Keeping Their Love (Griffin Brothers #7) Read online

  Keeping Their Love

  The Griffin Brothers Valentine’s novella

  by Crystal Perkins

  Copyright © 2015 by Crystal Perkins

  Cover Design by Helen Williams

  http://www.allbookedout.com/

  Ebook formatting by Jesse Gordon

  All trademarks are owned by their respective companies and are denoted by the use of proper capitalization of the company and/or brand. All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. This contemporary erotic romance is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. This ebook is licensed for your personal use only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with, especially if you enjoy sexy, emotional, romance novels with alpha males. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

  Table of Contents

  About Keeping Their Love

  Other Books by Crystal Perkins

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  About the Author

  About Keeping Their Love

  Alexandra Marie Roberts

  &

  Miles Andrew Corrigan

  Invite you celebrate their love

  on February 14 at 8:00 PM

  Scott, Ryan, Owen, and Luke Griffin had getaways planned for their wives, whisking them away for romantic and sexy weekends that they all really need. Instead, they’ll be attending their niece's wedding—with only seven days’ notice. While they’re all happy for her, none of them has a back-up plan. No other gifts, and no idea how to make the romance happen while attending a wedding at a theme park. They’ve gamed, built, created, and learned for love. Now they just need to figure out how to keep it.

  This novella includes characters from both The Griffin Brothers and Corrigan & Co. series.

  Other Books by Crystal Perkins

  The Griffin Brothers series

  Gaming For Love (The Griffin Brothers #1)

  Building Our Love (The Griffin Brothers #2)

  Creating A Love (The Griffin Brothers #3)

  Learning To Love (The Griffin Brothers #4)

  Designing The Love (The Griffin Brothers #5)

  Working On Love (The Griffin Brothers #6)

  Corrigan & Co. series

  Fielding Her SECRET (Corrigan & Co. #1)

  This book is for Terri-Lynn Jeavons, who asked

  me to write a Valentine’s novella for the Griffins!

  Chapter 1

  Miles

  I’m nervous as fuck. Alex and I kept this secret for the last two months. Not from everyone—she needed help from Stella and Quinn, so they knew, but we wanted to keep everyone else in the dark until we knew we could have everything ready. Now we’ve gathered everyone here, at her grandparent’s house, to tell them the good news. I can only hope they’re all too happy to be angry.

  “Thanks for getting together tonight, everyone. We really appreciate it,” Alex says as she stands.

  “Of course we’re here. Anything for you, Baby Girl,” her Uncle Scott tells her.

  I stand next to Alex. We are in this together, after all. She smiles at me, and nods. I turn to look at her family, and mine. “Two months ago, I asked Alex to marry me. She said yes, and we’ve been working since then to set everything in motion. We’re getting married at Disneyland next week. On Valentine’s Day.”

  There’s a stunned silence following my announcement. Shit. We weren’t expecting this. Some anger for keeping this from everyone, followed by happiness for us? Sure, we braced for that. But silence? No plan for that. Neither one of us have a quiet family.

  “This is a little sudden, isn’t it?” Maggie Griffin finally asks, breaking the silence.

  “We’ve been in love for almost seven years, Grandma. How is that sudden?”

  “I just meant that you haven’t been officially together long, maybe you should wait.”

  “We’re not waiting. If you don’t want to be there, then don’t. You’ve always fought our relationship, and I’m tired of it.”

  “Xandy,” I say, turning to calm her down.

  “No, Miles. She’s right. I do love you and I know how happy you make my granddaughter, but I have been cautious. You’ve given me no reason to doubt you, and I am very sorry that I’ve held back. I would be delighted to be at your wedding.”

  She walks over and hugs me tight. I hold her back just as hard. I know that my girl wouldn’t be who she is without this strong woman. The Griffins are the best family I know, and next to my own Gram, Maggie Griffin is the best role model a woman could have. I owe her so much. I owe them all so much.

  “You couldn’t have told us all a little sooner?” Scott asks. When I look over at him, he looks a little panicked. I have no idea why.

  * * *

  Scott

  Shit. Fuck. Fuck. Shit. This cannot be happening. It just can’t. I’ve been planning Valentine’s Day for me and Yas for months now. My mom agreed to watch Dave while I take my wife for a romantic weekend to Paris. It’s where I asked her to marry me, and with as tough as things have been for her lately, I want to pamper and spoil her. She’s too independent and stubborn to let me bail out her bookstore again, but I know she’ll let her guard down in Paris. If we were going there, which apparently we now aren’t.

  So what am I going to do? I have a week, a fucking week, to come up with a new plan. Because Paris was it. All of it. I was going to let her pick out her own piece of jewelry, or whatever, before we had dinner in the Musee d’Orsay and a romantic boat ride down the Seine. I can’t just go out and buy her something. This is my wife. The mother of my child, and the woman I love more than life itself. Not someone I’ve just started dating. A store bought gift just isn’t enough.

  “We wanted to have everything in place so that none of you would feel obligated to help,” Alex answers, breaking me out of my thoughts.

  “I appreciate that, sweetheart, I really do. I’m happy for both of you, but this is more than a little bit of a shock,” Ryan tells her. I know he must be freaking out too because he also had some big plans for Valentine’s Day.

  * * *

  Ryan

  Damn it all to hell because that’s where I am right now. Deep down in Hell. Right along with my brothers. Why did Alex and Miles think it was okay to get married on Valentine’s Day, especially with no warning? She’s young, but he should know better. Scratch that, he has no sense when it comes to my niece. He loves her too much. Which is usually a good thing. Not this time, though.

  Chloe fell in love with Seattle when we went there a few years ago. We even got married the
re in the first building we designed together. And even though she loves Vegas and her friends, I know she’d love to live in that city at least part of the year. So I built us a house. It’s smaller than our house here, but perfect for us and Erin to spend our summers in. It’s on the water, and I gave her the same dressing room and closet that she has in our house here. I didn’t decorate it yet, because that’s all her. But the structure’s done.

  Our friend, Kevin, who helped Chloe when she first came to work for me, agreed to watch Erin since I knew my mom was already watching Dave. I can only imagine what a fashionable little diva I’d be coming back to after leaving her with him for the weekend, but it would be worth it. For both of us. And let’s be honest, I’m so tightly wrapped around my little girl’s finger that there’s no way to unwind me. She can have whatever she wants, when she wants it. For now, at least. She’ll need to get a job like I had to, but not yet.

  Just like my little girl, I’ll do anything for my wife. She’s truly my soul mate and the love of my life. And now I have nothing to give her on Valentine’s Day. Sure, I’ll still give her the house, but if I can’t give it to her that day, what the hell am I going to give her? Like I said, I’m in Hell.

  “We know it’s sudden, but it’ll be great. We can all go to Disney again. The kids will have so much fun.”

  “Yeah, Al. It’ll be great,” Owen tells her with a fake smile on his face. He’s way more screwed than I am, and I know it.

  * * *

  Owen

  Holy fucking shit! This cannot be happening. It just can’t. I can’t bring the sexy back with Candi at freaking Disneyland. And certainly not with Hope joining us. I’d arranged for our friend—and her honorary second grandmother, Cyndi Evans, to watch her. But we can’t leave her behind if we’re going to Disneyland. What kind of parents would we be if we did that?

  The terrible twos are behind us, but the stubborn threes have descended, making Candi want to pull her hair out. Hope is just like us, and while we should have expected it, neither one of us were prepared to have a strong-willed mini us. Don’t get me wrong, my little girl is amazing, smart, and beautiful—just not perfect. Which is just the way she should be. But it’s hard to keep up the romance when she’s demanding our attention at all hours of the day and night.

  And we need that romance. We’ve managed a quickie here and there, but I haven’t been able to worship Candi’s beautiful body in months. If that’s not a crime against humanity, I don’t know what is. I’d planned a romantic getaway to a private island for us. One where we’d only pack enough clothes for the plane ride. And maybe an itty bitty bikini for my wife. One that I could tear off of her whenever I wanted. But I should know that the best laid plans don’t always work out. Even when you really, really, really, need them to.

  “Yeah. We’re all really happy for you,” Luke tells her. His smile’s just as fake as mine, though, because he may be the one who needed that week the most of all.

  * * *

  Luke

  It’s over. My fucking marriage is going to be over while my niece’s begins, and there’s not a damn thing I can do about it. Olivia’s been getting more distant and moody every day. She barely lets me kiss her, and there’s definitely been no sex for the past month. I don’t know what I did or how I hurt her—I pretty much worship the ground she walks on. But I did something, and now I have no way to fix it.

  She hasn’t said she’s going to divorce me, but she refuses to tell me what’s wrong and won’t stop crying. I’d do anything to stop that crying. Anything. Even the yelling’s better.

  I was planning to take her to Chicago for Valentine’s Day. We’ve never been to my hometown together, so I thought it would be the perfect place to romance her and undo whatever it is I did. Now that can’t happen. We’re going to the happiest place on earth with my entire family and our friends. Which means no romance and maybe even no marriage.

  I’m going to have to come up with something. Some last ditch idea. But with only a week, where I still have to teach every day, I don’t know what I’m going to do. Curling up in the corner and crying probably isn’t the best idea, but it’s all I really want to do at the moment.

  “I’m glad you’re all good with this. Disneyland is way better than Vegas for Valentine’s Day. We’re all going to have so much fun,” Alex says as Miles leans over to kiss her.

  Disneyland is better than Vegas. But it’s not better than Paris, Seattle, Chicago, or a tropical island. At least not for me and my brothers. We all share uneasy glances with each other as our women hug Alex, peppering her with questions about her dress and everything else. I catch Miles looking at us curiously, and I know he’ll be asking us about why we look so freaked out. I for one, will be more than happy to unload on him. Possibly with a fist. I know Alex has him whipped, but he has to know a week isn’t enough notice when you’re dealing with the most romantic holiday of the year. Little bastard.

  Chapter 2

  Miles

  The Griffin Brothers look upset, and I don’t think it’s because of the wedding. At least not the wedding itself. It takes me a few minutes of trying to interpret the looks between them, and the death glare Luke’s throwing at me, before I get it. Valentine’s Day. Holy fuck. They had plans. Of course they had plans, it’s only a week from now. And now they’re screwed.

  I make my way over to them, plastering a smile on my face. “Hi guys. Thanks for the support. Can I talk to you about something? Maybe in the guest house?”

  Ryan catches on immediately. “Sure, man. Let’s go.”

  We all smile and act like nothing’s wrong as we make our way out of the room. Gary raises an eyebrow at me, and I nod, inviting him along with us. I may need him to protect me. I could probably hold my own with Scott or Owen, but not Ryan or Luke. And definitely not the four of them combined.

  Once we’re settled, I address them all. “We fucked up your Valentine’s Day plans, didn’t we?”

  “That’s the understatement of the century,” Scott tells me. “We all need some time with our women. None of us were planning on staying here in Vegas.”

  “Shit. Alex wanted that day, and honestly, I didn’t even think about it. I know she didn’t do it to ruin anything. I should’ve realized, though.”

  “Yeah you should have, you little bastard,” Luke tells me.

  “Little? I’m older than you, dude.”

  “But I could take you. Easily.”

  Yeah. He could. He still plays in a local hockey league that keeps him built. Not the tank Ryan is, but he’s still a formidable opponent. One I’d already determined that I couldn’t go toe to toe with.

  “Noted. Now, how can I help?”

  “You can change your wedding date,” Owen tells me.

  “That, I cannot do. It’s not like we just woke up and picked the location. We had to plan, and I actually had to buy out the park for the evening. As you can imagine, it’s a popular day for weddings there. Alex wanted a daytime wedding, but even I couldn’t swing it, so we settled for evening with the ceremony at the Castle and then a dinner next to Small World.”

  The afternoon wedding wasn’t all I haven’t been able to swing, but I’m not giving up on the other thing yet. No matter how stressed out and frustrated I am about it. I have to make it happen. I can’t fail at this. Not again.

  “I’m really sorry, guys. I’d tell you to go ahead with your plans, but we all know Alex will fall apart if you’re not there.”

  “We’ll be there,” Scott says. “We may be sleeping alone that night, but we’ll be there for Alex.”

  * * *

  Scott

  I can’t stay mad at Miles. If Yas had asked me, I’d have done the same thing. I would’ve thought of her and nothing or no one else. It’s what you do when you’re owned. And every man in this room is owned by his woman. And not a one of us would ever deny it. It doesn’t help us at the moment, but it’s the way it is.

  “It’s not that bad, Son. You’ll all just hav
e to adjust your plans. You still have presents, right?” my dad asks.

  We all look at each other, and I know their answer would be the same as mine. “No, Dad. I don’t think any of us had a back-up plan. I was planning on letting Yas pick her own stuff in Paris. And Ryan can’t move a house.”

  “Shit,” Miles says. “I really am sorry. And I wish I could help, but I’m dealing with my own present issue at the moment.”

  “You focus on Alex. We’ll take care of our wives.”

  Somehow. I don’t know what we’re going to do. If it was Florida, I could still give Yas a piece of Paris at Epcot, but it’s not. I need to come up with something, but I have no idea what. I’m sure people have romance at Disneyland, but I just can’t see it with all those kids and families around.

  “There’s gotta be a book or website about romance there, right? I mean, we can’t be the only guys who plan to romance our women there for Valentine’s Day.” I throw that out there, hoping one of my brothers may have come up with something already.

  “You’re the genius, who also works closely with a secret society of women. Why are you asking us? We should be asking you,” Owen reminds me.

  “Well, I wouldn’t do that if I were you, because I’ve got a shit ton of nothing. Abso-fucking-lutely nothing.”

  “We’re screwed. So very, very screwed. If genius boy doesn’t have a clue, how are the rest of us supposed to?” Luke asks.

  “I may be smart, but you’re the romance expert. Why aren’t you coming up with something?”

  * * *

  Luke

  Scott’s right. While all my brothers can bring on the romance when needed, I’m seen as the expert. I love doing sweet—and sexy—things for Ollie, so I’m constantly thinking of new ways to surprise and delight her. But lately, nothing’s been working. Stuffed animals, flowers, dinner, bubble baths and candles, it’s just not doing it. And like I said, neither are we.

  “Yeah, well, maybe at one time. Now she just cries or yells all the time. And nothing I do seems to make it better.”