~Savannah~

Eli pulls in the driveway just after the explosion that just about gave me a heart attack.

“What in the hell is up with today?” I demand, as Eli comes running up to join us.

“What was that?” Eli asks with a scowl. “Van, go get in my car.”

“Fuck that,” I reply and run after them as they hurry around the side of the house. “I’m not a damsel in distress.”

“Jesus, she’s stubborn,” Eli says. “Looks like the wind blew your transformer.”

“It’s been a shit day,” Ben answers and rubs his hands over his face. “I need to go check out the inside of the house. The door was open when we got back from dinner.”

Eli scowls. “It’s not like you to leave your house unlocked.”

“I pulled the door closed behind us when we left,” I add. “And I know, without a doubt, that I locked it. It’s habit.”

“I’m not saying you didn’t,” Ben replies and kisses my forehead. “Which is why I don’t want you going in there until I’ve had a look first.”

“Good idea,” Eli says.

“Fine,” I reply, resigned. “I’ll stay out here like a weak person who hasn’t been training to kick ass for the past two years.”

“You’re the only person I know who would complain because I’m trying to keep you out of harm’s way.” Ben shoves his fingers through his hair as we walk to the front of the house. “Just give me ten minutes.”

“We’re good,” Eli says with a nod. “And I’ll call 911 if I see or hear anything suspicious.”

Ben nods and goes into the house, turning on the flashlight on his phone, since there’s no power thanks to the transformer blowing out.

“I don’t like being treated like I’m weak,” I mumble to Eli who just busts up laughing.

“Do you think that’s what he’s doing?”

“Well, yeah. I can kick ass too.”

“Of course you can. But he loves you, Van. I wouldn’t let Kate go in there either. Call us old fashioned, but it’s our job to keep our women safe, and by God, that’s what he’s doing.”

“Why do you have to make sense?” I demand, my irritation disappearing.

“Because I’m your big brother. I know everything.”

“Whoa, that escalated quickly,” I reply, making him laugh.

“It’s all clear,” Ben says as he walks outside. “It must have been the wind. I know you locked it and closed it, but maybe it didn’t latch right and the wind blew it open.”

“Could be,” Eli says. “Your porch is deep enough, and there are trees out front, so it’s doubtful that anyone from the street would have seen it. Especially in the dark.”

Ben nods and wraps his arm around my shoulders.

“I guess we’re spending the weekend at my house,” I say with a grin.

“I guess so,” Ben replies. “I’ll run in and grab your bag.”

“Leave it,” I say, waving him off. “I’ll need those things here anyway.”

“Wait. Are you moving in together?” Eli asks.

Ben laughs and I just shrug. “No one said that. But we’re together most nights, Eli.”

“Yeah, okay,” Eli says, not at all impressed. “I’m going home.”

We wave him off and climb into my car.

“I’ll call the electrician and power company in the morning,” Ben says. “It’s been a hell of a day.”

“It has,” I agree and take his hand in mine, linking our fingers. “Let’s just hibernate at my place this weekend. We can order pizza and Chinese and watch movies. Make love. Just chill.”

“Best weekend plans I’ve ever heard.” He kisses my hand. “I think it’s important for you to be naked during most of it.”

“If I have to be naked, so do you.”

“Of course. I wouldn’t expect you to be naked alone. There’s no fun in that.”

***

“Best weekend ever,” I say to Charly. I’m on the phone with her Monday afternoon as I get ready to go to class. “We didn’t even leave my house.”

“I love those weekends,” Charly says. “I’m happy that things are going well.”

“Is it possible that they could be going too well?” I ask, pausing as I reach for my gym clothes. “I mean, it’s happening fast, and he’s wonderful and loving.”

“When you know it’s right, you just know,” she says. “I don’t think time has too much to do with it. You’ve been in love with him half of your life.”

“True. And it’s Ben. It’s not like I just met him a month ago. I’ve known him forever.”

“Exactly,” she says. “Don’t overthink it. Just enjoy it.”

“Good advice,” I reply and then hold the phone away from my ear as I pull my shirt over my head. “Lena will be here in a few minutes. She’s going with me today.”

“Cool. Have fun.”

“Talk to you later.” I end the call and throw a change of clothes into my gym bag, reach for my shoes and turn to the vanity to grab a hair tie, and then I simply freeze.

“What the fuck?” I take a deep breath and stare at the brand new bottle of Chanel No. 5 sitting on my vanity. I certainly didn’t put it there. In fact, this morning the new bottle I bought of my favorite perfume was sitting in that exact spot. “Oh my God.”

“Van?” Lena calls from downstairs. “I don’t want to startle you! Your door was unlocked so I just came in!”

“In my bedroom!” I call back, my eyes still pinned to the bottle. Lena walks in, looking all cute and sporty in her workout attire.

“What’s up?” she says and then frowns. “Your eyes are glassy and I’m getting a spooked out vibe from you.”

“More than spooked,” I reply, feeling sweat form on my upper lip. “Look.”

She follows my finger to the perfume and frowns. “Okay.”

“I don’t wear that,” I reply. “Ever. Lance made me wear it every fucking day of our marriage and I hate it. I didn’t put it there.”

Lena frowns and then closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. “I’m not as strong psychically as Mallory, but I don’t feel an evil or malicious presence here, Van. Maybe your cleaning lady found it and put it there?”

I frown and shake my head. “Well, she was here today, but I threw it all out as I unpacked the boxes after the move. I don’t know where she could have found it.”

“Maybe you missed one?”

I exhale loudly and shrug. “Who knows? I guess it’s possible.” I reach for the bottle and carry it downstairs, throwing it in the garbage. “I’ll ask her when she’s back next week.”

Lena smiles. “Good idea.”

We leave for the gym and I set the perfume out of my mind, not wanting to give it any more attention today. If I let myself, I’ll overthink it and work myself up into a frenzy, convinced that Lance is trying to mess with me from prison, and that just isn’t possible.

I’m sure Lena’s right. The housekeeper found it and set it out. It’s certainly more expensive and fancier than what I normally wear, so she probably thought she was doing a good thing by displaying it. I’ll just let her know that I don’t want her to rearrange my things anymore.

“Someone had a good weekend,” Lena says with a smile.

“Are you reading me?”

“Honey, I don’t have to be psychic to feel the sex vibes rolling off of you.”

I feel my cheeks pinken. “There might have been some sex.”

“Uh huh.” She parks in front of Ben’s dojo and cuts the engine. “Good for you.”

“Oh yeah,” I reply, nodding. “It’s good for me.”

Lena snorts as she climbs out of the car and joins me as we walk inside. Some of the girls who take the class are already here, stretching on the floor of the classroom. Ethan, Ben’s manager, is at the counter, talking to a muscular guy that I haven’t seen before.

I glance around, looking for Ben, but I don’t see him.

“I wonder where Ben is,” I murmur.

“He’s in there,” Lena says, pointing to a smaller classroom. Ben’s in there, instructing a woman.

And his hands are on her. She’s a bit taller than me, and definitely younger. Blonde, with boobs that she definitely paid for.

And she’s smiling up at my boyfriend like he hung the fucking moon. Ben’s hands are on her hips and he’s talking to her. She laughs like he’s just said the funniest thing ever and braces her hand on his chest.

“Take a breath,” Lena says. “This is his job.”

“I’m okay,” I lie and walk into our classroom.

I’m so not okay. I’m jealous as fuck and even though it’s stupid, I can’t help it. His hands are on another woman and she’s freaking flirting with him. I’m not even in the same category as okay.

I’m pissed as hell, and the fact that this is his job doesn’t make me feel any better.

Thankfully, class starts right away. This is the best place to let go of some pent up aggression. We spend the next hour punching, kicking, and sparring and when we’re done, I’m dripping in sweat.

“I’m glad I wasn’t your sparring partner,” Lena says as we get ready to leave. “You kicked her ass.”

“She’s fine,” I reply.

“Do you feel any better?”

“No.” I glance around to see if Ben’s around, and he’s just saying goodbye to the hooker he was teaching while I was in class. “I know I said that I’d catch a ride home with Ben, but would you mind dropping me off?”

“Not at all,” Lena replies. “Let’s go.”

“Van.” Ben calls out to me, but I act like I don’t hear him and don’t turn around. Instead, I hurry to Lena’s car and jump in. Ben walks out after us, and our eyes lock for a moment, but Lena takes off before he can open my door.

“He looks pissed,” Lena says.

“I don’t care. I’m pissed. And I also don’t care that it’s stupid to be pissed because this is his job and blah blah blah. Fuck that. His hands were all over that woman, and I don’t like it.”

“I can tell,” Lena says. “And frankly, I don’t blame you. I wouldn’t like it either.”

“See? Good. I haven’t been jealous in years. I can’t even remember the last time, but all I can see is green right now. I want to punch that chick in the throat.”

“Hey, he’s your man and she touched him. That’s a perfectly normal response.”

“You’re a good friend,” I reply as she pulls into my driveway. “I can see why Mallory loves you so much, and I’m glad that you’re part of our little circle now.”

“Thanks.” She smiles and waves as I walk to the front door. She waits for me to get inside safely before she drives away.

I have too much energy. I pick up my mail and thumb through the envelopes, but I don’t really see any of it and I toss it all on the coffee table in my living room and then decide that although I just had an amazing workout, I’m not done.

I want to run.

And those who know me well know that running is not my thing.

But I don’t know how to get rid of this energy without breaking stuff. So I take off down my street. I know which streets to stick to, and which areas are a bit shady. I’m not in good enough running shape to go far anyway.

Am I being stupid? I mean, she was a client. And the fact that she was flirting with him isn’t really Ben’s fault. And, he wasn’t touching her inappropriately. My instructor touches me the same way all the damn time. But the difference is, she’s a woman and not some dude that I would like to climb like an oak tree.

I circle around the corner of my block and run smack dab into a hard chest. Ben’s arms wrap around me so I don’t fall, and I immediately step out of his hold.

“What’s going on, Van?”

“I went for a run,” I reply and keep running back to my house, just three doors down. I don’t look back, but I can hear him jogging behind me. He’s not even breathing hard when we get to my front door, and I’ll admit that the black T-shirt he’s wearing does amazing things to his arms.

Those tattoos get me every damn time.

But right now, I’m pissed.

“Talk to me.” Ben follows me inside and gently closes the door behind us. He’s cool as the proverbial cucumber and I’m ready to come out of my skin.

“I didn’t say there was anything to talk about.”

“Stop it.” My eyes whip up to his, and although he’s calm, his eyes are annoyed.

Good. We can be annoyed together.

“Please tell me why you’re mad at me.”

“I don’t know if mad is a good word for it,” I reply and wander back to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water from the fridge.

“What word would you use?”

“Pissed. Irritated. Irate.” I shrug and twist the cap off, chugging the water.

“Why?”

I shrug a shoulder, and that’s about all Ben can take of me. He crossed his arms over his chest and leans against the wall, watching me.

“We can do this all night,” he says.

“No, we can’t because I’m asking you to leave.”

Pain moves through his eyes now, and I feel like a grade A shit.

“I’m not leaving.”

I cock a brow. “Fine. Stay. I’ll leave.”

“Enough.” He grips my shoulders tightly in his hands and holds me in front of him. “What the fuck is going on, Savannah?”

“That woman had her hands on you!” I jerk out of his hold but I stay where I am and confront him. “And you had your hands on her. And it fucking pissed me off.”

“The client?”

“If the client is a cute little twenty-something blonde with big tits, then yes. The client.”

“Van—”

“I know!” I begin to pace now, just as frustrated with me as he is. “I know that it’s your job and that there are clients and you have to touch them, but damn it, Ben, it was a cute girl who looked at you like you were dessert and she was going to eat you with a fucking spoon.”

“Savannah.” His eyes aren’t hurt or irritated anymore. They also aren’t full of humor, which is good for him because if he decided to make fun of me right now, I’d throat punch him.

“I didn’t like it.”

“I can see that.”

“And I hate that I’m suddenly this stupid jealous woman—”

“You’re not stupid.”

“But I can’t help it. You’re mine, damn it.”

The next thing I know, my back is pressed against the wall and Ben is kissing me like it’s going out of style. His hands fist in my hair, his thigh presses against my core, and I want to climb him like a fucking oak tree.

His lips kiss down to my neck as he boosts me up, cradling his hard, denim-covered cock against me. My legs wrap around his waist.

We’re both still fully clothed, but holy Hannah the sexiness is off the damn charts.

“She doesn’t do this to me,” Ben says, pressing hard against me. “No one does this to me but you.”

“Damn right.”

His eyes darken and he carries me to the guest room down the hall. There’s no time to go upstairs. He sets me down long enough to strip us both out of our clothes and then throws me on the bed.

I don’t even have time to be worried about the fact that I’m sweaty and probably smelly. He covers me and pins my hands above my head. His mouth and free hand are everywhere. My nipples are puckered and my hips are moving in circles, desperate for him to fill me.

“Ben.”

“That’s right,” he says. He grabs my chin. “Open your eyes. You are everything I want. I don’t give a fuck about any other woman, client or not. Let them flirt and make a fool of themselves. It doesn’t matter, Savannah, because you are all I think about.

“You are all I see.”

I try to move my hands so I can touch him, grip his cock, and guide him inside me, but he holds me firm.

“I want to touch you.”

“Not this time,” he informs me. “I’m about one second away from being far rougher than I should be with you.”

I frown. “I’m not fragile.”

He swallows hard and I can see that he’s struggling to keep himself in check.

“I’m safe with you,” I say and kiss his bicep. “I want to touch you.”

He releases my hands and his inhibitions all at once. He palms my ass in one hand, tilting my hips so he can easily slide inside me, and that metal rubs the length of me, making me groan.

“God I love that piercing.”

“I love you,” he growls and sets a fast, hard pace. “This is mine. You are mine, Savannah. Do you understand me?”

“Yes.”

He’s not being careful the way he has every time before. He’s marking his territory, and it’s the best thing I’ve ever felt in my life.

“Don’t you ever fucking forget what you are to me,” he says. His blue eyes are on fire and on mine.

“What am I?” I ask and watch in fascination as his eyes darken. His jaw tightens. His grip on my ass digs in just enough to sting.

It’s fucking delicious.

“You’re everything.” He kisses me, his lips much gentler than the rest of him. “You are the beginning and the end of me, Savannah. I don’t work without you.”

“You’re my everything too,” I reply. Suddenly, he pulls out and flips me over, slaps my ass, and slides inside me again. His legs are straddling mine, pinning me to the bed.

It feels so good.

So damn good.

“Shit, Ben, I’m gonna—”

“Fuck yes,” he growls next to my ear. “Let go, love.”

I couldn’t hold back if I tried. I explode beneath him, my entire being shattering into a billion tiny pieces.

As I come down from the orgasm high, Ben kisses my shoulders and down my spine as he pulls out of me and helps me turn onto my back.

“Is that settled?” he asks.

“Oh yeah.” I’m still working on catching my breath. “Yeah, I think that’s settled. But I think that once in a while you can remind me. Because that might have been the sexiest thirty minutes of my life.”

“It might have been fifteen minutes.”

“Whatever.” I can’t move yet, but I summon enough strength to cup Ben’s cheek and smile up at him. “You’re sexy.”

“You’re a challenge.”

“I think I’m supposed to be a challenge.”

“Well, then you’re the world champion at it.”

He grins and drags his knuckles down my cheek. “No more jealousy, Angel. There’s no need for it.”

“Are you going to keep teaching her?”

“Would you rather I didn’t?”

“If I said that I’d rather you didn’t, would you fire her?”

He chuckles, but he’s safe now because I don’t have the energy to throat punch him.

“I would pass her on to someone else, yes.”

I stare up at him and think about everything that’s happened. Not just today, but over the past few weeks, and I know without a doubt that Ben doesn’t care about her.

“Just ask her to not touch you,” I reply. “Unless she tries to punch you, I’d really rather she keeps her hands to herself.”

He smiles and kisses my cheek. “I’ll pass her on to Ethan.”

“I trust you.”

“That was never in question,” he replies, perfectly calm again. “But she makes you uncomfortable, and there’s no need for that.”

“Thank you.”

“All you have to do is say something when you’re uncomfortable. I’ll make sure to fix it. And not just when it comes to my job.”

“Okay.” I nod. “I’ll remember that.”

“See that you do.”