Chapter 20
I woke late Sunday morning alone in my bed.
Benson was the first thought to cross my mind.
The faint smell of him lingered in my sheets, conjuring memories from the day before.
I still ached in the best way between my thighs.
A twenty-four-hour reprieve was probably not a bad thing, but I missed him anyway.
When he left early Saturday afternoon, he did so with the promise that he would see me Sunday night.
It made sense how, after three weeks on the road, he had plenty to catch up on at home and at work.
At the end of my bar shift, I wasn’t surprised to find he wasn’t waiting for me—his large frame leaning against the driver’s side door of my Bronco.
Though, while not surprised, it would have been a lie to say I wasn’t disappointed.
Now, the scent of him made me want to stay in bed a little while longer.
It was as I laid there, allowing my mind to flood with memories of him, when I decided I wasn’t simply going to indulge in our fantasy, I was going to give it my all.
I’d surrendered to the monster within.
If Benson was going to be the man of my dreams, I was going to be the woman of his.
This meant I needed to go shopping.
The act of purchasing the right garments wasn’t a problem.
I had the money and an afternoon full of time to kill.
The trouble was, I hadn’t gone shopping for anything particularly date worthy in ages.
The dress I wore to Wrangler and Lexi’s wedding was a relic and rogue survivor from another life.
Sean hated it, which was why I kept it—but I didn’t want to wear something old; something that reminded me of a weaker, broken version of myself.
Ben never made me feel that way, which meant I needed something new.
I didn’t even have to think hard about who to ask for the best place in town to shop. Tess was more of a jeans and kick-ass heels kind of gal, but I’d seen her walk into the bar in a killer dress a time or two.
I rolled toward my nightstand, grabbed my phone, and started a text thread with Mustang’s ol’ lady.
Hey. Need a dress I can wear on the back of a hog. Need it for tonight. Where should I go?
I was about to black out the screen and get out of bed, assuming she wouldn’t get back to me right away—but then I saw the floating dots, indicating she was typing. They appeared then disappeared, appeared again then disappeared once more before my phone began to ring.
I coughed out a quiet laugh as her name lit up my screen. I accepted the call and brought the device to my ear.
“Hello?”
“So, I was going to text, but then I figured calling would be faster—and time is of the essence, especially when you’ve got two kids,” she said in greeting. “To answer your question, a grab-n-go find is totally hit or miss around here unless you have a shopping buddy and an hour or two.
“Lucky for you, I’m available. I need thirty minutes to make myself human; but after that, I can meet you. Mustang can stay with the girls until around one or so. You down?”
A small smile tugged at the corner of my mouth as I considered her offer. Tess had a generous soul. I knew she would help, but I didn’t think she’d drop everything to do so.
How many times have you done the same?
I knit my eyebrows together at the thought. It was true, on more than one occasion, when I was called upon by a Stallion or his ol’ lady, I showed up. It wasn’t so outrageous a notion I would be extended the same courtesy. After all this time, it shouldn’t have caught me off guard.
It did, anyway.
“Yeah. I’m down,” I replied. “Where should I meet you?”
Forty minutes later, I parked my Bronco in a vacant stall at the Powder Basin Shopping Center. The plan was to meet Tess outside of Marshalls. I was waiting only a couple of minutes before I spotted her headed my way. She waved when she saw me, and I jerked my chin in a silent reply.
“Hey. Got a hot date tonight, huh?” she teased upon her approach.
“Depends on what we find inside.”
Tess grinned. “Challenge accepted. How hot we talkin’?”
I glanced down at myself, adorned in my customary attire of denim and cotton. Ben told me once he didn’t care what I wore, and I believed him. Nevertheless, for at least one night, I wanted to be more than the bar wench he’d seen a thousand times.
‘I see you, Ali-Mae.’
‘You sure are fuckin’ beautiful . ’
Ali-Mae.
For him, that’s who I wanted to be.
“I like floral prints,” I admitted, meeting Tess’s steady gaze.
Her eyebrows shot up her forehead in unobscured shock. “Okay—so we’re channeling pretty girl vibes?”
“Pretty girl with edge. Not changin’ my boots.”
I watched as her eyes dropped down to my feet. She hummed a mischievous laugh then started for the doors. “This is going to be fun. Come with me.”
One hour, two stores, and ninety-three dollars later, I was fully outfitted for the night.
I had a new dress, matching underwear, and even a small pendant necklace we found on sale and she insisted I buy.
Tess didn’t mess around, and I knew I couldn’t have done it without her. She had the patience of a saint.
“Thanks for your help,” I said as we walked toward the parking lot together.
“Of course. This was fun. And—for what it’s worth—I think you’re going to blow his mind. Kind of wish I could be a fly on the wall when he sees you in that dress.” She paused, narrowed her eyes, and then teased, “Then again, maybe not. I’m no voyeur.”
We shared a laugh, and I felt oddly giddy at the idea of knocking Ben off his feet.
More than that, I basked in the carefree levity of this moment, and the feeling of being a normal woman who could laugh with her shopping buddy.
“Have fun tonight,” she insisted as we began to part ways. “I expect an update tomorrow. You’ll hear from me if I don’t hear from you first.”
I left not merely knowing her statement was a promise, but also wanting to be the kind of woman who sent a morning-after update to her closest friends.
I took extra care as I got ready for the night.
After a shower and shave, I lathered myself in scented lotion I’d purchased on my shopping trip with Tess.
I donned my new dark-green, demi-cut, strapless bra and matching lacey thong, then slipped into my summer dress.
It was emerald green and covered in tiny little white daisies.
The sleeveless top dipped low in a generous V-cut neckline, allowing me to show off the cleavage I had to offer.
The dress cinched at my waist, hugging my narrow frame before draping loosely from my hips to the middle of my thighs.
Tess had been the one to spot the dress on the sales rack. She insisted I try it on, sure it would bring out the green of my eyes. As I stood in front of the mirror, applying my usual amount of makeup, I couldn’t help but to notice how right she was.
I left my hair the way I liked it best—natural and loose, hanging down my back.
When I was happy with my handiwork, I laced up my Doc Marten’s and headed for the stairs.
I was stowing my phone in my purse when I heard the sound of his approaching hog.
I relished in the excitement which accompanied his arrival.
Even though I was no longer trying to keep him out of my house, I didn’t wait for him to come collect me at my door, too impatient to see him.
As I strapped my purse across my body, I snatched up my keys and stepped out on my front porch, locking up behind me.
He barely had the chance to kill the engine of his Harley by the time I made it to the driveway.
I saw it as he positioned himself to dismount before he caught sight of me and stopped.
He then slowly dipped his chin and stared at me from over the top of his sunglasses as I continued toward him.
This made me laugh. Wanting to revel in the victory which washed over me as he continued to stare with those bourbon brown eyes, I gave him a twirl and a wink. The grin the gesture earned me was divine.
“Fuck me,” he marveled. “There she is. The woman underneath all that bravado.”
Much like on our first date, I didn’t wait for him to offer me a hand before climbing onto his hog.
I helped myself—gripping his kutte at the arm hole for my leverage.
When I had both boots settled on opposing foot pegs, I leaned down until my lips grazed his ear and murmured, “Didn’t your mama teach you not to stare? ”
He turned just enough to look me in the eye, reaching back with one hand to grab hold of the back of my neck, keeping me close as he replied, “Yeah. But pops taught me there were exceptions to every rule.” He pulled me closer, until his lips grazed mine.
He darted his tongue out, sneaking a taste before he muttered, “Damn, you’re somethin’ else. ”
Then he kissed me—long and hard. Wild and delicious.
I got so lost in his affection, I almost forgot where we were.
We were both breathless when he pulled away and told me, “Was gonna take you for pizza—but you look fit for steak.”
“Don’t care where we go, brown-eyes, so long as it means food in my belly.”
“Alright, then. Sit that pretty ass down,” he demanded as he let me go.
I happily obeyed, wrapping myself around him as I did so. He started his Harley’s engine, gave my thigh an affectionate squeeze, then began to ease out of my driveway.
Our ride was a short ten minutes. When we pulled into the parking lot of the Prime Rib Restaurant, he found a spot right out front.
To my surprise, after we both dismounted, he took my hand in his and led us inside.
He informed the hostess we wanted a booth, and I didn’t think much of it until we were seated.
I slid across the leather-covered bench and started to settle just as he invited himself into the space beside me.
I frowned at him in confusion even as I made room for the both of us.
“Sparky—I know you don’t think I’m gonna sit with a whole ass table between me and those legs in that dress.”