Benson Siblings Series: A Dark Romance Boxset

by Sarah Bailey

  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Crossing my arms over my chest, I levelled him with a stare which would make a lesser man blanch. No such luck with Dante. I didn’t scare him. Some days I wish I did. It’d be easier to get my way if that was the case. I couldn’t wind my older brother around my little finger the way I sometimes managed to with James. He was too nice and affable to deny me or Fi many things. Dante just told me where to go if I annoyed him too much.

  “Excuse me?”

  “You heard me.”

  “Why me? I don’t even deal with distribution or clients. That’s James and Fi’s thing.”

  He shook his head.

  “I’m giving you this because it’s important. You know very well I’m taking a step back when the baby comes.”

  He’d discussed this with us a few times now. How he wanted the three of us to take more responsibilities on so the transition would be smooth. I had no idea how long he was planning to be away from work after Liora gave birth.

  “But I hate him, Dante.”

  “You’re basing your judgement off how he was in school. Besides, you say you hate a lot of people.”

  Was that a dig at me regarding my attitude towards Brent? Why the hell is he in my head again? This day was turning into the worst ever.

  “Because I do!”

  “This is business, Jen. Deal with it. I expect you to behave yourself and act like a professional.”

  I knew he was right. If this helped the company, then I’d have to do it. Didn’t mean I liked it. Max gave me the creeps. There was something off about him. He was too perfect. Too charming. Too well rehearsed. I didn’t trust anyone who was good on paper and had no discernible flaws in person.

  And maybe a small part of me is being a brat to Dante because I slept with his best friend.

  I told my brain to shove it. I couldn’t deal with shit like that. If Dante found out about it, I’m sure he’d be pissed as hell. Whether it would be directed at me or Brent, I had no idea. Probably both of us. It wasn’t like I’d gone to see Brent with the explicit purpose of getting naked with him. Hell, it had been the last thing on my mind that night. It just happened. And now I regretted every moment of it.

  But do you? Do you really regret how good it felt to be held by him, kissed by him, touched by him?

  Ugh, of course I regret it, how could I not?

  “Okay, fine. I’ll work with him, but I’m telling you right now, if he starts shit with me, I will fuck him up.”

  Guess this meant I would have to go to dinner with stupid Max Graves tomorrow. God, I really couldn’t take any more bad news today.

  Dante shook his head and rolled his eyes again.

  “Noted.”

  He knew very well I wasn’t kidding. Max better watch himself.

  I turned to leave but was stopped short of walking out by my brother’s voice.

  “Liora isn’t feeling very well so Brent’s going to help you move your stuff later.”

  I stiffened. The prospect of spending any time with Brent let alone being alone with him again in my flat filled me with nervous anticipation. Not what I needed. This really was the day from hell.

  “And he’s okay with that?”

  “Yes. I know you don’t like him but I need to stay at home with Liora.”

  I couldn’t exactly complain since Liora was pregnant and his wife so it’s not like I took precedent. Still, did it have to be Brent? And why had he said yes? Did he want to see me? He hadn’t seemed to want anything to do with me after that night. Though I suppose I hadn’t exactly given him a chance to talk to me or anything.

  To be quite honest, I was embarrassed. He’d seen me naked and been inside me. He’d had me begging for him. I never begged. Ever. I’d been wrong when I’d bet Fi he’d be bad in bed. He was good. So, so fucking good. It’s like he knew exactly how to play my body and I’d revelled in every moment of it. I’d wanted more, going so far as to have him a second time that night.

  That bloody fucking night. Why? Why did I have to go there? With him of all people! I let him fuck me bare for crying out loud. Twice. Not just that, but I’d asked for it. Asked him not to use a condom.

  What the hell is wrong with me?

  The thing is, I trusted him even though I hated him. Brent wasn’t like other guys. He’d been in my life for twelve years. He knew me. Had seen me break down on numerous occasions. Even though we gave each other shit, he never crossed a line with me. Until that night. Now the line was so far behind us, neither of us could see it any longer. And a huge part of me knew the reason he hadn’t spoken to me about it had everything to do with that line and me being Dante’s sister.

  “Is he going to meet me there?”

  “He is.”

  “Fine, but you owe me for all of this, Dante. Max and Brent.”

  I glanced at him over my shoulder and found him scowling.

  “What more do you want? You’re already going to be living in my house, rent free I might add.”

  I grinned and fluttered my eyelashes at him.

  “I’m your little sister, you’re supposed to look after me. Isn’t that what big brothers do?”

  His scowl deepened. I knew pushing his buttons wasn’t a wise idea. Dante had been on edge ever since he found out he was going to be a dad. He shouldn’t worry so much. Him and Liora were going to make great parents. And I for one couldn’t wait to meet my nephew.

  “If you don’t stop being a brat, then I might rethink my offer to let you stay at the house.”

  “You wouldn’t!”

  “Get out, Jen.”

  I blew him a kiss over my shoulder before walking out. He’d never go through with that threat. Regardless of what Dante said, he always took care of us. My overly protective older brother couldn’t help it. Family meant everything to him. Keeping us safe and happy had become his top priority since Dad went to prison.

  When I got back to my desk, I dropped my head onto it, groaning. I didn’t want to spend time with Brent tonight. Not when all I’d been able to think about today was how much I wanted a repeat of that night.

  Idiot. Stupid fucking idiot.

  I was not going to sleep with Brent again.

  No matter what happened, that was a bad idea and I was done making stupid mistakes. Therapy had taught me a lot. Not least of all that I had to take control of my life and stop allowing the past to ruin my future. So yeah, I’d gone back to seeing Jensen weekly. And yes, I no longer referred to him as Doctor Andrews unless I happened to be in session. I couldn’t stay mad at him and Fi forever. Finishing my treatment was more important.

  He didn’t know about Brent. I didn’t trust anyone with that piece of information. Not even Fi. I would tell her soon. When I’d worked out what the hell was even going on between Brent and me.

  I had to stop thinking about him and get on with some work. Shoving aside all of my concerns, I raised my head off my desk and turned back to my computer. This issue with the designer couldn’t wait. The situation with Brent, however, could. It could damn well wait until this evening when I saw him and I could talk to him about that night which changed everything between us forever.

  Chapter Four

  Brent

  To say I was apprehensive about being alone again with Jen was an understatement. I’d managed to stay well away from her for two and a half months. Yet now she’d be in the same house as me. Tempting me with her curves and sharp tongue. I wasn’t happy with Liora and Dante for agreeing to let her move back in. I understood why she didn’t like being alone in her flat since Fi had moved in with her boyfriend, but it was safer for me when she wasn’t around.

  I parked up and got out of the car, huffing out a breath as I walked towards Jen’s building. Getting roped into helping her move her stuff was not my idea of a fun evening. The only reason I’d agreed was because of how pale Liora had been looking all day. I knew she needed Dante.

  The doctor had been and
gone, telling her everything was fine with the baby, but she needed to rest. I was pretty sure Dante was on the verge of telling her she had to quit work. He didn’t want anything happening to his wife or the baby. That conversation would not go down well with Liora no matter how much she knew he was right about her needing to take it easy. A pregnant Liora was a force to be reckoned with. Almost on a par with Jen and her sharp claws.

  I let myself in the front door with the keys Dante had given me and rode up in the lift. There was absolutely no way in hell I was entertaining a conversation about what happened between us that night she’d arrived crying on my doorstep. As far as I was concerned, it was a subject we should never broach. The implications and consequences weren’t worth discussing. It happened. That was it. It wouldn’t happen again. I might be in love with Jen, but the risk to my friendship with Dante was too great. He trusted me with his sisters and had done so for the past twelve years. If he had any inclination I thought of them as anything but part of my family, then he wouldn’t have allowed me near them.

  I mean that’s what the Bensons were to me. Family. I’d been with them long enough to become an important part of their little clan. Yes, I had my own family, but they were a pain in the arse. Especially my damn sister and her brood of kids from three different fathers. Honestly, I dreaded her phone calls. They always ended up with me running to fix her problems. Cam didn’t care I had a life outside of her. Thankfully Dante understood, but anyone else might think I was taking the piss.

  I unlocked Jen’s front door and walked in. I’d been in the twin’s flat a number of times over the years so I knew my way around. Searching through the rooms, I found Jen in her bedroom bent over a box.

  Well fuck.

  Her pert little arse was sticking up clad in skin tight jeans. My dick wasn’t listening to my head as I told him to settle down. It took a long moment for me to do anything but stare at her.

  I cleared my throat and she popped her head up, looking over at me from her shoulder. She straightened the next moment, twin spots of red appearing on her cheeks.

  “Oh, it’s you.”

  Her words dripped with distain. Something I’d always come to expect from her, but this time it stung far more than it should’ve. My heart fractured. Why the hell did I think I’d be okay with going back to the way things were before we’d had sex? I wasn’t. Not at all.

  The full force of the memory of the way she’d clung to me, begged me not to stop whilst I was deep inside her tight heat slammed into my chest. Locking down those thoughts and feelings took a considerable effort on my part, but I steeled myself against the tidal wave. Dwelling on it wouldn’t help anyone. This situation just plain sucked and it was my fault for letting it happen.

  “You knew I was coming to help you.”

  “Doesn’t mean I have to like it,” she muttered, turning away from me again.

  I fought against the urge to retaliate. Jen might still think she hated me, but I knew the truth. She liked what we did a great deal more than she’d ever willingly admit. If she hadn’t initiated the second time in the middle of the night, I might have completely written it off as a moment of madness. But no. I saw all of her emotions as she rode my cock. She knew exactly what she was doing and what it meant. Just because neither of us voiced it out loud, didn’t mean the implications weren’t there. Deep down, Jen’s feelings towards me had shifted irrevocably and there was no going back.

  “What do you need me to do?”

  Concentrating on why I came here was easier than dealing with the tension between us. The ever present animosity, but this time it was laced with a heady mix of potent sexual desire.

  “There’s some boxes in the hall you can take down to the car.”

  “Shouldn’t we pack everything up and then take those down together? It’d be quicker that way.”

  Her whole body went tense at the suggestion. Yes, spending time in the same room might possibly be a hellish experience, but I wanted this done quickly. The less time we were in each other’s company, the better.

  “Fine. As long as you’re careful, you can pack my dresses.”

  She pointed at the wardrobe. I did as she asked, walking over to it, pulling them out and very carefully folding them into the empty box she’d left next to it. They’d only be in there for a short period of time so I hoped they wouldn’t get too creased. Jen wouldn’t like that.

  We worked together to get all of her clothes packed up with Jen directing me. That was the only time we said anything to each other. By the time we were done, I was about ready to get as far away from her as possible. The need to touch her was growing unbearable. She kept looking at me under her lashes as if she couldn’t stop herself. The tension between us had well and truly reached boiling point.

  “Do you want a drink or something?” she asked, fidgeting with the silver ring on her finger.

  “Sure.”

  She disappeared into the kitchen and I sat down on the edge of her bed. Perhaps I should’ve moved into the living room because she faltered on her steps when she arrived back with two beers in her hands. Shaking herself, she walked over and handed one to me. I took it but didn’t raise it to my mouth.

  “We need to talk.”

  “Do we?”

  She gave me a hard stare.

  “Yes. We’re going to be living under the same roof and this,” she waved between us, “is clearly not going to work.”

  I cocked my head to the side.

  “What do you mean?”

  She let out a frustrated huff.

  “Don’t play fucking stupid right now, Brent. I’m not in the mood. I’ve had a shit day and quite frankly having to spend the past hour with you hasn’t done me any favours.”

  This is exactly the type of conversation I wanted to avoid. Her expression made it very clear she wasn’t going to drop this subject until we talked about it.

  “What do you want me to say? It happened. It was a mistake. End of story.”

  Her blue eyes widened momentarily before they blazed.

  “Sticking your cock in me was a mistake, was it?”

  I really fucking hated it when she gave me attitude like this. As if I was the only one to blame for a situation both of us had caused. I stood up and stared her down.

  “Yes. You’re my best friend’s sister. It can’t be anything but a mistake.”

  “Don’t bring Dante into this. What happened has nothing to do with him. This is between you and me.”

  I flinched before steeling myself again. I couldn’t allow Jen to see how much she affected me with her words. It might not have anything to do with Dante, but the consequences if he found out wouldn’t be pretty for either of us.

  “Are you saying it wasn’t a mistake?”

  She opened her mouth and shut it again. Her expression faltered. I had absolutely no idea what that meant. Surely she considered it a complete fuck up on both of our parts to have slept together. Didn’t she? Her feelings towards me might have altered but that didn’t change the glaring obvious fact we’d crossed a line we shouldn’t have.

  “Jen?”

  She searched my face as if she was trying to work out how the hell I really felt about all of this. Or perhaps she was just stalling.

  “Didn’t you enjoy it?” Her voice came out all quiet and hesitant.

  “What?”

  “Sleeping with me, did you enjoy it?”

  Why on earth would she even ask that? Of course I fucking well enjoyed it. It was the best moment of my life. Being inside her was better than I could’ve ever imagined. Kissing her, feeling her body and having her come all over me was fucking magical.

  “Why does that matter?”

  “It just does.”

  Her eyes told me the reason. The vulnerability in them ripped me a new one.

  “Yes, sex with you was great, is that what you want to hear?”

  She shook her head a little as if she knew I was defle
cting.

  “Only if it’s the truth.”

  Her fingers fiddled with the label on her beer bottle but she kept her eyes trained on me. Sighing, I took the bottle from her hand and placed both of them on a dresser a few feet away from us. I didn’t turn back to look at her again.

  “The truth… The truth is I liked it far more than I should’ve. You might have been avoiding me but I’ve been avoiding you too because the thought of it is maddening. Being near you is fucking maddening. You are the most infuriating woman I’ve ever met. It doesn’t stop me wanting you naked beneath me again. But that’s not going to happen and you know exactly why. You might not want to bring your brother into this, but the fact is D is my best friend and you’re his little sister. It was a mistake, Jen, and one I won’t make again.”

  I hoped that would appease her because I couldn’t take her questioning gaze. A full minute ticked by before I felt her behind me. Her hands rested on my back followed by her face pressing between my shoulder blades. I let out a shuddering breath. My skin pricked at the contact.

  “I can’t forget it happened,” she whispered. “I can’t go back.”

  What did that mean? I’d made myself clear. Whatever happened that night was not happening again. Why did the one time we should be shouting at each other instead have her speaking to me in those soft tones which had my heart weakening for her?

  “What are you saying?”

  Her hands drifted from my back around to my front and she held me.

  “Nothing. You’re right. It was a mistake.”

  The lie trickled off her tongue, making me very aware Jen didn’t see it as a mistake.

  “I don’t believe you.”

  Her arms around me tightened. Calling her out on her bullshit wasn’t a good idea. I needed to shut my mouth before I made this worse.

  “I don’t believe you either.”

  Well shit.

  I turned around in her arms. Her blue eyes were soft and open. Her emotions pouring out of them. Emotions which gut me. All I wanted to do was comfort her. Make her understand that whilst I wanted her desperately, I couldn’t have her. She didn’t want me for anything more than sex anyway. At least, I didn’t think she did. Jen would always see me as her older brother’s annoying friend. And I would always love her when I shouldn’t.