by Logan Chance
My knees go weak.
My brain clouds over.
My insides melt.
This kiss erases every other kiss I’ve ever had from my memory in an instant. Because, mark my words, Ben knows how to fucking kiss.
A door slams somewhere near us, but I’m so lost in the erotic dance our mouths are tangled in I don’t bother with the noise.
Ben pulls back, kissing the tip of my nose. “Get some sleep, Clara. I’ll call you later.” With one more kiss on my forehead, he turns around and walks off. Before I can get my legs to take me into the house Ben calls out over his shoulder, “Oh, and Clara? I like your robe.”
Chapter 8
Ben
I wasn’t expecting that.
Not at all.
It took all my strength in the world to walk away from her just now. I should turn back.
No.
I lick my lips still tasting Clara clung to them. I grin, wishing I would’ve turned around to see her face when I mentioned her threadbare robe she was wearing. I know I made her blush. Even though I wasn’t able to witness it.
Hell, it was hard enough stopping the mind-blowing kiss we shared. I wasn’t expecting Clara to respond to my lips the way she did. The kiss was supposed to be a brush. A handshake of sorts, confirming I’m going to escort her to her bitchy stepsister’s wedding. A diversion to get the panicked look off her face when Maureen brought up the wedding.
But as soon as I had a tiny taste of Clara, I had to have more. No, I needed more. And she offered herself up like a Vegas buffet, and I gorged myself on her.
I shake my head, not letting myself get caught up in the memory of Clara’s sinful lips. I’m Ben Jamison, one of the infamous triplets. I’m the Trifecta who entertains women every night in the club, and one lucky woman in my room later.
That must be my problem.
Taking Clara home last night and caring for her must’ve messed up my equilibrium. Tomorrow I’ll get back to my old self. Some fortunate ladies are going to get the full Ben Jamison experience.
I’m the pleaser, not the rescuer of damsels in distress. Damsels in distress are more Axel’s thing.
Although, I’m not going to bale on Clara, either. I’ll go to her horrid stepsister’s wedding and make sure all the women there are green with envy, and then I’ll be done with her. Easy.
“Where did you rush off to?” Damien asks, hiding his smile behind a water bottle.
“You know where I went.”
“Leave him alone, Damien. What happened?” Axel sits on the arm of the couch as I plop down in the middle.
Damien takes the recliner across from me. Both my brothers stare at me waiting, so I launch into what happened.
“I went to Clara’s house.”
“Why? You’ve never done repeats.” Axel shushes Damien, motioning for me to continue.
“Well, technically she isn’t a repeat since all she did was sleep last night.”
“So, you were going over there to fix your reputation?”
“Damien let him talk. Stop being an ass.” Axel shoots Damien a frustrated look and Damien pretends to zip his mouth shut.
“Anyway, I went over there because I didn’t want it to end the way it did. She came to the club to talk to me and I wanted to know what she wanted.”
“You wanted to know if she wanted a piece of the Trifecta?”
“I thought you zipped your mouth shut,” I say, getting up from the couch. “Never mind, I’m going to bed.”
“No, sit down and tell us what happened. I’m sorry, Ben.” I watch Damien and when he appears serious I sit back down.
“I was right. Clara did want to ask me something.” I stop and go over the conversation. What if she wasn’t going to ask me to take her to the wedding? When she denied I was her date something hot, sticky, and uncomfortable lodged in my chest. I refuse to acknowledge it may have been jealousy at the thought of her taking someone else.
“What did she want?” Axel asks.
“She wanted to ask if I would take her to her stepsister’s wedding.” I’m guessing.
“Why would she want you to take her, to show off?” Damien asks.
At first I get angry but then realize he doesn’t know Clara. “No, her sister is a raging bitch and she puts Clara down whenever she can. I think Clara wants me there to run interference when her sister starts in on her. I guess.”
“True, her sister was a bitch. Who leaves their stepsister at a club without any way of getting home?” Damien asks.
“I like her, Ben. You’re different with her. I think this may be someone special.” Axel says and I’m concerned when Damien doesn’t scoff.
“I’ve only known her a day and a half. She’s not going to change me or stop me from my manwhore ways so stop wishing,” I say, ending Axel’s fairy tale he’s creating in his head.
“If you say so, but you can’t tell me it’s not nice having a woman look at you without lusting over you.” Axel says.
“Not really.”
“Liar.”
“When’s the wedding?” Damien asks.
“I don’t know. I told her I’d call her tonight to talk about the details. There are some things I need to find out.” Like if she has to call another man to let him down when he finds out he’s no longer her date to the wedding. “In fact it’s getting late. I’m going to go call her before I go to bed. See you two for our work out tomorrow.”
I slap my brothers on the back and grab my phone, ignoring the excitement I’m feeling because I get to talk to Clara again. Just so I don’t feel like a little bitch, I make myself wash my face and get into bed before calling Clara. Or I attempt to call Clara before I realize one tiny problem...I don’t have her phone number.
“Shit.” I throw the comforter off me.
I mutter another shit as I stuff my legs into sweats and throw on a white t-shirt.
“Where you going?” Damien asks as I storm down the hallway.
“To ask Clara for her damn phone number so I can call her.”
“Thatta boy,” Axel says, his hand in the air, waiting for a high-five.
I glare at the offending hand before giving in and slap his hand with mine.
“Proud of you, Benny,” Axel calls out as I close the door shut with a bang.
I race across town.
I bang on her door, more mad at myself at not getting her phone number.
I tap my foot as I wait.
“What are you doing here?” Clara asks, blinking the sleep from her eyes.
“I’m here...” I start to say but stop when I notice what she’s wearing.
Fuck.
She’s wearing the t-shirt I put on her last night when I needed to wash her dress. More specifically, she’s only wearing my shirt. The hem brushes in the middle of her thighs, making her long legs look even longer.
I don’t even remember her taking it home.
“You’re here?” Clara prompts, interrupting my sweep of her body with my eyes. “It’s ok. Honestly. You don’t really have to take me to her wedding.”
“What?” I try to catch up with her mind as mine’s still on her sexy body.
“It’s ok.”
“Clara, stop.”
“No, Ben. I get it. I get you just wanted to get Maureen to shut up. Most people do when she opens her mouth. But now you have buyer’s remorse.” She laughs softly. “I never really expected you to follow through.”
This makes me pause. “Follow through?”
She shrugs. “You don’t look like a follower through-er.”
I crack a smile, even though I hate the fact she thinks so little of me. “A what-er what-er-er?”
Now she cracks a smile. “I’m just saying you’re not the type of guy who dates. I get it.”
I cross my arms over my chest. “What makes you think that?”
She raises a brow. “Am I wrong? Do you date?”
I clutch the back of my neck with my hand. “Well, no, but…”
&n
bsp; “See, it’s fine.”
“Clara, will you just let me talk?”
“No Ben, no need to explain.” And with her final words she shuts the door in my face.
My blood spikes with adrenaline.
Ben Jamison just had a door shut in his face. Never have I ever had a woman close a door in my face.
Except for this little wildcat, who I’ve only had the honor of seeing naked for half a second before pushing a shirt over her beautiful body, did.
I knock on the door and wait.
“Go away,” Clara says through the door.
“Clara, open the door,” I say, the frustration in my voice pushing through.
“Ben I mean it. Go away.”
“Not until I get what I came here for.”
There’s a thump against the door. I wonder if it’s her head or her hand. “Didn’t you already get what you came for?”
I can’t help but smile.
“What did you think I came here for?” I ask, playing with her a little.
“That you wanted to back out on going with me to Maureen’s wedding.”
“Well, I hate to tell you that you’re wrong.”
“I am?”
“Yep,” I say, unable to hide the enjoyment in my voice.
“What did you come here for then?”
“Can you open the door? I don’t want to admit this outside.”
Clara’s quiet. I wait staring at the door with a smile on my face. The smile still doesn’t vanish when the door creaks open revealing a very wary Clara.
“Hello again,” I whisper.
“What did you forget?” she breathes out.
God, she’s fucking sexy.
“It’s kind of embarrassing.”
Clara’s eyes go wide as they drift down to my sweatpants-clad legs. “Oh.”
“Don’t look at me like that. It has nothing to do with anything in these pants.” Although I wish it did.
“Are you sure? I mean sometimes the steroids can.” She puts her index finger and her thumb together. Way too close together for my liking.
“I don’t take steroids thank you very much, and your fingers need to be farther apart. In fact you can’t use your fingers for what I have packing.”
And you can take that statement to the bank. Because it’s a fucking fact.
“It’s fine.” Clara pats me on the chest.
“We’re getting off track.” I say, unable to figure out how she got me on this subject in the first place. “I came here because I don’t have your phone number.”
Her mouth pops open and I like the stunned silence on her face. “My phone number?” she says on a stammer.
“Yes, your phone number. I told you I’d call you tonight to get the details on the wedding. Yet, when I went to call you tonight I realized I didn’t have your number.”
“So, you came here?”
I smile. “Yeah, I came here.”
“You’re not backing out on going with me to the wedding?”
I shake my head and step closer. “I wasn’t backing out of the wedding. I mean you did make some good points about Maureen being an awful person. Maybe I should rethink my stance on the wedding.” I tap my finger on my chin. “But, you can’t get rid of me that easily.”
Chapter 9
Clara
“No?” I ask, the smile stretching across my face. Do I even want to get rid of him?
His gaze burns into mine. “No,” he echoes.
“Do you want my phone number?” I ask, wanting to get him to stop staring at me so intensely. Or maybe I want him to stare at me even hotter so my clothes will burn off. And I think at this point I’ll be fine with either.
Ugh.
“No,” he says. And now I’m confused.
“No?”
Ben steps toward me, and I back up. The grin he gives me makes my heart pound against my chest. My breath hitches inside my throat.
He takes another step. I hold my stance, feeling the heat brush up against me. My eyes slide up his muscular chest enclosed in his tight t-shirt. I stumble when I lean toward him.
“Step back,” he says, his voice smooth and hypnotizing.
“What?”
“Step back.”
“No, you should probably go.” I say, feeling like I’m in way over my head.
“No I shouldn’t.” He’s so close, and in control. Meanwhile I’m a pile of mush with my core heating up to magma levels.
“You should.” I don’t even know why I’m asking him to leave. I want him to stay. I want him all over me.
His hands.
His mouth.
His tongue.
I can’t think straight when he’s this close.
“You don’t really want me to go, do you?” The look on his face appears hurt, and even though I know he’s playing around, I want nothing more than to replace his frown with the smile from earlier.
“I do,” I whisper, completely unsure of myself.
“Nice shirt.”
“What?” I glance down and oops. He wasn’t supposed to catch me in this. Just a small souvenir. “What are you talking about?”
“You’re wearing my shirt.” He tugs at the shirt sleeve.
I’m stuck. “So.”
“So?” The smile is back, and it’s one of those smiles that can melt away any walls any woman could ever have protecting her heart.
This man is trouble.
“Let me in.”
“This isn’t a good idea.”
“The best ones never are.”
I step back and he closes the door. So hot. It’s so hot in here. My body’s alight with fire, want, and need. There’s nothing more I want than Ben wrapped around me.
But, I need to be strong. This man is trouble, I repeat in my head.
“What are you doing here, Ben?”
“I came for this.” He captures my lips before I can move. I collapse into his chest and clench his t-shirt into my fingers holding onto him as if I’m afraid he’s going to escape.
With a little encouragement, I jump into his arms, wrapping my legs around him, giving into him. Why would I deny myself this sin poured into a perfect body? A body I’m currently twined around.
This is so wrong, but I can’t stop myself.
We stumble around my living room until we land on the couch, me straddling his lap. I’m grinding against him, taking a page from his book. I put both my hands on his cheeks devouring him. Tasting him. Taking him in.
It’s like he’s unleashed a beast deep within me, and I don’t have time to question my actions.
He pulls my hands from his face placing them in between us, pulling his lips from mine.
“Wait,” he says, putting his fingers to my lips. I take his index finger into my mouth and suck, giggling when his eyes roll back in his head and he moans lifting his hips to show me how he doesn’t mean what he says.
He snaps his hand back and holds mine in his grasp. “Ok, I need to get away from you.” He picks me up, placing me away from him, running his hands through his hair.
My face burns bright red. “Why?”
“Because I’m trying to be a respectable guy here, and you in my shirt,” he growls, “it’s distracting.”
“Maybe you should go. I’ll give you my number and we can discuss Maureen’s wedding, and then that can be the end of it all.” I say.
He studies me for a moment before letting out a deep, controlled breath. “Ok, maybe that’s for the best.”
I stand from the couch. “I think it is.”
He stands, readjusting himself in his pants. “But, I want to make one thing clear before I go.”
I face him. “What’s that?”
“The woman you saw me with at the club tonight…”
I cut in, “Ben, you don’t have to explain yourself. Seriously, you don’t owe me anything.” Even though the thought of him kissing another woman, and then coming here and kissing me makes me murderous. But, it’s not my place. “This
is a business deal.”
He doesn’t speak, just studies me again and I would give a million dollars of money I definitely don’t have to know what he’s thinking. “A business deal. Ok.” He shuffles his hands into his pockets. “I just can’t leave here without you thinking that what happened at the club was one-sided. Her side.”
“It’s ok. Promise.”
He keeps his hands in his pockets as his head hangs low. “If you want to know the truth, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since last night. You’re different.”
I laugh. “Different? That’s what every woman wants to hear.”
Ben moves like lightning across the room, grabbing the front of my shirt, tugging me to him. I hit his rock hard chest, and have to crane my neck up to see him. “Yes, you’re different. And if any other woman knew why I said different, they would want me to describe them like that too, but it’s only you I’m describing as different.”
I stare at him, watching the words come out of his full lips. Lips I had the pleasure of sucking on minutes ago and wish I could do again.
“Can I ask why you need a date to your stepsister’s wedding?”
“Because.” I shake my head, trying to get my thoughts in order. How can he go from saying I’m different, and making it sound like the most perfect compliment to asking about Maureen?
“Because, why?”
“I can’t find a date.” I shrug. “I’m boring.”
He shakes his head. “You’re anything but boring.”
My insides warm up and he’s so close. And I want him to kiss me again. “Maureen said if I didn’t find one by tomorrow she was going to set me up with someone.”
“See, this is why we need to talk.” He takes my hand and leads me back to the couch, and then crosses the room to sit in the recliner.
I quirk up an eyebrow at his choice of seating.
“I need to stay focused.” He smirks and I can’t help returning the smile.
“Ok, what do you want to know?” I tuck my legs under me aware the shirt has ridden up exposing most of my legs.
Ben clears his throat and with a pained expression on his face he forces his gaze to move from my legs to my face. “I want to know why you can’t find a date.”