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“You hurt me,” he whispers.
My eyes fill with tears. “I know, baby, I know. You hurt me first.”
He lays me down and slowly, tenderly slides back into my body, and we become one.
And now, finally, my storybook greeting begins.
I wake groggily to the sound of Ben breathing next to me. He’s fast asleep and lying on his back. I roll onto my side and smile as I watch him. He’s such a complex man. He’s this alpha male who is so strong in every way, and yet it’s the vulnerability in him that I love the most. I bend and softly kiss his chest, allowing my eyes to roam down his body. He’s broad and muscular, and his dick is soft. I smile. I should take a photo. His dick is never soft.
God, I love him—everything about him—and I love that I know him well enough to read him now. He was hurt last night, and the old me would have fought back and then left.
But the new me stayed and fought.
I trail my finger down the centre of his chest, down over his rippled abdomen, and down the trail of dark hair that leads to his pubic hair. My lips dust his shoulder. He inhales deeply and his arm comes around my shoulder to pull me closer to him.
“Hey, babe,” he murmurs groggily as he kisses my temple.
“Hey.” I smile as I reach up and kiss his lips. “Are you okay?” I whisper softly.
He stares at the ceiling and frowns, trying to refocus his eyes.
“I nearly went home with someone last night,” he finally murmurs.
My face falls. “What?” I hesitate for a moment. “Why didn’t you?”
He shakes his head softly. “Didge, I can’t go on like this. I can’t love you and not be with you. I couldn’t be with someone who isn’t you. I can’t do that anymore. The thought of being with another woman turns my fucking stomach.”
I smile and kiss his lips. “Oh, Ben,” I whisper sadly.
“We have to get our shit together because this last two weeks have been a total misery,” he murmurs.
I rub my fingers through his two-day growth and I smile. “I left my job.”
He frowns.
“I’m here to live with you, and when we get this stuff sorted we will move back to Australia, and you are moving in with me. This is it, Ben. No more games. No more bullshit.” I kiss him softly. “And if we have a fight, I promise not to leave, but you have to promise to talk to me.”
He watches me carefully. “There’s a problem with that plan.”
“What’s that?”
“I’m not moving in with you.”
I frown.
“You’re moving in with me.”
I smirk. “And what’s wrong with my house?”
“You’ve been with other men in that house and I can’t stand the thought of it. My apartment means a fresh start.”
I smile broadly. “Okay. I guess we can do that.” We kiss softly. “Now, tell me about this girl you nearly went home with.” I raise my eyebrow sarcastically.
He smirks. “Blonde, hot, big tits.”
I narrow my eyes. “Be very careful.”
“And dumb as an ox,” he adds.
I giggle.
“It wouldn’t matter what she looked like anyway. She didn’t stand a chance,” he murmurs. He rolls onto his side to face me, and he cups my breast in his hand. His thumb dusts over my nipple as he thinks.
“Why is that?” I whisper.
His eyes rise to meet mine. “Because she’s not you.” He leans in and kisses me tenderly.
I smile as I roll over on top of him. “Ben,” I whisper.
“Yes, Bridget.” He smiles.
“You need to take me out for breakfast now because I’m fucking starving. I haven’t eaten in two weeks.”
He chuckles, and I know that wasn’t the answer he was expecting. “Where would you like to go?”
“Anywhere but the all-you-can-eat buffet.”
We sit at the café as we wait for our breakfast, and I take his hand in mine. I need to get to the bottom of this, as it’s been bothering me for two weeks.
“Tell me about these men who wanted to kill you.”
His face falls serious and he shrugs. “I don’t know, to be honest. I know they weren’t after me, but they wanted someone dead that wasn’t cleared through the government.”
I frown. “Have you researched this guy they wanted?”
“Yes, at length.”
I watch him for a moment. “What do you do in this kind of situation?”
“The guys and I will work it out; you don’t need to worry.”
“What guys?” I frown.
“I have four best friends. We work together. We’ll meet up for drinks, so you can meet them.”
“They do this, too?” I ask, surprised.
“Yes,” he replies. “You’ll like them.”
“Do they know about me?”
“Yes. Two of them have been in the army with me since I was seventeen. You met Rick last night. We’ve gone through the ranks together. They’re like brothers; they know everything.”
