20. SOFIA
20
SOFIA
O h. My. God.
Everything about tonight was like something from a dream. Ben was attentive and affectionate. He couldn’t seem to keep his hands off me. He was always touching me in one way or another, whether it was hand-holding, resting his hand on the small of my back, sliding his fingertips down my arm so that I got goose bumps…
The dinner went incredibly well. Not to mention the fact that the food was delicious.
Did all people with a lot of money eat this way? I wasn’t someone who cared about what was on my plate—I ate what was available, and my food was often very lean and clean because I didn’t have time to cook fancy foods.
But the way I’d been eating the last couple of days was something I could get used to.
Along with the main course, Richie had the staff pour us glasses of Cabernet Sauvignon and it went with the meal perfectly.
I had more wine than I usually allowed myself, but I was having a good time, and the wine made me feel light and airy and not so worried that Richie would see right through our act.
He seemed to buy that we were together, and the more wine I had in my system, the more I wanted to believe that we were together, too.
Ben was just so different from the man he showed the rest of the world. He seemed to have this business face, a mask that he showed everyone, a suit of armor he didn’t let anyone get through. But with me, lately, he’d dropped that act, and it felt like he was showing me the parts of himself that he didn’t usually show anyone.
What did that mean?
Don’t overthink it.
I listened to the little voice at the back of my mind, the one that wasn’t a little tipsy with wine. But the more sips I took from my glass, the more that little voice faded…
“Are we ready for dessert?” Richie asked when we’d been making small talk and bantering for a while.
“Oh, I don’t think I could eat any more,” I said. “Everything has been so great so far, I haven’t exactly held back.”
Richie laughed. “Come on, I insist.”
I hesitated until the staff brought out a chocolate hazelnut torte.
“Oh, no,” I groaned.
“What is it?” Ben asked. He looked concerned.
I looked at him. “Chocolate is my weakness,” I said gravely.
He blinked at me for a moment, and then he laughed and squeezed my hand.
“Noted, sweetheart.”
My cheeks flushed, both from the wine and from the way he responded.
The torte was exactly what I feared—layers of rich chocolate cake with a creamy hazelnut filling, chocolate ganache for a glaze, and toasted hazelnuts on top.
There was no way I would be able to say no to that.
“More wine?” Richie offered.
“Oh, no,” I said, a piece of torte already in my mouth. “I’ve had enough.”
“Then some coffee will do the trick,” Richie said, and the staff poured each of us a cup of freshly brewed coffee.
The smell reached my nose, and it complemented the torte in my mouth.
I glanced at Ben before I could catch myself, gauging his reaction to the coffee. He was a coffee lover, I’d realized, and he had a very refined palate when it came to how he wanted his coffee and what worked with what.
He was just short of being a coffee sommelier.
Was that even a thing?
I wasn’t sure, but Ben’s love for coffee, for something so small and seemingly insignificant made him seem so human . And that wasn’t how the Blackwoods were ever portrayed. They were money-making machines.
But this muscular, tattooed Adonis of a machine next to me had a heart.
“Oh, this is good coffee, Richard,” Ben said approvingly, and I smiled before I sipped the coffee, too.
I couldn’t lie—it was really good. I didn’t know as much about coffee as Ben did, but I knew what I tasted.
I groaned with delight, and Ben glanced at me, amused.
“Well, I think this about sums it up for me,” Richie said.
I glanced at him. I had another bite of torte in my mouth, so I just frowned at him instead of talking with my mouth full.
“I think the two of you are perfect together, and I’m convinced that the project isn’t just about money, the way I thought at first. I know that you’ll be spearheading this project with the kind of compassion I was looking for, and my darling Martha would have loved you and loved what you stand for.” He looked emotional. “I’ll be more than happy to invest in your project. I’m fully on board. You just let me know what to sign and when, and I’ll be there.”
“That’s great news,” Ben said with a broad grin—his business mask slipping back into place—and he shook Richie’s hand with vigor. “I just know this project is going to be really successful. What do you think, babe?”
He looked at me, and my stomach twisted when he called me babe.
“It’s going to be great,” I said with a smile, but the job opportunity Elena had talked about suddenly flashed in my mind.
If I decided to take it, then I wouldn’t be around to see what the team accomplished with Harborview and how they would fix things up for the people who lived here. But that didn’t matter.
What mattered was that we’d succeeded, and the people would get the rejuvenation they deserved. And I deserved to have something great, too. I deserved to be able to grow, and there was no more room for growth for me in Blackwood Inc.
I glanced at Ben and tried to imagine us going back and not being able to see that face again.
Don’t think about it , I scolded myself.
This was just supposed to be a short-lived fairy tale, anyway.
But didn’t fairy tales usually end with the prince and princess riding off into the sunset?
Ben was a Blackwood prince, alright, but I was no princess, and it was better that I remembered that. I turned the rings around on my finger. I would have to take these off again in the next few days, and that would be it.
It’s better this way.
The night finally wrapped up, and the car was summoned. We both shook hands with Richie, but he pulled me into a hug, and I smiled.
“Thank you for an amazing evening, Richie,” I said. “I really look forward to working together.” I felt bad just saying that—what if I wasn’t going to be here? But that wasn’t my problem.
Ben opened the door for me, and I slid into the leather seats first. He followed, pulled the door shut, and we drove back to Harborview.
The partition between us and the driver was up so that we had privacy.
“Tonight was perfect,” Ben said, pleased. “You played your role beautifully.”
His words felt like a punch to the gut.
“My role,” I said softly.
Ben noticed the shift in atmosphere and turned to me. “I really appreciate you playing along when I made this harder for you. I should never have lied, and you did everything I could possibly need. Thank you for that.”
I bit my lip and nodded. The fairy tale was already slipping away.
Ben cupped my cheek. “It wasn’t just an act. I hope you know that.”
Butterflies erupted in my stomach. Maybe the fairy tale wasn’t over just yet.
“I know it was to get the project, and we succeeded, but when I say you’re incredible, I mean it in every way.” He brushed his thumb over my cheeks, his brown eyes drowning deep in the dark car.
Ben shifted closer, and I knew it was better to stop him. I couldn’t give in to all this again. I was getting too close, too involved, and I was going to leave…
But that wasn’t happening, yet, and Ben’s scent filled the car. The wine muddled my thoughts, and when he brushed his lips against mine, I sighed and stopped thinking altogether.
I let him kiss me, and I moaned softly when he slid his tongue into my mouth.
He put his hand on my leg and slowly slid it up under my dress. I gasped, and when his fingers brushed against my inner thigh, I moaned. Ben’s other arm slid around my shoulders, pulling me close, and his fingers pressed against my sex. I shivered and widened my legs.
His finger pressed against my clit, the lace material of my panties providing a delicious friction. My nipples hardened and my breathing quickened as he rubbed me slowly.
Ben groaned and kissed me harder, and my heart beat faster. I slid my hand over his pants, rubbing his hardness.
When Ben pulled his hand away, I almost complained, but then he tugged my panties down and his fingers were on me again.
This time, he rubbed my naked sex, his fingers sliding through the wetness.
“Sofia,” he whispered, his breath hot against my neck.
He slipped a finger inside me, and my breath hitched.
“I want to make love to you,” he whispered.
My heart skipped a beat. He hadn’t called it fucking. He’d called it making love.
Ben slipped a second finger inside me and kissed my neck, and I knew I wasn’t going to deny him anything.
His fingers stroked slowly in and out of me, his other hand tantalizingly hovering over my breast as his tongue explored my mouth.
His fingers moved faster, and my body grew warm, pleasure building slowly.
The car stopped, and when I looked up, we were in front of the hotel.
I cleared my throat, and Ben tugged my panties back into place, a mischievous grin on his face.
He opened the door and got out first before he held out his hand for me. I stepped out after him, my legs jelly and my body aching for the release after Ben had left me hanging.
He held my hand and led me into the hotel and toward the elevator. When the doors slid shut, he nuzzled my neck, and shivers ran down my spine. I moaned when he pinned me against the elevator wall, the length of his muscular body pressed against mine, and he grinded his erection against me.
When the doors slid open on the penthouse floor, Ben pressed his mouth against my ear.
“Come to my room,” he breathed.
I swallowed hard and nodded.
Ben led me to his door, opened it, and we stepped inside. He kicked the door shut and pushed my blazer off my shoulders. His head dipped into my neck again, and he kissed a line toward my collarbone, and then onto my shoulder. Goose bumps spread around my shoulders and arms, and he pushed the thin spaghetti straps of my dress off my shoulder.
“You’re fucking beautiful,” Ben murmured, his other hand doing the same with the other strap.
I took a shuddering breath as the dress fell to the floor, and I stood in front of Ben in my heels, bra, and panties.
His gaze slid down my body, filled with need, but there was something else in his eyes, too. Affection. Warmth.
I wasn’t going to call it love because that wasn’t what this was.
It couldn’t be.
Ben kissed me again before he lifted me into his arms. I wrapped my legs around his waist and kissed him, my arms wrapped around his neck, one hand in his dark blond hair. He carried me to the bed, laying me down. He unbuttoned his shirt to where it was loose enough and he pulled it over his head. His eyes burned with desire as he crawled onto the bed.
Ben’s muscles rippled as he moved, and the light danced on his skin.
He settled between my legs and kissed me, his tongue stroking mine. He pinned me down, kissing me, his hips gyrating against my crotch until my panties were drenched and I ached for him.
“Ben,” I moaned.
He chuckled and rolled to the side, allowing himself room. His cock was hard in his pants, straining against the material, and it had created a wet patch of need that echoed my own.
He hooked his fingers into the band of my panties and tugged them down. I shivered when they slid over my hips and he pulled them down my legs.
I was exposed to him, and I shivered when he looked down at me. His gaze was intense and dark. He leaned down and kissed me again.
“Sofia,” he breathed in response.
Ben trailed his fingers down my body, and I moaned when he stroked his fingers between my folds.
He dipped a finger into me, and then two, and when he found my spot and brushed his thumb against my clit, I shuddered. The orgasm he’d been building in the car came back fiercely, and I whimpered when the waves crashed over me.
Ben worked me through it, his eyes darkening when he pulled his fingers out.
He reached over and opened his nightstand, pulling out a condom. He stood, tugged his pants off. His cock sprang free, and he ripped the foil packet open. I watched him as he rolled the condom onto his hard shaft, and the way his abs clenched made my mouth water. I lifted myself enough to undo my bra and pull it off. I wanted to be naked with him.
My nipples tightened in the cool air of the room, and Ben looked at me with the same hunger that I felt for him.
He crawled back onto the mattress, and I slid my fingers into his hair and my other hand down his muscular back as he settled between my legs. His sex lay against mine, pressing against the entrance, and his eyes met mine as I whimpered.
“This is real,” he said. “I didn’t lie about that. I’m falling for you, Sofia.”
“You are?” I asked, my voice a whisper.
Ben nodded and pushed into me.
My head fell back, and he kissed my neck as he entered me. I moaned when he pushed into me, inch by delicious inch. He filled me and stretched me, and I moaned as he filled me up, my body adjusting to take him in.
He groaned and nuzzled my neck, pausing, clearly enjoying the feel of us being melded together, and I relished in it, too.
When his hips were flush with mine, he started moving. I wrapped my legs around his hips, my arms around his neck, and my body shuddered when he started to thrust.
He was slow and gentle, his movements measured, his mouth on mine or my neck, his hands stroking me, and his thrusts deliberate and careful.
This wasn’t like last time. Ben showed so much care and affection, taking his sweet time, teasing me, turning me on, coaxing me toward another orgasm.
Ben groaned, and his hips snapped, his thrusts gaining momentum. He slipped a hand between our bodies, rubbing my clit, and the familiar pleasure built again.
His cock rubbed against the right spot, and his finger flicked over my clit, and soon I was moaning, shuddering, and Ben followed me, his arms wrapped around me as I rode out the waves of pleasure. I closed my eyes and let the orgasm sweep me away, let myself fall because I knew Ben would catch me.
When the orgasm faded, Ben kissed me, his tongue in my mouth.
“Lie back,” I whispered.
Ben groaned and rolled off me onto his back, and I straddled him.
“You’re so sexy,” he murmured, his eyes traveling over my body. He reached up to my breasts and squeezed them, rolling my pebbled nipples between his fingers. I gasped and reached down, taking his cock in my hand. He was hard and slick, the condom still in place. I positioned him at my entrance and slowly lowered myself onto him.
“Oh, fuck,” Ben moaned, his hands moving to my hips.
I moaned when he filled me up, stretching me, driving in deeper from this angle. I rocked back and forth, riding him, and my breasts jiggled as my breathing became shallower.
Ben’s fingers dug into my skin, and he rocked his hips, thrusting into me.
I leaned forward and braced myself on his chest, my fingers splaying over the black ink, my hair tickling his shoulders and neck. His thrusts were slow and deep, and I ground against him when he was buried deep inside.
“You’re going to be the end of me,” Ben growled, his hands sliding up my back, pulling me down.
He kissed me hard, and his thrusts quickened. He drove his cock into me harder and faster, and the pleasure started building yet again.
My nails dug into his skin, and I gasped and moaned as his mouth moved down my neck.
“You’re so beautiful,” Ben murmured. “I didn’t expect any of this, and I thought I could fight it, but you’re like a magnet and no matter what, I can’t stay away from you. I can’t stop myself from…” He didn’t say the rest. He only thrust into me harder, his arms wrapped around me, and I cried out as the waves crashed over me.
I rode him, shuddering and gasping. I couldn’t believe he’d been able to do that again.
I slumped against him, and Ben slowed, but he was far from done.
He flipped me onto my back again so that he was on top and in control. He kissed me, his tongue in my mouth. He slid into me and moaned, and then he thrust into me again.
He was gentle and slow, but his thrusts were harder and deeper than before.
Ben kept kissing me and his hand slid into my hair, the other arm under my back, hugging me to him. I felt surrounded by him, consumed by him.
He rocked his hips, his movements growing more urgent. He thrust into me, harder, faster, wilder, and I cried out as he stroked all the right spots. Ben growled in my ear, and his body tightened, his muscles rippling as the orgasm rolled through him. His cock twitched, his body shuddered, and he gasped and groaned, and his body tensed as he emptied himself into me.
Ben collapsed, and his lips were on mine again, his mouth desperate.
I wrapped my arms around him, pulling him close, and his cock was still buried inside me.
When he finally pulled away, he rolled off me and lay on his back, breathing heavily.
“Don’t go anywhere,” he said, looking at me. “I’ll be right back.”
He disappeared into his bathroom, and I stayed right where I was, my body spent, the echo of him still between my legs.
When he came back, Ben got back onto the bed and pulled me close.
“Stay tonight,” he said.
I didn’t hesitate, didn’t fight him when he asked.
No matter what good reasons I had to leave, I didn’t want to.
So, I stayed.