Chapter 22
Maven
Ben glanced at the clock on his phone before showing me the time. It was almost ten.
I gave a small frown.
“Do you need to head home?” Mom asked, clearly noticing the exchange.
“I probably should.” Ben ran a hand down my back, allowing it to linger. “With how many times Penny has come out of her room, I’m guessing my being here isn’t helping.”
Carson had just gone to lie down with her after her third time asking for water.
Mom waved a dismissive hand. “She can always find a reason to stay up past bedtime.” Her gaze shifted from Ben to me, then back again. “But now that you mention it, I guess I probably should head to bed myself. I’m on the six a.m. shift.”
“Ouch. With the commute, that’s early.” Ben stood. “Thanks again for having me over. That dinner was delicious.”
Mom also stood and came to give Ben a hug. “We’re so happy you joined us.”
I still sat on the couch in silent protest of his leaving.
He reached out a hand and, reluctantly, I took hold of it, allowing him to pull me to my feet.
Grabbing a throw off the back of the couch, I wrapped it around myself, refusing to let the bite of the October night air shorten my goodbye with Ben a second time.
When I’d closed the front door behind us, I stayed on the top step so I was only slightly shorter than Ben.
He turned to face me, shoving his hands in his pockets, likely to combat the cold. “My mom felt awful about having to cancel dinner today, so she wanted me to invite you to lunch tomorrow. It would just be my parents and us, though.”
“We do need to eat a meal together.”
“We do.”
I pulled my blanket more snuggly around me, refusing to shiver. “As long as you’re up for it after the crazy day you had.” I’d been impressively patient, but now that we were alone, I needed to know what had delayed him.
He nodded, like he knew the question was coming. “I spent the day at the farm, helping change locks and making sure the farmhouse and surrounding structures were secure.”
My brow creased. “That’s oddly cryptic.”
Ben huffed a breathy laugh, but he looked undecided on whether he wanted to tell me whatever it was he wasn’t saying. “No one is supposed to know this, but Liv Rawlins has a stalker. The reason she’s staying at my parents’ is because Tate is her bodyguard.”
My mouth parted. I’d assume Ben was kidding, but his serious expression made it clear he wasn’t. “Okay. That’s not what I expected you’d say.”
“I’m sure it wasn’t, but it’s also nothing you need to worry about.”
I nodded. My friend Katie had had a stalker in New York.
He’d left notes at her door, along with small presents and flowers.
It was definitely unsettling, but she’d moved and that had thankfully been the end of it.
Hopefully, with Liv being in Autumn Ridge, the same thing would happen.
“And here I was thinking Tate and Liv had a thing for each other.”
Ben smiled. “They’re pretty convincing.”
We stood a moment in the quiet.
“So… tomorrow?” I resisted reaching out for Ben’s hand.
Adequate circulation had never been my body’s main concern, so I didn’t need him to feel how cold my fingers already were.
“Should we plan something else in addition to lunch? Because we’re never going to get those seventy-two hours at this rate. ”
“Did you have something in mind?”
“Maybe you could give me a tour of your shop? I haven’t been there since Wally owned it, and I want to see all the changes you’ve made.”
Ben smiled the sweetest smile, which made me regret not asking before now. “That can definitely be arranged,” he said. “Maybe we could also do dinner once I’m off?”
“And go for a drive?”
“I’d like that.”
I bit at my lip, attempting to prevent my giddy smile from surfacing. “Me too.”
We stood there again, weirdly uncertain how to proceed.
Then Ben took a step back. “I’ll see you tomorrow, then?”
“Are you not going to kiss me?” I blurted like an idiot who forgot to take her brain off speaker phone.
Ben’s mouth quirked upward at the corners. “Did you want me to kiss you?”
I gave a small huff. “Not if you don’t want to.”
That was all it took. Ben was suddenly in front of me again, one hand sliding behind my neck and tilting my head back, the other slipping beneath the blanket and wrapping around my waist, pulling me toward him.
Then his lips were on mine and mine were on his.
And I was melting into him. His kiss was so familiar and achingly perfect, and I suddenly wondered how I’d gone this long without it.
I wanted to weep at the thought. Instead, I sighed in contentment and simply soaked up every movement and sensation.
Eventually, our kiss slowed, then, regrettably, stopped.
With our foreheads pressed together and our chests rising and falling, I gave a knowing smile. “So, that just happened.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, it did. And I should probably head home to make sure that’s all that happens.”
Right. We didn’t need to have any regrets at the end of this. At least we were on the same page there.
“Besides”—he took hold of my hands, his calloused skin rough against mine—“your fingers are freezing. You should probably get back inside.”
“Are they that cold?” I asked, stepping off the step to stand next to him.
He sent me a warning glance, but he didn’t stop me as I slid my hands under his shirt until they found his pleasantly warm, firm abs.
He clenched his eyes shut and tried his hardest not to groan, but it escaped as a low, gravelly sound.
I smiled, trying not to appreciate the feel of his skin beneath my fingertips too much when he was clearly suffering at my hands. “You’re right. Compared to your skin, my fingers feel really cold.”
“You using me to warm your cold extremities might be the only thing I don’t miss about you,” he said in a strained voice.
“You don’t miss this?” I slid my hands upward, but when I tried to place them under his arms, he stopped me, grabbing my wrists through his shirt.
“Don’t even think about it.”
I grinned. For such a tough guy, Ben was unusually ticklish. “But that’s the warmest spot.”
Ben released a tight breath. “If your brother walks out here right now with you groping me, you’re going to have some explaining to do.”
He was probably right. I gave an overdone pout, then dropped my hands. “Fine. Be that way.”
Ben chuckled, quickly tucking in his undershirt and giving me a quick peek at those abs I’d just assaulted. His gaze softened. “I didn’t mean it.”
I quirked my head, not sure what it was he didn’t mean.
He took hold of my hands again. “I even miss you warming your hands on me.”
My breath hitched at the sentiment, and as he drew in for another kiss, I closed my eyes. How was I ever going to go back to New York after this?