by Lexy Timms
“I've missed you,” he finally whispered, layering kisses with his words as he spoke against the back of her neck. His breath was warm and inviting, and a vivid memory of his breath against the wetness between her legs came rushing back.
Her memory had to compete with the present as her mind crashed with visuals of Ben. He was so sexy and confident, making her feel comfortable in every setting. There was something about him that just put her at ease, and in the back of the limo she was ready to get more than comfortable as Ben’s hands found the front of her dress.
“I missed you too,” she admitted. Her voice was more of a moan than anything else as she leaned her head back, giving Ben full access to her neck.
Quick to take advantage, he made a trail of wet passionate kissed down her neck, massaging her breasts with his palms as Katherine pressed into him with her backside, feeling his erection through the tailored pants of his tuxedo.
“Sweetheart, you’re going to unman me in the back of a car,” Ben groaned, lifting her hips to cease the pressure.
“Let me feel it,” she begged, reaching her hand to his crotch as she felt the warmth through the layers of fabric.
He was as needy as she was, and it turned her on even more to know they would have to make it through the long charity event before they could devour each other like they wanted to. A test of restraint, they would be forced to contain themselves until they could return to the privacy of his home, and she was already sure it would be torture.
Holding tightly to her waist, Ben allowed Katherine to straddle him, feeling her curve to sway over top of him as their bodies grinded together with urgency.
“I want more of you,” Katherine pleaded, pressing her pelvis into his to feel the imprint of his erection against her panties.
“Sweetheart,” Ben pleaded with one word. He was on the edge of restraint, and he needed Katherine to stop him from doing something foolish. Surely they didn’t want to arrive at the dinner with the glaze of an orgasm in their eyes. But when Katherine riled him up, there wasn’t much Ben could do to calm himself.
His hands continued to ravish her, now reaching beneath her dress to rub her opening, titillating her sweet spot with the flick of his fingertip. She was frozen in time as she became a slave to his pleasure, unable to move for anything other than Ben.
“Please,” she moaned, knowing he could bring her to climax with nothing more than the curve of his finger.
“Be good and I’ll give it to you when we get home,” Ben whispered in her ear just as the car slowed to a stop.
Moving quickly, Ben sat Katherine on the seat next to him, adjusting her dress before smiling at her, satisfied with how he’d managed to work her up on the ride.
Katherine was out of breath, glancing from one window to the next as she searched for her senses. He had cleared her mind of the nerves completely, and she was focused on nothing more than getting back to privacy with Ben when she stepped from the back of the limo, greeted with calls and flashing cameras as Ben held his arm out for her.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Ben
WILL HAD BECOME THE best in the business as far as event planning was concerned. He took charities to new levels by the way he introduced donors to organizations with a flair that made everyone involved feel like a celebrity,
Katherine was turning heads in her beautiful gown, and Ben could tell that she felt as wonderful as she looked. He had never seen her so happy, smiling from ear to ear as they posed for pictures.
This would be the first time he’d allowed himself to be photographed with a woman publicly, and he was proud to give the photographers her name before they walked the carpet. Katherine had proven that she was everything he needed, and it was time to introduce her to the rest of his life.
Allowing his business and personal lives to exist separately had been his downfall in the past, so Ben wanted to merge everything as soon as possible. Katherine would be the belle of the ball on his arm, and he could already tell that she shined in the spotlight.
“You work with all these people?” she asked, as they made their way through the bar area of the great room. The event was hosted in a five-star hotel in the center of the city. As always, Will spared no expense, with a top shelf open bar, and a three-course meal to be served over the evening.
“Only a few,” Ben answered, pressing his lips to Katherine’s ear after whispering softer than necessary. With his hand resting on her stomach, he could feel her abdomen tense when his lips crushed against her skin. He could feel that she was affected.
“Mr. O’Leary!” A man slightly older than Ben called from across the room, moving through the crowd to make his way to Ben.
“Tom, how are you?” Ben welcomed him with a handshake before pulling him into a hug.
“I didn’t know if you were going to be here tonight. I wanted to see if we could talk about next quarter,” he started what would usually be the conversation they carried on throughout the night, about the comings and goings of business. It was what he did, but looking at Katherine, Ben couldn’t care less what his business would look like in three hours, let alone three months.
He wanted to enjoy his time with Katherine, and take the opportunity to see his world through her fresh eyes. “No business tonight. I’m on a date,” he announced, pulling Katherine to his side as the older man looked on in amazement.
Ben had spent many evenings debating strategy and projections with him because they each had businesses in the same industry, but this was a new night and he didn’t care what anyone thought of his shift in priorities.
“Let’s get a drink,” Katherine suggested and Ben smiled, leading the way to the bar.
“You are by far the most beautiful woman here. But I knew you would be,” Ben whispered in her ear as they walked through the party.
Women were dressed by the finest designers, in heels so high they defied gravity. The men all seemed stuffed into the same box—wearing different variations of the black suit. Men like Ben stood out for their extraordinary handsome stature, but for the most part, all attention was split among the women of the room.
Katherine was the show stopper, drawing more attention than Ben was used to. She was oblivious to the attention, though. He could tell by the way she flirted with him as if no one was watching. How could she not know how important he was to the room of people? To her he was just a man she enjoyed spending time with, and that meant more to Ben than all the prestige his lifestyle afforded him.
“Let’s go find our table,” Ben said, after receiving their drink order from the bartender. They had each ordered a Manhattan, and started sipping the liquor as they made their way into the larger dining area.
Covered in white fabric, the room was filled with round tables draped in white tablecloths. White roses decorated the walls and centerpieces of every table. Will could transform a space and make it a stunning dining hall in a way that few others could.
“This is beautiful,” Katherine gasped, as we entered the dining area. “I just can’t believe I'm here. Not to mention that I’m on your arm,” she shook her head in disbelief, and Ben pulled her in close, smiling at her modesty. Katherine had no idea that she was the star of the night and it tickled Ben to no avail.
“Mr. O’Leary, you’re over here,” a young brunette pointed to a table where Ben saw Rachel and Will chatting away.
Although they were only a few feet away, neither of Ben’s good friends took notice of him, lost instead in their own conversation. He smiled watching them, knowing how much each of his friends deserved someone special.
With Katherine on his arm, it felt like everyone had gotten the partner they needed, and Ben led Katherine to the table, excited to introduce her to his friends. When they arrived, Rachel finally looked up, jumping to her feet as she rushed to meet Katherine.
“I cannot tell you how excited I am to meet you. I have been pestering Ben all day to make sure you were coming,” Rachel admitted with blushed cheeks. She was so e
xcited to finally see Katherine, the woman she had heard so much about from Been, who so rarely talked about his life.
She knew how important Katherine must have been to not only occupy his time, but now be introduced to the people who meant most to his professional life, which to date anyway, had been pretty much his life.
Rachel treated Katherine like she was just as special as her boss made her out to be, and the two were fast friends, deciding to sit beside each other at dinner, with Ben on the other side of Katherine.
“We’ll be serving dinner soon,” a woman announced, before moving to the next table to deliver the same message. Glancing around the room, Ben could see that the crowd was moving in from the cocktail hour, settling in to see how good of a ticket their donation had bought them.
His table sat in the middle of the floor, because although he would never allow it to be announced, Ben was always the top donor to every charity event Will hosted. He believed in supporting his friends and reinvesting into the communities where he lived and did business.
“Would you like the steak or the lobster?” A woman asked, and Ben and Katherine quickly ordered.
“Steak or lobster?” She repeated back to him before adding, “That’s fancy!”
Ben laughed, shaking his head at her act. He knew Katherine was the type who had been raised around money. She had too much class and poise, but enjoyed pretending to be new to everything, so he played along.
“Which did you get?” he asked.
“Lobster,” she answered, batting her eyes as he searched her face.
“You are so beautiful,” he repeated the compliment that rolled off his tongue so freely around her. It was the only time he’d ever used those words to describe a woman, but with Katherine it just felt fitting.
“You're making me blush, Mr. O’Leary,” she teased.
“Don’t call me that,” Ben whispered into her ear, before tugging at her ear lobe with his front teeth.
She must have noticed everyone greeting him so formally. It was normal for dinner events to remain quite formal, especially from people hoping to pitch him ideas as the night went on. These types of events were known as the perfect place to meet an angel investor or silent partner.
But Ben wasn’t interested in hearing about any new businesses or making any more money. All he wanted was to watch Katherine enjoy her night. She was his only concern, and his heart smiled looking down to see her and Rachel chit chatting. Rachel was his oldest and dearest friend, so her connecting with Katherine meant a lot to him.
Dinner arrived just as Will made his way to the stage, introducing himself and thanking everyone before announcing that dinner would be beginning soon.
As everyone made their way to their seats, Will gave the audience a description of the night’s events. After dinner they would be entertained by a violinist, and meet with a young woman running for a seat on the local council. There was a full list of events, and Ben sighed thinking how long it would be before he got to be alone with Katherine.
She was now his measure for time. Before committing to any plans, he needed to calculate how long it would take him away from Katherine and decide whether it was worth it. As much as he loved watching her experience something as close to him as charity donations, Ben was ready to return to his house and throw away the key.
When the waitresses arrived with the dinner dishes, he remembered how Will kept everyone engaged with spectacular dishes and insightful entertainment. Before long the tuxedo wearing servers were picking up their empty plates and bringing out the next course of dessert followed by a cheese platter.
From one speaker after the next, the presenters taught all about the charity, supporting abused women. Katherine seemed really touched, watching with tears in her eyes as a woman spoke about building up the courage to leave her abusive husband. She spoke about remembering her self-worth, and a woman stood up from the opposite end of the dining room, clapping loudly until everyone else in the room followed suit. The speaker began to cry, realizing the impact she’d had by telling her story, and Katherine moved quickly to wipe a stray tear.
“I need to go to the bathroom,” she whispered over her shoulder and Ben rushed to his feet to help her.
“I can take you,” he offered, but Katherine insisted she go alone, rushing towards the back of the room.
Ben followed discreetly, needing to know she was okay. Thankfully, most of the audience was seated, so the path to the restroom was pretty clear. Making his way after being stopped by two tables wanting to thank him for his support, Ben finally reached the bathroom.
Watching the door way, he glanced around the room, trying to spot as many familiar faces as he could. A dark set of eyes met his as he scanned the room, and a dark feeling turned in his stomach as Ben tried to place the face with a memory.
The face was gone when he looked back, but he remembered the feeling he got when he saw the man, the only angry face in the room. Looking towards the bathroom, Ben wondered if he had time to find the guy before Katherine returned, but he didn’t want to risk missing her.
She would be out in a minute or so, and the last thing he wanted was to get separated at the party. Glancing around the edge of the restroom, he decided to wait for Katherine until the man re-emerged out of the corner of his eye.
Ben followed him closely with his eyes, wondering where he had seen the man before. He was searching through the crowd for something, or someone, but Ben wasn’t sure what it was.
Just then, Will announced a new speaker and Ben’s attention returned to the stage, deciding the man wasn’t worth his attention. Slowly, he walked back towards the restroom as a hushed silence fell over the room, listening to the speaker.
Ben watched like a proud big brother as Will’s night continued to go as planned. Waiters carried out trays of drinks to each table, encouraging everyone to have the best time. It was a big step for Ben to bring a woman into this part of his life, but he was proud to invite Katherine into every facet of his world.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Katherine
“DID YOU SEE HIM OUT there? He’s so hot!” A woman’s voice shrieked from the sinks. Katherine was still in the stall when she caught the tail end of the conversation.
“You know he donated everything, right? He’s like a billionaire!” Another woman chimed in as Katherine readied herself to leave the stall.
“He’s with some model in a purple gown,” the first woman answered, as they both turned to see Katherine stumbling out of the stall as she realized they were talking about her.
“I’m sorry. We didn’t know you were in there,” the woman rushed to explain, but Katherine wasn’t offended at all.
“It’s okay. I’m not a model though,” she corrected the girl as she washed her hands.
“You sure do look like it,” the other added, and they all three laughed together.
Katherine had never found it difficult to make friends, and there in the bathroom of a charity event she had created what she thought could become a friendship, after meeting two women gossiping about her date.
The interaction made her wonder what Ben was to her. When she spoke about him, she wasn't sure how to describe him. Was he her friend, or her boyfriend? She wasn’t sure but as she walked from the restroom she decided to figure it out.
The dining area was as beautiful as she remembered it, only now they had dimmed the lights even further, creating an even more romantic ambiance than before.
Katherine turned to face Ben, but he was lost to the show, smiling as he clapped in rhythm with the young girl on stage singing while playing the guitar. It was sweet watching him as she learned of how big his heart was. Not only was he filthy rich, but he was generous and kind.
Just when Katherine thought Ben couldn’t get any better, he always shocked her with a new level of ways to impress her. Whether it was breakfast in bed or flowers at her job, he knew how to make her feel special. Taking her to the charity event was the grandest gesture th
us far.
Katherine’s hand fell to her neck as she ran her fingertips across the diamonds on her necklace. Not in a million years would she ever forget the night, or how special Ben had made her feel at the event. She was a movie star for one evening, even posing for pictures from photographers screaming Ben’s name.
She knew he must have been a big deal from the way that people whispered whenever they walked past. Everyone wanted to meet him, she could sense that much, but he made it clear that he didn’t want their evening interrupted, and that meant the world to Katherine.
She loved that he would set his work aside for her, because she struggled with that in her last relationship. Watching Ben so closely, Katherine barely noticed the dark figure towards the opposite side of the stage. Their back was to her as they circled around.
Only able to see the profile, which was covered in a shadow, she couldn’t make out the face, but she felt the hairs on her arms stand alert. Katherine knew something was wrong before Ben found her, grasping her face in his hands.
“Sweetheart, breathe. Tell me what’s wrong,” he pleaded, noticing the panic in her eyes.
Katherine was terrified and she wasn’t even sure of what yet. She knew that she had been triggered, it was now only a question of whether it was solely fear or true danger as well.
It was nothing new to flip out over fear for Katherine. She always felt someone was after her, so it wasn’t crazy to think that someone was following her or out to get her. Danger, however, was much worse than fear because it involved the threat of harm.
At the event, with her guard stripped away completely, Katherine felt an attack underway and was too afraid to doubt its validity. She needed to seek shelter, even if it meant looking like a complete weirdo to Ben.