Love Forever (Love Series #2) -Lucy Darling

Prologue

Ethan

I slide the whiskey across the bar as the man slaps his money down for a drink. One of the bartenders grabs the cash for me and heads toward the register knowing that I want nothing to do with it. I’ll help make drinks but I’m not taking any orders. My eyes flick to my watch, thankful to see that my little brother should be here in about ten minutes. He’s bringing a few more bartenders from another one of his clubs to help out.

Then I’ll be able to get the hell out of this place. I don’t know how I got sucked into helping the bartender, but here I am in a twenty thousand dollar suit serving drinks to save my brother’s ass. That little shit is lucky that I love him.

This is the fifth club that he’s opened and it is packed like all of the others. When he said he wanted to open his first night club, I gave him the cash to do so as a silent partner. To be honest, I wasn't sure if he was going to pull it off but I wasn’t worried about losing the money. God knows I had enough of it. He was fresh out of college with big dreams and shallow pockets. I wasn't going to be the one to crush them so I gave him the money.

Now he’s turned into a workaholic like me. It must run in the family. It is actually something I wanted to talk to him about. It is the main reason I’d asked him to meet me here. Now he is running late because he’s stuck in traffic and I am helping make drinks because four of his bartenders called in sick.

I turn, grabbing a beer order that came up on the printer, setting it at the end of the bar with its ticket. My eyes catch a glimpse of blond hair that immediately grabs all of my attention. I stand up a little straighter as I take in the woman, who has legs for days. I didn't know I had a type until now. She’s not only my type, she’s going to be mine, my mind whispers. I watch her stroll across the club with a few other girls as one of the bouncers shows them to the VIP area.

I can’t take my eyes off of her. I’ve never seen such a beautiful creature in all of my life. I don’t have time to date. I’m too busy working. It consumes my life. I’d never wanted a wife or a family. I didn’t have the time but now, after seeing her, I am questioning everything. How long has it been since I wanted something? Since something has given me a thrill of excitement? I can’t remember. I'm sure it was something to do with work.

“Turn around,” I command, wanting to see her eyes. Wanting her to see her future. Of course she can’t hear me because she’s across the club and the music is loud. Men turn to look at her. My hand wraps around another beer, gripping it tight so that none of these men get hurt. I drop it down so hard that I’m surprised it doesn't shatter.

“Take it easy,” my brother says as his hand comes down onto my shoulder. He lets out a whistle as he spots who I’ve been looking at.

“Don’t,” I snap at him.

“Aren't you the one who said I should find a woman? That I needed to settle down?” I can tell from his tone that he’s only teasing me but I don’t find jokes that include my future wife funny. I did tell him those things. It’s one of the reasons I am here, to tell him that shit again. He doesn’t need to work himself to death. He needs to have a life.

“She’s not the one for you. She’s mine.” I look over to my brother, whose face fills with surprise.

“That so?” A slow smile pulls at his mouth.

“Fuck off.”

“I’d love to fight it out with you, brother, but I’ll never win. I know when you get that look in your eyes.” People say that I have a killer look when I’m closing a deal or when I have something in my line of sight that I want.

“Meeting cancelled.”

“Yeah. I’m short staffed and I’m going to have to work the bar.” He rips off the few tickets that I printed. I grab the one on the end, putting it with the beer I almost