by Sarah Bailey
“I’m jealous, it’s way prettier than the one Leo got me.”
I snorted. She and Leo had tied the knot two years ago. And she was talking shit. Her ring was totally her all over. It was a pink diamond, matching Colleen’s out-there personality.
“Don’t tell him that.”
She stroked her rings.
“He did get the perfect one for me, I can’t deny that.”
“Exactly.”
The doorbell went. Colleen frowned.
“You expecting more people?”
I didn’t answer, leaving the room to go open the door.
“All right, sis?” Duke said, pushing by me without so much as a by your leave.
Raphi came next, giving me a smile and a hug.
“Hey, I suppose congratulations are in order.”
“Thank you,” I replied, squeezing him tightly.
He was definitely the politer and less argumentative out of my brothers. Raphi might have had a troubled past, but he was getting better.
We let go of each other. I turned to allow Kira in behind him.
“Congratulations,” she told me, giving me a hug too.
“Thanks, babe.”
After we released each other, I shut the door behind her. I followed my brothers and Kira into the living room.
“I thought this was a girl’s night,” Colleen said, pouting when she spied my brothers.
“They invited themselves,” I replied, waving a hand at my brothers.
I had invited Kira considering she was Duke’s girl, plus I’d known her basically all my life. She was part of the family. It wasn’t long after I’d asked, I was informed both Duke and Raphi would be coming too. There was no point telling them no, they wouldn’t have listened.
“We are celebrating Rora marrying the guy Quinn can’t stand. It calls for a lot of booze,” Duke said, throwing himself down onto the sofa.
Raphi was emptying a bag of more drinks onto the coffee table. I sat down next to Duke who wrapped an arm around my shoulder.
“Congrats, sis. Where’s the ring?”
I showed him. Duke looked it over before ruffling my hair and giving me a wink.
“Logan has good taste.”
Kira sat next to Duke who immediately put his hand on her thigh. Those two had been together for years now, but Duke was always determined to make sure everyone knew she belonged with him. To say he was possessive of Kira was an understatement. I didn’t blame him given their past with each other.
“Does Quinn really hate Logan that much?” Colleen asked, proceeding to continue opening the wine.
“No, he doesn’t hate Logan,” I replied, “It wouldn’t matter who it was. No one is good enough for me.”
Colleen rolled her eyes and poured the wine out. Raphi handed Duke a beer before taking a seat in one of the oversized armchairs to our left. Regan sat next to me whilst Colleen handed out the drinks.
“He needs to get over himself. Logan is perfect. Who wouldn’t want to marry a man who has his own charity and loves animals? Like seriously.”
She turned to the other armchair finding both Pumpkin and Shadow taking up residence in it. Colleen knew better than to disturb them. She sat on the arm instead, reaching down to stroke both of them.
“No one else would put up with your bitchy arse either,” Duke chimed in.
I slapped him around the back of the head which only made him grin.
“My bitchy arse keeps everyone in line, so don’t knock it.”
Everyone at work respected the fuck out of me because I was no-nonsense and ran a tight ship. They were used to it from my dad. No way in hell would I allow things to fall to shit when Duke and I took over. We were going to continue making the Syndicate a success.
“We ordering in?” Raphi asked, waving his phone at me, “Pizza?”
“Everyone good with that?” I enquired.
There was a chorus of yeses and for a few minutes, we were arguing over what to get. I ordered extra because Logan would be home soon. I often hosted quiet nights in with takeaways, cocktails and usually a film or TV marathon with my brothers and my friends.
Someone put some music on and general chatter ensued.
“So, you made any plans to set a date?” Regan asked me.
“I haven’t even thought about it. The moment we make it public, it’s going to be crazy. I’m taking time to enjoy being engaged for now.”
“God, no doubt about that. You’ll be inundated.”
Whilst I’d accepted being attached to the Benson name had brought me into the public eye, didn’t mean I was looking forward to having my wedding be the centre of attention.
“All I care about is being married to Logan. That’s it.”
Regan nudged my arm.
“You two are perfect for each other.”
Most of the time we were. Didn’t mean the two of us had no problems at all. They were stupid things like Logan’s tendency to forget when he put the washing on and sometimes I ended up having to re-wash it because it’d got left in the machine overnight. Or when he’d not changed the cat’s litter and one of them went outside of the box last week. It had resulted in us shouting at each other before having rather intense makeup sex in the shower afterwards. Domestic life was not always perfect, but nothing ever was. If those were our only issues, we were doing pretty well. Our relationship was solid.
“Hmm, try telling that to my dad.”
“I’ll bet he’s had a lecture off Mum over the whole thing,” Duke put in.
I scoffed.
“And Rory. I spoke to him on the phone last night, he said Dad broke some of Mum’s favourite wine glasses after Logan left their house. She’s raging over it. Dad is in the doghouse. No sympathy from me there, he deserves it.”
Duke threw back his head and laughter peeled from his lips.
“Oh my god, that’s fucking hilarious. Remind me not to accept a dinner invite for a couple of weeks whilst that shit blows over.”
None of us wanted to go around our parents’ place when they were having a disagreement. It wasn’t worth it. I would have to talk to my dad eventually, but right now, I wasn’t in the mood. No one would ruin my engagement for me.
“Yeah, so funny since I’m the one who will have to talk him down from the ledge when I see him.”
Dad hadn’t been in the office today. Probably cooling off at home and dealing with Mum being pissed off at him.
“I don’t envy you. At least I don’t have any disapproval over this one.”
He waved his free hand at Kira, giving her a smile. She merely rolled her eyes, completely used to Duke and his antics.
“Oh no, it’s not your choice they disapprove of, just the way you went about it.”
He scowled at me. The only person who knew about his mishaps before Kira and he reunited was Raphi. Those two kept each other’s secrets close to their chests. We all knew what had gone down now and our parents had given him a hard time over it. I didn’t blame them.
“Shut up, like you can fucking talk.”
I grinned as I heard the front door open. A few minutes later, Logan arrived in the living room with his best friend, Ant, in tow. They ran the charity along with Logan’s mum, Liora. I wasn’t surprised to see him.
“Seems we have a full house,” Logan remarked as he came over to me.
“Apparently so.”
He leant down and kissed my forehead, stroking my hair and giving me a smile.
“We feeding this bunch?”
“Raphi ordered pizza, so we’re good.”
He kissed me again before straightening.
“Ant and I have to sort a few things out then we’ll join you.”
I nodded. Logan moved away and said hello to everyone else. Then he disappeared off with Ant. The rest of us continued to talk until the pizza arrived, then we decamped to the kitchen to eat at the dining table. I ended up next to Raphi who was rathe
r quiet this evening.
“You okay, little bro?” I asked, nudging his shoulder.
“Mmm, just tired. Work has been ridiculous this week.”
Raphi worked for his local council in waste and recycling management, something he enjoyed thoroughly as he was all about the environment.
“People complaining about missed bin collections again?”
“Some days I think people have nothing better to do than ring up the council when they’re clearly in the wrong. If you’re not going to sort your recycling, it won’t get collected. They know the rules.”
“You really have such a fun job.”
He rolled his eyes, stuffing more pizza in his mouth. He didn’t always deal with the public, but he said they were swamped at the moment whilst they were looking for someone to replace a girl who got fired a month ago.
“It’s not so bad,” he said after he’d swallowed his mouthful.
“How’s counselling?”
“Good, actually. Marvin is happy with my progress, anyway. I still feel like I’ve got too many things to work through.”
My brother suffered from depression. He’d finally got help with it and was getting better with the help of counselling and medication. He was a new person these days. Happiness and contentment did that to a person.
“These things take time, but I’m sure one day you’ll wake up knowing you’ve got this.”
“Hope so. I want to get better for…”
I put a hand on his arm, giving it a squeeze.
“For him, I know.”
Raphi gave me a nod and a half-smile.
“No one’s perfect, Raphi, but you’ll get there. If I can forgive Logan and Kira can forgive Duke, then I’m sure he’ll understand. It’s not as if it was your fault. You didn’t ask to be the way you are.”
He sighed and fiddled with his pizza.
“You’re right. I didn’t. I never intended to hurt anyone, especially not him.”
I glanced over at our brother and Kira. They had their heads bowed together, the two of them lost in their own little world.
“Do you think Cole will come home for the wedding?” Raphi asked when he caught me staring at Duke.
“I’m sure he will. It’s been too long since we all saw him.”
“Yeah, it has. Dad says they’re working on it, but it’s been years.”
I nodded slowly. Our younger brother had got himself into a mess with the Russian mafia. It’d been a long time since he was in the UK and we all wanted him back home.
“I’m sure they’ve got it under control. When he calls, I’ll tell him about the engagement. Maybe I’ll have set the date by then.”
“You got any ideas when you want to?”
My gaze moved over to Logan who was chatting with Ant. His blue eyes were shining with amusement at something Ant said.
“Probably next year. We need time to plan it. It’ll be crazy with Logan being in the public eye.”
“Oh yeah, I can imagine. So glad I don’t have to deal with that.”
I smiled and shrugged.
“It’s not that bad. I do it for him.”
Raphi leant his head against my shoulder.
“You deserve all your happiness, Rora. You work so hard. Plus, Logan is a good guy. Shouldn’t matter who your family is as long as you love each other.”
Raphi was right. Our family’s past had impeded our relationships before and it was high time we moved beyond it. The past couldn’t be changed, but our futures were in our hands. It’s what I had to focus on, especially when it came to getting Dad to come around. I might be Quinn Knox’s daughter, but I was my own woman. Nothing and no one would stop me from marrying Logan.
“Love conquers all, right?”
He scoffed.
“Maybe I’ll agree with that when I’ve got my love life under control.”
“One day you will, little bro. One day.”
I was sure of it. Raphi deserved to be happy after all the work he’d put in with counselling. He’d see it when he was on the other side. He’d know he deserved to be loved, eventually. It’s all I’d ever wanted for my brothers. For them to be happy and content in life just as I was with Logan.
Chapter Forty Seven
Sitting back in my desk chair, I rubbed my face. I’d been arranging meetings all day which was boring as fuck but needed to be done. Dad relied on me to keep things running smoothly at the casino. He’d handed over more of his responsibilities in the past couple of years. I was pretty sure my parents wanted to go into semi-retirement within the next few years. It’s not like they couldn’t afford it, though I couldn’t imagine my dad not working. Workaholic sprung to mind when I thought about how much he did.
The door to my office opened and he strolled in. I hadn’t realised he was here today. He’d avoided the casino for well over a week.
“Rora.”
“Dad.”
He walked over to my desk and leant against it next to my chair. I looked up at him, unsure of what he would say. Not like we’d spoken since before Logan had asked me to marry him. I fiddled with the ring on my finger, hoping he wouldn’t give me a hard time over my decision to marry my boyfriend.
“You’re getting married.”
I snorted, unsure of why he was pointing out the obvious.
“Yeah, Dad. I am.”
“I suppose I should say congratulations.”
My eyes went to my ring.
“You suppose? So, you’re not happy for me? You know, normal parents are generally happy for their kids when they find someone to spend their lives with.”
He didn’t reply for a long moment. I’d never had normal parents. When you grew up with five of them, your life was never destined for normality. We had our own version of normal, of course, but it didn’t fit with society’s view of what was acceptable. I didn’t really care, in all honesty. I wouldn’t change my family for the world, even Dad’s stupid overprotectiveness. It was his way of showing he loved me.
“Are you happy, Rora?”
My eyes met his again.
“Is that really a question?”
“Yes.”
“Jesus, Dad, of course, I’m happy. I’m engaged to the man I love.”
“You don’t sound happy.”
I gave him a look.
“Oh, I wonder why that is. Could it be because my father doesn’t approve of my husband-to-be and thinks I could do better? Or maybe it’s because he almost attacked my boyfriend when he told my father he wanted to marry me. Or perhaps it’s the way my father can’t seem to get on board with my decisions no matter how many years have passed and no matter how many times my now-fiancé has proven himself to be more than deserving and worthy of me.”
His mouth thinned. Not sure what else he expected. I never bowed to my father and his wishes. He’d raised me this way. He only had himself to blame. I wouldn’t let him railroad me over this either.
“I honestly don’t care what you have against Logan even though you have no reason to think less of him. He’s good to me and you know it. He doesn’t have to continue making up for the shit which happened in the past. I’ve let it go. Everyone deserves a second chance. So yeah, Dad, I am happy. Logan makes me happy. We’ve built a life together and now, we’re getting married. I’m going to be Mrs Benson. You need to get on board with it… or I don’t want you at my wedding.”
I hadn’t meant to say the last part but I was so fed up. Whilst he and Logan had come to some sort of truce over the years, now my dad was just being plain unreasonable. I couldn’t take it any longer. All I did was stand up for Logan with him even though my fiancé was perfectly capable of doing it himself. It was plain exhausting.
I thought he might explode at me, but he didn’t. Instead, Dad squatted down on his haunches and took my hands, his thumb brushing over mine. His dark eyes were full of emotions.
“I’m sorry, sweetheart.”
My
eyes narrowed.
“For what exactly?”
“For upsetting you.”
“I’m not upset, Dad, I’m tired of defending my choice in life partner to you. It’s not fair. Why am I the one who has all the extra pressure on me to live up to your expectations?”
His eyes turned sad.
“I didn’t know that’s how you feel.”
“You make me feel that way by not respecting my decisions. You know it would mean the world to me if you accepted Logan and gave us your blessing, but you withhold it like you’re punishing me for falling in love with whom you perceive to be the wrong person.”
I hated having to say these things, but they were true. It hurt me far more than I ever liked to admit. Logan knew how it cut me up inside. He had a way of prying secrets out of me without even trying. He only had to look at me and I’d be spilling the beans. He’d shown me the true meaning of being equal partners in a relationship. I let my walls down with him. Showed him my vulnerabilities. He cherished those parts of me, soothing away my pain with the simple touch of his fingers on my skin and understanding in his ice-blue eyes. Logan understood me. He respected me. And, in turn, I did the same for him.
Dad looked absolutely crushed. He had no clue how much his disapproval of Logan affected me. I didn’t need my father’s approval, but I wanted it all the same.
“I never wanted you to feel as though I’m punishing you. I’m so very proud of the woman you’ve become, sweetheart. You are so fucking precious to me. Maybe I haven’t learnt to let go of the little girl who used to run circles around me, and that’s on me.”
“I need you to be happy for me, Dad.”
His hands tightened over mine.
“Can I see the ring?”
I shook my head but tugged my left hand from his to show him the ring Logan had got me. His eyes grazed over it before returning to mine.
“It’s very you.”
“Logan knows what I like.”
“So I see.”
“Dad…”
He let out a sigh before letting go of my other hand and raising himself to his feet.
“I am happy for you, Rora.” He raked a hand through his hair. “I know he treats you right and why he didn’t ask you sooner. I listened to the both of you and I know.”