Page 3 of Had To Be You

“So, are you going to tell me the reason for the super fantastic mood you are in or do I have to guess?” Parker asks, his voice dripping in sarcasm. He sits in one of the dark brown leather armchairs across from me, one ankle resting on his other knee. He knows I’m working double time right now, partly due to his upcoming nuptials, but he is enjoying frustrating the shit out of me anyways.

“Are you going to tell me why you are here throwing off my day?” I respond, glancing at my Rolex to make my point.

“Gracing you with my presence is how I would look at it,” he smirks.

“Right. Lucky me. Make it quick before I throw you out of here so I can get some work done.” Parker is younger than me by two years and he’s probably the brother I am the closest to, though at this particular moment I’m not convinced. Although I don’t work directly for our father’s Seaside Hotel chain where Parker is CEO, my law firm Brooks, Gamble and Bennett acts as their legal advisors. Yes, that’s right, I made partner last month.

“Happily. Dropping these off to you per Dad’s request and reminding you about this afternoon. Four thirty. Don’t be late.” Parker drops a thick Manila envelope onto my desk.

“How could I forget? The ‘Parker and Livy’s Wedding’ group chat reminds me daily of all my groomsmen duties. I don’t remember subscribing to that, by the way.” I try, and fail, to hide my smirk. “I’ll be there with bells on.”

Parker is marrying his high school sweetheart in less than two weeks and all jokes aside, I couldn’t be happier for him. I’ve never seen him like this. The guy is annoyingly happy all the fucking time. My entire family is over the moon. Tonight is our final tux fitting.

“Thanks. I thought since we’ll have all the guys together we could grab drinks at Catch 21 afterwards. Sound good?”

“I can make that work. Speaking of… have you heard from Miles? Has he made it to Mom’s yet?” I ask, leaning back in my chair.

Our youngest brother Miles is flying in today from Los Angeles for the two weeks of wedding events that have been planned. Miles Bennett is a household name across North America. Women go crazy over him. He’s an actor who has starred in a string of A-list movies over the past four years and shows no signs of slowing down.

“Not yet. His flight is scheduled to arrive around noon. Jules is picking him up.”

Juliette, or Jules as she prefers to be called, is our sister and the baby of the family. Jules also works for my father and the Seaside Hotel group, heading up the marketing team. She’s based here in Reed Point with a large corner office next to our father’s - I’m pretty sure he arranged that so he could keep an eye on her. Jules has been a firecracker since birth, always giving our parents a run for their money. People probably assume us boys would be the ones been keeping them up at night, but it was always Jules.

I reach for the envelope Parker set on my desk and remove the files that will require my attention. Jules landed a deal with one of the largest VR tour tech companies and she needs me to go over the contracts. If everything is in order, a go-ahead on the deal will mean the Seaside Hotel chain will be on its way to allowing potential guests to experience the properties right from their devices.

“Speaking of Jules, how’s she doing with the breakup?” Parker asks. “Mom told Livy that she has been pretty worried about her.” Jules had been dating Alex, a quiet, introverted med school student, for the last two years. “She said Jules actually thought Alex was the one. I can’t be the only one who didn’t see the connection between those two, right?” Parker asks, eyes on his phone. A slow smile curves his lips as his thumbs fly across the keyboard of his phone.

“Fuck no! I never could figure out what she saw in that guy. He has the personality of a shoe. She’s better now, but she has her moments. I still can’t believe he broke up with her.”

Glancing across my desk, I’m not sure Parker has heard a word I said. He’s still furiously typing something on his phone, his smile now replaced with a cheeky grin. Unable to hide my irritation, I ask, “Are you fucking sexting Livy right now in my office?”

His fingers continue to tap the screen of his iPhone at warp speed. He looks up at me for a split second. “I bet you’d like to know.” He laughs, appearing amused, then drops his gaze back to his phone.

“I sure as hell would not. Why are you still here? Don’t you have a wedding to plan?”

Parker stands and slides his phone into his pocket. “I hope the rest of your day is a pleasant as you are.” He shakes his head and turns for the door. “See you this afternoon. Don’t be late.” As the door closes behind him, I instantly feel a shift in my mood. The silence that I love settles around me. I slip off my suit jacket, hang it on the back of my desk chair and roll my sleeves up my forearms. I ping Silvia, my assistant, and ask her to bring me my morning cup of coffee.

My mind wanders to the tux fitting this afternoon, then to the two weeks of wedding events I have scheduled in my calendar and then suddenly to one gorgeous, uninhibited brunette who is also in the wedding party. A woman with long, flowing hair, the deepest blue eyes you’ve ever seen, a bright smile that hints at playfulness and confidence and wit. A woman I’ll be spending a lot of time with in the coming weeks, considering we are both in the wedding party.

Ellie.

I haven’t seen her in months, but the distance between us hasn’t been enough to make me forget about her. Every time I think she’s finally out of my thoughts I remember the feel of her skin or the taste of her lips. Then I remember how her smart mouth gets on my last nerve. She’s wild and impulsive and uncontrollable and everything I don’t need wrapped up in a slender, just over five-foot frame. She drives me fucking crazy.

I’m. Beyond. Fucked.

Irritated with myself for allowing visions of Ellie to distract me, I lean forward in my chair and wake up my computer. I pinch the bridge of my nose and exhale.

A relationship is the last thing I need in my life right now. Sure, I believe in love, but I definitely don’t have time for it. I have finally achieved my goal of making partner at my firm, a goal I set for myself in college. I’ve worked my ass off to become one of the East Coast’s most illustrious attorneys. My record is impeccable. I’m determined, laser-focused and not afraid of putting in the hard work and long hours. So, when I say a relationship is low on my list of goals and exasperations, I’m not lying. Scratch that, a relationship doesn’t even crack that list. I barely have enough time to get done in a day what needs to be.

That settles it.

I know what I need to do.

I need to stay far away from Ellie Reeves.

* * *

“I think they look good,“ Dylan, a friend of Parker’s from college who is also a groomsman, deadpans. His eyes are on the navy suit pants I’m wearing that are approximately seven sizes too small.

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