She’d laughed, yawned then fell back to sleep.
And he couldn’t do it. He couldn’t hurt her by leaving her bed to sleep on the floor. No. Because she was a friend—a good friend—there was no way he would’ve hurt her like that. The impersonal act would’ve been a slap in the face to the woman he’d known most of his life. If he’d ever found out a guy had done that to her, he would’ve kicked the sorry-sonofabitch’s ass. Since it was his ass that would’ve needed kicking, he stayed right there in her arms.
Besides, he really couldn’t feel his legs. Ben had never been so relaxed, so spent, so completely satisfied in his whole life. She had been incredible. All three times. Jesus, he couldn’t believe they’d had sex three times in three hours.
The woman was trying to kill him.
Not really. He knew she’d acted on impulse like he had, which led to an incredible night. The first time, the sex against the wall hadn’t been just for her. Sure, he’d wanted to fulfill her request from the previous night, but it had also been for him. No way in hell could he have waited to carry her to the bed. After having his mouth on her, and she gave herself over to him so completely and without question, he couldn’t get enough of her taste, couldn’t back off. He had to lap up every bit of her. She was exquisite. She’d also had him wound so tight he’d been ready to burst if she even looked at him the right way. Yeah, the bed was never a contender that first time.
Or the second.
They’d made it to the shower and put the built-in seat to good use. Excellent use. A smile tugged his lips and body heated at the thought. The image of her all wet and slick, head thrown back, gorgeous breasts bouncing as she straddle him would be forever imprinted on his brain.
God, she’d been great. Too great. The last time nearly did kill him. He’d asked her to put on the blue corset thing so he could show her properly how much he loved it. Try to make up for being such an ass the night before. Just remembering how damn sexy Lea had looked in the silky thing with all her mouth-watering curves spilling out sent heat skittering down his body to stiffen his groin. A true vision. A vision he’d wanted on the bed, sprawled out where he could devour every delectable inch. And he had. But he hadn’t expected the same treatment. The woman was full of surprises. She’d flipped him onto his back and licked and touched and tasted every damn inch of him. Without mercy.
It had been incredible.
Too bad it had to end.
But it did.
The weekend was just about over.
“What are you smiling about?” she asked. “Me, I hope.”
He held back a snort. Yeah, her and that damn corset. Not something she needed to know. Especially since their time was up.
“Yes. I wanted to thank you for all your help with Mrs. Dankirk. Other than one time, she hadn’t bothered me all weekend.”
Some of the sparkle left Lea’s gaze. Ben’s gut tightened, but he ignored it. It had to be done. It was for her own good. They had no future.
“Good, I’m glad I could help.”
“You did.” He tried to formulate the words that would be the least hurtful. Ah hell, this was why he didn’t want to give into his need. “Look, about what happened—”
“Hey, don’t worry about it,” she rushed to say, soft hand on his arm as she tipped her head and winked. “It’s all good. I Wyne’d. I dined. But the weekend is over, and so is our foray.”
He pulled up outside her father’s house and parked, shock stunning him silent. Yeah, she was full of surprises. Here he was trying to come up with a way to let the woman down gently when she did the letting down.
“Don’t look so shocked. We agreed to one weekend, and we had our weekend.” Still smiling, she patted his arm. “And don’t worry. I’ll still respect you.”
He laughed at that one. She was something else. “Thank goodness for that. I was concerned.”
“I thought so.” She grinned and made to remove her hand.
He grabbed it and squeezed. “Seriously, Lea. Thank you, and not just for Mrs. Dankirk, but for one hell of a memorable weekend.”
If what Brandi had told him was true, then Lea had wanted to sleep with him for a while now. He just hoped he hadn’t disappointed. Sometimes living up to one’s expectations were impossible. No one knew that better than him.
He also didn’t know if he’d lived up. And apparently, she wasn’t going to give him any clues, either.
“Right back at you, Ben.”
Okay. Maybe a crumb.
Her blue gaze was frank and friendly. God, he could get lost in them. Thoughts like that sent a red flag to his brain. Same went for the urge that rushed through him to lean in and kiss her lush lips.
He gave himself a mental shake and lifted her hand to kiss her fingers instead. “Thanks again.”
“Right back at you, Ben,” she repeated, then tugged free to reach for her overnight bag on the floor.
“Wait, I’ll get it for you,” he said, making to take the small bag from her, but she brushed his hand aside and smiled.
“Don’t be silly. I’ve got it.”
And before he could argue further, or walk her to her door as he’d intended, the damn woman exited the truck and was halfway to her porch in a matter of seconds.
He knew he’d hit pay dirt. He really did know. Relief was the customary emotion a guy experienced who had just been let off the hook from what could’ve been a very messy situation.
As he drove away from the woman who had rocked his world the whole weekend, the woman who didn’t even look back as she entered her house, Ben refused to label the tightness in his chest and the rippling in his gut as anything other than relief.
Even though he knew it was far from it.
Lea’s Monday went by like every other Monday. Busy, fast and boring. Although, this one had another verb.
Avoided.
Ben never showed up for breakfast as usual that morning. His brothers, Mason and Keiffer, were right on time, but no Ben.
Dammit.
She was to blame. She knew it.
The very thing she’d tried so hard to avoid was happening. The man of her dreams had slept with her, and now he was avoiding her. To say it didn’t hurt would be a lie. A big. Fat. Lie
By the time she was getting ready to go home after the supper rush, and he still hadn’t made an appearance, Lea kept her gaze fixed on the armory across the street. Maybe he hadn’t gone to work that day. Or maybe he was visiting another armory, or down Ft. Indiantown Gap. That could explain his absence. But when that unmistakable smile, broad shoulders and familiar swagger came into view as he walked with another soldier to the parking lot, her hurt had turned to disappointment, then anger.
What the hell was his problem? She’d made it clear she had no hold on him. Wanted nothing from him other than for them to carry on as normal. And normal did not include avoidance. Dammit.
Her worst nightmare.
She was still fuming when Brandi sent her a text later that night as she was getting ready for bed. An invitation to Skype.
Shoot. She’d forgotten she’d promised to talk to her friend tonight about her weekend.
Until today, Lea had been prepared to discuss the wonderful night in Ben’s bed. Now, she was too ticked off. Still, it was no reason to act like him. Nope. She wasn’t going to ignore his sister because of his actions.
So, she booted up the laptop, settled in her seat, pasted what she hoped was a passable smile on her face, then opened the conversation.
“Tell us what happened,” Brandi demanded, while three eager faces nodded in the background.
Kerri moved closer. “Did the negligee work?”
“Of course it did.” Jordan smirked.
Shayla smiled. “Come on, spill.”
Ah, hell. She should’ve ignored the text.
“Uh oh. What did my brother do?”
“Or not do?”
Four faces leaned closer to the monitor, gazes alert and out for blood.
“M
y brother is an idiot,” Brandi scoffed, along with a few colorful words Lea hadn’t known her friend even knew. “Do I need to get Ethan or Mason or Keiffer on him?”
“No.” She laughed, a true laugh. “It’s not like that.”
“Oh.” A collective sigh of relief hit her ears.
Except for Jordan. She still sat straight up, gaze intent. “Then what’s it like?”
Now she understood why her friend called the woman a watch dog. She must be one hell of a sheriff.
“Did you at least get a kiss out of him?” the pretty chef asked with a grin, brushing back her straight bangs a few shades darker than her eyes.
Lea smiled. “Oh yeah. Several.” A delicious warmth rushed through her body, and she sighed. “Damn, Brandi. Your brother can kiss. My brain cells were in danger every time our lips met.”
“I still have that trouble with Connor.” Kerri’s face turned a pretty shade of pink.
“Cole.” Jordan nodded, mouth curving upward.
Brandi nodded, too. “Kade knocks me for a loop every dang time.”
“Yeah.” Shayla frowned. “I swear Kevin patented some kind of invisible device, because mine go missing whenever we kiss. Damn man has enough brain cells, he doesn’t need mine, too.”
“Glad to hear I’m not the only one who gets wonky.” Somehow, hearing them confess made her feel a little better about her weakness.
“So, what about the negligee?” Jordan prompted.
“Well, I waited until Friday night to put it on—which was absolutely gorgeous by the way—and he’d given me enough signs and unnecessary caresses for me to assume he was interested in taking it further.”
“Oh, wow.” Shayla’s gaze narrowed. “Are you saying he wasn’t?”
Lea snorted. “I’m saying he took one look at me, then turned around and left the room.”
“Oh. He. Didn’t,” Kerri hissed between the fingers she’d slapped on her face.
“I’m gonna kill my brother,” Brandi growled, eyes dark with concern as she moved closer to the screen. “Are you okay? I’m sorry, hun. He is so stubborn sometimes. Believe me, he was interested. That’s why he left.”
“I know.”
“You do?”
“Yeah, he told me a little while later when he apologized.”
“Oh, so is that when he got you naked?”
Lea laughed. “No. We didn’t do anything that night.”
Jordan sat back, big grin once again on her face. “So then, how did Saturday night go?”
“Much better,” Lea replied. “I’d decided to play it cool all day, only pretended to be his girlfriend when Mrs. Dankirk was around, otherwise, I slipped back into friend mode.”
“Oh my God. You’re good,” Kerri stated.
Shayla nodded, her red hair rippling with the movement.
“I bet that drove him nuts.” Brandi slapped the table and laughed.
Jordan nodded, too. “Very smart.”
“Whether it was or not, something worked, because that night, I was coming out of the bathroom as he walked into the room…and headed straight for me. Before I knew it, he had me against the wall and completely turned on.”
Kerri fanned herself while all four women wore matching grins.
“I hope my brother gave you your against-the-wall sex.”
“Yes,” she replied. “And then some.”
Whistles and claps echoed through her room, and she was thankful her dad was downstairs. This was not a conversation she’d want to explain to her father. In fact, she couldn’t believe she was having it. She wasn’t usually the kiss-‘n’-tell kind of gal.
“Please elaborate, without getting into too much detail, because although I love you and am so happy you’ve finally scratched an itch you’ve wanted scratched for years, it was with my brother, and I’d prefer not to get too personal.”
“Then go into the kitchen so we can get the goods,” one of the girls said.
Lea chuckled. “There’s not much else to tell, other than it was fantastic. But it’s over and time to move on.”
“Whoa. Wait. Over?”
“Why is it over?”
“Yeah, if it was that good and you’ve wanted it for that long, why walk away?”
She shrugged. “Because Ben doesn’t do relationships.”
Her four friends blinked at her a second before they burst into laughter. She had no idea what was so funny. Lea glanced behind her to see if something hilarious was going on in the room. Nope. Just her spilling her guts. “I wish someone would let me in on the joke, because it isn’t funny where I’m sitting.”
“That’s because you’re as clueless as him,” Brandi said. “But don’t worry. You’ll catch on.”
She set her elbow on the desk and chin in her hand. “Then a little help would be much appreciated right now girls, because I’ve got nothing.”
“Let me guess,” Jordan spoke up. “You haven’t heard from him today.”
Lea straightened. “No, I haven’t. Not that I expected a call or anything, but he’s gone off his routine.”
“He didn’t show up at the restaurant for breakfast?” Brandi asked, and when Lea nodded, her friend frowned. “That idiot. He’ll learn he can’t outrun his heart.”
“Whoa, wait, when did his heart get involved?” She blinked at them. “I didn’t do anything to compromise the guy in that way. It was just sex. Okay, incredible, hot sex, but I never expected promises or picket fences and told him as much. Just the weekend.”
“But you wanted more,” Kerri said.
“Well, yeah, of course,” she replied, but didn’t tell them it was also the reason she accidentally-on-purpose shoved her negligee into his duffle bag. No way was she going to let him forget their night that quick.
“You’ll get more,” the beautiful, smart and—God she hoped—insightful sheriff told her, gaze once again serious and direct. “The very fact he couldn’t face you today shows his heart is more involved than he’d like.”
“True.” The redhead nodded. “After our first time, well, our time in Houston, Kevin tried to avoid me, but within that first week, he showed up at my door and did that pressing against the wall thing you’d mentioned.”
Lea’s heart leapt at that admission. “Really?”
Shayla nodded again.
“And Connor couldn’t stay away, even though we’d both agreed to be friends with benefits, it turned into something more real fast.”
“Yeah, even Kade tried to stay away, but somehow he knew I needed him, and he came anyway. The man always knows when I need him.”
Her friend smiled such a satisfied smile it took Lea’s breath away.
“I’m glad for you all. Really I am, but Ben and I agreed to just the weekend. We don’t want to jeopardize our friendship.”
“It’s already in jeopardy, isn’t it?” Jordan asked quietly.
Damn, the woman was good. “Yes,” she replied with a sigh. “So, what do you all suggest I do?”
Chapter Six
“Nothing.” The sheriff shook her head. “He’ll come to you.”
“Yes, he knows right where you’ll be, so mark my words, hun,” Brandi said. “My idiot brother will show up at the diner sometime this week. He won’t be able to stop himself.”
“Amen.” Shayla smiled. “Sometimes the southern head has more pull than the one on their shoulders.”
“True,” Kerri agreed, a blush infusing her pretty face again. “And maybe you should consider suggesting the friends-with-benefits thing.”
“I don’t know.” She shook her head and sighed again. “He kind of has a woman named Charisse he sees when the need arises.” Her stomach knotted just thinking of the man with another woman. The sexy, talented man who’d given her multiple orgasms.
Shayla’s red hair bobbed closer to the screen as the woman leaned in. “Do you want more nights like last night?”
Magic? Hell… “Yeah.” She nodded.
“Then make the suggestion. Trust me.
After last night, Charisse is in his past.”
“Really?”
“Oh yes,” Kerri spoke up. “Considering the way he’s already acting. You’re under his skin.”
“Okay, but I’m going to be going back to New York City in a few weeks, and he hates the city.”
“Look, you’re both smart. If anyone can figure things out, you two can,” Brandi said. “Just don’t worry about that right now. Enjoy yourself. You deserve it.”
“Thanks, Brandi.”
The idea of enjoying Ben a few more weeks until she left the Poconos for NYC made her smile. Of course, if the man kept avoiding her, that was going to be a real problem.
“And don’t worry about seeing him,” the all-knowing sheriff said.
Apparently the woman could also read minds. Must drive the bad guys nuts.
“It’s like they said, he’ll show up soon.”
Shayla shook a finger at her. “And when he does, don’t let him off the hook too easily.”
“Yeah.” Kerri folded her arms across her chest. “Make him beg.”
“I couldn’t do that. He already…” She closed her mouth, having revealed more than she’d meant.
“Ooh, no you don’t. Clarify, woman.” Jordan leaned closer to the screen and gave her the death glare. “He already, what? Begged?”
“You have to tell us now, Lea,” Brandi stated, gaze alight with joy. “When did Ben beg? He’s never done that, ever. So you have to tell me what happened to cause my brother to lose control.”
Lose control? Is that what had happened to make him ask—practically plead—with her to don the negligee Saturday night?
She hadn’t wanted to, was perfectly happy being naked and ready for round three, but the heated look in his eyes told her it would be worth the effort, so she had. And damn…it had been worth it. Her good parts tingled just remembering the special attention he’d paid them.
“Oh, wow.” Brandi blinked. “More up against the wall sex?”
“No.” A grin tugged her lips hard. “This involved him persuading me to put the negligee on so he could make up for walking out the night before.”
“Yeehaw!”
“Sweet!”
“Then he definitely made up for it if that satisfied expression is anything to go by.”
Wyne and Dine (Citizen Soldier Series Book 1) Page 9