?” I ask, unwrapping the sandwich in record time.

  “Yep, can’t let my little brother starve.”

  I scoff at the word little. “I’m only one year younger than you.” Christopher and I are firmly convinced we were the accidental pair of twins. But then again I’d bet my ass a lot of us were accidental. On the drive to the new location, I tell Alice, “You’re never going to believe who I ran into today. Emilia. She’s my physical therapist.”

  Alice frowns, and then she exclaims, “Oh! Jonesie? Our neighbor way back when?”

  “That’s the one,” I say.

  “How is she?”

  “Didn’t get to talk to her much, we had to start our session. But her Grams is sick. She has Alzheimer’s.”

  Alice sighs, sinking down the seat a little. “That’s so sad. How’s Jonesie holding up?”

  “As I said, we didn’t talk much, but I imagine it’s hard.” In fact, I think hard doesn’t even cover it. Emilia all but shrunk before me, closing herself off when she mentioned her grandmother. I instantly recognized that look. As a kid, she withdrew in herself whenever she was hurting. It made all my protective instincts spring to life, and the same happened today. As a kid, I was loud, careless, and confident, and I couldn’t understand why everyone around me wasn’t the same way. Something about Emilia beckoned to me, and I made it my mission to replace her sadness with laughter as often as I could. I was successful, and she became my best friend.

  When the clinic director mentioned her name, I was ecstatic. When I met her face-to-face, it was a shock to my system. She has the same warm, green eyes I remember, but Jonesie has grown into a beautiful, hot woman, and I turned into a horny moron the moment I saw her. Dick move on my part. She walked into my arms all trusting and open, and there’s no way I’ll take advantage of that. Emilia is the white-picket-fence type of girl, and she deserves someone who can give her that. Right now, that’s not on my radar at all.

  “Earth to Max!” Alice exclaims.

  “Huh?”

  “Did you hear anything I said?”

  “Mmm,” I say noncommittally.

  “Never mind. Just bring Jonesie around to see Mom and Dad if she has time. They’ll be happy to see her. Can I have a bite?” She points to my sandwich.

  “You’re always stealing my food,” I accuse.

  “I just want one bite.” Out of the corner of my eye, I see her batting her eyelashes at me. “That’s not stealing. And I brought it to you.”

  “Why didn’t you bring one for yourself?”

  “I didn’t want one, but seeing you eat with so much gusto, I kind of want a bite.”

  I groan, concentrating on the road.

  “You know I’ll bug you until you give in, right?” Alice continues.

  Unfortunately, I do know. “Fine, but just one bite. I mean it.”

  She ends up eating half the sandwich, of course.

  “It’s so good to have you back home from London, Max. I don’t like it when any of us is away. Can’t wait for Summer to get back.” Our youngest sister, Summer, is a painter, and she’s currently in Italy, working on a special project for a local museum. She’ll be gone for another few months. “At least you’re back. I missed fighting with you over food.”

  “You have seven other Bennetts you can pick a fight with.”

  She shrugs. “Yeah, but none get as adorably annoyed as you do.”

  “Give that back. You’re lucky I love you so much,” I mutter, wolfing down the remaining part.

  “Holy fuck,” I exclaim ten minutes later when we arrive at the location.

  “I think holy fuckity fuck with a side of shitty shit is more appropriate.” Alice puts her hands on her hips, disbelief etched on her face.

  “Are you sure this is the right address?”

  “Yeah.” Alice’s enthusiasm is all but gone as she looks at the dump we came to look at. We climb out of the car, and then hover in front of it. Disappointment comes in waves from my sister. Kind of wish I hadn’t eaten the entire sandwich, so she could have it. The women in my family are big on comfort food, and I hate seeing Alice like this.

  “Now I know why they didn’t upload any photos of the building itself, just the surrounding view,” she says bitterly.

  We are looking at what looks like a run-down barn. The surrounding area is magnificent, if a little remote. It’s on a high hill with a fantastic view of the city.

  “It did say it needed heavy renovations,” Alice continues.

  “I have a great plan for that. I’ll bring the gasoline.”

  “I’ll light up the match,” my sister adds.

  “You’re essentially just buying the land.” I do a full turn in slow motion, inspecting the area. There’s a lot of green, and the property is large enough to build a generous parking lot next to the restaurant.

  “Looks like it.”

  “Which means the asking price is far higher than it should be.” One of the reasons my sister has asked me to join her here today was because I have a knack for negotiations.

  “Let’s go inside.”

  “No banter once the guy is in sight,” I warn her. Nothing damages credibility more than bantering. Alice merely shakes her head, rolling her eyes.

  “You play the bad cop,” she tells me. “I’ll play the good one.”

  The dump looks even worse inside. The pervasive smell of dirt and mildew turns my stomach.

  “Mr. Emmerson?” Alice calls to no one in particular. No one answers, and my first thought is that the owner bailed on the meeting, but the door was open. Then again, it’s not as if anyone’s going to rob this shit hole even if the door was open and had a neon sign saying Rob Me on it. At last, a grunting man in his fifties comes stomping toward us, wiping sweat off his bald head. He gives Alice a blatant once-over, looking with hunger at her, which instantly gets him on my bad side.

  I step forward. “We’re here to see the property.”

  The man extends his hand to my sister, and Alice shakes it vigorously before stepping back. “Thank you for agreeing to meet us on such a short notice. I’m Alice, and this is my brother Max.” She sighs dramatically as she scans the room. “Unfortunately, this isn’t quite what I imagined.”

  “But this location is top notch,” Sleazeball says.

  Putting my hands in my pockets, I pace the dump. “I know the price per square foot in this area. Your asking price is at least forty percent too high.”

&n
bsp; Sleazeball jerks his head back. “I’m afraid you got the wrong information.”

  “I don’t. The price you asked for would be fair if we were standing in a decent building. This is a barn.”

  “Max,” Alice admonishes in a gentle voice, which is very unlike her but plays well for the good cop method. Turning to Sleazeball, she adds, “I’m afraid my brother does have a point. Revamping this place up would take a considerable investment. I’d say that investment makes up that forty percent you’re overcharging.”

  “It’s the only deal you’ll get,” I say calmly. “Take it or leave it.”

  The man wipes his forehead, clearly taken aback by our stance. “I need to think about this.”

  “Perfect,” Alice says. “Let us know your decision within three days max.”

  “We’re looking at two other options,” I add, which makes him snap his head in my direction. “We’re making our decision this week.”

  That’s a blatant lie, but I know these people. If you don’t give them a deadline and put pressure on them, it doesn’t work. Alice walks to the window at the far end of the barn/dump and looks out the window at the scenery with hopeful eyes, which means she really wants this place. I have to admit, the location is perfect. Turning on my heels, I catch Sleazeball looking at my sister as if he wants to eat her up. My blood boils instantly. If Alice ends up buying this place, she’ll meet with him again, and I might not be with her. Sure, my sister knows how to kick ass, but she’s vulnerable and a little oblivious to what’s happening around her when she’s passionate about something. Like now.

  “If you ever look at my sister like that again, I will shove your balls so far up your ass, you’ll spit them out,” I tell him in a low voice so my sister can’t overhear us.

  Sleazeball flinches, because he didn’t see me approach. Then he takes a step back as if wanting to put as much distance between us as possible.

  My sister turns around, gesturing at me to head out. “It was nice meeting you, Mr. Emmerson. I’m looking forward to hearing from you.”