Chapter Forty Savannah
| Forty |
Savannah
Bennett sat across from Savannah at the table as they drank their morning coffee.
It had been a few days since the choking incident.
He had been loving and solicitous, continuing to beg her forgiveness.
But she was still concerned. She had done some research.
Apparently erotic asphyxiation or sexual choking was relatively common.
According to WebMD, over fifty-eight percent of women reported that they’ve been choked by their partner during sex.
She thought it was insane. She also learned that hundreds of people died every year from it.
There was no way in hell she was interested in spicing up their sex life with something so dangerous.
She’d told Bennett and he had assured her that he would never do it again.
He was leaving after the weekend for his European tour, and she felt blue thinking about him being gone for three weeks.
“I have a present for you,” Bennett said.
“For what?”
“Just because.” He put a small box on the table, wrapped in silver paper.
Savannah picked it up. “Thank you.” She ripped the paper off to reveal a plain white box. When she lifted the top, a gold bangle bracelet with red stones lay inside. “It’s beautiful,” she said as she took it from the box.
Bennett held his hand out. “Here, let me show you how it opens.”
He demonstrated, pushing down the small raised bar, then placed it on her wrist. “Looks perfect.”
“So sweet of you.”
“So, what do you feel like doing today?” he asked. “You mentioned that you wanted to do some target practice. Should we stop by Thunder Ridge Range?”
“Are you sure that’s how you want to spend your Saturday? I could do it next week on my own.”
He smiled at her. “I don’t care what we do as long as we’re together. I wouldn’t mind doing some target practice myself. It’s been a while since I shot a gun.”
“Okay. It would be helpful since I’m about to write a chapter where Darcy has to shoot someone. Since she’s using a Glock, I thought I’d buy one at the range. Get used to that so I can write about it accurately.”
“It’s important to do field research. Readers are totally unforgiving when it comes to gun mistakes. I can’t tell you the number of emails I got when I made a mistake in my first book.” He shook his head. “Never again. You have the paperwork for your license?”
“Yes. I took the safety course last year. My parents would be horrified. They would probably tell me that I would shoot myself by accident, since I don’t do anything right.” She shook her head. She should stop talking. Why was she letting him see how damaged she felt by them?
“Do you ever think about getting back in touch with them? Patching things up?” he asked.
“Never.” She thought of Bennett’s estrangement from his family. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course,” he said.
“What happened with your family? I mean, you told me about your mother and why you’re not on good terms with her. But don’t you miss your brothers?”
He took a moment to answer. “We used to be close. You know I had a sister, Janie. She was the youngest, and I adored her. We all did. She was just…I don’t know, always happy and sweet.
The night she died, she had called me earlier in the evening.
I was at a party.” He took a sip of coffee.
“I sent her call to voicemail. By the time I listened to the message it was too late.”
“Oh, you poor thing. What did the message say?”
“She didn’t feel well. Wanted me to pick her up. If I had, she wouldn’t have fallen off that balcony.”
“My God! Was she sick?”
He shook his head. “She’d been drinking. Everyone blamed me. Hell, I blame me.” He threw his hands up. “They’re not my family anymore. You are.”
“We’re all we need,” Savannah said.
He was quiet for a moment. “I did try, you know. Poppy talked me into it. And my mother was horrible to her. It’s not a door I want to open again.”
Poppy again. Would her ghost never rest? “Okay, I understand.”
“We’ve got two more days until I leave. Come on, let’s go upstairs and make the best of them,” he whispered in her ear, his voice husky.
She followed him upstairs to their bedroom, and they undressed each other, staring into each other’s eyes.
She was hesitant at first, the memory of their last encounter fresh in her mind, but he was nothing but gentle.
She held tightly to him as they made love, wanting to possess him.
To eradicate all traces of Poppy. When they were finished, she lay in his arms.
“What did I do to deserve you,” she asked, tracing a circle on his chest.
“I should be asking you that,” he answered. “I’m so glad I went to that conference. You know, Marion practically had to drag me there. But it was fate. Otherwise, I’d never have met you.”
Fate, Savannah thought. For once it was on her side.
She thought of Derek again. How he had made her promises, then broken them without a second thought.
It wasn’t her fault what happened after.
She had a right to call him. To text him demanding an explanation for his sudden change of heart.
She couldn’t seem to stop herself from driving by his apartment to see if he’d already replaced her.
It was only when he got a restraining order that she finally backed off, realizing that no matter what she said or did, he wasn’t coming back.
But things had worked out for her. Bennett was ten times the man Derek was. And Derek was now drowning in mediocrity. His last book deal was two years ago and the sales pathetic. She was the one on top now.