by Marla Monroe
Well, she was. Super excited that was, and if she were honest, she didn’t get asked out very often.
“Good. How about Saturday night? We close at one p.m.” Ben shifted in his chair and seemed to avoid looking at her.
Alice wondered if he was really that shy that he couldn’t look at her when he talked. He was a huge, handsome man. Could he be a gentle giant underneath all the gruffness? She was dying to find out. Then she looked over at Landon. A tight pang thumped in her heart. What about him? She really liked him, as well. Should she go out with either them when she liked them both?
“Saturday night would be great. What time should I be ready?”
He shrugged then looked over at Landon.
The other man shook his head before speaking up. “Six. If that will work for you?”
“Sure, that will be fine. I love pizza. It’ll be fun.”
The waitress picked that moment to bring out their food, and all three were silent while they ate. She couldn’t believe she was actually going out with Ben. His friend seemed fine with it, even a little encouraging about it. That meant he couldn’t be interested in Alice, so she didn’t feel quite as bad about going out with Ben.
Well, too much. She really liked Landon, too. She couldn’t pick between them, so it was good that they had. Could she date one without showing how much she liked the other?
Hell, it’s only one date, and that might be the only one I get. There’s no guarantee he’ll ask me out on a second date.
But already, her heart was doing a hula dance in her chest at the opportunity to go on even one date with him. Surely it wouldn’t only be one. Then again, he almost seemed reluctant to at all. Almost as if he’d been pushed into it. Had Landon somehow forced him? That didn’t sit well with her.
She wanted to ask him if he was really serious but couldn’t do that with Landon right there. If he didn’t want to go with her to eat pizza, she didn’t want to go. It would be humiliating.
Her chance to talk to Ben alone came when Landon excused himself to talk with someone he knew across the room. She leaned toward Ben, catching his gaze as he looked back toward her.
“Ben, if you don’t want to go with me, you don’t have to. I get the feeling you’re not really interested,” she said.
“I asked you, didn’t I? If you don’t want to go, then say so.”
She sat back in her chair, unsure how to take his abrupt tone of voice.
“Look. I want to go. I’m just not real good with small talk. I don’t go out much other than to get a beer with Landon. I work, and I go home. I get it that you’re probably aren’t interested in someone like me, so if you don’t want to go, I understand.” However, his sullen expression told her otherwise.
Alice could tell he really did want her to go out with him. She offered a small smile and nodded her head.
“I’d really like to go out with you, Ben.”
“Well, good. That settles it.”
* * * *
Alice looked in the mirror for the zillionth time as she had tried on one outfit after another in preparation for her date with Ben. She wasn’t sure what would be appropriate for a pizza date since she hadn’t been out on a date in nearly a year. Working from home hadn’t afforded her very many opportunities to meet people, especially men.
Finally she settled on a pair of jeans that looked fairly new, along with an emerald green blouse paired with a black sweater in case the restaurant was cold. Alice quickly dressed then fussed with her curly hair in an effort to tame it back with a clip to keep it out of her face.
She checked the time once more and realized, that for all of her rushing around and fussing over what to wear, she was ready a full twenty minutes before he was scheduled to pick her up.
I’m way too excited over this. More than likely this will be the only time he asks me out and we’ll go back to never seeing each other again.
That thought cinched a tight knot in her stomach. She really liked him. Both of them really. She didn’t want to think about never seeing them again.
She paced as she went over their conversation at the diner and couldn’t come up with a single reason he would have asked her if he hadn’t been interested. They could have eaten their meals and gone their separate ways, but he’d asked and she’d said yes.
The doorbell rang, causing her to yelp and jump. Alice shook her head at how tightly strung she was over everything and picked up her purse to answer the door. When she opened the door it was to find both Ben and Landon there waiting on her.
“Did you even check to see who it was before you opened the door?” Ben asked, his face drawing into a tight frown.
“I was expecting you,” she said.
“Could have been anyone out here. We’re five minutes early. You should have checked,” he said again.
“He’s just worried about you, Alice. Don’t let him bother you.” Landon reached out and took her elbow. “Let’s go. I’m hungry.”
Alice started to ask why both of them had picked her up but kept her mouth shut. Maybe Landon figured, with how blunt Ben could be, he needed help with the date. And wasn’t that crazy? A best friend might support them and urge his friend to ask someone out, but they didn’t actually go on the date with them. It reminded her of the play by Edmond Rostand, Cyrano de Bergerac, where one man wooed a woman for another man. But didn’t the first one fall in love with the woman, as well? That hadn’t ended well.
She allowed Landon to take her elbow and followed him out the door. Ben took her key and locked it behind her before pocketing the key instead of giving it back to her. It worried her at first, but she decided he planned to open the door for her once they’d returned.
When they reached the truck, it was Ben who helped her and scooted in next to her while Landon circled the cab to climb up on the other side into the driver’s seat. Having both man’s muscular thighs pressed on either side of hers sent a thrill through her bloodstream like tiny electric eels. It was better than her dreams so far. But it couldn’t last since in her dreams she got both men. That wouldn’t happen in real life.
They pulled up outside the town’s only pizza parlor, which seemed quite busy already. Ben climbed out of the cab then reached up and swung her out and down. She couldn’t help but sigh when he let her slide down his amazing, hard body before her feet touched the ground. Had that been his cock pressed against her belly for a brief second? Dear God, Ben was big. Pussy-clenching big.
She wobbled when he started to let go over her then quickly placed a steadying hand on her shoulder.
“You okay?” he asked in that gravelly voice.
“Fine. Just lost my footing,” she lied.
Alice was anything but fine. All of her senses were on overload from that brief taste of heaven and the fact that she had both men within reach. She could dream, and if all went well, this would fuel a humdinger of one later that night.
Hot, hard male bodies on either side of her in bed with enough sex to assure that her sheets would be wet when she woke up the next morning. Yeah, she could handle both men in her dreams but had no clue how that would work in real life. Thank goodness she was only going out with Ben. At least she thought she was out with Ben.
“There’s a table over there,” Landon pointed out.
Landon led while Ben led her with a big, beefy hand at the small of her back. The heat of it seared through her blouse. It took her breath away so that, when he held her chair, she nearly passed out from lack of air.
“Are you okay?” Landon asked, his eyes wide with worry. “You look a little pale.”
“What’s wrong? Are you sick?” Ben immediately stood back up and stepped over to her.
“No. I’m fine. I’m not sick. It’s probably the lighting in here. Please, Ben, sit down.” She couldn’t believe how attuned and attentive they appeared to be.
“As long as you promise to let us know if you really aren’t feeling well,” Landon said.
A waitress saved her from havin
g to reply. She offered them menus and took their drink orders.
“Do you want beer, Alice?” Ben asked.
“Beer would be great,” she said. “And a glass of water please.”
Landon ordered a pitcher of beer with three glasses and a glass of water for Alice. When the waitress was gone, Landon and Ben pored over the menu.
“We normally get two medium pizzas with the works to go. What do you like?” Landon asked after looking over at Ben.
“I like just about anything except olives, pineapple, or anchovies. So, order whatever you like. I can pick off the olives and pineapple, but if you don’t mind, I’d really rather not have the anchovies.”
Ben jerked his head up and glared at his friend before turning his eyes toward her.
“So, how about a supreme with everything except olives? The supreme doesn’t come with the fish or the pineapples. Don’t know why anyone would want to put fruit on a f-damn pizza,” he muttered.
“I’m with you on that. Nowadays they put just about anything on them,” she said. “I like the barbeque sometimes, but it’s a once-in-awhile thing for me. I prefer a regular pizza.”
“What about the crust?” Landon asked. “Thin or thick?”
“Thin, but I can eat either one. It’s not really a problem,” she told them.
“Thin it is.” Landon looked over at Ben. “You order.”
Ben’s lips thinned into a straight line, but he nodded. When the waitress returned with their drinks, Ben ordered two large supreme pizzas without olives. Alice was surprised at the large order but didn’t say anything. They’d just admitted to eating a medium apiece. Clearly they had big appetites. She loved to eat, but she wasn’t about to eat a half of a pizza. That was way too much for her.
“So, what do you do?” Landon asked.
“I code medical charts for hospitals to file to insurance companies. It’s great since I can do it from home and only have to drive to Dallas every once in a while,” she said.
Ben cleared his throat. “So why did you move here?”
“I was tired of city life. Everything was go, go, go, and the crime rate is so high there. I wanted a slower pace, and since I can do my job from anywhere, this suited me.” She smiled at Ben then Landon. “I fell in love with the place when I visited the museum here in Rock Creek. I loved it and decided right then to make the move.”
“Huh, I’ve lived here almost all my life, and I’ve never been to that place,” Ben said.
“It’s really nice and educational about the cowboy way of living and how the area was settled. Maybe we can go sometime.”
Alice took a sip of her beer and avoided his eyes in case he thought she was asking for another date already. It had come out before she’d realized what it sounded like. It was a great place, and she was sure they’d like it once they got there.
They? Wait. She was only dating Ben. Right?
“Sounds like a great idea,” Landon said. “I wonder if they’re open Saturday afternoons?”
“Guess we can call and find out.” Ben looked away as he said it.
“I didn’t mean…”
“We know, but I’m sure Ben would like taking you there,” Landon told her.
The big man jerked and snarled across the table at Landon. Then he settled down and turned back to look at her.
“Yeah. I’d like to take you. Might be interesting,” he said.
Before she could say anything more, the waitress was plopping down two large pizzas with the help of another waitress.
“Can I get you anything else?” she asked.
Ben spoke up to Alice’s surprise. “Another pitcher of beer in about fifteen minutes.”
“Gotcha.” She walked away to take care of another group that had come in.
Landon refilled their beer while Ben plated up a large slice and set it in front of Alice. She was so surprised she nearly said as much. Men rarely served a woman these days. It was nice. She waited until they’d each gotten their slice before biting into hers. It was hot and tasty. She moaned then felt her face heat when she did.
“Glad you approve,” Landon teased.
“It’s been awhile since I’ve had pizza. I’d almost forgotten how good it can be. This is actually the first time I’ve been here. Now that I know how good it is, I’ll come more often.” Alice took another bite then followed it up with a sip of her beer.
“They’ve always got good pizza and beer,” Ben offered. “We don’t normally eat in, but I guess it’s nice to eat out sometimes.”
Before she’d finished her first piece, Ben had placed another one on her plate. She smiled her thanks and was positive she detected a light blush of color his cheeks. That was when she realized he’d shaved. The last two times she’d seen him he’d had a light brushing of dark stubble there. Though she’d liked it well enough, clean-shaven, he was even more striking with his square jaw and the slight crook to his nose. It by no means took away from his looks.
“What made you open a garage?” she asked without directing the question to either man.
“It’s what we knew,” Ben said.
“We’ve been working on cars and trucks since we were able to carry tools for Ben’s old man,” Landon said. “We worked for the owner of the garage then bought him out when he got ready to retire.”
“Been working it ever since,” Ben added.
“That takes a lot of initiative to run a business like that. A lot of hard work has to go into it.” Alice was impressed.
“It has its moments,” Landon quipped.
“Huh, yeah, like when someone comes in with some vague complaint about a weird noise when they drive over fifty. Like we can pinpoint that without driving their car. Chaps my ass,” Ben said.
Alice nearly laughed out loud when Landon frowned across the table at his partner. It was obvious that Landon was trying to keep Ben from screwing up. Well, she liked Ben just like he was.
“Yeah. I can imagine. So they didn’t want you to drive their car, but they expected you to fix it. That’s kind of lame.”
“Damn right it is,” Ben said around a bite of pizza.
“What’s the funniest thing that’s happened?” Alice asked, directing her question to Ben.
He cocked his head. “Funniest? At a mechanic’s shop?” He shrugged. “I guess the time that Landon was kind of sweet on this lady who kept bringing her car in for no reason so he wore nice jeans that fit when he thought she might show up. He bent down to pick up her purse when she dropped it and his jeans split all the way up the back. I ’bout busted a nut, um, gut.”
“I don’t think she was talking about that, Ben.” Landon’s scowl seemed foreign on the normally easy-going man’s face.
“I have to agree it’s funny. Sorry, Landon. What about a funny moment with Ben?”
Landon smirked and stared over at his friend. “Yeah. I’ve got one in mind.”
“Don’t do it, Landon.” Ben’s face crunched down into a scowl.
“One day Ben was changing the oil in a truck and had just screwed in the filter when he asked me to pour in the oil. He needed to go to the bathroom. I started pouring it in, but he’d forgotten to put the plug back in and it poured all over him,” Landon said.
“That’s funny,” she agreed.
“Oh, that’s not all of it.”
“Shut up, man. I’m telling you.” Ben’s face had turned a light shade of pink that was slowly going red.
“So he shoots out from under the truck and proceeds to tear out of his clothes before the oil can soak in. He’d just pulled his jeans off when old Mrs. McGillicutti walked in to see if her car was ready. That’s how Ben got his nickname of Big Ben. He wasn’t wearing underwear,” Landon finished.
Chapter Five
“Oh my.” Alice was caught between humor and embarrassment for poor Ben.
Yeah, Big Ben was an apt name for him. If he was that large without being aroused when she’d felt him the few times he’d been pressed closer to her, he woul
d be enormous when he was. A woman could get hurt from a man that size.
She shook her head, fanning her face when she realized she was probably just as red as poor Ben. She took a gulp of the cold water then reached over and patted the man’s hand.
“It was funny, but I understand it was embarrassing, too. And face it, you started it.”
Ben’s face morphed from anger to resignation, and then a rare smile spread over his mouth as her eyes sparkled in their gray depths.
“Yeah. I guess.” He turned his hand over beneath hers and clasped her hand. “Not used to talking about things like that. I guess it was funny. You should have seen poor Mrs. McGillicutti’s face. She’s seventy something, and Landon thought she was going to pass out before she said that about me.”
“Said what?” Alice asked, knowing full well what it had been.
Again his face grew read all the way down his neck. “‘I guess you’re Big Ben. Who knew I had the American version right in my own backyard?’”
“The problem was that she told everyone she talked to about it, and people have been calling him that ever since,” Landon said with a wink. “Most tales get bigger with the telling, but I doubt that one could have and still be believable.”
“That’s enough, Landon.”
Alice had pity on the poor man. “Once, when I was about seventeen, I went swimming with my friends on a Saturday afternoon. I was so proud of my new bikini and couldn’t wait to show it off. You know how kids are at that age. I jumped in the deep end and lost my top first thing. No one would give it back to me. The guys kept tossing it over my head while I was trying to cover up and reach for it at the same time. Finally, I had to get out of the pool and wrap a towel around myself until I could get back into the locker room to change back into my shorts. I was so humiliated back then, but it’s kind of funny now.”
“Did you ever get your top back?” Ben asked.
“Nope. I still don’t know who ended up with it, but I never wore a bikini again. I stuck to one piece after that.”
