Squeezing her ass, Ben’s lips moved to her neck, each gentle lick and suck intensifying the ache in her panties. I want to feel his mouth everywhere…but what I did with Josh…will that be good enough for Ben? She gasped and Ben pulled back as if he sensed her uncertainty.
“We don’t have to…you know…” His tone was breathy and playful with a vulnerable sincerity that made Riley’s heart bolt into an even faster sprint. “We could just kiss…you’re an amazing kisser, Riles.”
Respect is such an aphrodisiac. “So are you. I could kiss you all night.” She claimed his mouth again and pressed into his hips, feeling him hard, thick, and eager. Ben wants ME! A giddy euphoria bubbled in her chest, enticing her not to hold back. “I—” A shuddering breath parted her lips as she played with this hair. “I want ALL of you, Benjamin Fagan.”
He burst into a smile. “You sure now?”
The words barely touched her lips. “More than anything.”
“Riley.” Eyes drunk with desire, he licked his lip. “You took the words out of my mouth.”
“Good, ’cause I want to leave you speechless.” Her hands fell to his belt, threading it open.
He laughed, his hands leaving her ass to skim underneath her sweater, the first time his fingertips had ventured beyond her clothes. Confident yet gentle, they left a path of heat in their wake as they traced upward, lifting her sweater higher over her bra and her shoulders.
Raising her arms toward the crisscrossed strings of lights, Riley smiled under the passing wool. I’ve wanted him so badly and it’s actually happening!
Her sweater’s departure left her hair wild and falling into her eyes, but Ben’s fingers tenderly swept it aside. “Beautiful Hope…I catch my breath every time I see you.” He pressed his lips against her jaw, leaving sweet, barely there kisses in a path towards her ear, his warm breath on her skin teasing the heavy ache throbbing between her thighs.
“Come with me.” Riley moaned and clasped his hand, leading him to the cozy rug keeping her loveseat company. Ben lowered himself to the floor, eyes not leaving her for a second as she pulled the throw onto the rug and reached into her toiletries box, turning around with a smile and a condom.
Entwined together under the soft glow of the glistening lights, they kissed and held each other, each sweep of a hand or tug of fingers removing his shirt, her skirt, his trousers, her tights…an intoxicating dance of rushed breaths and deep sighs, skin against skin pressing hot and tight.
Removing Riley’s bra, Ben filled his hands with her breasts, his touch not rough or grabby. Ben was tender. Taking her in his mouth, his tongue flirted, peaking her nipple. He’s goooood. Waves of pleasure rippled through her chest, pushing a sharp groan from her throat.
Worry clouded Ben’s eyes. “Did I hurt you?”
“Nooo, I like it!” She pressed smiling kisses along his chest, shifting lower and hooking her fingers into the band of his boxer briefs. Tugging them down his thighs, she paused, stunned. Ben…naked. My God, naked Ben. For real. ALL of him. All mine. She wrapped her fingers around him, his skin smooth and hard and warm, desperate for her touch. She feathered kisses over his abs and stroked him to the tip…and back…tentative at first until she found a rhythm and felt Ben’s hands dig into her hair.
Gasps escaped his lips. “Oh…!” Eyes fluttering closed, he pressed his head into the rug and groaned. “Ah, fuck…” His breath hitched again, tripping his words into gentle pleading. “Oh, keep doing…that…please…?” He moaned, moving against her hand. “Oh, fuck…Riley—no…wait—”
She released him and Ben pulled his underwear off, his hooded gaze holding a new purpose. Sitting up, he held Riley close, kissing her deeply before pulling back. “Will you show me what you like?”
A question? Not a demand. I’m not used to this… “I’ve fantasized about your mouth, your kisses…everywhere.” Riley peeled off her panties.
Ben followed their progress then met her eyes. “You’re not the only one.”
He lay down between her legs and kissed her thighs, his stubble tickling her tender skin as he moved slowly upward, his mouth open and hungry. “You’re perfect,” he whispered, his soft licks and gentle sucks teasing Riley toward the brink.
Oh God, he’s…! “Ben,” she panted. “I’d like…” To feel your weight over me, to grind against you… She motioned upward, fighting ragged breaths. “You inside me when I come.”
Ben answered without words, kissing up her stomach to her breasts then into her hair. Holding Riley in his arms, he moaned with bliss as her lips dragged along his neck to his collarbone and stars tattoo. They kissed and touched until their skin was damp with desperation and their racing hearts could take no more.
“Riley…?”
She smiled against his skin. “I want you so much.”
Ben leaned back and tore open the condom. Riley couldn’t pull her eyes away. Ben Fagan, you are otherworldly… Goose bumps prickled her chest. Whether it was the chill in the room, the absence of Ben’s warmth, or her growing excitement, Riley wasn’t sure. I want to know everything: the sounds you make, how long you last…will you hold me after?
Curling into him, Riley owned his neck with sucks and kisses, reveling in his warmth, the softness of his skin. I don’t have to pretend—not anymore. She broke out into a joyful giggle and Ben claimed her open mouth with his own, a smile lurking behind his kiss, both of them discovering how it felt to be wanted for all the right reasons. With a shift of his hips, he guided himself slowly inside her, gasps escaping both their lips.
Riley wrapped her legs around his waist and Ben moaned, his eyes fluttering closed as he sank in deep. He slowly began to move above her. “Riley, you feel…fucking amazing.”
She clawed at his back and arched into him, meeting each exquisite roll of his hips, urging with her body for him to go faster, harder. Ben complied, leaning down to brush his lips across her cheek, leaving a kiss, then another. The heat of his breath, the pleasurable groans accompanying each thrust, deep in and out…she grabbed his ass, his thighs—the need to tug him closer, to touch all of him, all-consuming. Riley had never felt so greedy, but she couldn’t rein herself in; there was something about Ben. Not only did he know how to please her, he was also attentive, considerate, giving—gasping through halting breaths that she could come first and he’d hold off until she did. Ben wasn’t in a race to the finish line.
Riley couldn’t get enough—or stay silent, crying out as Ben moved faster, deeper.
He opened his eyes, his heavy gaze landing on her mouth. “Riley, all right?” His words flew tight and quick.
She clutched his hips, frantic for more of him. A strangled “yeah” slipped through jagged breaths, the simplest of words evading her.
“Good.”
Chatty Ben is at a loss for words.
Groaning, his head fell back. His mouth tilted into a smile and his eyes, drowsy with want, curved into the happy-go-lucky crescents Riley adored. Her heart felt heavy with desire, watching him moving over her, feeling his weight, their connection, body and soul.
Riley had never asked him how many women he had been with, but did it matter? All she needed to know was in the way he held her, kissed her, saw her. Being with Ben felt…almost predestined, meant to be…written in the stars. You beautiful Brit boy—I adore you.
Their eyes locked, but Ben wasn’t smiling anymore, his tight breaths heating her cheek. Is he close? “Ben—?” The question sat on her tongue, the rest of her words an unintelligible moan. Her legs began to quiver and surging waves of pleasure, tingling hot and cold, grew stronger and stronger until they were too much. Pulled under, breaths shallow and halting…swept away. The stars overhead blurred into a hazy glow. She dug her nails into his hips. All she could do was hold on while letting go…
“Rye!” Ben groaned into a hitched breath and fisted the blanket, his body shuddering. He let out a final gasp and collapsed on top of her, hot and spent, both of them slick with perspiration. “Oh, wow,�
� he whispered into her neck. “Mind…blown.”
Unable to form a coherent response, Riley smiled and hugged him tight.
“Are you okay?” Ben shifted up onto his elbow, catching his breath. A grin spread across his face as he bent down, kissing her on the nose. “Was that okay?”
He’s still inside me, warm…throbbing. This couldn’t be more real. “Yes. Yes!” She smiled and cupped his face, brushing the hair from his eyes, so blue, so content.
“Gorgeous, Riley…you’re amazing.” Ben kissed her and reached down, holding the condom as he pulled out. He dropped it in the bin and grabbed the throw, draping it over Riley before diving under it with her. “I don’t think we’ll get much sleep tonight.” He wrapped himself around her, laying a kiss on her forehead.
“You promise?” Riley cuddled into his neck and thanked the lucky stars dangling overhead for making one wish come true.
Forty-Five
I can still feel his hands everywhere…hear the sounds he made…
Lying on her side, tangled with Ben in her twin bed, Riley watched him capture breaths and then gently set them free, each exhale from his lips faintly scented like mint toothpaste. He looks innocent, so peaceful. She had lost track of time, mesmerized by the occasional flutter of his dark eyelashes and the sleepy smiles that curved his mouth. His hair rebelled against the pillow, soft and messy. Bae-watch: my new favorite show.
The bright glow creeping around the edges of her curtain and the hush on the street below suggested that maybe it was six-thirty, seven o’clock at the latest, but Ben showed no hints of waking, holding her close even in slumber. We’re a human pretzel! Riley’s gaze happily strayed from his slightly parted lips to the sweep of dark hair on his chest, grown back from his short-lived stint as a stripper.
He was so lost on stage, fumbling and falling…nervous. Riley nuzzled into his chest and stifled her giggles, aware that the slightest shake could wake him up. He didn’t have performance anxiety last night…or this morning. Her eyes drifted down to his abs, where her hand lingered, entwined with his long fingers. Ben’s still holding my hand. He never let go.
Her attention shifted to the sheet and duvet bunched up near the bed’s edge then back to her right leg flung lazily over his thigh where he dug into her leg. Not all of Ben is asleep.
“Riley…?” A raspy whisper rustled her hair. “You awake?”
She tilted her head, meeting his eyes. “Yeah. I couldn’t sleep.”
“Aww.” A small yawn escaped his lips and he blinked like he had been lost to the world for days, not a few hours. “You should’ve woken me.”
And miss out on watching you sleep? Never. “You were down for the count.”
“Is it any wonder? You were insatiable…” Pulling her tight, his smile pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead. “And perfect.” He ducked below her jaw, leaving wet, openmouthed kisses along her neck. “So…” The little word hung in the air, cheeky yet heated. To underline its meaning, Ben released her hand and cupped her breast, his thumb lovingly circling her nipple, coaxing it to harden. “Riley?”
“Ben?” She inhaled sharply, goose bumps rising on her skin.
“Wanna go again?” His tongue slipped into the sensitive spot above her collarbone and Riley gasped, his lips sucking, teeth gently biting as he pressed into her.
I’m insatiable? He could drill a hole in the wall, he’s so hard. “Yeah!” She quivered, an ache waking between her thighs. Her mind scrambled to form words before they floated away like a soapy bubble on a sunny day. “B-But…we need to talk…”
The kisses stopped and he lifted his head, the twin bed offering nowhere to hide. “Yeah.” He sighed. “We do.” He rubbed his eyes and sat up, pulling the sheet and duvet over them. Lying down again, he propped himself up on an elbow, ready to listen.
“I’ve been thinking and…I can’t be mad at you for…” She swallowed. “You were single, I was engaged. I had no claim on you. I barely knew you.”
Ben nodded, in no rush to jump in.
“But once we became friends and you found out I knew Leia, you should’ve told me. Last night was a shock. It was so…public.”
“I know, and I’m so sorry. I hate that I embarrassed you like that.” He scrunched his eyes. “And TV people were there…”
“They don’t know me, they won’t remember me. But Erika and her friends…I hate being gossiped about.” She twisted her mouth. “It hurt, Ben, finding out like that. We talked about Leia at the diner, the night of the bachelorette, and you didn’t say anything.”
“I thought about it, but you said that you weren’t close friends and…we were getting along so well, making pinky promises, talking dyslexia—stealing spoons…” A grin flirted with his lips and then disappeared. “I was afraid if I said something, you wouldn’t want anything to do with me. I didn’t want you to think I was some…” He exhaled heavily. “Fuckboy wanker.” Glancing down, his eyelashes beat slowly. “You called me a fuckboy in Times Square, but…I get it. I haven’t really done anything to make you think otherwise, but after last night, after the last few weeks”—he met her eyes—“I hope you’ll revise your opinion of me. Last night wasn’t just sex, Riley. Not for me.”
“It wasn’t for me either.” She rolled closer, tracing her finger along his bottom lip. He covered her hand in his and kissed her fingers softly. “I have a confession.”
“Yeah?” He kissed her hand again and lowered it to his chest, holding it tight. “That I’m the best lover you’ve ever had, right?”
You are! “Maybe.” Nose to nose, she blushed. “I’ve liked you since that night you stayed over.”
“Ooh, well, it was my dedication to oral hygiene that hooked ya, wasn’t it? Or…my exemplary toast-making skills?”
Riley played with a tuft of hair sticking up at his temple. “Any guy who wears Santa socks, loves peanut butter like I do, and well, listens.”
Ben began a flurry of tiny kisses around her lips. She shifted closer, her mouth demanding something deeper. Cupping her face, Ben willfully gave in and melted into her. He pulled back slowly, a cheeky smile still close enough to kiss.
“You like me, eh?” He raised an eyebrow. “Birthday wishes DO come true.”
“What was the other wish? You had two.”
“Actually, it hasn’t come true yet, so…” He mimicked zipping his lips and burst into a grin. “Riles, I’ve never met anyone like you.”
“In a good way, right?”
“Yeah, in a good way. I fancied you from the minute I saw you, but getting to know you, watching you help people, help me?” He kissed her nose and hovered over her lips. “That did me in. I was a goner. You’re beautiful inside and out.”
“So, why the big friend speech at the diner?”
“I felt like I had to draw a line because you loved Josh—or I thought you did. I would’ve eaten my words if I’d known about your breakup. Why didn’t you stop me and tell me you were single?”
“You kinda sold the whole friends thing like a done deal. I thought if I said something, I’d just embarrass myself. I know what it’s like when someone likes you and you don’t feel the same way. It happened to me in high school and ruined the friendship. I didn’t want to ruin our friendship.” Her fingers stroked his hip.
He exhaled a heavy breath. “You know, the minute you told me about dumping him, I had to fight the urge to grab you for a kiss right there! But—and now this feels stupid—I didn’t know if you were into me. Then once we were up on that rock and I found out about your mom, it didn’t seem right to crack on to you. I reckoned you needed a friend more than…well, this”—he waved his hand back and forth—“especially with everything you had going on. I almost kissed you on my birthday, but…” He shrugged. “I panicked. Then, I kicked myself for letting the moment go. I hoped if you did like me, you’d find a way to tell me, and lucky for me, you did!”
How ’bout a reminder? Riley’s hand slid off his hip to where he waited, hard and r
eady.
“Oh, yes…please.” He growled as she kissed his neck. “Keep telling me, again and again.” His eyes fluttered closed and his mouth covered Riley’s, kissing her deeply.
CLICK! The door flung open.
They broke apart and Ben yanked the covers up to their necks.
“Rye, your phone’s off, so I got breakfast burritos—” Piper spotted Ben’s green and red candy cane socks on the floor and her eyes shot to the bed. “Holy FUCK!” She burst out in a bellyaching laugh, spitting out her gum. “Christmas came and…so did you!”
“Pip!” Riley hid her reddening face in Ben’s neck. “Why are you back so early?”
“Hiya, Pip.” Ben raised a sheepish hand.
“Cicely’s grandma took her for brunch—she’s trying to see Cice as much as she can before she leaves for London. Her grandmother’s vegan so—yuck. Besides, I didn’t think this”—her eyes scanned the discarded mess of clothes, the condom wrappers, and the balled-up throw on the floor—“would be going down!”
“I hope you bought enough for three.” Ben smirked.
“Jeez, it’s about fucking time, you guys!” Piper dumped the takeout bag on the floor and climbed the ladder, ducking around the strings of fairy lights to raise her hand for two embarrassed high fives.
Forty-Six
Two weeks later
Summer had taken New York City by the throat, and the second Friday in July was a t-shirt-soaking scorcher. Heat radiated off the pavement, everyone moved slower, and overworked air conditioners groaned across the city, their fight against the relentless humidity a losing battle.
LaGuardia Place in Greenwich Village sizzled in the early afternoon sun, but Ben and Riley had found one of the few shaded spots—a bench underneath the bubblegum pink awning of DŌ. They sat thigh to thigh, devouring their treats—a loaded brownie bar for Ben and a single scoop of Nuts for Nuts cookie dough jammed with Reese’s Cups and Pieces for Riley.
Until The Last Star Fades Page 27