by Layla Hagen
“I was expecting you to live in one of the most expensive areas.” Eying him with appreciation, I add, “But you’re okay.”
“I’m okay,” he says stunned. “This is the most insulting non-insult I have ever received.”
I snicker. “You understand what I mean.”
He shakes his head. “I’m trying to set an example for Julie.”
“Very commendable of you.”
He steps forward, signaling to a cab approaching our spot to stop. The car pulls a few feet in front of us. Eric walks me to it, opening the back door for me.
I lean closer to him, dropping my voice. “This is by far the best anniversary I had.”
As I slide in the backseat, he says, “Glad I could be of service. See you tomorrow. Looking forward to talking more with you.”
He shuts the door and as the car lurches forward, it dawns on me that talking isn’t safe. Not at all. Talking, hearing him pour his heart out is more dangerous than dancing or touching. Tomorrow will be interesting, to say the least.
Chapter Five
Pippa
I wake up with a jolt the next morning, hugging my pillow, enjoying the lazy morning. But my happiness slowly morphs into uneasiness. I can feel it even in my state of semi-sleepiness. Something’s nagging at me—
“Shit.”
Sitting upright in my bed, I grab my phone from the nightstand and stare at the display. It’s ten past eleven. I was supposed to be at Alice’s restaurant for the family brunch ten minutes ago.
That was my conscience nagging at me. I send a quick message to Alice.
Pippa: I’ll be fifteen minutes late. Sorry.
Alice: Liar. You’ll need at least half an hour.
Being on time for family gatherings is on my bucket list. I manage fine in my professional life, but utterly fail when it comes to punctuality in my personal life. I shower quickly but spend an inordinate amount of time deciding what to wear. I’ll be going directly to Eric’s after this and choosing the right dress is crucial. I need something that can spell out the message No flirting better than I can. In the end, I go for the most unflattering dress I own. A grayish mumbo jumbo that’s large enough to be a tent. I have no idea how it ended up in my closet, but it’ll save the day. Summer and Alice will make fun of me for weeks to come for wearing this.
The entire clan will be there, and I can’t wait to see them, especially Christopher. He lives in Hong Kong, overseeing our operations in Asia, and is only here for a short time. I dearly hope he’ll follow Max’s lead and return home soon. Max was in London for a few years, but returned to San Francisco before the wedding, resuming his old position of International Operations Manager.
My sister’s restaurant is high up one of San Francisco’s hills, and the view is to die for. When I arrive, I linger outside for a few minutes, my eyes sweeping over the hills in front of me. The sun shines brightly, turning the foliage covering the hills a vivid green. Up here, San Francisco seems to be a different city than downtown. Nearby, birds sing happily, and I’d like to think they agree with me; it’s a perfect early July day.
Walking inside, I expect everyone to already be stuffing their faces. Instead, my siblings are sitting at a long table with Sebastian heading it. Logan, Alice, Summer, and Daniel are on one side, with Blake, Max, and Christopher on the other. I hug Sebastian tightly before taking my seat between Max and Blake.
“Is this an unofficial board meeting?” I ask, ogling the stack of papers in front of Sebastian and ignoring Alice and Summer’s incredulous stares at my hideous dress.
“Yes,” Sebastian answers.
“Well, let’s start. Everyone’s here, even both of the nice brothers,” Blake says.
Max chuckles.
The friendly rivalry between the two sets of twins is always fun to watch. Christopher and Max are the older set. They ended up with the nickname ‘the serious brothers’ while Blake and Daniel are ‘the party brothers.’ While the moniker completely fits Blake and Daniel, Christopher and Max aren’t serious. They’re the biggest pranksters in the family. But they work hard with us at Bennett Enterprises, while Blake and Daniel don’t have steady jobs. They do projects of their own from time to time, living off the dividends they receive from the company.
I straighten up in my seat and rest my elbows on the wooden surface. From across the table, Alice and Summer flash a smile, shaking their heads at the twins. I sneak a glance at Christopher and Max. For the millionth time, their resemblance strikes me. If they didn’t have slightly different haircuts, I couldn’t tell them apart. Maybe this makes me a bad sister, but it’s always been like this. Now I finally accept it. When they were about ten, they started hating their likeness, so they made a point to always dress differently and get wildly different haircuts. Later they turned into teenagers and realized they could use being identical twins to their advantage. The year they turned fifteen will forever be known in our family as ‘the year of the pranks.’ They kept this up until they went to college, and even then, they liked to do a number on us from time to time. A dull ache settles in my chest at the thought that Christopher will leave again soon. I really want him back here. I need more brothers to hover over or simply to annoy.
“I want to run something by you,” Sebastian says. “Ava’s birthday is coming up, and I want to gift her shares in Bennett Enterprises. I will give them away from my own part, so your shares won’t be diluted at all, and neither will your decision power.”
There is a beat of silence, after which Logan says, “Great,” which sums up how I feel in the best way possible.
“Brother,” Blake tells Sebastian, “I don’t give a fuck about dilution, but that’s the most unromantic present ever. And that’s coming from the least romantic brother in the family.”
Blake winces at the word ‘romantic.’ Ah, one of these days I will plot his downfall as well. That will be an interesting challenge.
“Yes, but it’s the perfect present for Ava,” I say. The shares are distributed exclusively among our siblings and parents, and extending that courtesy to Ava… Well, I know how much family means to her. I look at Sebastian with renewed admiration. He certainly knows how to make gifts. Almost two years ago, he surprised my parents by buying them the ranch where we grew up. My dad had built it with his own hands, and my parents sold the ranch when Sebastian needed capital for Bennett Enterprises. The new owners didn’t put it up for sale until two years ago, and my brother immediately snatched it.
“Pippa’s right,” Alice agrees.
“She’ll be thrilled,” Summer adds.
“And she deserves it,” Christopher says. “From what I’ve seen, she works as hard as we do.”
“Plus, she is family,” I finish.
Sebastian nods, his shoulders slumping slightly, tension ebbing away from his posture. I wonder why he thought we’d object to this. I’ve heard of families who fight over shares and money like sharks, but that has never been an issue in our family.
“So, everyone is all right with this? Mom and Dad already agreed,” Sebastian says.
“Yeah, like anyone’s going to tell you no,” Blake remarks, echoing my thoughts. “We don’t have schmucks in the family.” He looks around the table once half-threateningly, as if daring anyone to contradict him. No one does, of course. “Anyway, I still think it’s not the best present for a lady.”
“I never said it’ll be the only present. The shares will be accompanied by some jewelry.”
I perk up at this. “I’ll get on it right away.” I’ve created unique engagement rings for Ava and Nadine, and their wedding rings also. I can’t wait to do something like that again. “Do you have any specific requirements?”
“No. I trust you completely,” Sebastian says.
“It’ll be perfect,” I assure him.
“Didn’t Ava brush you off a long time ago when you tried to give her jewelry?” Logan asks casually.
“Yeah, but that was before we got married. That gives me the lice
nse to buy her expensive gifts.”
Both Blake and Daniel burst out laughing. Logan merely shakes his head.
“Bennett logic,” Max remarks.
“It’s completely foolproof,” Christopher adds.
Sebastian passes the documents around the table, telling us where we have to sign.
“Now, there’s something else I wanted to share with you,” Sebastian begins after we’re done. “Blake gave me some good news, which I already shared with Logan. He wants to involve himself more with Bennett Enterprises.”
“Wow,” I exclaim, turning to Blake. My word echoes throughout the room.
“I wish people would stop reacting like this,” Blake says in a low voice.
“Can you blame us?” Logan asks.
I chuckle, imagining how Logan must have reacted when Sebastian first told him. He is the eternal pessimist, thinking Blake and Daniel will waste their lives away with parties.
“Sorry,” I say. “This is a great thing.”
“I’d like to talk out some details about Blake’s entry before we eat,” Sebastian continues. “Logan, Pippa, Blake, and I can do it. The rest of you can start the brunch.”
“Isn’t Ava joining us for this?” I ask.
“She said she’ll be late, and that we can start without her.”
The room empties quickly afterward. Daniel pats Blake’s shoulder before he leaves. Sebastian and I exchange furtive looks and share a smile, but we both remain silent. In contrast to Logan, the two of us never doubted that the twins would come around eventually. Sebastian insisted they are Mom and Dad’s sons after all. They know the value of hard work and taking nothing for granted, even though they’ve had a much easier childhood than we had. My personal philosophy was that everyone grows up eventually. If I’m honest, the twins never were that wild. Sure, they’ve lived off the dividends and partied wildly, but neither ever dabbled with drugs, nor have they flaunted their wealth. Neither are assholes, and family is important for them. That’s enough for me. Blake’s come around, and I’m sure Daniel will too eventually.
“What’s the plan?” I ask.
“Blake will spend two months in each department before deciding where he wants to stay,” Sebastian replies.
“Sounds great to me,” Blake answers immediately.
“You’ll have to work, Blake,” Logan says in a stern voice. “There will be no favors.”
Blake rubs his jaw. “Relax, I got it. I’d love to start in whichever department has the most beautiful women.”
Sebastian, Logan, and I all stare at him.
Blake merely shakes his head. “Man, things here need some shaking up. You’re lucky I’m joining you. No one can even joke with you.”
“You’ll start in my department,” Logan tells him. “Finance.”
To his credit, Blake appears to be looking forward to it. “Excellent.”
“Welcome to Bennett Enterprises, brother,” I tell Blake. He breaks into a grin, and of course, I hug him. A long time ago, Logan and Sebastian sat with me at a small round table, welcoming me to the company. We were in a different location, on the outskirts of San Francisco, in a one-story building with small windows. The team consisted of ten people, and my brothers asked me to be the eleventh. The company was doing well enough to support the family, but Sebastian and Logan had dreams of international fame, which meant that costs had to be kept as low as possible, so the profits could be used for expansion. They told me that each member of the family has shares in the company, regardless of the choice of work they’d do. The goal was simple: make sure our family never suffers from financial hardships again. There’s no better motivator in the world. The three of us worked like there was no tomorrow to turn the company into a success.
As the years went by, Max and Christopher joined us. Alice and Summer opted to do something else, which only left the other set of twins. I know that Logan and Sebastian are as proud as I am that Blake will be joining us at the company.
The sound of the door opening snaps me out of my melancholy. Ava and Nadine slip inside the room, big smiles on their faces.
“Well, hello, handsome Bennetts,” Nadine says.
Logan’s face lightens up instantly, as does Sebastian’s. He takes his wife’s hand, bringing it to his lips and kissing it gently.
“We already talked about Blake’s first placement,” Sebastian tells Ava.
“Aaaand that’s my cue to leave before I become a sixth wheel,” Blake says, before slipping out.
I’m about to follow, having no wish to become the fifth wheel, when Nadine suddenly asks, “How was lunch at the office the other day?”
I chew the inside of my cheek, wondering for a brief moment why she’s bringing this up in front of my brothers. Surely they’re going to throw a fit and flex their protective muscles. But they both look at me curiously. That’s when it hits me.
“Wait a minute. You’re all in on this, aren’t you? Trying to bring me and Eric together?”
“Well,” Logan says patiently, “I wouldn’t say Sebastian and I are in on this, but the girls are scheming, and we didn’t… disapprove.”
I snort despite myself. “As if they need your approval. They’re both badasses.”
“Why, thank you,” Nadine says.
The sound of the door opening startles the four of us, and Alice peeks inside. “Nadine, Ava, I need both of you out here.”
The girls hesitate but join my sister outside, leaving me in the room with only Sebastian and Logan.
“Pippa,” Sebastian says in his most gentle tone, “if you’re uncomfortable about this, we can ask the girls to back off.”
“Rest assured, we can convince them,” Logan adds.
“I’m not….” I take a deep breath. “I like Eric. We hit it off at the wedding, and every time I’m with him, I’m happy.”
“That’s good,” Sebastian says gently. “You haven’t been happy in a long time, and you deserve to be.”
“I’m afraid,” I answer. “And he’s only here until Julie’s school starts again in the fall.”
“You don’t have to go into every relationship thinking it must lead to marriage,” Sebastian continues.
“You have to give yourself a chance, get back in the game,” Logan adds. I can’t help but smile at this. About six months ago, I made an attempt to date someone. Midway through the date, I panicked and asked Logan to come pick me up. I usually like to lick my wounds on my own, but I felt like such a failure for not being able to make it through a date that I couldn’t stand being alone.
“All we’re saying,” Sebastian concludes, “is that you shouldn’t close yourself off to anything.”
“Wow,” I exclaim. “I never thought I’d talk to you about this without you threatening to harass whoever I plan to date.”
Sebastian shrugs. “Things change. Maybe we did too.”
“And he seems like a decent guy,” Logan adds. “We checked him out.”
I giggle. “Of course you did.”
“We’re doing business with him, so he probably checked us too,” Logan says.
For the hundredth time, the door bursts open, and Christopher sticks his head in. “Okay, freaky family council over. We need all of you out here to start this party properly.”
Recognizing defeat, the three of us leave the room. Max waits beside Christopher. Taking advantage of the opportunity, I wiggle myself between the twins and take each one by the arm.
“What are your plans for the next few weeks?” I ask them.
“We have quite a bit of work, but we’re planning to spend some time with Mom and Dad at the ranch,” Christopher answers. My parents decided to turn the ranch Sebastian gifted them into a B&B and are now busy overseeing renovations there. The ranch is about an hour away from where they currently live, so they commute every day.
“Make sure Dad isn’t overworking himself, thinking he’s still in his twenties,” Max adds.
“That’s a great idea,” I say.
; Dad is micromanaging everything, but that’s because he built that ranch with his own hands. “So, Christopher, when can I expect you to follow in Max’s footsteps and return to San Francisco?”
“No idea,” he says.
“We have to talk Christopher into changing his mind,” I tell Max, then drop my voice to a conspiratorial whisper, acting as if Christopher isn’t with us. “What do you think? Simple persuasion techniques or blackmailing?”
“Sentimental or actual blackmail?” Max asks. “I have some dirt on him.”
We launch into a debate on the merits of each tactic until Christopher gets fed up with us and says, “Hey, I’m right here.”
I love my family.
Chapter Six
Eric
Julie woke me up at seven o’clock today, dragging me to the zoo and a shopping mall. We arrive back home shortly after one o’clock. I carry Julie’s shopping bags in her room, which looks as if a hurricane swept through it. Clothes lie everywhere, along with sketches and shoes. It looked like that this morning too, but I hadn’t had enough coffee in my system to admonish her for it.
Before I even open my mouth, Julie dutifully starts picking up her clothes, folding them neatly like I’ve shown her a hundred times.
“What are you doing?” I ask her. Usually, I have to negotiate with her for at least ten minutes to convince her to clean up.
“I want my room to be clean when Pippa sees it. If she likes it, maybe she’ll come again.”
Something catches in my throat. “You want her to come again?”
“Yeah. She’s cool. I can talk to her about stuff like girls do with their moms.”
Her words stab me. “Sweetheart, you can talk to me about anything.”
Julie sighs, peering at me. “Not everything. It doesn’t work like that.” The pseudo lipstick Pippa bought her lies on her desk. My daughter didn’t even contest Pippa’s explanation.
“Okay. Need help?”
She shakes her head. “Go make the rest of the house pretty for Pippa.”