Designing the Love

  Designing The Love

  Book #5 of The Griffin Brothers

  by Crystal Perkins

  Copyright © 2014 by Crystal Perkins

  Cover Design by Helen Williams

  http://www.allbookedout.com/

  Ebook formatting by Jesse Gordon

  All trademarks are owned by their respective companies and are denoted by the use of proper capitalization of the company and/or brand.

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. This contemporary erotic romance is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. This ebook is licensed for your personal use only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with, especially if you enjoy sexy, emotional, romance novels with alpha males. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

  Table of Contents

  About Designing The Love

  Other Books by Crystal Perkins

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  About Designing The Love

  The boy she loved has now

  become the man she despises...

  Fashion designer Quinn Daniels has been in love with tattoo artist Zane Wilson for over half her life. When they were younger he only had eyes for one girl, and it wasn’t her. But for the last seven years he’s been hers, and it’s been perfect. Two months ago that all changed. His girl from the past showed up, and he left with her. Now he’s back, and wants another chance, but trusting him almost destroyed her once. She’s not ready to make the same mistake again.

  His heart’s been broken, and only one

  woman can put it back together again...

  Zane Wilson loves Quinn Daniels more than life itself. Yeah he was a stupid teenager, and thought he was in love with the wrong girl, but that all changed seven years ago. He let Quinn go once so she could pursue her dreams, and again when he thought he was doing the right thing. But he’s done making mistakes, and letting his past interfere with the present and future he wants with her. Now he just needs to convince her that she’s the only woman he’s ever truly loved, and that he’s never going to leave her again.

  A secret heartache could break them up

  for good—or make them stronger than ever...

  Just when it looks like they may have a second chance at love, the other woman comes to town again, and this time she’s not alone. Zane’s going to need help this time, because it’s not just Quinn he’s fighting for. Can she help him heal while still protecting herself?

  Other Books by Crystal Perkins

  Gaming For Love (The Griffin Brothers #1)

  Building Our Love (The Griffin Brothers #2)

  Creating A Love (The Griffin Brothers #3)

  Learning To Love (The Griffin Brothers #4)

  For Ally, thanks for helping me get my

  first tattoo and for being awesome in general!

  For Wacky, thanks for being so nice

  when I got that tattoo (it barely hurt) and

  hugging me after because I was alone!

  Chapter 1

  Zane

  I made the biggest mistake of my life two months ago. I knew the choice I was making was wrong, but I did it anyway. I thought I had to leave Quinn at the wedding and go with Whitney. I felt that if I didn’t, I’d always be wondering, “what if.” Then I found out the real reason Whit needed me, and I couldn’t just abandon her. So, I spent these past months with the girl I once thought I’d love forever. In the process, I lost the woman I know I love.

  I’m going to get her back, though. Quinn is everything to me. That’s why I’m here in Las Vegas. I left my manager in charge of my tattoo shop, telling him I have no clue when I’ll be back. He can handle it. My clients may be pissed, but I can’t worry about that now. I have to come up with a plan.

  I need my buddy, Scott, to help me. He’s not speaking to me at the moment. He came to Chicago with his brothers a few times to try and talk some sense into me. I didn’t listen to him, and now he won’t listen to me. I deserve it. I know that. But I’m not giving up.

  Quinn is with his family. She could be with him and his wife Yasmin, or with any of his brothers. Maybe even his parents. The Griffins are awesome, and will help their friends and family any time they need it. Quinn definitely needed it, and I’m grateful to them, but now I need to find her.

  I saw her at Luke Griffin’s wedding, but she told me to leave. The Griffins weren’t going to let me anywhere near her, so I left. I’m not leaving Vegas, though. Not without Quinn. I won’t force her or stalk her or any crazy shit like that. I’m going to prove that I love her and that I’m sorry. Then she’ll take me back and we’ll live happily ever after—if only it was that easy. I know it’s not, but what I described is the only acceptable outcome for me.

  * * *

  Quinn

  I’ve been in Las Vegas for two months now. I thank God every day for the Griffin family and how they’ve helped me. I have a great place to stay, and I love working with Chloe. It’s not fashion, but it is design, and she makes it fun for both of us. She does the major design work but lets me contribute my ideas, and then we work together to bring her vision to life.

  The first building I worked on is almost ready. We just need to go in and put the finishing touches on it. It’s a building for a non-profit in Tucson. We’ll be going there next week to check on the progress. I can’t wait! After Zane showed up here last week, I need to get out of town. If he pursues me, I’m going to go back to him. I won’t be able to help it. I have been in love with him since we were twelve. We’re twenty-five now and if anything, I love him even more.

  We grew up together in the same Chicago neighborhood, but our lives changed right before we started middle school. After years of struggling, my dad finally landed a good job. Actually, it was a great job. We ended up moving across town into a big house. Zane had been raised by a single mom, who was a chef at a local restaurant. Around the same time that my dad got his job, his mom recognized for her cooking in a local newspaper. After that, an investor offered her money to open a string of restaurants around Chicago and the suburbs. They moved in down the street from us and the Griffins, who had also grown up with us.

  Zane and I were always good friends, but things changed for me that summer. My heart decided to get involved, and I saw him as more. Unfortunately, he could only see Whitney. The perfect girl who always wore dresses and looked like she’d stepped out of the TV or a magazine. How could I compete with that when most days I was in funky dresses, or jeans and combat boots? The answer is simple. I couldn’t.

  It o
nly got worse in high school. They weren’t the golden couple—they couldn’t be. Zane wasn’t interested in being part of the popular crowd, or trying to fit in. But they were inseparable. He still defended me against the bullies who tormented me for not dressing like everyone else and gave me a friendly hug when he saw me, but that was it. I didn’t think he’d ever see me differently. Eventually he started drifting away from me and fell more into her orbit.

  I would still text him once a week or so to see how he was doing, but he never initiated any contact. I had to make the hard decision to give up and try to be happy without him in my life. I never conformed to the clothes or uptight styles of the popular kids, and once I took the fashion design class my school offered, I found what I never knew I’d been missing. A purpose and a dream.

  I graduated high school and was all set on going to New York to attend a prestigious fashion school. Then Zane walked back into my life. I’ll never forget that day. It was the day that my heart broke for the man I loved, as I watched him cry for someone else. I held him as he told me Whitney wouldn’t give up her inheritance to be with him. That she didn’t love him enough. That he wasn’t enough. New money was worse than no money to her parents.

  I comforted him all summer and tried to reassure him that he was better off without her. My parents watched us closely. I know they were afraid I was going to give up my dreams to stay there with him. I didn’t, though. As much as I loved him, I knew he didn’t love me like that, and I couldn’t just give up everything to sit around and hope he would one day realize I was there with him. That I would always choose him if he wanted me.

  The night before I left for New York, we made love for the first time. I’d been with a couple of guys from school, and he’d been with Whitney, so it wasn’t our first time in that sense. However, it was the first time I felt it in my soul. I thought he also felt something because he was so sweet and gentle with me. The next morning, he just kissed me on the forehead and disappeared. I got on the plane to New York and was thankful that I had been able to have that one night with him. I thought that was the end, but it was only the beginning.

  * * *

  Zane

  As I’m sitting, watching the praying mantis breathe fire outside of Container Park in downtown Vegas, I can’t help remembering the summer I spent with Quinn before she went off to college in New York. And the first night we made love. I can’t pinpoint the exact moment it happened, but I knew by the end of that summer I was in love with her. Real love. I’d always thought I’d had it with Whitney, but what I felt for Quinn was different. It was about a mutual give and take, not just always giving until your heart hurt.

  I knew I couldn’t ask her to give up her dreams and stay with me. I was already accepted into an art school in Chicago, and it was too late to apply for one in New York, so, I let her go. No, I did more than that. I made her think the one night we had was all it’d ever be. I had to let her go. It was the right thing to do. Not because it was the easy way out—nothing about that decision was easy.

  I couldn’t completely stay away. I texted her every day and told her how proud I was of her. I missed her so much, and her face ended up on more of my school projects, than not. A couple of months into the semester, she told me she was dating a guy who lived in her dorm. I knew it was bound to happen, but it still felt like my heart was being ripped out. I didn’t break off contact with her, though. I really did love her, and if this guy could make her happy, I had to be supportive.

  When she brought the jerk home for Thanksgiving, all bets were off. He was rude to everyone and treated Quinn like she was less than him. Apparently, he thought being a business major was more important than being a fashion designer. Things came to a head at dinner with both our families when we were saying what we were thankful for.

  He said he was thankful for the internship he was starting next year. I said I was thankful for Quinn. Needless to say, that didn’t go over too well with the guy. When he accused me of being in love with her, I told him he was right. She said she loved me too and that was the end of Mr. Business. He took the next plane back to New York, and I took Quinn out to her mom’s greenhouse, where we talked until the sun rose.

  The rest of the weekend went by too fast as we talked some more, kissed constantly, and made love as often as possible. Even though she went back to school in New York, and I stayed in Chicago, we were together in every way that mattered. Until two months ago, when I let helping someone else destroy what we’d built. I’ll do whatever I need to in order to get her back. Whatever it takes.

  Chapter 2

  Quinn

  I had a fun time in Tucson this past week. Seeing the building come together is really cool, and Chloe included me on every meeting and walk-thru. The people the building is for were really nice, too. They took us out to lunch at a local place called Eegee’s the first day, and we decided we needed those frozen fruit drinks every day after that. We ate at some other local restaurants and stayed through the weekend to go to the street fair that was happening. It was really great. But it also wasn’t.

  While I love working with Chloe, I miss fashion. When I was with Zane, he let me set up a little store in part of the tattoo shop. I made some funky dresses, along with designing merchandise that wore the shop logo for him. They were all selling really well and keeping me busy. It was great to see people coming in for my stuff and loving it. I don’t know what happened to the things I left there. Zane wasn’t at the apartment when I cleaned my stuff out, and I was scared to go to the shop and see him. Whitney’s suitcases were in the apartment, and if I saw her taking over my store, too, I probably would’ve killed her. I have too much respect for myself to go to jail for some classless bitch.

  Now that I’m back, I’m moving into one of the Griffin apartments. They have them for when someone comes in from out of town to work on a long-term project. I liked living in Maggie and Gary’s guest house, but I also needed my own space. The apartment’s furnished, but Ryan told me I can decorate it if I want. There’s an extra bedroom I’m planning on converting into a sewing room. I’m thinking that I can start an online business, at least. If it goes well, I can find a small space for a shop. I would really love to have interactions with customers that the internet won’t give me, but I’ll take what I can get for now.

  I get off the elevator at my floor and put my key in the lock, when the door of the apartment next to mine opens. I start to smile at my new neighbor but freeze as Zane is the one who walks out, holding a covered plate. “Wh-what are you doing here?”

  “Scott offered me this apartment for as long as I’m here.”

  “That’s just awesome.” I really don’t need this. “How long are you planning to be here?”

  “Until I get you back.”

  “Seriously? What about the shop?”

  “Chad’s taking care of the shop while I’m gone.”

  “He can’t tattoo your people. They don’t let anyone else touch them.”

  “I know. They’ll have to wait until I get back.”

  “You’re losing business, and you don’t care?”

  “Honestly, no. I love you, Quinn. Nothing else matters.”

  I can’t help it. I start to cry as I look at him. “Why did you leave me, then? How could you leave me and stay away for two months if you really loved me?”

  “I’ll explain if you let me. I’m so, so sorry. You don’t know how much it killed me to be away from you.”

  “No, but I know how it killed me. Do you want to hear about the days I couldn’t get out of bed and only ate because Yasmin brought food to me and held me while I cried? You left me for that dumb, stupid bitch, who never appreciated or deserved you. I’m guessing she threw you aside again, so you’re here to take your consolation prize, your ‘place holder.’ But I won’t be that for you, or anyone else, ever again. So you might as well go home.”

  I’m ugly crying now, my body wracked with sobs. He doesn’t say anything. I look up at him, and what I
see shocks me. Zane’s leaning against the wall like it’s holding him up, and he’s crying. Not just a little. Tears are running down his face.

  “I would do anything to go back in time and not leave the wedding with Whitney. Anything.”

  “But you’re not The Doctor, and you can’t.”

  “Please talk to me, Quinn. Please. There’s so much you don’t know. So much I need to tell you.”

  “I-I can’t. I just can’t. Go home, Zane.”

  He reaches for me. I’m not fast enough to get away. “No. I won’t leave you again. Nothing you can say or do will ever make me leave you. Ever.”

  “I have a date tonight.” I don’t, but I need him to leave.

  It takes him a moment to recover, but then he nods. “I understand. I won’t tell you to have a good time because I really don’t want you to. And if he doesn’t treat you right, or tries something with you that you don’t want, I’ll kill the bastard. But, I want you happy. If this guy ends up making you happy, I will leave. I won’t interfere.”

  He means it. I know him better than anyone, and I can see it in his eyes. It’s over. Just like I knew it would be if he really came for me. The wall I erected around my heart has just cracked. It’s not all the way open, but it will be if he stays here. Zane turns to go, but I stop him with my words.

  “I don’t have a date.”

  “No?”

  “No. I just wanted to see if you’d care. I know I shouldn’t feel that way or be so mean.”

  “You be as mean as you want to me. I deserve it. All of it. And I do care. I wanted to punch something, just thinking of you out with someone else.”

  “I-I have to go. I guess I’ll see you around.”

  “Wait. Here.” He holds the dish out to me.

  “What’s that?”

  “Dinner. I figured you wouldn’t have time to get groceries, so I made you dinner.”

  No. Just no. He knows I can’t resist him when he cooks. Like I said, his mom owns several of the best restaurants in Chicago. She’s one of the wealthiest, most powerful women in Chicago right now, yet she still cooks dinner for her family every Sunday night. Zane grew up in her restaurants, cooking. And baking. God, if he bakes something for me, I’ll probably fall to my feet in front of him. He’s that good in the kitchen. And the bedroom. No, no, no. I need to stop thinking those thoughts. All of them.