First things first, get what you deserve.

I made my way to my front door, not bothering to hide the shock on my face when I found Ben standing there. Before I could say anything, he lifted a bottle of wine he had in one hand then lifted the other which had a bottle of whiskey. "I didn't know what your mood would be," My best friend said as he offered a grin to break the ice, looking happy to see me and god only knew that I was happy he was here. 

I grinned back at him, feeling relieved for a moment as I opened the door further, "I'm not sure either."

He walked into my apartment and glanced around, everything was still the same except maybe it was a little messier than usual. Spinning on his heels he watched me close the door, "Did you eat already?" I shook my head slowly, looking back at him. "Then I say I'm ordering us dinner and we can have wine. We can save the scotch for later," He announced as he set the two bottles on one table, already texting our usual order to the closest bistro we normally used when having videogame marathons. 

"You're acting weird," I said finally, not sure what else to say since the last time we'd spoke it hadn't gone well at all. 

He shrugged, sliding his phone back into the pocket of his jeans, "I'm acting normal instead." He slumped on the couch, doing his best to act relaxed when he looked unlike himself instead. 

I sat next to him, shaking my head, "I wasn't expecting you to come."

"Well, I was missing our romantic dates too much, so here I am," He said nonchalantly, as if it was no big deal when it was instead, even offering a grin.

I grinned back, "I overheard Cami talking about your date with Sean instead. I hate to admit that I was more than a little jealous."

Ben laughed and seemed to relax a little before shrugging his shoulders, "Sean is too carefree. I miss your stubbornness and how awkward you are out at clubs."

I laughed with him and leaned my back against the couch, "How have you been?"

"Good," He said simply, leaving it at that and making me wonder how much truth there was to it. While he put up a front most of the time to seem so perfect with his gorgeous girlfriend and adorable son, it wasn't hard to see when he was upset. He hide his emotions from everyone, even his sister missed how sensitive he could be. 

I nodded my head, "I heard a rumor about you taking over the agency."

He looked at me with raised brows, "Did Chloe tell you that?"

I shook my head, "Just typical office rumors." 

"Good, because Chloe doesn't know anything yet," He replied with a frown.

I turned my head and blinked at him, having a lot on my mind and not knowing where to start from, "So is it true?" 

Ben pursed his lips together as he stared back at me, "I wonder how someone could even know."

"I take it as a yes," I grinned at my friend, genuinely happy for him since it sounded like a job better suited for him. He was a smart man and a damn good model, but it wasn't his dream job. 

"Don't worry it will take a while before I'll be your boss," He joked as he grinned back, acting nonchalant even though it would be a pretty scary change for him. A hell of a lot more responsibilities. 

I let out a small laugh, "I can't wait to see you everyday. My coffee break will be a lot better." 

"You bet." He laughed himself before getting more serious, "How are you doing Tristan?"

I shrugged my shoulders and didn't know where to begin, what to tell him, hell I wasn't sure I knew myself. "I've been better," I answered skeptically, it being the truth though. "Working a lot."

"Don't you ever have any fun?" He asked and grinned at me, already knowing the answer.

"No," I said simply and grinned back. "I went to one of the agencies parties... one for a designer. Barely lasted half an hour," I told him, leaving out the part that I left with Chloe. Nothing happened, but it was a weird night, one I was still trying to figure out myself. Was I friends with Chloe now? I had no idea. 

Ben laughed, "Even I avoid those parties."

"When you take over, won't you be expected to go to all of them?" I asked with a brow raised, knowing how Ava was the life of the party everywhere. The woman walked into a room and the entire vibe changed. She was truly loved by all, envied by just about every woman. 

"Since when are we back talking about me?" He asked in a playful tone, his brow raised and matching mine.

I shrugged, "I was curious." 

He nodded and leaned his back against the couch, "I don't know. I don't know where to start with, it's a whole new word for me...but to answer your answer yes, I think at some point I'll have to go to all of those parties, but as long as my mom loves being a party girl? I think I can skip them."

I chuckled in amusement, "Is that how it will work?" 

Ben let himself smirk again, shaking his head, "Probably not...I'll have to go and you'll come with me. That's the only way I can not die of boredom at one of those parties."

"I'm honored that you'd take me over Cami, but won't she mind?" I asked out of curiosity, cocking a brow again because even together now, their relationship still didn't make sense to me. 

He shook his head then shrugged his shoulders, "No."

I kept my face serious and studied my friend, "Are you guys still together?"

Ben looked almost confused but answered quickly, "Of course. Why would you ask that?"

I shrugged, wondering if he had heard what he'd just said, "Just curious why you'd bring me as a date over your girlfriend. I know that I'm good looking, but she probably looks better in a dress than I do," I grinned.

He stared at me blankly, "Cami's not a big fan of parties and I rather take her to other places...that said, I'm sure I'll be forced to go to so many parties I can go with her, with you, with Gabe, with half of the world."

"But you said you'd have fun with me only."

"I was just trying to say something light since it's already as hard as it is to come here and pretend nothing happened with you, my sister, and all that stuff. Of course I have fun with Cami too, if I didn't I wouldn't spend so much time with her and I wouldn't plan to spend the rest of my life with her either."

I nodded and let a grin play on my face, "Fair enough, but you know how I hate those parties more than anything."

He seemed to lighten up at my words and grinned back, "If I'm the boss, you'll have to go."

I snorted, "Is that how it works?"

He nodded his head and faked a serious expression, "I'll add it to your requirements: weekly dinner date/escort to work related parties."

I tossed my head back and laughed before looking at my friend again, "I've been on much worse dates. I could probably manage that. But once a week? You're pushing it."

"Yeah I think so too," He agreed, grinning as he thought about it, "I couldn't survive that either."

"Because of me?" I asked, faking a hurt expression that only made him grin wider.

He shook his head, "Because I'm not much of a party boy anymore. Cami wouldn't be happy about that and I wouldn't either."

"Why, doesn't she trust me? I would never steal you from her," I went on with the joke, which was nice because it kept us far from more serious subjects.

He laughed again, "No, not at all. She's your big fan too." He paused to let his smirk turn into a smile, "Speaking of which, she told me to ask you if you want to come over for dinner one of these nights."

I smiled genuinely at the invite and nodded my head, "An actual home cooked meal sounds perfect. Just tell me the day and time and I'll be there."

"I will," He replied with a smile on his face. 

"So why are you skipping out on New York Fashion Week this year?" I asked after a moment.

"Have you been keeping tabs on me?" He asked with an amused look, even raising a brow. 

I laughed, "Of course. After hearing about your date with Sean, I haven't known what to do with myself."

He laughed with me, "Don't worry, there's nothing special between us." His grin faded before he got more serious again, "I just came back from Milan, I've been away for three days only and what I got was Gabe crying and Cami being afraid we'd go back to the point where I'd travel all the time and leave her alone."

I listened to him carefully, wondering how he could handle so much on his plate, "So you're doing it for them?"

"Not just for them." He paused, finding his words,  "You know I never liked modeling that much, it was the most logical choice to make back then when Cami was pregnant but now I got tired of it and I want to do something more than just get half naked in front of a camera."

"Oh, poor Ben and the hard life," I teased and when he rolled his eyes I went on, doing the math, "So they're not just rumors, you're taking over the agency."

He shrugged awkwardly because and looked insecure about his choice, "I am, sooner than later. I'll still model a little you know, money comes easy from photoshoots and I might still walk down the runway from time to time, but I'm not going to travel anymore, not for work."

"I think it's a good decision," I nodded my head, not really seeing any reason for him not to take the position over from his parents. The company had been in the Leferve family for many years before the Lindsell's took it over and they had done amazing things for it. "You'll have a lot on your plate though. Who knows if you'll still want to model... You definitely won't need the side work."

His lips quirked into a grin, "My dad still models from time to time. Nothing will stop that man from posing in front of a camera."

I grinned with him, "Your father loves the attention while you?" I shook my head, not wanting to call my friend insecure because he wasn't per se. Models had confidence, they had to, Ben was no exception. But he was a lot more modest than the other men and women I dealt with daily. It kept him real. It made him more than just tolerable. 

"I know, I know," He replied, knowing where I was going. I missed my friend who knew me well enough to read my thoughts. "It's going to be a lot to take in."

"Would you rather pose in your underwear for the rest of your life?" I lifted a brow in amusement, wondering what his kid thought about it. 

He made a face and shook his head, "No thank you." He paused, sighing, "I wonder what people will think when I'll take over the agency. That I'm a model without a brain and that I won't be able to follow my parents' footsteps."

"Is that what you think?" I asked, genuinely interested in his answer. 

"I'd lie if I said that the thought doesn't worry, but I hope to prove everyone wrong," He said and shrugged nonchalantly. "For now though, you'll still see me everywhere wearing my Calvin's." 

I laughed, shaking my head, "Stubborn, aren't you?" 

He shrugged again, "Those are easy money and I'm going to need a lot in the near future." I shot him a look when he didn't elaborate on that. "Cami and I are moving, she's going to quit her job soon and open her own art gallery...oh and I have something for you too. Get ready to be my best man soon."

My eyes widened from all the words he was saying, house, art gallery, best man... especially that last part. "You proposed to her?" I asked and grinned at my friend, happy for him since this was the girl he had been in love with for basically his entire life. It was about time.

"Not exactly," He replied and I laughed.

"What do you mean by not exactly? Either you have got down on one knee and put a ring on her finger, or you haven't," I said with a brow raised, amused as hell.

He gave me a look, the unamused kind of look that said 'I'm not an idiot, you idiot.'  "Don't you think I know that?" He said eventually and I laughed again, unable to resist. 

"Well I'm happy for you, regardless of you not actually being engaged yet," I told him, being honest. It wasn't rocket science, Cami was going to say yes. "Do you know how you're going to do it?"

He took a deep breath, "I have no idea. I can't decide because you know, no one teaches you how to propose, I want it to be perfect but not too cheesy...I'm starting to sound like a girl." He sighed and when I laughed, he laughed along with me, the kind of laugh that was liberating and eased the tension.
"Cami's going to say yes no matter how, you shouldn't worry," I said eventually, still amused.
"I even thought about involving Gabe, then again would that be too much?" He asked out loud, as if both to himself and to me. I shot him a look that told him to calm down and he finally grinned, "Enough talking about me, I'm getting tired of hearing myself. Your turn to spill the beans," He said and reached for the bottle of wine.

"What about me?" I lifted a brow and stared at him before getting up and walking towards the kitchen to grab us two glasses. "I wake up, work, work out, then come back home and sleep and repeat," I said seriously and shot him a grin from the other room. 

He rolled his eyes and then shook his head, "That's not all you do."

I shot him a look while walking back into the living room, "How long have we been friends now? You know how boring I am."

"Thanks," He said while I handed over a glass, watching him pour one for himself then for me. "So nothing new?"

I parted my lips and then closed them, having a feeling that he was bringing up the thing with Chloe and I... but I knew that he didn't want to hear it and honestly? I didn't know what to say on the subject. I went lengths trying to avoid her, but caved the other night and texted her... and I honestly wasn't regretting it. I liked her. I liked her a whole lot more than I let on or than I'd even admit to myself. It was driving me fucking insane. "Nothing new," I said eventually with a shrug.

Ben nodded his head as he sipped his wine and stared in front of him absentmindedly. "Nothing good, but nothing bad either," He said eventually turning to me and offering a smirk. 

"Yeah that's right," I smirked back, wanting to bring up Chloe but not knowing how, afraid that if I did it might backtrack on everything.

"We should start working out together again," He said eventually, making me realize how much I had missed my workout buddy. "I tried to run alone but it's a lot more fun with you."

"Isn't everything more fun with me?" I joked back and we both laughed since I wasn't exactly the life of the party. I had my moments of course, but mostly my entire life was a routine. 

He faked a thoughtful look before shaking his head, "You're right. You are boring,"

I grinned back and leaned my head against the couch, "Yet you keep coming back." He parted his lips when the doorbell rang and I sprung up to answer it, "I'll get the food. My treat." "Thanks, but I already paid," Ben smirked. "We'll get drinks later this week and it'll be your treat." 

"That's no way to ask a man out," I replied and smirked, opening the door and taking the food from the delivery boy, thanking him and closing it behind me. I didn't realize how hungry I was before, but my stomach instantly growled when the smell wafted through the air. "God this smells good."

"Only the best for us," He grinned at me, following me into the kitchen and watching as I pulled our food out of the boxes, already knowing what was mine and what his without needing to ask. 

"Damn you really made us sound like a couple," I grinned back at him. 

"Why, aren't we?" He kept joking as he went back into the other room to take our glasses and wine only to go back to his kitchen a second later. We both sat at the table, focusing on the food for a moment. "You need a girlfriend Tristan," He said as an afterthought, after swallowing his bite.

I lifted my head and looked at Ben with a brow raised, "Are you drunk already?"

He grinned wider and shook his head, "No." He said simply but took a sip of wine.

"Where is that coming from?" I asked, amused.

He shrugged as he leaned back in his seat, looking me, studying me. "Wouldn't it be nice to have someone there for you? Beside of me of course."

"You mean someone to pick up your slack?" I lifted my brows in amusement. "Cook me meals and do the laundry?"

He laughed and shook his head, "Oh right. You're an asshole. No wonder you're single."

I laughed with my friend and shrugged my shoulders, my face going back to serious while I really digested his words. It'd been over a year now that I had the girls in my life and while I still went on dates from time to time, dating was an awful experience and it was hard to meet a good girl. At least one who wasn't the sister of my best friend. "Honestly? You're probably right," I said slowly. 

"I usually am," Ben grinned back, boasting a little over being right. I'd do the same. I laughed softly again and focused on my food, not knowing what else to say because this conversation could quickly turn around to bite me in the ass. "You're successful, but it gets lonely when you have no one to share that with."

My head flicked up so I could toss him a grin, "Now you're starting to get sentimental. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm great," He shrugged and paused to sip more of his wine. "I'm just saying, I know how it feels."

My grin got wider and got teasing, "Right, the hard life of a successful model when he has no girlfriend, a novel by Benjamin Lindsell."

He grinned with me, because I was just being silly, "Yeah make fun of me all you want, but you know what I mean." He said before taking the last bite of his food, "I know you're against relationships and that being single has some great pros, but at some point doesn't it get old? Do you want to be 50 and still hook up with random girls?"

"Just because you're one step to getting married it doesn't mean everyone has to follow your same path," I said back with a shrug, knowing that he had a point. At some point going home with random girls just got depressing. 

"I know that too, I'm just saying that in my modest opinion you could use some kind of stable female company in your life," He said quietly, smiling to let me know that he was only speaking his  mind, looking out for my best interest.

I lifted a brow as I stared at my friend, bringing my glass to my lips and taking a sip before speaking, "Are you planning on setting me up on blind dates?"

He grinned and shook his head quickly, "No, you'd scare women away and then it'd give me a bad reputation. I'd be considered the worse matchmaker."

I laughed and shook my head, "Stick to modeling or running the company. Matchmaking should be a womans job."

"Sexist," He commented back but was still grinning. "Is there something wrong with my taste in women?"

I bit my tongue and decided not to bring up Celeste who was pretty, but could pass for a very tall teenager. She was old news, the past, and thats where she belonged. "Are you offering Cami to me?" I asked instead, faking a serious face. 

"Ha! Not even if I were dead," He grinned at my serious expression, not taking my teasing seriously because that was what it was, teasing. 

I shook my head, smirking this time, "You've never been good at sharing."

"I warn you, Cami comes with an adorable crazy little man," He said and it was his turn to fake a serious face ow even if it was hard to talk about the loves of his life without smiling.

"That's a deal breaker. Even if he's a mini you." I paused, the added, "Mostly if he's a mini you."

He laughed this time, amused by my words, "Right. She has a friend though...you might be interested in her."

I raised one eyebrow at him. "Who?"

He took a deep breath and for a moment I was scared of who he might suggest. "Her name is Chloe," He said eventually. 

I damn near choked on the sip of wine I had in my mouth, coughing a little until the scratch in my throat was gone. Parting my lips, I resisted the urge to ask him to repeat himself or ask if he knew another Chloe. Instead I looked at him with another serious expression, this time real, "What changed your mind?"

"I'm not sure my mind has changed," He answered honestly. "But Cami thinks you two are perfect for each other. You'll balance each other out."

I kept staring at him and nodded my head slowly, "But do you think that?" A silence fell between us and I didn't wait another second for him to answer before I asked another question, "Do you trust me?"

Ben blinked at me, "Trust you?"

I nodded again, "Trust that I won't hurt her? That I won't ruin our friendship over this?"

"Do you want to be with my sister?" He asked pointblank. 

"I do," I said honestly, admitting it out loud for the first time ever. 

He stared at me, looking kind of shocked, "Wow." Was all that could he could say.

I scratched the back of my neck awkwardly, feeling as embarrassed as he was surprised, "Yeah."

He knitted his brows together, "I'm surprised. I'd never thought I'd hear those words coming out of your mouth..."

"You're not answering my question," I said quietly but still urged him to give me one, needing to hear it. 

"Of course I trust you." He shrugged, "Since you just told me you want to be with my sister...it's all different. I was worried you could be with her like you were with other girls, with no commitment or strings, and that I knew it'd hurt her and drove a wedge between us. But if you're serious about this, then I only hope it will work. That doesn't mean that maybe one day she'll get hurt anyway, it can happen in any relationship, but what I need is you to tell me you'll try not to." 

"You should know that already," I said back, maybe a little too defensively. "I'd never intentionally hurt your sister."

Ben let out a breath and mirrored my own awkward stance, scratching the back of his neck. "Wow," He repeated himself.

"You said that already," I made a joke, only being able to force a grin at my friend. I wanted to know how he truly felt, even if it was that he still had his doubts in me.

"What changed your mind?"

"What changed yours?" I asked back since a year ago? We were a lot more alike, neither of us wanting a real relationship. I shrugged my shoulders before he could answer, "Your sister changed my mind."

"She's persistent like that," He cracked a smile.

I nodded my head and smiled back, "She's one hell of a woman."

"It takes a hell of a woman to change a hell of a man's mind," He smirked back at me, guessing that was our way to get over the whole Chloe thing. Of course there would still be awkward moments and serious talks, but at least now we were back on the same road. I couldn't even put in to words what a huge relief that was. 

I grinned, "Cami did it for you." 

He shrugged, because it was obvious. "She always puts things in a perspective I'm not able to see and makes me see things differently," He commented simply, "But don't expect double dates to happen." 

I laughed and shook my head, "As if I'd love that."

He relaxed, grinning, "I guessed so."