10. Ben
I reachthe dune before Aida, scooping up the trash and putting it into my bag. “Might need to switch from yoga to cardio,” I tease, turning and walking backwards as she glares up at me. “Kicked your ass on that run.”
Aida scoffs and rolls her eyes before lowering her sunglasses. “Whatever, I do cardio, but running on sand is hard work.”
My grin widens. “I know, I do it pretty regularly.”
“You do what?” she asks, clearly shocked.
Laughing, I wander over to another dune to grab some more trash. “I run on the beach on the regular, Aida,” I repeat. “It’s great cardio and then I get to cool off in the ocean as the sun sets. You’re welcome to join me if you think you can handle it,” I add, giving her a wink.
She stops now, her hands on her hips as she watches me. “I can handle it,” she states.
“You sure, because there are other forms of cardio we could do instead if you want?” I tease, chuckling at the blush that hits Aida’s cheeks.
Pretty sure this suggestion earns me another eye roll as she walks over and grabs some trash that I was just about to pick up. Things then quickly devolve into what can only be described as competitive chaos as Aida all but shoulder barges me out of the way when I move over to another pile of trash.
In retaliation, I grab her around the waist, turning and marching her to a clear spot on the beach, before running back to the trash. Aida immediately runs after me, grabbing my t-shirt before she tackles me, the two of us crashing to the sand and taking out this gangly teenager in the process.
“Oh my god and you say I’m competitive,” I laugh, lying on the sand, Aida half lying on top of me.
“Pfft,” she scoffs, jabbing me in the ribs as she sits up.
“Well, looks like I won,” I say with a grin, standing and offering my hand to Aida.
She smirks at me, rolling her eyes and ignoring my help as she also stands and we now make our way over to where that dick Weston is bossing everyone around like he fucking owns the place. I swear every month when we do this, he acts like the whole thing was his idea and we should all be kissing his ass at how amazing he is. I’d like to kick his ass for being such a dick.
“Ben,” he says, giving me a quick nod as I haul my bag of trash into the back of the pick-up.
“Dick,” I reply.
Weston lets out an annoyed huff and I just smile and turn away, grabbing Aida’s bag and throwing it into the pick-up, just as he says, “Hey, thanks so much for helping out today, that was really great of you. I’m Weston, by the way.”
Groaning, I turn around to see Weston shaking Aida’s hand like the tool he is. “Aida, and it’s no problem,” she replies, smiling up at him. “Happy to help.”
“I was wondering if maybe you’d like to get some lunch with me,” Weston now asks, and I immediately step in.
“She can’t,” I say, dropping an arm around Aida’s shoulders. “She’s having lunch with me.”
“What?” Weston says at the same time as Aida says, “I am?”
I grab the back of her neck, squeezing it gently as I say, “Yeah, Miriam invited us, remember?” I say, even though my grandmother did no such thing. “You won her over at the grocery store this morning and she wants to make you lunch.”
“Oh, okay, that sounds great,” Aida replies.
“See you later, dick,” I say, grinning at Weston who looks super annoyed at the fact Aida is having lunch with me, not him.
“Ben, seriously,” Aida murmurs, elbowing me in the ribs as I guide her away, holding my hand up to flip Weston off as I do.
“What?” I ask, dropping my arm back around her shoulders.
“Why are you being so rude to him? He just asked me to lunch.”
I lead us over to where my grandma stands, talking to a couple of her friends who always come out to help with the beach clean-up. It’s something they’ve done for as long as I can remember and I always try to come down and help, if only so I can keep an eye on her.
She’s stubborn as hell, my grandma and doesn’t like to ask anyone for help, despite the fact that she’s nearly eighty.
“I told you, Aida, the guy is a dick.”
“He seemed nice enough,” she says.
“It’s an act,” I tell her, smiling as my grandma turns to us. “Hey, Grandma.”
“Benji,” she says, still calling me by my childhood nickname, no matter how many times I tell her I go by Ben now. “And Aida, thank you, dear, for helping us out.”
“It’s no problem,” she replies.
“Now, how about some lunch? You’re both coming over, right?” Grandma says.
I glance down at Aida with a smirk. “See, told you, she’s invited us for lunch.”
She elbows me in the ribs again, and I laugh, noticing that despite her annoyance, she hasn’t moved from under my arm. “Thank you, Miriam, that’s very nice of you.”
We head back up the path toward my grandma’s house. She’s only a couple down from our beach house, in a single-story beach cottage raised up on stilts, a place my dad designed for her and my granddad with amazing, vaulted ceilings, and exposed wooden beams; the type of architecture he’s known for. She lives here all year round now, has since she and my granddad moved out here for a more relaxed lifestyle. It’s another reason I love spending my summers here.
“Come in, come in,” she says, opening the front door.
“Ed still at golf?” I ask as we follow her to the back of the house and the open plan kitchen and living space that looks out at the ocean.
“Yes, dear.”
“You call your granddad by his first name?” Aida whispers.
Chuckling, I shake my head. “Ed isn’t my granddad,” I tell her. “Granddad died when I was a kid. Grandma met Ed a couple of years later and they’ve been living in sin together ever since. He’s a cool guy.”
“Aida, dear, would you like some homemade lemonade?” Grandma asks, holding up a jug.
I smile, knowing what’s coming as Aida says, “Thanks, that would be great.”
“Benji?”
“You know I always say yes to your homemade lemonade, Grandma,” I reply with a grin.
She ushers us over to the table and I open the French doors to the deck, the sea breeze immediately filling the room, before sitting down in the chair next to Aida. Grandma walks over with the jug, pouring us both tall glasses of her lemonade.
I lift my glass, clinking it against Aida’s before waiting, watching as she takes a sip.
“Holy shit,” she sputters. “Is this…?”
“Spiked with vodka? Sure is,” I reply with a grin.
“Spiked? I’d say it’s half vodka at least,” she says, coughing. “Wow.”
Laughing, I take a sip, wincing a little at how strong it is. “Yeah, that’s Grandma. She’ll be asleep straight after lunch thanks to her special homemade lemonade.”
Grandma returns to the table with some fresh bread, along with a plate of meats, some cheese and salad ingredients. “Enjoying your lemonade, dear?”
Aida smiles, lifting her glass for another sip, this one smaller than the first. “It’s delicious, thank you,” she says.
“Eat, eat,” Grandma says now, waving at all the food she’s laid out as she sits down. “So, Benji, did you know Aida is single?”
Aida lets out a cough-snort combo that has me leaning over to smack her back. “You okay?” I ask, laughing.
Aida nods, taking a mouthful of her drink, seemingly forgetting it’s laced with vodka as she blows out a hard breath. “Yeah.”
I turn back to my grandma, hitting her with a grin as I say, “I didn’t know that, but thanks for letting me know, Grandma.”
Grandma winks at me before turning to Aida. “And you know my grandson is single,” she starts. “So you know, this could be…” She trails off, waving her hand at us.
Aida turns to me, her eyes wide and her cheeks red and I can’t help but laugh. “This could be what, Grandma?” I ask, unable to resist.
Grandma’s grin widens and I know exactly what she’s going to say. “It could be just like when I met Ed,” she starts. “That man swept me right off my feet, just when I needed it. Still does actually. And the sex, oh my,” she adds, her hand on her chest.
As much as I do not want to think about my grandma’s sex life, it’s worth it just to see Aida’s reaction as she coughs through another mouthful of her lemonade.
“That man was insatiable, couldn’t keep his hands off me,” Grandma continues, apparently oblivious to Aida’s reaction. “And so inventive. I never knew there were so many positions to try.”
I turn to Aida, giving her a wink. “Bit like your yoga,” I tease. “Quite a few positions you could put to use there.”
“Oh my god,” she whispers, her eyes wide. “Is this like…normal lunch time conversation with your grandma?”
I burst out laughing, squeezing her thigh beneath the table. “You’ve tried her lemonade. You think I get much of a choice in the conversation?” I ask. “Trust me, I’m even less interested in my grandma’s sex life than you are.”
Aida shakes her head, just as Grandma says, “You two are both young and attractive, and there’s clearly chemistry between you. I bet the sex would be good too.” She winks at Aida, before turning to me. “I think you need to take Aida out on a date, Benji. Woo her a little like Ed did with me.”
I rest my elbows on the table, smirking as I say, “Um, I thought Ed won you over when he mistakenly thought this was a nudist beach and you got a look at his?—”
“Huge penis,” Grandma says, cutting me off with a grin. “Well, yes, that certainly helped. Not that your grandfather was lacking in that department of course, but it had been a few years, and well, a woman needs an active and healthy sex life. Am I right Aida?”
We both turn to Aida, who I swear looks like she’s on the verge of having either a stroke or a breakdown. I’m sure when she met my grandma this morning and then took her up on her invitation to lunch, this was not what she envisaged.
It’s part of the reason I love my grandma as much as I do, because she is so unlike anyone I’ve ever met, and she gives zero fucks about what anyone thinks.
“Well, is she?” I ask, smirking at my neighbor.
Aida finishes off her glass of lemonade as though fortifying herself with some hard liquor is going to help. “I think you’re one hundred percent correct, Miriam,” she says, lowering her glass to the table. “There’s nothing better than sex with someone who knows what they’re doing.”
Grandma tops up our drinks and I laugh as Aida immediately takes another mouthful, also doing the same. “Do you know what you’re doing in that department, Benji?” she asks, turning to me and this time it’s me nearly spitting out my mouthful.
“Yeah, Benji, do you?” Aida asks and I swear she’s a little tipsy now.
“Because you can always talk with Ed, you know that, don’t you?” Grandma continues. “He can give you a few pointers if?—”
“Oh my god, Grandma, stop!” I say, holding my hands up with a laugh. “I absolutely know my way around the bedroom,” I continue, turning to Aida. “Trust me.”
Aida’s smile doesn’t disappear as she bites on her bottom lip, her eyes a little glassy, but still fixed on mine. “Is that so?” she whispers.
“Yep,” I reply with a nod. “One hundred percent.”
“Because it’s not a competition,” she says, still smiling.
My grin widens now as I slide my hand back onto her thigh beneath the table and squeeze it again. “It could be. And it’s definitely one I would win,” I murmur, not caring that my grandma is sitting at the table with us and probably listening to this heavily loaded conversation.
Right now, all I care about is the fact that maybe Aida is open to the idea of the two of us having sex. Because I am quickly realizing that is something I would very much like to do with my annoying, competitive, but oh so fucking hot, next-door neighbor.
“Where do we stand on the competition so far?” she asks, her smile turning into a smirk.
Chuckling, I leave my hand resting on her thigh. “Well, you obviously won the volleyball thing, but we were a team, so that doesn’t count.”
Aida scoffs. “It counts. And I definitely won yoga,” she says.
“Well, I won the trash pick-up,” I counter.
“Yeah, but then I won the most embarrassing story, so I guess that puts me up by two, three if we count volleyball. Which we do.”
“Volleyball doesn’t count,” I say again, shaking my head. “But I’m very happy to level the score with my sexual prowess.”
Aida lets out a loud laugh that is suddenly cut off by a snore and when we both turn to where Grandma sits in the chair across from us, I see she has fallen asleep. Her head back and her mouth open, loud snores now filling the room.