Your Forever Love (The Bennett Family 3)

“Right, I don’t ever want to hear you talk about your balls in my presence.” We fall into a companionable silence as we eat, and I use the time to inspect my brother. He has dark circles under his eyes and is pale, but this is not his usual after-party look, which makes me think he might indeed not have been partying. Maybe he simply has a lot on his mind, and he couldn’t sleep.

“What’s wrong?” I ask.

“Me being at Bennett Enterprises… It’s not working out.”

“Oh.” I can’t help but feel a tad disappointed, but I don’t want to let him see that. Instead, I want to make him see that it is working out, or at least get to the bottom of why he thinks it’s not. “But Sebastian says you’ve been doing great. Logan too. I was afraid you’d be butting heads more often, but you make a good team.”

Blake runs a hand through his hair, looking frustrated, and it worries me. I’ve never seen him so unsettled.

“We do. The problem is that, around here, I’ll always be the younger, player brother. Or at least for a long time. I mean, it’s my fault. I expected I could waltz in and start with a clean slate, and everyone would treat me the way they treat Sebastian or Logan.”

“I know it’s a cliché, but Rome wasn’t built in a day, brother. Neither are reputations. It’ll take time to—”

“Yeah, yeah. But I’m already tired of defending myself all the time. Every time I meet a new partner or whoever, they start with a joke about me. When I was with Logan at the bank, we wasted the first hour talking about a party I was at a year ago.”

“So, what’s the plan?”

“I want to start my own business,” he announces.

“Wow. I’m impressed.”

“I helped a few friends set up bars across the country.”

“Yeah.”

This was a running joke in our family, that he ‘consulted’ them because he had a lot of experience partying, but my brother’s smart.

“I want to open my own bar, and who knows. If it does well, maybe more of them.”

I lean back in my chair, nodding at him. “Sounds exciting. Do you need any money?”

“No, I’ve saved a good chunk from the shares revenue I received over the years.”

“Now I’m very impressed. I thought you blew through all of it.”

“Your confidence in me is astounding,” Blake says, but he’s grinning, and I’m relieved to see my brother morphing back to his usual self.

“Have you told Sebastian and Logan?” I ask.

“No, I wanted to tell you first.”

“Why?”

“Because I wanted your opinion. Sebastian always has his poker face on, and I can’t tell what he’s thinking. Logan will be disappointed, but he usually is where I’m concerned. The point is, I don’t want any of you to feel I don’t appreciate everything you’ve done for our family, because I am. I truly am. But I want to branch out on my own, prove myself.”

“Logan and Sebastian won’t be disappointed. They’ll be proud. I am proud.”

In the vision Sebastian initially had when he founded the company, he’d hoped all of us would find their place in it. When Alice announced she wanted to open a restaurant and Summer became a professional painter, Sebastian, Logan, and I were proud of them, even if it was bittersweet. This will be exciting, just like it is every time a Bennett sibling starts a new venture. It’s an opportunity for all of us to rally together, offering our help. Assisting Blake in setting this up will be fun.

“Okay,” he says, “I’ll talk to them later today.” Rising from his chair, my brother rounds the corner of my desk and bends down to kiss my cheek. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Now, go break your news to our brothers.”

“I will. Can’t believe I’ll finally have a job where my CPO title will be official.”

“What’s CPO?”

Blake wiggles his eyebrows. “Chief Party Officer.”