Troubled Waters (Oceans of Love Book 1)

by Nia Arthurs

  “Don’t talk to me.”

  He laughed and slung his arm around her shoulder. “I’ll give you another rematch and let you win next time.”

  “Don’t you dare. I’m going to beat you fair and square.” She shook her head and licked her cone. “Speaking of the rematch, what was your wish? Did you use it on Bianca?”

  “Nope.” He tapped the pocket of his T-shirt. “It’s still waiting right here for the perfect moment.”

  Kelly made a face as Benjamin’s cell rang. “Hold on one minute?” He winked at her and put the device to his ear. “Hello?”

  She glanced up and saw the moment his expression changed from carefree and happy to fierce and apprehensive. His gaze bounced over the expanse of the park and he let go of her.

  She felt the fear coming off him like waves and grew worried. Had something happened?

  “I said I understand,” he hissed and threw the phone into his pocket.

  “Who was it?”

  His jaw flexed and he couldn’t look at her. “Something’s come up. I’m really sorry, but I need to go home.”

  “Benjamin, is everything okay?”

  He offered her a strained smile. “Everything is fine.”

  Benjamin dropped her at her apartment without another word and remained radio silent the rest of the weekend. On Monday at work, she found out that he wasn’t even in the country.

  For the next three days, she left him messages asking if he was alright and begging him to call her if he needed to.

  On the third day, she heard a knock on her front door and raced to open it. When she saw Benjamin’s face, she flew at him and hugged him tight.

  “Thank God. I thought something had happened to you.”

  Instead of teasing her or smiling in that sultry way of his, Benjamin stepped forward and spoke in a firm voice. “We need to talk.”

  “Sure.” She led him to the sofa and sat down. “What is it?”

  “I haven’t been completely honest with you, Kelly.” He licked his lips. “About where I really come from.”

  “Is that it?” She held her chest in relief. “I know about your adoption already. Bianca told me everything before she left.”

  Benjamin rubbed his hands together. “Did she tell you that my real father is a married man?”

  Kelly shook her head. “N-no.”

  “I was the product of an affair. My mother spent so much time running after him that she would forget to feed me or send me to school. When I was eight years old, I was taken out of her care and put into the system.”

  “Benjamin… I’m so sorry.” She reached out to touch him, but he flinched. Her hand hovered in the air before she pulled it back.

  “When I met you, I saw the same thing happening all over again. I think that’s why I was drawn to you.”

  “What?” She searched his blue eyes. “What are you saying?”

  “It was a mistake to let things get this far. I’m sorry, Kelly. I’ve thought about it a lot these past few days and I don’t want to be with someone like you.”

  “Someone like… someone like me?”

  Who was this cold man and where had the real Benjamin Levy gone?

  “I’m sorry. I don’t understand.”

  “That’s why it’s so frustrating to keep pretending that this can go anywhere. You act like you’ve got all this worldly knowledge, but when it counts you’re painfully naïve. I’ve tried to tolerate it, but I don’t think I can stomach you anymore.”

  She blinked rapidly, straining to hold on to her temper. Was this a joke? Would Bianca come bursting through the door yelling ‘gotcha’ and flinging a video camera in her face?

  “I don’t know what happened while you were gone, but taking it out on me won’t make you feel better.”

  “This is who I am.” Benjamin spread his arms wide. “And you can’t change who you are. It’s impossible and I was a fool to think my pity could make a difference.”

  “So that’s it?” She grew angry as his words soaked in. “I was just a charity case. Someone you thought you could fix?”

  “You have to admit,” he said haughtily. “You needed it. You were a wreck.”

  “Stop with the self-righteous bull, Benjamin. I don’t need to hear anymore.”

  “I hope we can keep on being professional. Since we were just messing around anyway, that shouldn’t be too hard. Especially for you—”

  “Get out!” Kelly closed her eyes and pointed to the door. She heard Benjamin’s footsteps clop against her floor. It stopped, and for a moment, a stupid wisp of hope rose in her.

  If he apologized, claimed that his body had been temporarily taken over by an alien or that he’d gone insane because of whatever mysterious drama he’d been through through over the weekend, she would forgive him free and clear.

  After all, Kelly had a stack of drama queen moments in her arsenal.

  To her intense disappointment, the footsteps continued. Benjamin opened her door and slammed it shut behind him, solidifying the fact that their relationship—as delicate as it had been—was over.

  Kelly could have cried. She could have keeled over from the pain in her chest where Benjamin had torn her heart out. She could have screamed her rage and demanded he come back and explain what had changed between their bowling date and now.

  Instead, she dialed Renesha.

  “Hello?”

  “Ren, drop whatever you’re doing and meet me at the club. We’re going dancing tonight.”

  Full Circle

  Kelly dove headfirst into the crowd of gyrating Belizeans enjoying a Thursday night out. Her shoulder bumped against a couple that danced so close together, they might as well find a motel room. She ignored them and pressed on.

  The darkness hung thick, only pierced by the laser thin green lights that sprung from the bulbs above the DJ’s turntables. Boom! Boom! The bass scooped her heart right out of her chest and squeezed it to the rhythm.

  Kelly threw her head back and soaked in the atmosphere. This was exactly what she’d needed after Benjamin’s callous dismissal. Not that she should have been surprised. In the back of her mind, Kelly had always suspected that his interest had been less than romantic.

  Heck, the man refused to admit that he liked her. Only that he was ‘curious’. Once again, she had been too stupid to pick through the romantic fluff and see the piece of crap that she was letting herself fall for.

  “Wine it on meee. Girl, ride it! Nobody has to know!”

  The dancehall song encouraged her to break every rule Benjamin had painstakingly drilled into her head. Valuable? Ha! She preferred a man who was upfront about his intentions to one who saw her as a science project.

  For all his pious and self-righteous preaching, in the end Benjamin was the one who’d made her feel worthless.

  She bent over until her hand slammed the floor and wiggled, throwing every inhibition to the wind and gratefully accepting the man who emerged from the crowd and jammed his hips against her rear.

  At least he was here for a good time! No celibacy or modesty in sight. No lectures about how much her soul was worth when the mood called for some good old fashion humping.

  And did he pity her? No! In this moment, with his hands all over her sides and his waist moving against her rear, this stranger was having the time of his life. So was she! The. Best. Time. Ever.

  The bass dropped. Kelly froze. Waited. Three, two, one. When the rhythm slammed into her, she straightened and spun to wine on her partner from the front when she spotted his face.

  Benjamin?

  Her heart slammed against her chest as his beautiful blue eyes beamed at her—the gaze full of promise. The noise of the club faded away and she reached out to touch him.

  The brush of her fingers against his skin caused the mirage to fade. Kelly blinked as the light revealed her dance partner’s tan skin and thick black hair. He was sexy—one of the best-looking men she had randomly danced with in the club, but the image of Benjamin threw her off an
d Kelly stood still.

  “What’s wrong?” he yelled in her ear as the music’s volume rushed back to deaf-rendering levels.

  “I-I need a drink.”

  Without waiting around to make sure he’d heard her, Kelly started moving out of the crowd. Her dance partner wasted no time finding another girl to grind on and the sight made her feel… empty.

  As she moved closer to the bar, she spotted a brown hand waving in the air. Rene pointed to a man seated on the stool next to her. The familiar breadth of his shoulders called his name to mind instantly.

  DJ Talon.

  “Hey, you,” he said, giving her skimpy outfit an open once-over as she took the seat next to him. “Haven’t seen you at the gym lately.”

  “I’ve been busy,” Kelly said, still breathless from her ‘vision’ in the crowd.

  “What are you drinking?” Talon asked, swinging toward the bartender. “It’s on me.”

  Kelly gave her preference. Now that she was out from the immersive magic of the dance floor, every word of the song coming from the sound booth slapped her upside the head and caused her to wince.

  “I like when you drop for me. Drop your thong, girl. Make you moan and scream.”

  “Here you go,” Talon said, sliding a glass her way. He eyed her and licked his lips, his gaze falling on the cleavage exposed from her shirt. “Your friend was telling me that you’re newly single?”

  Renesha gave her a thumbs-up gesture from behind Talon’s back and then pretended to yawn. “I should get back to Randal. He barely let me out tonight. Talon, could you take Kelly back to her apartment?”

  “You have a man and I have a girl, but it don’t matter when you lick me there.”

  “It would be my pleasure,” Talon said, the understanding in his tone crystal clear.

  Renesha grinned and hopped off the barstool. She caught Kelly’s eye and dropped into three, abrupt hip thrusts, her chin pointed at the man sitting beside her.

  “Go for it,” she mouthed and waved.

  “I have to get inside you. Have to ram it in. No worry ‘bout nothing.”

  “You want to dance a bit more before we head to your place?” Talon asked, as if the eventual conclusion to their night was written in stone and he didn’t mind being patient.

  The lyrics of the song filled her head and Kelly could barely concentrate, much less offer Talon any sort of answer.

  “Skin it out for the best view. Spread for me let me… you.”

  The song blipped out the word, but the implication was as obvious as Talon’s hands that darted out and rubbed her inner thigh.

  Her chest heaved, but it was not from need. Talon didn’t appear to care for his eyes glittered when he saw her trembling flesh exposed in her see-through clothes. Without waiting for her permission, he stuffed his head to her neck and kissed her there.

  Before the entire club and everyone at the bar, he allowed his hands to rove and his lips to touch whatever part of her body that he wanted.

  His persistent embrace, encouraged by the song, rendered her immobile. This was her world. Her domain. Casual, no-strings-attached sex was fun. Why should she restrain herself from something that felt so good?

  “You are a Louis Moinet,” Benjamin’s voice echoed in her ear. “Priceless.”

  “I want to turn you over like a piece of meat and ram, ram, ram…”

  “I can’t wait for your apartment,” Talon said, his hot breath hitting her ear. “Let’s find somewhere private right here.”

  “I know you’re worth the effort… to keep you safe and comfortable,” Benjamin whispered.

  “Shift your thong, girl. Don’t even have to undress…”

  “I want you,” Talon said, pressing a wet kiss against her ear.

  “Stroke it. Tick it. Tone it. Lift it. Do it to me because I want you.”

  “You’re worth more to me than that watch—”

  She shook her head to clear it of Benjamin’s voice. “Where should we go?” Kelly asked breathlessly.

  “Down the hall to the right,” Talon said. “There’s a unisex bathroom that won’t draw too much attention. Come on.”

  And as Talon dragged her along, Kelly got to thinking about the amount of girls he’d probably had in the bathroom, what he thought of her to allow their first time to be in a dirty place like that.

  They were opinions she should never allow before a casual encounter. Anything that could take her out of the sensual moment was banned.

  This is fun. Best. Night. Ever. Remember?

  But it wasn’t fun and she felt like a prostitute beholden to her client.

  Someone tugged her arm. Kelly glanced up to find Talon staring at her with a confused expression.

  “Why did you stop?” he asked.

  Her gaze slowly shifted downward to her feet in the high strappy heels. They were glued to the floor and refused to move. She looked up at the bathroom sign that welcomed both men and women.

  “I don’t want to do this.”

  “What?” Talon blinked. “Whatever. We can go to your place—”

  “I’m sorry. I should go.” She turned on her heels and fled outside to catch a taxi.

  “Where are you going, miss?” the young man asked, his gaze following the dip of her shirt.

  Feeling unsafe, Kelly got out of the car. “It’s okay.”

  He wound the window and spoke to her from the passenger side. “I’ll take you for free.”

  “No thanks.”

  She walked a little away from the vehicle until it left. Clutching her sides, Kelly realized that—even if she had remained in the car—she had no directions to give him.

  She couldn’t go back to her apartment. The way she felt, Kelly would undoubtedly run back to Benjamin and beg for his attention whether it was out of pity or not.

  She couldn’t go to Rene. Her friend would just lecture her about getting under a man to get over a broken heart. She wasn’t in the mood for that kind of advice.

  There was only one place left to go.

  Kelly bit her fingernails the entire ride to the quiet, village with the modest homes and neatly kept lawns. She paid the taxi fare and walked somberly up to the front porch lit in an orange light.

  Taking a deep breath, she fisted her hands and knocked on the door. “Gran!”

  She heard the patter of feet and the twist of locks as the door burst open moments later. Her grandmother stood, dressed in a loose orange vest and large shorts, before her.

  “Gran,” Kelly croaked, “I’m sorry to bother you. Could I—”

  Her grandmother threw her arms around her and hugged her tight. Kelly felt the wet sensation of her tears against the neck that Talon had kissed just minutes earlier. Instead of disgust, however, warmth spread through her.

  “I’ve been waiting so long for you to come home, child,” her grandmother sobbed. “Come on in.”

  Together, they walked into the house and shut the door behind them.

  Epilogue

  Benjamin

  Thick, brown hair stuck up wildly, abused from the constant interference of nervous fingers. The top button of his wrinkled white shirt was undone and his tie lay haphazardly to the side. The expression on his face matched the tired state of his clothes.

  Benjamin Levy lifted the cup from the mahogany desk and drew it to his lips. Ice clinked in the amber liquid filling his whiskey glass. The burn of the liquor made him cough, but he swallowed it in one swig and relaxed as the warmth spread through his middle.

  Benjamin didn’t drink often, but there was no way he could have gotten through the night without one. Gotten through this call without one.

  The dial tone clicked and a familiar voice picked up.

  “It’s done,” he said gruffly. “Kelly Banner has nothing to do with me anymore.”

  “Was that so hard?” the oily voice filtered over the line. “I know you’re probably sulking, but chin up, Benny. Protecting the woman you love is always a sacrifice. You made the right call.”<
br />
  He growled and curled his fingers into fists. “I don’t want you anywhere near her. I mean it. The look on her face tonight—” He crushed the phone tight. “I’ve already hurt her enough. Stay away from Kelly.”

  “A promise is a promise.” The voice chuckled. “To think, you’ve been all around the world, seen countless beautiful women and you fall for a trashy Caribbean girl with the self-esteem of a …”

  “Say one more word and I’ll—”

  “You’ll what? Kill me? You don’t have it in you.”

  “If you mess with my people, I’ll do what I have to.”

  “Kelly is off-limits, as we agreed. No need to fling threats. Just stay in your little corner of Belize and don’t move until I say so.”

  His fingers trembled and anger cloaked his voice. “I understand.”

  “Good. I’ll be in touch.”

  The dial tone sounded in his ear. Trapped and overwhelmed, Benjamin roared and threw the cell phone against the wall. It clattered to the ground and broke apart on impact. His breath came in rugged gasps and he held the edge of his desk as an anchor.

  He could keep himself from her. He could treat her coldly and cruelly. If it meant saving her life, he could do his worse. He already had.

  Benjamin tapped the pocket of his shirt, thinking of the wish Kelly had promised to grant him. When the time was right, he would use it to ask for her forgiveness and pray the offer was still on the table.

  “I’ll make it right, Kelly,” he muttered to the empty air. “I promise.”

  THE END

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