24. Giselle #2
“Hug!” Veronica demanded next, fully enunciating the ‘G’.
Although she had far fewer emotional wounds than the rest of her family, there was a lightness to her now that hadn’t been there before.
She had graduated from biweekly speech therapy sessions to monthly check-ins with homework assignments for Ben, Natalie, and now me to go over with her.
I was seeing more and more of her personality shine through every day, and the girl was going to be a firecracker.
“Of course you get a hug, sweetheart,” I said, picking her up. Unfortunately, if she kept growing how she was, I soon wouldn’t be able to. But, the Poynters and Natalie weren’t the only ones who were working on themselves.
I was still going to therapy, but I’d also started going to the gym twice a week when I could.
I wasn’t able to maintain the schedule as I wanted during the school year, but now that it was summer, I was dead-set on establishing a rhythm.
Even though I would never become a bodybuilder, or a fitspo Instagram model, I was determined to increase my strength and stamina.
I did my little circuits with two-pound dumbbells or resistance bands, then rode a bike or used an elliptical to go easy on my joints.
Although I’d only been at it for about six weeks, I was already seeing some changes.
And Ben was with me every step of the way.
He’d clap when I flexed my non-existent biceps at him, then let me feel his as a reward.
Did I mention I really liked his biceps?
They were nearly the size of my head, and it took two hands to get around them.
I knew he could smell just how excited they made me, but I was long past being embarrassed about it.
“Come now, let them leave,” Natalie said, already armed with a super soaker. “They will be back before you know it, and we have a battle to commence.”
Benny rolled his eyes. “What’s the rush? You always win at war, Natalie.”
“Yes. And I will continue until you, as they say ‘git gud’.”
“Git gud?” Benny parroted. “Is that some sort of weird Russian saying?”
Ben let out a groan beside me. “That meme isn’t that ancient!”
I patted his arm. “The march of time is relentless, and the sands of the hourglass speed ever faster.”
“Did you just call me old in Shakespearean?”
“It’s not a direct quote, no.”
He chuckled, then leaned down and kissed the tip of my nose. To his credit, Benny didn’t make gagging sounds like other kids would, but his face did flush a bright shade of red. He was such an adorable kid.
“All right, where’s my water gun? I’ll show you who’s gotten good or not!”
“That is not how you say it, but I admire your fighting spirit. Come, it is time to meet your maker.” She looked to Ben and me, and I loved the broad, cheesy smile that spread across her fine features.
Although Natalie was still a woman to herself, she had opened up to all of us in the past couple of months. “Have fun on your trip, you two.”
“We will!” I promised before Ben and I were both out the door.
The weekend getaway was all Ben’s idea. He’d suggested it as an escape from being a teacher since I was so torn up about my class moving on, and had said it would help me reset for the new year.
I had agreed without hesitation. The last time we’d gotten away from things had been the jamboree, which had been one of the defining points of our relationship.
Which, by the way, we were officially in.
Perhaps it was a bit juvenile to be so elated about the boyfriend/girlfriend titles, but I didn’t care how other people might measure our milestones.
Although there were plenty of things that were still uncertain for the both of us, we were working towards a future both of us could envision.
And for the moment, that was all we needed.
Yes, sometimes I wished for more. Although Ben and I had both admitted we were falling in love with each other, we hadn’t really dropped the L-bomb since. The word held so much weight, enough that saying it at the wrong time might break the tentative peace and healing we had set up for ourselves.
Sometimes, I found myself wishing for the perfect moment where everything lined up and felt right, so I could say it.
But every time I tried, something held me back.
Not because I had doubts about my feelings—of that I was certain—but simply because the words weren’t there yet; I had to be patient for them to arrive.
Luckily, I had a lot of experience with being patient.
“Sure you don’t want one last bathroom trip before we head out?
” Ben asked as we got into his minivan. Although it used more gas than my little car, the spare room and the gadgetry certainly made the car nice.
Particularly the heated seats. It would be a blessing for my sore back when we drove home after our getaway.
“I actually went while you were filling the cooler with ice,” I said, grinning.
“Look at you, being so proactive.”
“I’ve been stuck with my bladder my whole life, so I’ve figured out a hack or two.”
Perhaps beginning a romantic getaway with conversations about bathroom habits was a bit unorthodox, but it also was entirely us.
Ben and I weren’t spring chickens caught up in the rush of falling in love for the first time.
We knew what it was like to wake up and need to recover from sleep, as well as how simply bending over could tweak a muscle the wrong way.
Granted, Ben’s shifter nature would allow him to heal within an hour, whereas my recovery was a lot longer and usually involved a nap.
With that, we hit the road to the remote cabin he’d booked for us. Radio on, windows down, it was like neither of us had any troubles in the world. It was only him and me with no emotional baggage, only our favorite songs and hopes of relaxation.
We arrived in the early afternoon, only stopping once to stretch our legs and so I could use the restroom. The place was far fancier than I’d expected, spotless and equipped with modern appliances.
Sometimes it was easy to forget that Ben was moderately wealthy.
He certainly didn’t act that way. He had money from selling pack lands, all the wealth he’d recovered from Charles and his gang, as well as the entire pack fund he’d inherited.
He’d mentioned once that if he ever joined a pack again, he would give a huge percentage of that money to that pack’s coffers, but that was the most he’d told me about it.
Although I was a human, I didn’t think it was quite healthy for three wolves and a horse to be entirely on their own, but it would take a lot of time before they could organically build a connection like that with anybody.
I was grateful that somehow, against all odds, they’d carved out a gap for me.
“Wow, this place is beautiful,” I said, mentally comparing it to the images of a sparse, drafty cabin with cobwebs that needed to be cleaned out. It wasn’t like I hated camping, but sparse, drafty cabins were what my family could afford on the few occasions we’d visited state parks and the like.
“I’ll go get our supplies from the car while you get settled.
” Ben kissed the top of my head, and I gave him a giddy grin.
He’d also grown more comfortable with touch, which always left my cheeks flushed a little and my heart fluttering.
I loved that even months later, I was still so physically affected by my boyfriend, and I doubted that would ever stop.
“Okay, let me go grab my suitcase.”
“No need, I got it for you.”
I opened my mouth to protest, before realizing how silly that was. Yes, I hated people assuming that I needed help because of my Graves’ disease, but that wasn’t what Ben was doing. He was just being a thoughtful boyfriend.
Pride was a funny thing sometimes, and I was happy with myself that I’d caught it.
“Thank you, babe, I appreciate it.”
“Of course. Anything for you.”
Ben brought in all our luggage without even breaking a sweat. In fact, I was only half done unpacking my small travel bag when he was already finished.
“Hey,” he said, coming into the bedroom with my weighted blanket. “Do you wanna go on a picnic, have some light afternoon snacks, then go swimming in the stream nearby? Or we could do the lake, but I figured we could save that for tomorrow.”
“That all sounds lovely,” I said with genuine excitement. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d gone for a leisurely swim. I liked the water, but there weren’t exactly a lot of opportunities to take a dip during the school year.
“Awesome, I’ll get that all set up, then we’ll head out in maybe half an hour? Or do you want a little longer to rest?”
“No, I’m good. Thanks for checking.”
Ben gave me a cheeky little grin. “You’re welcome,” he said before heading out.
I loved seeing him smile so easily, but if there was one thing I had figured out about Ben, it was that he was a provider through and through.
Thankfully, not in that gross, toxic masculinity way.
He and his wolf thrived and found contentment when they could care for those around them.
Sometimes, I wished I could parade him around all those idiotic alpha-bros online, show them what a real man could be like without all that false bravado and posing.
However, that would require me to actually interact with red-pilled weirdos and subject a chronically offline Ben to them, so ixnay on that.
Still, it was nice to imagine their facades crumbling when addressed by a great man who was healthily addressing his issues rather than burying them under misogyny and a scam course on how to pick up women, so I did that until I was finished unpacking.
Then, it was out to the full kitchen where Ben was putting the final touches on a gingham-lined picnic basket, a matching blanket draped over the adjacent bar.