Chapter 24
Chapter Twenty-four
Mazzy
I yawned as Garrett pulled up to the curb outside Aunt Barb’s house.
Putting his vehicle in park, he turned to me. “Tired?”
“Yes. My brain is finished thinking for the night.” I leaned down and grabbed my backpack from between my feet. “Thanks again for driving.”
“It’s my pleasure, Mazzy. I know you hate driving.”
“I don’t know why you like driving.” I gestured here and there. “All those other cars. The lanes. Signs I have to read while not crashing into anyone. No one wants me out on the road more than necessary.”
He saluted me with two fingers. “I am happy to be of service to the community.”
Before I could open my door, he reached across the cab and put his hand on mine. I turned back, checking if I’d forgotten anything.
“Can I give you one more thing to think about?”
I crinkled my nose. “I don’t know. I think I’m at capacity.”
“Well, hopefully this isn’t too hard.” He gave my hand a squeeze. “What day are you free to meet up for lunch this week?”
“This week?” I really was tired. We’d already talked about meeting for lunch, but I couldn’t mentally pull up my schedule. “Um, I don’t—”
Was it possible for a brain to be so full, it became smooth? If so, I was there.
He laughed. “Why don’t I text you tomorrow and ask when you’re not so tired?”
I sighed, relieved I didn’t have to decide on the spot. “That sounds like a plan.”
Fortunately, the fresh air revived me somewhat. By the time I was inside my apartment, I could think a little more clearly, and I was looking forward to lunch.
Yes, this would be great. I needed to rebuild my circle. Hopefully, meeting up with Garrett would lead to that.
I fell back against the door, my head clunking on it.
Ben shot upright. “Did something happen? Are you okay?”
Even though he was here all the time, I still hadn’t gotten used to him.
My pulse kicked up a notch seeing him on the couch he’d insisted on buying to replace mine, which he’d declared far too small for him.
He took up so much space, not just with his big body, but his presence.
I hadn’t felt unsafe before him, but I’d never felt more secure than when he was here, and I always dreaded when he left.
This was going to be a problem. The longer we went on this way, the more attached I’d become—which was exactly why going out to lunch with Garrett was a good idea. I needed to have a life and friend group separate from Ben, so when things changed, I wouldn’t be alone.
“No, I’m fine.” I smoothed my hand over my hair. “Just thinking.”
He climbed to his feet, a frown tugging at the corners of his mouth. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing at all. Garrett asked me to lunch this week, and I’m trying to remember what days I have free.”
He whipped around to glare out the window. “That guy? What did he say? What did he do?”
“What?” I laughed at his strange reaction. “He asked me to lunch. His new office is near mine, and we both thought it would be nice for me to meet—”
Ben’s frown deepened. “So you’re going to lunch with him?”
My brow scrunched as I tried to decipher his reaction. “I don’t see why not.”
Under his breath, he muttered, “She doesn’t see why not,” as he paced the short length of the living room.
Not for the first time, I felt like I was missing something. Ben seemed…unhappy. Annoyed, actually. I hadn’t ever seen him in a bad mood. The only time he’d come close was when he’d walked up to me talking to his teammate, Murphy—
Oh.
Oh.
Was he…?
Did he think Garrett and I…?
“Ben?” He continued pacing and muttering. “Ben, talk to me.”
He finally stopped on the far side of the living room—which, to be fair, wasn’t very far since the room was the size of a postage stamp.
“I don’t like that guy.” He grabbed the side of his hair and gave it a tug. “There’s something about him…”
I let out a surprised laugh. “You’ve never even spoken to him.”
“I can tell.” He shook his head. “I don’t think he should be around Kat.”
“Okay. I have no plans of bringing him around her.”
“But you will.” His throat bobbed as he swallowed.
“You’ll go out to lunch with him, and that’ll turn into dinner, and before you know it, you’ll be on his yacht, and he’ll be your boyfriend.
And I know you. You’re not going to miss time with Kat to spend time with him, so, sooner or later, she’ll be out on the yacht too. ”
The picture he was painting was so absurd, I had to laugh. “I don’t think he has a yacht.”
He waved me off. “The yacht doesn’t matter. It’s Carrot becoming Kat’s stepdad I care about.”
“Ben…” I stood up and rounded the coffee table. “Is that why you’re getting all red?”
He touched his cheek. “I’m not red.”
“Okay.” He was most definitely red. “He’s not going to be her stepdad.”
He continued like he hadn’t even heard me. “Does she even know how to swim? I don’t think she should be going on a yacht. It’s not safe.”
“I thought it wasn’t about a yacht.”
“It isn’t.” He shook his head, then charged toward me, stopping a foot away. “I don’t think you should go out with him.”
I tipped my head back to meet his stormy gaze. “It’s just lunch. That’s all. And we won’t be alone.”
I could have put him out of his misery and explained how things were, but this side of Ben was so fascinating, I wanted to see where this would go.
“Mazzy,” he sighed. “Don’t go out with him.”
“Why not?” I pressed.
His jaw was so tight, it rippled. “I don’t want other men around Kat. I don’t want her to have a stepdad. I can’t stand the idea of sharing her with another guy. It makes me sick.”
“I get that, and I’m in no rush to meet someone. But I can’t promise I’ll be alone forever. That’s not fair to me. Someday, I’ll date someone, and so will you. We’ll have to deal with it.” Even though the idea of another woman around Katty made me just as sick.
He shook his head with vehemence. “No.”
“No, what?”
“To all of it.” He stepped into my space, slipping his hand around the side of my neck. “No other men. No other women.”
My heart bounced like it was made of rubber. “So we’ll be alone forever?”
He shook his head, his gaze intent on me. “Try again, baby.”
I raised my hand to his chest, pressing against him to give me room to breathe. Of course, he was an unmovable giant, but he didn’t come any closer.
“Say what you mean, Ben. I don’t want to keep guessing.”
His eyes were melted chocolate, so warm and soft, it would have been easy to sink into them. “You want to date? I volunteer. Date me. Meet me for lunch. Let me pick you up and drive you places. I’ll open the door for you. Date me, Mazz.”
A flutter of excitement shot through my limbs, making my fingertips tingle. But the last few years, I’d wised up and learned not to follow those spikes of thrill. Besides, Ben was acting on incorrect information. Once he understood what was really going on, he might sing a different tune.
“If this is about Garrett, I’m not going out with him on a date. His girlfriend is a single mom, and we’re all going to meet for lunch. He thinks we’d be good friends. You don’t have to worry about Katty on a yacht, okay?”
He shook his head. “No, it’s not okay. And forget Carrot. He has nothing to do with this. This is you and me.”
“Okay…” I really didn’t know what to say. My heart was thudding so fast in my ears, I couldn’t think. “I understand not wanting to bring other people around Katty, and we can talk about it, but this isn’t necessary.”
His thumb stroked the corner of my jaw, and he leaned, brushing his forehead along mine. “Try again, baby.”
I let out an impatient huff. “Say what you want, Ben. Not just what you want me to do.”
“Was I not clear? I want to date you.”
“Because you don’t want me dating anyone else.”
His sigh was warm against my skin. “Have you always been a bad listener, or do you pull out all the stops with me to drive me crazy?”
I gave him another push. He still didn’t budge. “I can’t think when you’re this close to me.”
“Good. I don’t want you to think. Just say yes and put me out of my misery.”
That brought me up short. “Are you miserable?”
“Yes, horrifically, unbearably miserable. I asked my brothers to kill me; it’s so bad.”
“God, Ben. I had no idea.”
“If I have to sit through one more night of Carrot picking you up, I’m going to take Adrian up on his offer. He’ll make it as slow and painful as possible, but at least it’ll be over.”
“No!” I pried myself out of his hold and skittered sideways, putting space between us. “Don’t even joke about that. I just found you. I’m not going to lose you. What can I do to fix this?”
His brow dropped. “Baby…the only thing making me miserable is thinking about you with someone else. That’s it. The rest of the time, I’m happier than I’ve ever been.”
I jabbed a finger at him. “I don’t like that kind of joke.”
“I get it, and I’m sorry. I won’t let Adrian kill me. I won’t even ask him to do it again.”
I was overreacting, but there were a lot of reasons for that.
My mind was tired, and this was all so…sudden.
I wasn’t even sure exactly what Ben wanted from me.
If this was a knee-jerk reaction to the possibility of another man coming into Katty’s life, we needed to shut that down right now.
But if he really wanted me… Well, I didn’t know what to say or think.
Overwhelmed, I flopped onto the very comfortable couch. Ben stood over me, his hands on his hips, not saying anything for a long minute.
“Ben…”
His jaw ticced. Chest inflated. Fists balled at his sides. The air stilled, and I couldn’t breathe.
Then he moved, and my lungs inflated with a gasp. On his way down to the couch, he grabbed me, pulling me onto his lap. My knees were on either side of his legs, and I caught myself on his chest.
“Goddammit, Mazzy Belle. Pay attention,” he gritted out, his hand wrapping around my nape. “I want to kiss your gorgeous face.”
My mouth floated away and answered for me. “Then do it.”