Blown Away (Next Generation 8)

by Cheryl Douglas

  “In that case, I’ll ask Tara to take the meeting. She’s sat in on dozens of intake interviews. She can handle it.”

  He didn’t know how much he’d been hoping she would accompany him until she agreed. He didn’t just want her by his side, he needed her. “Thanks, hon.” He brushed her hair back and kissed her forehead. “I owe you one.”

  “I’ll remember that,” she said, trapping his legs with hers. She yawned. “We should get some sleep. I don’t know about you, but I have an early morning.”

  Brent was grateful she hadn’t asked him to take her home. He didn’t want to engage in a battle of wills tonight. He rolled over, curling into her back. “Sweet dreams, beautiful.”

  ***

  Brent looked out over the land he loved as he waited for Tucker and Ava. He was excited to start the construction. He knew what and who he wanted, but he was dependent on other people to turn his dream into a reality. That made him uneasy. He liked being in control, but being with Ava meant he had to share his dreams and hope she would want the same things.

  Tucker arrived first, parking his pickup truck at the peak of the hill next to Brent’s Hummer. He shook Brent’s hand before admiring the view. “Wow, this spot is incredible. Look at that view.”

  “Yeah, I think so too. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to have it.” He chuckled. “Of course, I couldn’t really afford it back then. I was dumping all my money back into the business and helping my family.” Brent looked down at the clear blue water below. “This was the first really big thing I ever did for myself.”

  Since then, he’d accumulated properties all over the world, cars that cost millions, and business holdings that rivalled any tycoon’s, but that piece of land would always be special because when he’d closed on it, he was one step closer to his dream.

  Tucker looked at Brent a long time. “I admire what you’ve accomplished, man. I did a little research before our meeting. You came from nothing and now…”

  He had it all. Except for one thing: a family of his own. “I’ve been blessed.” Brent shoved his hands into the pockets of his faded jeans. He hadn’t gone into work again that morning. He needed more time to decide how he wanted to handle the acquisition.

  “Let’s be honest, you worked your ass off,” Tucker said, laughing.

  “That too.” People didn’t get where he had without hard work and determination.

  “I may be out of line, but are you sure now is the right time for you to be taking on this project? It’s gonna be a big commitment, and you seem… a little distracted.”

  “I’m sorry, I’ve just got a lot going on with my business.”

  “And your personal life?” Tucker shot him a side-long glance. “We couldn’t help but notice things seemed a little tense when you and Ava left last night.”

  “I feel like I’m at a crossroads in my life.” He didn’t know why he was confiding in Tucker. He’d never trusted anyone outside of his brother and father, but he couldn’t talk to them. They had their own opinions about his mother and his revenge plot. They were all too close to it, too invested, just like Brent.

  “How so?” Tucker asked, ignoring his cell phone when it buzzed.

  Brent appreciated the gesture. He knew it was Tucker’s way of telling him he had his undivided attention. “I’ve been working toward this one goal most of my life. I’m almost there, so close to having it, and I’m not sure I want it anymore.”

  “That’s why we have to take stock of our goals from time to time, to make sure we’re still on the right path.”

  Brent slid his sunglasses up and looked at Tucker. “Yeah, but how do you know if you’re still on the right track or if you’re just too damn stubborn to give up on something you should have let go of a long time ago?”

  “You listen to your gut. If it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t.”

  “Maybe you’re right.” Brent had been tense since his mother left his office. He had a hunch it may be time to let go of his resentment and them live their lives in peace so he could do the same.

  “Does this have something to do with Ava?”

  Brent frowned. “Why would you ask that?”

  “Y’all knew each other back in the day. It sounds like you may have thought you wanted to reconnect, but now you’re having second thoughts.” Tucker’s gaze was unwavering when he said, “I’m gonna warn you, you hurt her, you’re gonna have a lot of pissed off people to answer to, me included.”

  Brent couldn’t help it. He laughed. If there was one thing in his life he was certain of, it was how much he wanted Ava.

  “You think this is funny?” Tucker asked, raising his voice. “I don’t give a goddamn how much money you have, that doesn’t make you any better than the rest of us.” He stood toe-to-toe with Brent. “You can’t play with a woman’s emotions, especially not someone I care about.”

  Brent stared him down, trying to decide whether to shake his hand or tell him to back off. After a beat of silence, he said, “Have you ever met someone you couldn’t get out of your head?”

  “Yeah,” Tucker said warily, “why?”

  “Ava’s that someone for me. When I met her back in college, I knew she was special.”

  “Is that so?” Tucker crossed his arms.

  “I’ve been around the block enough times to know girls like Ava don’t come around twice in a lifetime. That’s why I went crazy trying to find her when she left me.”

  Tucker stepped back. “Really? What happened?”

  Brent wouldn’t share the story with just anyone, but he felt comfortable with Tucker. “We spent the night together back in college. She took off for Europe the next morning.” He chuckled. “Believe it or not, I hired a private investigator to track her down.”

  Tucker threw his head back and laughed. “No shit. What’d she do when she found out you were having her followed?”

  “She went to the police and told them some strange man was stalking her.” Tucker smiled at the memory.

  “That’s too funny.”

  “Now it is.” Brent grinned. “At the time I was mad as hell. I had to work as a short-order cook in some grease pit for two months just to pay that guy’s bill.”

  “You were really willing to go to those lengths to track her down, huh?” Tucker rocked back on his heels.

  “I was.” Brent watched Ava’s car pull up the winding drive. “I’m still willing to go to crazy lengths for that girl. So if y’all are worried about her, don’t be. I’d never do anything to hurt her. If you want to be worried about someone, you can start with me.” He watched her get out of the car, her black jeans hugging her in all the right places. “She’s the one with all the power in this relationship, and once she realizes it, God help me.”

  ***

  Ava’s heart squeezed when she saw Tucker and Brent talking and laughing as though they’d known each other forever. She could see him fitting into her world seamlessly. In spite of his money and power, he’d never forgotten where he came from. That meant he could relate to a guy like Tucker as easily as someone like Liam or Evan.

  Brent was still the same guy who’d walked her to class in college, the same guy who’d taken her virginity and her heart in the span of a minute. And that scared her. She’d thought about him every day for almost a year after that night at Tara’s party.

  During her second year of college, her first year at school in Germany, Tara returned to the U.S. to finish her degree. Ava was alone and scared, trying desperately to fit into a world where she didn’t feel she belonged. The only thing that got her through was wondering if there was a chance Brent might be waiting for her when she returned.

  Of course, she’d stayed on to complete her graduate degree in business, and by the time she returned home to start Lasting Connections, he had taken the business world by storm. He often appeared in newspapers with stunning supermodels on his arm, and Ava knew her fantasy was just that. It was time to let go of her illusion that night meant anything to Brent. But
apparently it had, and there they were. At the right time, in the right place, with a chance to start over.

  She smiled when he looked up and caught her eye. Images of last night flooded her mind, and she knew she could happily spend the rest of her life recreating it.

  “Hi there,” Ava said, lifting her cheek to accept Tucker’s kiss. She slipped her arm around his waist and hooked her thumb through his belt loop.

  Brent raised an eyebrow when she didn’t treat him to a more intimate greeting. “How was your morning?” He was obviously remembering how they’d started it. In his shower… together.

  “It was good.” She couldn’t stop her smile from spreading when he looked amused. “Fantastic, actually.”

  “Glad to hear it.” Brent smirked.

  “The architect should have been here by now,” Tucker said, checking the time on his phone. “Give me a minute to call her.”

  Brent waited for Tucker to walk away before he said, “Get the hell over here and give me a kiss.”

  Ava tried to play hard to get, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her against his chest. He kissed her hard, his hands knotting in her hair until he decided it was time to let go. She held her fingers against her swollen lips. “Was that punishment or a reward?” she asked.

  “A bit of both.” He smacked her bottom. “Next time, the first kiss is mine.”

  She looped her arms around his neck and stood on her toes to press a kiss to his cheek. “I promise. It seemed like you and Tucker were getting along. What were y’all talking about?”

  He lifted her off the ground so their mouths were level. “You.”

  “What about me?”

  Before he could respond, Tucker said, “Jasmine’s about fifteen minutes away. Why don’t you tell me what you had in mind while we’re waiting?”

  Brent set Ava down and turned around in a half-circle, surveying his property. “I want it to look like it belongs here, like it’s been here forever, not like it was just built. I want to use natural materials and--” He stopped mid-sentence and looked down at Ava. “If this were your dream home, if you were the one building it, what would you want?”

  Caught off guard, Ava stammered, “I… uh… don’t know. I’ve never really thought about building a house, but you’ve probably been thinking about this for years.” Given his childhood, she suspected he may have been fantasizing about his own home forever. “Do you own any other houses?”

  He shook his head. “Not houses. I own several suites that are part of five-star resorts. I own a couple of condos, but this will be my first house.”

  Ava knew it really was his dream home, the house he’d imagined living in since he was a little boy. She took his hand. “Tell me about it. When you close your eyes, what does it look like?”

  He glanced at Tucker, and she knew he felt silly. “I don’t know.”

  “Yes, you do.” She squeezed his hand, trying to reassure him. “Tell me.”

  “It’s not too big.” He made a face. “With all of the wasted space in my penthouse, I realized I don’t need all that room, not even if I had a wife and kids.”

  During his intake interview, he’d told her he wanted a family with three children, ideally.

  “What size were you thinking?” Tucker asked. “Because of the slope down to the water, I’d guess five thousand square feet is probably the max if you want to maximize the view.”

  “That’s more than enough space.” Brent looked a little uncertain when he asked Ava, “Don’t you think so?”

  “Definitely.” She was touched he was trying to include her. He was so used to calling the shots, but him deferring to her proved that he’d heard her concerns. “But it’s what you think that matters.” She’d meant it when she told him she wasn’t ready to start thinking about forever. Ava didn’t rush into relationships, not even when the man in question stirred feelings she’d never felt.

  “I think four to five thousand square feet is the perfect size.” He gestured to the peak of the hill. “Right here. I want it to be a bungalow, full walk-out basement with wall-to-wall windows.” He raised an eyebrow when he caught Ava smiling at him. “What?”

  “I knew you’d thought about this a lot.”

  “Maybe a little,” he said, shrugging. “So, what do you think, Tucker?”

  “It sounds like you’ve got the right idea, but Jasmine will be able to tell us for sure. Oh, there she is now,” Tucker said as a red Porsche pulled slowly up the winding dirt driveway.

  Brent’s face paled as the dark-haired goddess got out of the car. “Jesus,” he whispered.

  “What’s wrong?” Ava stared at the woman while waiting for his response.

  “Hello, Brent,” Jasmine said, stepping forward. Her high heels sunk into the grass, but she didn’t lose her footing. “I’m sure you’re surprised to see me.”

  Ava tried not to be intimidated, but it wasn’t easy. She could practically feel the heat simmering between Jasmine and Brent. Who the hell was that woman and what was their connection?

  “‘Jasmine’?” he asked. “Where the hell did that come from?” Brent was still holding Ava’s hand and she felt the tension in his body.

  “My agent suggested I change my name when I got to L.A. I kind of liked it. When I decided to get out of the business, I kept the name.” She flashed a quick smile, revealing perfect white teeth. “It suits me, don’t you think?”

  “Okay,” Tucker said, chuckling. “Fill me in. How do y’all know each other?”

  “We were engaged,” Jasmine said, her dark eyes locking with Brent’s.

  Chapter Ten

  Brent felt as if he’d stepped back in time, looking into the eyes of a girl he’d once been foolish enough to think he could spend the rest of his life with. “I didn’t even know you were back in town.” She’d left for L.A. five years earlier to pursue a modeling career. Her decision came when she’d told Brent she’d slept with her best friend, and he kicked her out of their apartment.

  “I’ve only been back a year. I thought about calling.”

  “It’s probably best you didn’t.” He slipped his arm around Ava’s waist, praying she wouldn’t jump to conclusions about the ex-fiancée he’d never mentioned. The intake questionnaire had specifically asked if he’d ever been married or engaged, and he’d said no because he wasn’t ready to talk about the woman who’d hurt and humiliated him by sleeping with her ex-boyfriend.

  Ava glanced at her watch. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize how late it was getting. I have to get back to the office.”

  Brent knew she was angry, but he had no intention of letting her go until he could explain why he hadn’t told her about his ex. “Jam--I mean, Jasmine, I never had the chance to introduce you to my girlfriend, Ava Cooper.”

  Jasmine forced a smile as she offered her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ava.”

  “Likewise.” Ava looked up at Brent, her eyes betraying her displeasure. “You’re in capable hands here. Why don’t you call me later?”

  “Babe, I--”

  “It’s okay. We can talk later,” Ava said, giving him a tight smile. To Tucker, she said, “Tell Lauren to call me later, okay?”

  “Will do.” Tucker looked uncomfortable as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

  When Ava pulled away, Tucker said, “I’m gonna be on my way too. Now that I’ve had a look at the site, I’ll leave the rest to Jasmine or, uh, whichever architect you decide to hire.”

  “Tucker, you don’t have to leave.” Brent didn’t want to be alone with her. He’d already wasted a year of his life on that woman.

  “Actually I do, buddy. I have another meeting. Gimme a call and let me know what you decide, okay?”

  “Yeah, sure.”

  Tucker nodded to Jasmine as he walked backed to his truck.

  “Well,” Jasmine said quietly, “I can’t believe you kept this land.”

  She knew the spot well. They’d talked about building their dream home there one day. “I
kept the land because I love it, not because it reminded me of you.” In fact, he’d kept it in spite of that. “You took so much from me, I wouldn’t let you have this too.”

  “What are you talking about?” she asked, her dark eyes flashing. “I didn’t ask for anything when I left, and we both know I could have.”

  “That’s what it was all about for you, wasn’t it? My money?” He laughed. “You should have waited a few more years until we were married if you’d wanted the really big payoff.”

  “That’s not fair,” she said, tearing up. “I loved you. You know how much I loved you.”

  “I know you slept with your ex when you were engaged to me. That’s the only thing I know for sure.” Saying it aloud used to feel like a dagger through his heart because she was the first woman he’d trusted, except for… Ava. God, how was he going to make things right with her?

  “I slept with him because you kept accusing me of sleeping with him!” she shouted. “We were friends, just friends! But you refused to believe I could be friends with any man!”

  “I guess I was right to be suspicious, wasn’t I?” Her betrayal should still hurt, but it didn’t, which confirmed what he’d suspected: she did him a favor by setting him free.

  “No, you weren’t!” She ran a hand through her long, dark hair. “Why won’t you believe me? We were just friends. We’re still friends.”

  Brent didn’t care who she befriended. His only thought was Ava. “I don’t care. I don’t have time to listen to this.”

  She grabbed his arm when he walked past. “You’re going to listen. I begged you to listen then, and you wouldn’t. You have to listen now. Please.”