by Ivy Sinclair
“Waking up,” he said truthfully. “Your sister was kind enough to offer to watch me to make sure I didn’t have any adverse reaction to the bump on the head I took last night. I’m fine by the way.”
Clary had the good grace to look ashamed at the fact that she hadn’t asked him how he was. “I heard about that. Everett’s back in town, huh?”
The mere mention of the man’s name made Ben’s thoughts turn dark. “Hopefully, not for long once he realizes that he overstayed his welcome the first time.”
“I did bring this over for you,” Clary said, handing him the small loaf pan that magically seemed to appear in her hands. “Julia can’t cook worth a damn, and I figured you wouldn’t be up for making breakfast.”
Ben could smell the delicious smells of banana bread wafting from the pan, one of his favorites. “Thanks, Clary. That was really thoughtful of you.”
“Speaking of thoughtful, it was nice of my sister to stay with you last night. Although I heard that Sarah was less than pleased,” Clary said.
There was another name that Ben was less than thrilled to hear.
“Yea, what IS going on with you and Sarah West?” Julia asked as she breezed into the room. Ben gaped. She had pulled her long hair up into a ponytail, and he could see the sheen of recently applied lip gloss on her slightly swollen lips. If she weren’t wearing the same clothes as the day before, Ben would never have guessed that less than five minutes ago she was naked and sexily tussled up in his sheets.
“Ben?” She smiled sweetly at him. “Sarah West?”
He had forgotten that she asked him a question. “There is nothing going on between me and Sarah West that’s worth discussing at the moment,” he said.
He noted that frown that crossed Julia’s face. She should have realized by the multiple orgasms he gave her just hours ago that the idea of any other woman in his life was silly. He knew that he shouldn’t play with her about something like that, but it frustrated him that she was concerned someone would find out that they had sex. They were consenting adults, so it shouldn’t matter.
“Well, she called me this morning all upset because she thinks that Julia is trying to invade her territory,” Clary said, doing air quotes around the word “territory”. “I told her if anybody should be worried about that it should be me, and that Julia’s going to be going home after the wedding anyway, right?” Clary looked for Julia’s affirmation.
“You know that she’s been competitive with me since junior high school,” Julia said. “I’m surprised you didn’t tell her to get over herself.”
“Sarah has been nothing but nice to me for years,” Clary said, shaking her head. “I just don’t need you to start anything with her, okay? I know it probably thrills you to needle her by staying here with Ben, but I need for you to be the bigger person.”
Ben could tell from the way that Julia’s body tensed that she hadn’t expected Clary’s response. Her sister was telling her to behave, not the one who was stirring up trouble. If Sarah was going to be a problem, he wouldn’t be able to get Julia to admit anything to anyone about their change in status. Julia wouldn’t want to interfere with Clary’s happiness. He had to clear things up with Sarah and fast.
“How about I worry about Sarah and the two of you worry about all the rest of the wedding activities?” he said, putting on his most winning smile.
Julia crossed her arms and stared at him with a raised eyebrow. Clary was already checking something on her phone and didn’t notice. “You probably want to go home and change. I need to stop by the police station and pick up the marriage certificate from Mike. I forgot it over at his place the other day, and I don’t trust him with it. I swear if he forgot to bring it I’m going to kill him.”
Ben wanted Julia to stay so they could talk, but Clary was already bustling her out the door talking a million miles a minute about the dress she picked out for her. Julia pulled her phone out as she appeared to half listen. “Geez, Clary. Ten missed calls? You are obsessed.”
He didn’t hear Clary’s response as she had already moved outside to the porch. Julia caught the doorknob of the front door and looked back at him. “Guess I’ll catch you around.”
Ben grabbed her hand and pulled her back inside. He spun her around so that she was out of Clary’s line of sight and then he crushed his lips against hers. She responded immediately. Then he pulled his mouth away and kissed her on the tip of her nose. “Not unless I catch you first.”
“Julia! Are you coming?”
Julia took a deep breath and flushed as he released her. He enjoyed getting a reaction out of her. She didn’t say anything else to him as she made her way outside. He leaned against the doorframe and watched the swish of her backside in her fitted jeans. He felt a jolt of desire and pushed the door closed before the evidence was clear through his pajama pants. She wasn’t even trying and got a reaction out of him.
Now he had even more things to look forward to that weekend, but first he had to check on Maggie and take care of things with Sarah. He didn’t want anything to ruin the chance he had to show Julia what she meant to him. Ben whistled as he headed toward the bathroom. He hadn’t felt so happy in years.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Julia waved to Clary as her sister pulled out of Ben’s driveway. If she wasn’t certain that Clary would stop at the end of the block to make sure she was on her way home, she would have considered knocking on Ben’s door. She needed him to tell her what his deal was with Sarah. He had been deliberately evasive when she asked him about it the day before, and his noncommittal answer in front of her moments before was less than comforting.
Clearly there was something going on between them. She didn’t think that Ben was the kind of guy who would string two women along at the same time. But the Ben from her memories was different from the Ben she was reacquainted with now. The delightful soreness in certain areas of her body proved that. Although she was trying hard to tell herself that what just happened between them was something that she could deal with if he decided he didn’t want it to go any further, she knew that she was fooling herself.
There was a softening place inside her heart that was ready to let the right someone in, and she thought that someone could be Ben. But she had to tread carefully until she understood that she and Ben wanted the same thing. She was making assumptions based on feelings he had for her in the past. She wanted to talk to him, but as she looked at her watch again she saw that it was going to be tight getting back to her dad’s house, getting ready, and then getting to the dress shop by nine. She was going to have to haul ass.
At nine-ten, she rushed through the door of Bautner’s Fashions and found Clary standing there tapping her foot and glaring at her watch.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Dad started talking the minute I walked in the door and slowed me down,” Julia lied. In all actuality, when she was showering she couldn’t keep the images of Ben’s body out of her mind. Her hands moved over her skin everywhere that he touched, and then she completely lost track of time.
Every nerve in her body tingled in anticipation of seeing Ben again. She was almost giddy with happiness and even the scowl on Clary’s face couldn’t take that away from her. She hoped that Clary would be too distracted to notice the change in her demeanor or who could have caused it.
“We have the bridal luncheon at eleven-thirty, and Mike and I have our last meeting with the pastor at two,” Clary said, reading off her schedule. “We have photos at three-thirty and then rehearsal and the dinner. Mike’s bachelor party starts at nine. God forbid if that doesn’t start on time.”
Julia frowned. If she knew anything about bachelor parties, it’s that they had a tendency to go until all hours of the night. That seemed to indicate that she wouldn’t be able to spend the night with Ben again.
“Oh,” she said. “So what time does everything start tomorrow?
“Hair and make-up at ten am,” Clary said. “A quick bite to eat and then we have to be at the church by
one. The ceremony starts promptly at two.”
Julia zoned out as her sister continued going over the weekend’s events. She tried to figure out when she’d have some more alone time with Ben. The opportunities seemed few and far between if her sister had anything to say about it.
Ms. Bautner appeared from the back of the store with a pale peach dress in her arms. She smiled when she saw Julia, but it didn’t quite make it to her eyes. “Julia Bell! It’s been a long time. When Clary said that you were going to be back in town to be her maid of honor, I almost didn’t believe her.”
Maid of honor. The weight of the title crashed down on Julia’s head. She hadn’t really thought about it before that moment, but it carried with it a host of duties and responsibilities. She cringed as she realized how selfish that thought was. She decided to stay in town for Clary, and less than twenty-four hours later she was already just thinking about herself.
The most important thing that Clary had asked her to do was not react to other people’s snide comments or actions. At the time Clary asked, when the two of them were doing the dishes the night before, Julia had still been too shell-shocked to think about how to do that. Now after Meg’s comments the night before, Sarah’s possessiveness of Ben, and Ms. Bautner’s reaction to her presence, Julia thought that it was going to be a much harder request to follow through on than she anticipated.
She took the dress from Ms. Bautner’s hands. “It’s nice to see you too, Ms. Bautner. Let’s get this show on the road, shall we? My sister has a schedule to keep. Where’s the dressing room?”
Julia caught Clary’s look of relief as she followed Ms. Bautner’s directions to the back of the store. Inside the dressing room, she took a calming breath. It was a small town and folks seemed more inclined to let their opinions fly whenever they felt it was necessary. She could be the bigger person for Clary’s sake.
Julia undressed and slid the bridesmaid dress over her head. It was strapless, and the A-line skirt skimmed her hips as it fell to the floor. A wide sash cinched her small waist and boosted her cleavage. With her red locks of hair cascading around her shoulders, she thought that the color actually looked nice against her fair skin. Clary had been kind in her choice of style, and there was a good chance that Ben would swallow his tongue when he saw her in it. That thought pleased her.
She made her way back to the front of the store and stepped up on the small stage as directed by Ms. Bautner. Clary sank onto a small couch next to the stage as Ms. Bautner began sticking pins into the dress for the minimal amount of alterations that were needed. Although Julia faced a bank of mirrors, she could see Clary behind her rubbing her stomach and grimacing. She looked back over her shoulder.
“How are you feeling, Clare Bear?”
Clary immediately stopped her rubbing and looked like she had just been caught doing something wrong. “I’m fine. I just feel a little tired.”
Julia thought that was strange since her sister had gone to bed so early the night before, but she had no idea what it was like to carry a baby, so she had no experience to judge. “I’ve heard pregnancy can really take a toll on your body,” she said.
“I’ve been lucky so far. No morning sickness or anything,” Clary said.
“How far along are you now, Clary?” Ms. Bautner asked. “You’ve barely begun to show.”
“Fifteen weeks,” Clary said. “We get to find out at my next doctor’s appointment whether it’s a boy or girl.”
“What are you hoping for? I bet Mike wants a boy,” Ms. Bautner said. “Men always want a boy for their first born.”
Julia felt like an outsider to the conversation. Coming back to Benton Hill, she didn’t expect to find her sister having life experiences like getting married and having a baby before she did. She was the older sister, and for some reason she thought that meant she’d be entitled to have every experience first. Clary was delivering a one-two punch into that idea. Plus even though Ben filled her thoughts, it felt strange to think about Mike being the father of her future niece or nephew. He had always been good with Cole, so she thought that he would probably make a good father.
“I don’t care if it’s a boy or a girl,” Clary said. “As long as the baby is healthy, that’s all that matters to me.” Clary shifted in her seat, and Julia thought she looked uncomfortable with the conversation. She didn’t know if it was because she was afraid of Julia’s reaction or if there was something else bothering her.
“That’s very wise of you,” Ms. Bautner said. “Why don’t you go put on your dress? It’s already hanging in room two for you. I’ll be ready for you in just a few minutes. You were right about this one for your sister. Of course, I think she could wear a potato sack and look absolutely lovely in it. She has one of those figures.”
Julia felt uncomfortable with the unwanted compliments. She looked at Clary in the mirror, but her sister appeared deep in thought as she moved toward the dressing room.
“That girl is a saint,” Ms. Bautner muttered under her breath.
“What?” Julia asked.
Ms. Bautner looked surprised and then flushed. “Oh, it’s nothing.”
Julia turned around forcing Ms. Bautner to let go of her hem. “Why is my sister a saint?”
Looking toward the back of the store, Ms. Bautner seemed to be weighing her words. “I shouldn’t even say anything. It’s just the rumors that I’ve heard. That’s all. I’m sure it’s nothing.”
“Rumors about what?” Julia said, feeling her stomach start to churn. What did the town know? Every rumor had a kernel of truth in it.
Fussing at Julia’s hem again, Ms. Bautner stuck one more pin in and then stood. “About Mike’s indiscretions,” she whispered. “Everybody knows. Even Clary I’d wager.”
“No way. Clary would never put up with that,” Julia scowled. “Somebody is talking out of turn.”
Ms. Bautner shrugged. “If it had been only once, I might agree with you, dear. But it’s been more than that. And now with a baby coming…”
She straightened as she heard the rustle coming from the back of the store. Julia couldn’t believe it. Surely it was all a bunch of lies. Then Clary appeared around the corner, and for a moment Julia forgot about everything else.
It was as if her sister floated on a small pond of liquid silk. The bottom tapered up to hug her legs and even though her sister was fifteen weeks pregnant, Julia thought that the way that the fabric accentuated the slight rounding of her stomach was lovely. The fitted bust had a lace overlay that continued over her chest and around her neck.
Julia stepped off the platform in wonderment. “Clary, you look so beautiful.”
Clary stepped up into the spot that Julia had just vacated and looked at herself from every angle before responding. “You don’t think it’s inappropriate? Given the fact that I’m knocked up and all?”
“You look perfect,” Julia said. “It’s not anything you have to hide or be ashamed of.” Even as she said the words, Julia knew that she would like be in the minority with that opinion, and she found that she once again hated the small town mindedness that was so prevalent in Benton Hill.
She saw Ms. Bautner’s raised eyebrows and wanted to smack the woman. Ms. Bautner must have caught her murderous gaze because the older woman excused herself to go get more pins.
Clary smoothed the fabric over her stomach and hips. “It’s tighter than it was just a week ago.”
Julia shrugged. “You only need it to fit tomorrow.”
Clary bit her lower lips as she continued to switch her gaze from mirror to mirror. “Do you think Mike will like it? You don’t think he’ll be embarrassed, right?”
The mere mention of Mike’s name reminded Julia of what she had just heard. She wanted to track Mike down right that minute and kick his ass if there was even an ounce of truth in the town rumors. “Mike would be an idiot if he was embarrassed by that dress,” she replied, crossing her arms.
Clary caught her eyes in the mirror. “Jules, I know that th
is is still all very sudden for you, but please, try to get along with Mike this weekend, okay? I don’t want any drama.”
“Get along with Sarah. Get along with Mike. Anybody else to add to the list of people that you are afraid I’ll completely lose my shit on?” Julia asked sarcastically.
She saw Clary’s face crumble, and she immediately felt like the world’s biggest bitch. She shot up and climbed up on the small stage and pulled her sister into a big hug. “I didn’t mean it. Of course, I’ll be good, and I won’t do anything to ruin your day.”
Clary returned her hug with a ferociousness that surprised her. Julia squeezed her sister tight and then pulled away. “Anybody who tries to tell you there is anything wrong with you is a damn fool. Now stop with the sniffling. There’s no crying in wedding dresses before the wedding. It’s bad luck.”
A small laugh erupted from Clary’s mouth, and Julia was relieved.
“Thanks, Jules,” Clary said.
Ms. Bautner reappeared and started at seeing both of the sisters on the stage. “Off, off!” she shooed Julia. “If you put a tear in that train it’ll take me twice as long to fix it and we’re cutting it close as it is.”
Julia did as she was told, and then settled onto the loveseat to watch her sister’s fitting. She vowed to kill anyone who tried to make Clary feel as if she had done anything wrong. She had a feeling she might have her work cut out for her though over the next few days.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Ben pulled up outside his parents’ house and was relieved to see that only his parents and Maggie’s cars occupied the driveway. He thought that Everett might have shown up already to renew the argument that he should be allowed to see his kids.
The door opened revealing his nephew, Paul, who launched himself into Ben’s arms. “Uncle Ben! Mom didn’t tell us you were coming over. Can you play Xbox with me? Please?”