Bennett (On the Line Book 2) (30 page)

Charlotte

C
harlie slept for an hour in his cradle before he woke up, wanting to eat again. When I picked him up, he frowned and then his little mouth rooted frantically.

“Shh, shhh, it’s okay,” I said softly. “I’m breaking out the boob right now. It’s okay, buddy.”

I got him latched on and sat down on the couch when there was a knock at the door.

“Of course,” I said to Charlie. “Perfect timing. But we can’t ignore it because it could be Publisher’s Clearing House, right?”

I used my free hand to toss on the cotton poncho thing I wore to breastfeed in front of anyone but Bennett. When I peeked through the peephole, I saw Liam standing in front of the door, his arms folded.

“Hey,” I said, opening the door. “This is a nice surprise.”

“Hey.” He scrunched his face up in a mix of confusion and disgust. “Is that . . . I mean, is he . . . ?”

“Suckling on my boob? Yes, he is, and it’s perfectly natural, so get in here and stop looking at me like that.”

“I just feel kinda creepy being here while that’s going on.”

“My child eating?”

“Eww.” He looked away. “Don’t put it that way.”

I rolled my eyes and laughed. “I forgot that to you I don’t have boobs or a vagina.”

“Stop,” he said, giving me a dirty look.

“Do you want a drink?” I closed the door as he stepped in.

“Nah, I’m good.”

“So how’s life? Come in and sit down.”

He sat down on the other end of the couch from me. “Did Mom tell you she’s leaving Michael?”

“Hmm. I’ll believe that when I see it.”

“Yeah, me too,” he said.

He glanced around the room, looking at everything but me, and I sensed it wasn’t just because I was breastfeeding.

“You okay?” I asked.

“Yeah, just . . . thinking.” He sighed deeply. “I’m an imperfect person, you know?”

“Nonsense. You are flawless.” I smiled and he followed.

“I lost my shit over you and Bennett, and I think a lot of it was just feeling left out. You guys are two out of my three top people in life. Well, I guess there’s four now, with Charlie.”

“You guys are at least talking again,” I said. “That’s progress.”

“Yeah, but I was a dick to him. And then he
understood
, which made it even worse.”

I peeked down my shirt to check on Charlie, who was still nursing.

“If you want to apologize, maybe you should talk to Bennett,” I said to Liam.

He ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah . . . I’m kind of here to offer an unconventional apology.”

“How so?”

“I overheard a conversation between him and Orion earlier. I eavesdropped because I thought he was coming to quit the team, and I planned to talk him out of it if he did.”

“He didn’t quit, did he? I hope he didn’t.”

“I think he did, but he also did something worse.”

I arched my brows expectantly. “What?”

“Orion told him Chicago wants him next season, and he turned it down.”

I just stared at my brother for a couple seconds. “He turned down . . . the NHL? Are you sure?”

“Positive. He said you won’t marry him, you won’t move there with him, and he’s not leaving you and Charlie behind.”

My heart melted out of my chest and onto the floor. Liam was telling me the truth. Bennett
would
sacrifice his dream for us. He was selfless enough to do it and not feel bitter or remorseful about it.

“Oh my God,” I said softly. “I’ve ruined his career.”

“No, you haven’t. I went into Orion’s office after Bennett left and asked him to give me some time to change his mind. But it’s really
your
mind that needs changing.”

I felt Charlie squirming as he finished eating, so I pulled him out from beneath the poncho and put him on my chest, patting his back gently.

“You think I should go to Chicago with him,” I said.

“Don’t you think you should? The guy’s willing to give up the motherfucking NHL for you, and you won’t give up the county prosecutor’s office?”

I had to smile at my brother’s sudden and complete change of heart.

“Well, when you put it that way . . .”

“Look, I was a prick,” he continued. “I kind of knew it then, and I completely know it now. I feel like it’s my job to be protective of you.”

“I know.”

“But the truth is, Bennett’s one of the best men I’ve ever known. He used to chase women, but hell, we all did. He was single and never promised any of them anything more than he was willing to give. And with you . . . he changed. He loves you and Charlie more than anything.”

“I love him, too.”

Liam looked at me hopefully. “So, will you go?”

I swallowed hard, trying to create a quick mental pro/con list. But I came up short on cons.

“You don’t think I’m like Mom, chasing him because I’d feel incomplete without a man?”

Liam cracked a big smile. “You’re
nothing
like Mom. And it’s not just any man we’re talking about here; it’s the one who’d take a bullet for you. He deserves all of you.”

Slowly, I nodded. “You’re right. Liam, you’re so right. Can you come to the lumberyard with me?”

“Right now?”

“Right now.”

My heart raced as soon as I saw Bennett. He was in the lumberyard parking lot lifting long boards onto a flatbed cart, his gray T-shirt soaked with sweat.

“There he is,” I said to Liam. “Wish me luck.”

“Whoa, wait a minute. What do I do with him?” He gestured at Charlie’s car seat.

“If he cries, get him out of his seat and rock him.”

Liam’s eyes doubled in size. “The fuck? I can barely hold him when I’m sitting still and you put him in my arms. I don’t want to drop him or something.”

“Okay, so just push those two green things to unlatch the carrier from the car and walk him around the parking lot if he cries. I won’t be long.”

Liam nodded uncertainly. “Walk him around. Okay.”

I got out of the car and walked toward Bennett. When he stood and saw me, he pulled his brows together and gave me a lopsided grin.

“Hey, babe. You lookin’ for some wood?”

I laughed and gave him a suggestive waggle of my brows. “Maybe. You got any?”

“For you? Always.”

He pulled the bottom of his T-shirt up to wipe his face, and I caught a glimpse of his defined abs. Also sweaty. Damn, I was a lucky woman.

“So I heard you were offered a pretty amazing opportunity this morning,” I said.

He gave me a puzzled look. “Did Orion talk to you?”

“No. Liam did. He overheard your conversation.”

Bennett rolled his eyes. “Overheard, my ass. Fucker was eavesdropping.”

“That’s not the point. The point is Chicago.”

He looked to the side, seeming to focus on the horizon. “Yeah, I’m not going. And it’s the right decision. Don’t try to change my mind. I can’t be in two places at once, and I choose to be here with you and Charlie.”

“I know, and I love you for that. But I choose Chicago.”

“What?”

“I want to go with you. The fact that you’d give that up, just because I’m neurotic and afraid of commitment . . . well, that tells me I’ve got the best kind of man there is. And I want us to go and chase your dream . . . together.”

“Together?” His eyes brightened with hope. “You mean you’ll live with me?”

I took in a deep breath and let it out. “Yes. And if you still want to get engaged . . .”

“
If
?”

He reached into his pocket and took out a small, black box.

“Oh my God, are you serious?” I covered my mouth with my hands.

“I keep it on me all the time just in case you’re in a
yes
mood.” He got down on one knee and opened the box. “It’s not much, because as you know . . . I’m broke. But that appears to be changing soon, so we’ll get you a new one.”

I managed to focus on the delicate, plain white gold band through my tears. “We will not. This one is absolutely perfect.”

“Is that a yes?”

“It’s a hell yes.”

His eyes glistened as he took the ring from the box and slipped it onto my finger. He wrapped his arms around my waist as he stood, spinning me in a circle.

“When will you marry me?” he asked softly. “Soon?”

“The first moment you’ll have me,” I said, repeating the words he’d said to me in the delivery room.

“I love you, Charlotte.”

I kissed him and closed my eyes, tears spilling over. “I love you, too. All these years I’ve been lost, but I didn’t even know it until I found you.”

He squinted at something over my shoulder. “Is that Liam? With Charlie?”

My brother was jogging around my parked car, Charlie’s car seat carrier resting in his outstretched arms so he could look into his face. Liam was making every eyebrow-raised, open-mouthed expression of glee he could come up with in an effort to make his nephew stop crying.

“He looks frantic,” Bennett said, clearly amused.

“He thinks Charlie crying is a life-or-death situation.”

“So we should ask him to babysit more, then.”

I laughed and looked down at my ring, which glinted in the sunlight. “That would be fitting revenge, yes. But you should know he’s sorry. This whole thing . . . it was him who showed me how . . .
challenging
I was being.”

“Challenging, huh? Is that what we’re calling it now?”

I met his warm brown eyes. “Only if we want to get laid regularly.”

He nodded and kissed my brow. “Challenging it is.”