Your Captivating Love (The Bennett Family 2)

“Pippa—” Logan begins, but his sister holds her hand up, shaking her head. Blake opens his mouth then closes it again. I can almost see the wheels turning in Logan’s mind. Should he call the sweets shop he has on speed dial? Or is it one of those rare instances where chocolate isn’t the answer? Finally, he holds up his hands in defeat. The man has excellent preservation skills. Daniel pulls his brothers away with an apologetic expression, and the three men leave.

Stunned by the turn of events, I gaze at Pippa expectantly.

“Well, tonight didn’t go as expected,” she says.

“Are you in the mood for an impromptu night out?” I suggest.

“Not really.” We wait a few minutes inside the building, until most of the ballet viewers exit, and then we leave too. Outside she adds, “But I don’t want to go home either.”

“Hey, I have an idea. Why don’t we go to the shop? It’s done, and I can show you some dresses.”

“Great.” She smiles, and I’m relieved to see that it reaches her eyes. “Make sure to show them to me before we down the bottle of wine.”

Perplexed, I observe her tiny purse. No way does she have a bottle in there. “Which bottle?”

“That one.” She points to the small souvenir shop across the street, which has wines on display. “While I buy it, why don’t you call up Ava and ask her if she wants to join us? I’ll call my sisters.”

“Done.”

I watch the sky while I speak to Ava. There are almost no stars in sight today, clouds hanging low and heavy. This is a good night for wine. Pippa returns with a bottle just as I finish the conversation with Ava.

“Alice and Summer are coming,” she announces.

“So is Ava.”

“Well, I call that a party.”

Chapter Thirteen

Nadine

Pippa and I arrive at the store first. Once inside, I turn on the lights.

“Wow.” Pippa sits in one of the armchairs near the entrance, holding the bottle in her lap. In the front of the store is a small waiting parlor for husbands or friends accompanying the customers. It consists of a small table and two armchairs. Then there is the central area, where the dresses and lingerie are, and two changing rooms. The back room serves as my storage area. Ava, Alice, and Summer arrive a few minutes later. The girls wear jeans and T-shirts; we obviously pulled them away from a cozy night in. Upon closer inspection, I discover each brought a bottle of wine. Either they didn’t receive the memo that we already have a bottle, or they’re taking this girls’ night thing too seriously. Four bottles for the five of us. This will not end well.

“I love the Christmas decorations. This place is great.” Summer peeks around appreciatively.

“Your dad and Logan helped a lot. I don’t have more chairs, though.”

Pippa waves dismissively. “No problem. Summer can sit in my lap, Ava in yours.”

“That still leaves me out,” Alice remarks. “You didn’t even have one sip of wine and you already can’t do math?”

All of us burst out laughing, which is just as good because there was a slight tension in the air since the girls arrived. They all found out about Terence’s scene tonight. Thank God for the wine.

“I’ll sit on the floor,” I say, lowering myself to the carpet, careful not to damage my dress. Ava and Alice join me, leaving Summer and Pippa in the armchairs.

As Pippa prepares to open her bottle, a realization strikes me. “Ugh, I don’t have any glasses.”

“I bought some on the way.” Alice retrieves a stack of paper cups from her bag.

“Paper cups and wine. How very Bennett of us,” Pippa says with a smile. “Nadine, you’ve had dinners with us, and we even worked on this shop along with you.” She holds the bottle in front of her as if she’s speaking into a mic. “Let’s not forget you’re sleeping with our brother,” she adds as an afterthought. I blush violently. “But you aren’t truly a Bennett until you’ve had wine with the girls.”

Truly a Bennett... Her words hit me hard, squarely in the chest. God, I’d love to be part of this family, but I can’t let my mind wander that way. Logan and I agreed on fun and having a good time, both making it clear it would be temporary from the very beginning. At the time, I was relieved there was no permanency to us. Now, the thought of “temporary” suffocates me. Then again, so does the idea of “permanent.” Logan’s not ready for that, and neither am I, mainly because I don’t believe in permanent. Men don’t stick around forever.

“From paper cups,” Alice insists, snapping me back to the present. “That detail is crucial.”

“Yeah, it’s a tradition,” Summer says, “mostly born out of the fact that we decide to have impromptu nights out at the worst of times, so we never have glasses and end up buying paper cups.”