by Nia Arthurs
Carrie forced herself to relax and took in the planes of Arnold’s handsome face. He had light brown skin, deep brown eyes and plump lips. His refined air and careful observation told her he could be a gentleman or a rogue, depending on the setting.
He was perfect for her Get-Over-Benson mission.
Don’t mess this up.
“When’s your shift over, Beautiful?” he whispered.
Carrie opened her mouth to answer when someone tapped her on the shoulder. “Carrie?” Wendy’s voice sounded rushed and harried. “Sorry to bother but could you help me out here? Tanya had to go home because of an upset stomach. We’re stretched thin.”
“Yeah. Of course.” Carrie shot Arnold an apologetic look.
“It’s alright. Go on.”
“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” she promised.
That turned out to be a while.
Carrie spent the night running from one table to another. Every so often, she flitted back to Arnold’s side just to let him know she was still interested and then dashed back to her duties.
Where the heck is Benson? The thought flitted through her mind as she limped to the kitchen to stack the dirty plates in the sink.
They were stretched thin out there and he was what? Gallivanting with Seo Ah? She hadn’t missed the way they’d been standing closely together and holding hands when Jo introduced herself earlier.
Carrie was relieved that she hadn’t gone through with kissing him that morning. Benson was with Seo Ah. His M.I.A. status tonight proved it. As if she needed any more reminders.
Stefan wiped the sweat from his brow and screamed at his sous chef. “Where’s the bus boy? We need those plates cleaned. Stat!”
“We’re almost done, chef.” Carrie saluted. “Keep going.”
He scowled at her and turned away.
The door leading to the back exits flew open and a tall man entered, dragging an empty can behind him. Carrie’s jaw dropped when she recognized Benson stalking toward her. Without a word, he stopped in front of the sink and started washing the dishes.
She blinked. “What are you doing?”
“Helping out.” He gave her a hard stare. “You still entertaining your friend?”
“You mean Arnold?”
The muscles in his jaw clenched.
Amused, Carrie folded her arms over her chest. “Are you jealous right now?”
“This isn’t about jealousy.” He wiped his face with the back of his hand and left a trace of soapy suds over his forehead. “I just think it’s a bad idea to be fraternizing on the clock. We’re swamped as it is.”
She shook her head. “I haven’t had a minute to sit down with him because I’ve been running up and down filling in for Tanya.”
“Oh.” His hands stilled in the water.
Her lips quirked. Carrie stepped closer and pointed to his forehead. “You’ve got a little something…”
“Where?” Water dribbled from Benson’s fingers as he pulled his hand out of the sink and brushed his face. The move left even more suds behind.
She chuckled and reached out to wipe the soap off with the pad of her thumbs. He froze and watched her. In the midst of cleaning him off, Carrie noticed his intense stare and her fingers went lax.
She started to move back.
He snatched her hand, keeping her in place. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Her stomach flip-flopped. Eyes ducking to the floor to escape his searing perusal, she murmured, “It was nothing.”
Benson held on a beat longer and then released her.
Carrie turned and skittered out of the kitchen, letting the door flap closed. The warmth in her chest travelled all the way down to her toes and up to the top of her head.
She fanned her face with a hand and struggled to breathe properly. Why did just being around Benson undo her like this? Would a night with Arnold really get him out of her system or make things more complicated?
Doubts plagued her.
Instead of keeping the thoughts to herself, she found Arnold. He was sitting around the bar, flipping through his phone. She sat beside him.
He glanced up, a handsome smile lighting his face. “Hey, you ready to go?”
“I appreciate you waiting all night for me…”
“But you can’t hang out after?”
She bowed her head. “I’m really sorry for wasting your time.”
“It’s fine.” He jutted his chin toward the beer cans. “I had a relaxing night in a nice place with beautiful company.” He smirked at her. “At least for the few minutes when I had her.”
“Let’s reschedule when things aren’t so swamped,” Carrie offered, feeling bad in the face of Arnold’s graciousness. If she’d been the one left alone for hours, she’d be fuming and writing the date off.
“Great. Call me.” Arnold leaned over and kissed her cheek.
Carrie smiled and watched him walk off. When she spun, her breath hitched. Benson was there, staring at her.
She stiffened as he strode over. “I thought you were washing up in the back.”
“Someone else took over.” He glanced in the direction that Arnold had disappeared. “I see your friend left.”
“Yeah, he was patient, but I felt bad for wasting his time so… I told him we’d just meet later. Tonight.”
His eye twitched. “Tonight?”
Why’d you lie? Benson will get the wrong idea.
Or maybe the right one.
“Yeah, we hit it off.” She squashed the quiet voice inside and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “His name is Arnold. He’s a lawyer.”
“I see.” Benson’s voice was gruff.
His inscrutable expression gave nothing away and yet she felt so nervous and uncomfortable that she started rambling. “I’ve decided that I’ve been doing this dating thing all wrong. I’m not even thirty yet, but I keep expecting guys to be ready for commitment and settling down. It’s just not realistic and I keep getting hurt. So instead of changing the game, I’ll become a part of it. You know? Have fun for once.”
Benson’s face had been tightening during her speech, but when Carrie finally had the presence of mind to shut up, he didn’t say anything.
The silence lengthened between them.
She took a step away, but Benson steered her around. She blinked, her heart thudding.
“You’re locking up tonight?” he asked.
She cocked her head. “Huh?”
“I’ll talk to you then.” It wasn’t a suggestion as much as it was a promise. With that, Benson turned and walked away.
Carrie spent the rest of her shift thinking about Benson. During clean up and after, when she did her usual routine of checking the windows and doors and securing the alarm, she wondered what he would say.
Carrie’s gaze darted to where Benson stood talking to Ricky, their bouncer. Ricky normally stayed with her until she finished up and then walked her to her car. He was more than the menacing security that kept the club safe, he was like a big brother.
To her surprise, Ricky slapped Benson’s hand and walked off.
He’s leaving me alone?
Benson turned and locked his eyes on her. Shivers shot down her back. Warning signals. Every inch of her was alert, anticipating.
Carrie pulled her gaze away and focused on the chairs that had been upturned on the tables. The counter gleamed from a proper wipe-down and all the wadded napkins and trash had been picked up and thrown in the garbage.
She felt Benson’s presence right in front of her and peeked up at him. “Why’d you send off Ricky?”
“Because I wanted you alone.” He stepped forward.
Her heart dragged her toward him, but she shuffled back. “If you’ve got any more ideas about the club, we should discuss them tomorrow. I’m beat.”
“It’s not about the club.” He nudged her back against the wooden panel.
Her breath thickened. She looked into his dark eyes, narrowed. Focused. His thin, lips parted
. She dug her fingers into the wall behind her, struggling for purchase. Her nails skittered over the surface.
Carrie felt like she was being torn apart from the inside and Benson hadn’t even touched her yet. All he was doing was breathing. Hovering. Taunting.
His presence washed out reality. Left nothing but the promise of satisfaction in its wake. She didn’t want to be this girl. Didn’t want to be this weak.
“W-what are you doing?” Carrie croaked. Her voice was husky, giving her emotions away.
“I’m going to kiss you,” he declared. Calmly. Casually. As if they were ordering from a menu.
“Wha—?”
Benson pressed her against the wall and kissed her deeply. Passion ignited in her core. She flung all restraint and common sense to the wind and returned his embrace in a haze of nipping and licking that didn’t stop until she heard a thud.
They broke apart.
Carrie glanced down and saw that they’d knocked a chair clean off the table and she was bent against it, her back almost lying flat on the glossy surface. She straightened, having absolutely no idea how they’d gotten here.
Benson was making her go insane. She’d never felt this level of intensity for anyone and the fact that she wanted it, wanted him, scared her more than anything.
“I-I can’t.”
He looked at her, eyes gleaming. “That’s okay. Because I know you want to.”
“You…” Chest heaving, she shook her head and tried to speak past the noise of her raging pulse. “You’re with someone.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.”
He chuckled and the frenzy in her head started all over again. “I think I’d know if I was in a relationship. Seo Ah and I are just friends.”
“You should tell her that.”
“I will.”
Her eyes bugged. “Really?”
He advanced, the look in his eyes warning that he was done talking. Carrie knew the moment he touched her, it was game over.
She pushed up a hand to stop him. “I’m not ready.”
That gave him pause. He studied her. Finally, he nodded. “Okay.”
She snapped up the opportunity to escape.
Running away from Benson was safe.
Running toward Benson? Suicide.
He was too hot, too tempting, too… everything. Falling for Benson would be a mistake. Carrie was done patching her heart up. If it got shattered again, there was no going back.
12
Benson watched Carrie skid out of the bar. Heard the thud of the door as she barreled through the exits. The silence fell like a gentle rain on his shoulders. He sighed and grabbed the chair that had toppled over.
His hands still burned from where he’d touched her, savored her. The pounding of his heart echoed in his ears. He settled the chair and turned away, recalling the feel of her hands raking across his chest and back.
That minx…
She’d stirred him and then fled.
Not that he’d hold it against her. They’d both been deceived by people they trusted. Only Benson wasn’t using his past as an excuse to avoid the tenuous bond forming between them.
Carrie could run all night. He was almost certain she wouldn’t be running to Arnold after the way she’d trembled in his arms and let him brand her body with his lips.
Even if she did, he wasn’t the type to give up. Not when he wanted something.
Hard work? He wasn’t afraid of it.
Patience? He had that in spades.
Strategy? A man didn’t get this far and make this much money without learning how to play to win.
Benson was an expert at languages. And he wasn’t just talking Korean and English. Women were strange creatures, but he’d learned a thing or two about the way they expressed themselves.
Carrie was his.
It was just a matter of time until she acknowledged it.
With a satisfied smirk, he locked up and headed home.
As soon as he opened Stacie’s front door, his phone chimed with a message. His sister wanted to video-chat.
He rushed to his laptop and logged on, waiting a few minutes for the program to load. Finally, he saw Stacie’s oval face filling the screen. She was sans thick eyeliner. Her long black hair puddled in a lopsided bun at the top of her head.
Pink lips parted in a mischievous smile when she said, “I see you got my little gift.”
“Carrie almost got drop-kicked in the head when I found her in the kitchen this morning.”
Stacie snickered. “I considered that possibility, but I had hopes that you’d investigate before you went all Bruce Li.”
“So it was a set-up.”
“You’re welcome.” Stacie pushed her face close to the camera so her slim nose turned enormous. “I love Carrie. She’s freakishly beautiful, charming, funny and loyal. Plus, she won’t take any of your BS. You’d be great together.”
“Since when did you turn matchmaker?” He threw his legs up on the couch.
“Just say thank you and move on.” Her eyes sparkled. “So what happened?”
“I called the cops and Carrie got arrested.”
“You’re kidding!” Stacie shrieked.
He laughed. “Carrie and I had breakfast together.”
“That’s good. That’s good,” Stacie bobbed her head like a coach planning her team’s next move. “Women love a man who knows his way around the kitchen. Just don’t tell her that all you can make is eggs and waffles.”
“Already did.”
Stacie groaned. “Must I do everything for you?”
He tried not to smirk too hard. His sister didn’t know how far along he was when it came to claiming Carrie’s heart.
“What’s that look for?” Stacie wiggled her finger at the camera.
“Nothing. I just… miss you.”
“Ha! And I’m the queen of La La Land.” She rolled her eyes. “By the way, Seo Ah isn’t in Korea. I went to her place with spray paint and toilet paper—”
“Toilet paper?” He sat up straighter.
“Yeah, haven’t you heard of TP’ing.”
“T-what?”
She sighed as if he were painfully stupid. “When you throw toilet paper all over someone’s lawn and house. It’s a huge mess. Annoying as hell to clean up.”
“Your brain works in mysterious ways, noona.”
“Thank you.” She bunched her cheeks in an arrogant smile. “Anyway, Seo Ah’s not in Korea. I fished around her social media and get this… it says she’s heading to Belize. Have you seen her yet?”
Exhaustion overcame him at the sound of his ex’s name. He rubbed his eyes. “Noona, I’ll talk to you later. I just came back from a full shift at the bar and—”
“You have seen her!” Stacie raged. “Don’t you dare get back together with her, do you hear me? I swear I’ll fly back and beat your butt till it’s redder than a baboon.”
“Yeah, yeah. Love you too.” He waved and ended the call.
Wearily, Benson got ready for bed and headed to the guestroom. He needed to talk to Seo Ah tomorrow, let her know where he stood. But given her confession about her professor and all she’d been through, he didn’t want to hurt her further.
Tomorrow. I’ll figure it all out tomorrow.
The next morning, he still had no idea what he’d say to his ex. Deciding to bite the bullet, Benson picked up his phone and gave Seo Ah a call.
Her voice sounded bright and cheerful. “Benson! I was just about to call you.”
“Can we meet up?”
“I would love that.”
Benson took a shower and then threw on a light T-shirt, shorts and sneakers. He pocketed Stacie’s car keys and drove to Seo Ah’s hotel.
On the way up, he steeled himself in case he opened the door and found Seo Ah in lingerie trying to lure him to her bed. Benson sighed in relief when he saw Seo Ah was dressed simply in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt.
He noticed the purse strung aroun
d her shoulders. “Were you heading out?”
“No.” She ducked her chin. “Well, yeah. Sort of.”
His eyebrow hiked. “Which one is it?”
“I had a favor to ask you.” She stepped lightly, her sandals padding against the floor. “Before you say whatever it is you need to, would you… spend the day with me?”
He studied her face, the wispy red hair, large brown eyes and small lips. She’d meant a lot to him. After everything, Benson figured he’d grant her this one, last request.
“Yeah, sure.”
Her face brightened. “Wonderful! Don’t worry about anything. I’ve planned the entire day.”
Benson nodded and followed Seo Ah as she trotted outside.
First destination: the zoo. They drove all the way up the highway to peek at the jaguars and birds in cages. Seo Ah bought popcorn and snuck some to the howler monkeys. When she tried to feed him too, he politely declined.
Next, they headed further west to Howler Paw—a cave tubing and zip lining park.
They hiked up large hills to make it to the caves. The water was a sparkling green in the sunlight. Benson marveled at the rock formations that nature had hewn into the caves as they floated down the river in orange rafts.
“This was known as the Mayan Underworld,” the tour guide explained.
His fellow raft-members exploded with hushed murmurs of awe.
Seo Ah joined them.
Benson just smiled, slightly bored. He’d been cave tubing at high school retreats and several times with his friends. This speech was so familiar to him he could quote it in his sleep.
Zip lining was another… experience.
Whenever he visited Howler Paw, he usually kept his feet on the ground, but Seo Ah cajoled him into squeezing his junk into a thick black harness and catapulting himself over the Belizean treetops.
He wasn’t the only one regretting their life choices.
If Seo Ah’s explosive screaming was any indication, she was terrified. Still, when they landed on the platform and the guide pointed to the stairs for another go, she pasted a brave smile on her face and climbed.
After putting them both through the torture—ehem—adrenaline rush of zip lining, Seo Ah led him to the park’s restaurant. It was hewn from wood and stood tall over a mass of trees.
