by S. L. Scott
“My pleasure.” Moving above her, he settled between her legs, his erection pressing just enough for them to moan for more.
When Grace opened her mouth, he kissed her deeper and harder as well as pushed in deeply. Oh God, he had missed her.
Her reaction wasn’t soft or gentle. It was heavy and passionate. He wanted her wholeheartedly and was ready to worship her body. Grace’s hands held his sides and he looked up, appreciating the beautiful woman beneath him, the woman he’d loved his whole life and thought he’d lost, the woman that felt like home when he was inside her. Feeling emotional, he paused and closed his eyes.
A whisper to his temple made him swallow and press his lips to her shoulder, “I’m here, my love. I’m right here, right here with you forever.” His weight dropped down and he hugged her. Her fingernails scraped lightly through his hair and he sighed, finding peace and comfort in her.
Grace felt one of Ben’s tears drop onto her chest when he raised his head. They both adjusted momentarily before he pushed all the way into her again. “I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you,” he chanted, his voice fading off as he started to lose himself to the feeling—warm, wet, gripping, soft.
Home.
“You feel so good, babe. It’s almost too—” He didn’t finish what he was going to say and groaned instead as he pulled back and pushed in again. He sped up and Grace’s head dropped back, exposing more of the lovely neck that he had always found erotic. Ben licked and then started sucking, knowing full well it would leave a mark. Who gave a damn? This was his wife. His pretty girl. His future.
Faster. Slower. He thrust, seeking her safe haven.
“Ben,” she moaned, her words coming out uncontrolled and ragged. “Oh, yes, yes.”
Ben moved his hips faster, feeling like he was suddenly chasing something unattainable. He was going to do his damnedest for her, all for her. As he balanced on one forearm and his knees, his other hand kneaded her breast then he dragged a finger down her body until he reached her clit.
Grace’s body reacted immediately, jolting from the intensity between them. They had messed around sexually since she’d recovered her memory but they had chosen to save this final bliss for their wedding night. Maybe it was a bit ridiculous, considering they had been together for so many years prior to her accident, but they wanted the time, the re-bonding time. They needed to reconnect, to rebuild their friendship and love. They also needed to heal. The internal wounds would take longer to recover, but that was okay. They had each other.
In the end, they hadn’t needed much time. Their love was such that there was no hesitation on either part in committing their lives to one another. They wanted to consummate their marriage and their commitment to each other tonight. So, they had waited.
“Grace.” Her name fell from his lips through harsh breaths as he made love to her.
“Harder. I need you deeper,” she said, eyes closed, mouth open, hands gripping his shoulders as she moved against him. He wanted to give her euphoria.
His fingers teased her body, toying with her emotions and her climax. She wriggled and moaned, and he could tell how much she loved it. He so desperately wanted to take her to the precipice, and then fall with her. Her nails dragged down his back, and he knew there would be marks later. She dug the tips into his shoulders and held tight.
Ben took her right knee and pulled it higher up against his ribs and held her there with his arm. “Oh God,” she cried out as he swiveled his hips erratically, deepening where he was hitting inside her.
Sitting up, he positioned Grace on top of him. She sank back down, her lips falling apart as she took him in. He held her hips tightly as if she was a mirage and would disappear if he let go of the vision in front of him. His lips kissed the dip at the base of her neck and he swirled his tongue in it, tasting her between panted breaths. His eyelids were heavy, and he struggled to comprehend she was his again. He finally let them drop closed and went with sensations instead.
He thrust up just as Grace called his name in ecstasy. She dropped her head, her temple against his cheek as her body squeezed around him, causing him to fall with her. He tucked his face into the arc of her neck and held her so tight that both of them could feel the pulsing, the heat, and the love.
Ben groaned against her chest, his entire body tense, and then he relaxed. Her body was pliable to his, both of them exhausted.
“Oh God, I have missed you, Grace,” he said, looking up at her in awe.
She laughed, letting her happiness escape. Her hands went through his hair twice before she cupped his face. “It was amazing. You are amazing.” She took a deep breath and exhaled, then let herself fall backward on the bed. “I want to do that again tonight and a lot over the next say, sixty years.”
He loved how comfortable she was, how free she was with him. “How about sixty years on earth and then an eternity beyond?” Ben smirked as his hands trailed over her stomach.
“I was in hell, Ben, and you saved me and showed me heaven.”
“Because I love you.”
“I love you, too, more than anything.”
Her gaze lowered and something came over her. When she looked up, she moved to him and kissed him once, then again. “Thank you for never giving up on me.”
“I would never—”
“Shh, just let me thank you.”
They moved so they were side by side, and facing each other. He kissed her lightly and then rested his cheek on her chest. “And don’t worry,” his hand moved between her legs, and he smiled, “I’m going to let you thank me several times over tonight.”
“It will be my pleasure.”
“Trust me. The pleasure is all mine.”
33
Ben Edwards
Six months after Grace and Ben’s wedding . . .
Ben held Grace’s hand tightly as they walked up the courthouse steps. Twice she asked him to loosen his grip and twice he did only to start squeezing it just as firm again.
“Ben?” she called, placing her free hand over their joined hands.
When he looked over at her, his face was tense, his jaw rigid, and his brow furrowed. When he made eye contact though, all of the turmoil he was displaying softened and a small smile came into play. “Yes?”
“You’re hurting my hand.”
He looked between them and instantly loosened his grip then pulled her hand to his mouth and kissed it. “I’m sorry, baby. I’m a little stressed.”
“I understand.” She stopped on the top step in front of the large brass doors, and said, “It will be fine. He’s not going to get out of it.”
“I don’t want him near you. I was hoping he’d never see you again—”
“We need to do this and for us to win the case, I have to testify.”
“I know all this, but I still don’t like it.” Ben looked down at her stomach but didn’t touch it just in case he could see them. “I don’t want him to know about the baby and you’re starting to show.”
“Barely.” She put her arms out to prove it. “I think Emily did a good job helping me find this suit. Most people will think I’ve just gained some weight. Let them. I’m happy in love. These are love pounds.”
Ben smiled. “How are you so strong?”
“Because I have you by my side,” she stated as if it was that obvious.
Leaning down to kiss his wife, he knew he was stronger because she was by his side, too. They made their way inside and the lawyer directed them to their seats. The Edwardses and Stevenses took up the first two rows in the courthouse with Ben, Grace, and their lawyer at the plaintiff’s table.
Ben didn’t look up when the doors opened. He didn’t give Barnes or his attorney his attention when they walked in. Ben didn’t look over when they sat at the opposing defense table. He couldn’t. The struggle to restrain himself was becoming monumental. Ben’s hands fisted, so he hid them under the table and focused on the grain of the oak wood, his angel trying to soothe him by rubbing his leg. With a tight smile i
n place, Ben tried to reassure her, but there was no use. From the side smile he saw on her face, he knew she saw right through him. “You’re the strongest man I know,” she whispered. “Have I ever told you that?”
“No.”
“Not just physically, but emotionally. You held on when there was nothing left to hold on to. You survived and kept my memory alive. Without you, I wouldn’t be here today. I wouldn’t be your wife, or the mother of your children. Without you, I wouldn’t be me.” She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, and then slid her hand to his, unwrapping it and entwining their fingers together.
Awestruck. He was simply awestruck by the stunning woman he was fortunate enough to call his wife. “Thank you.”
“Thank you,” she replied. And he felt peace.
The judge came in and the case was introduced to the court. After fifteen minutes of opening statements, Ben couldn’t stop himself. He had to see the monster that stole his soul away for three years. When he did, he was met with direct eye contact, a smirk, and a cocky-ass eyebrow lifted. Ben immediately turned away, refusing to give Barnes the pleasure of seeing how affected he felt. Instead, he gave his complete attention to their attorney, who was currently presenting their case. The attorney had promised a quick trial knowing that all the facts were in their favor.
Another thirty minutes passed and Barnes’s attorney took the courtroom floor. Barnes fell for his own hype and subscribed to the saying that all attention worked in his favor. He’d taken their tragedy and manipulated it into a money-making story to the media. This had become a high-profile case in Chicago and both Barnes and his lawyer loved the extra attention.
For extra dramatics, they called John Stevens to the stand, since as her father he had rights back then that Ben didn’t. Mr. Stevens had contacted the Chicago Police Department after hearing about the evidence Grace found in the apartment—the flyers and the ring. He placed the call right after Grace left their reunion in Leavenworth to get the case reopened and to hopefully start the investigation into Hunter Barnes. The officers assigned to the case were notified of the new evidence the next day, and if they could see to it, the case would be reopened.
John and Pamela were to catch a flight a day later, but when Grace was admitted into the hospital after hitting her head on the sidewalk, they flew out that night along with Ben’s family.
Back in the courthouse, Attorney Stevens was being questioned about his medical issues in the past. Though he’d been well for years now, they used this to show his instability physically and mentally and instead of facts, he was presenting wishful thoughts of supposed evidence to help a daughter who they said left of her own free will.
Grace leaned her elbows on the table and dropped her head into her hands, trying to hold back her tears. It was breaking her heart to watch her father be attacked like that. Ben whispered, “I’ll make him pay for this.”
Her slight nod, along with her slow blink showed her disgust with the other side. She turned to Ben, and replied, “We will have happiness, something that monster will never truly have. Just help me get through this trial.”
“I promise I will.”
After John, the defense called Grace to the stand. She was prepared, knowing they would probably drag her through the mud while showcasing her pain and trying to find fault in her side of the story.
Ben kissed her on the temple before she left his side and marched calmly up to the stand. He saw how she changed her walk to hide her growing belly, but when Ben glanced to Barnes, he saw the way he stared at his wife. He saw the way he narrowed his eyes and analyzed her figure from head to toe. Barnes knew. Ben remembered how Grace told him that Barnes wanted her in top shape at all times. He would notice the change in her. The thought of him knowing she was going to have a baby angered Ben to the point of him having to take a breath while gripping the edge of the table.
The first hour of interrogation, she was asked questions that all seemed to lead to her being considered a “gold digger” out to marry a rich doctor. Ben stomped his foot and outwardly huffed two times before his lawyer touched his forearm, hoping to calm him down. Grace never even broke a sweat and outwardly laughed three times. So as much as Ben wanted to be upset, the allegations didn’t upset her. Logically, he knew that even if she were a gold digger, she still didn’t deserve to have her life hijacked from her. She became a prisoner because of Barnes’s wrongdoing and there was no hiding the facts. They could spin their lie however they wanted, but it would always have the same conclusion. Barnes was to blame for all the years Grace lost.
Ben watched Grace carefully. He didn’t want her stressed and risking the health of the baby or herself over that monster. At one point, he saw her narrow her eyes and make a face that seemed to show her disdain, though she quickly righted her expression. That exchange drew Ben to look at Barnes again. Adrenaline pumped through his veins as he stared at the arrogant asshole across the aisle. Barnes had his eyes stuck on Grace, with a look that could only be described as hunger.
In a frenzy of fury, Ben’s chair flew backward, tipping over, and Ben kneed Barnes’s attorney in the face accidentally as he tackled the monster from his chair taking him to the ground. Ben landed an uppercut and one solid threat, “I will fucking kill you if you ever come near her again,” before he was pulled back by a security guard, his dad, Joe, and Grace’s father.
Barnes laughed with blood coming from the side of his mouth. “She was so good to me. Is that my baby she’s carrying?”
Three grown men couldn’t stop Ben from kicking him in the ribs, but another security guard added into the mix did the trick. As they were dragging him back, he yelled, “Don’t you ever fucking look at her! Never fucking again or I will end—” before his mouth was covered by his father’s hand.
His father warned, “Don’t say anything else, son. Calm down.”
The judge had been yelling to remove Ben from the courtroom, and Grace stood horrified, covering her mouth in shock. As Ben was pulled into the lobby, he could hear the judge yell at Grace to stay seated, that she was still under oath, and would finish her testimony.
Ben shook eight hands off him and shrugged his jacket into place before storming away to rest his head against the cool marble of a nearby wall.
“Son, you’ve got to calm down—”
“I hate that fucker. I hate him so much.” Ben could feel a combination of heated anger and bile rising in his throat. “Did you see how he looked at her?” He turned quickly to meet his father’s concerned eyes and then John’s worried ones. “This case is only about money. Nothing more. He served four fucking months for messing with her medical records, and that’s it. That’s fucking it! Four fucking months at some high-end prison resort up north. How is that fair? He took away three years of her life, of our lives—”
“He lost his medical license—”
“It’s not enough. He shouldn’t be walking the streets.”
“It’s the only recourse we have. If we don’t follow the law, we’re no better than him, Ben.” Joe looked over his shoulder at the security guard who was still trying to catch his breath, then back to his son. “Your wife needs you. She’s on the stand. Can you do this, or not?”
The security guard announced, “He can return on one condition. If he has another outburst the judge will dismiss the case. Mr. Edwards, do you understand this condition?”
John moved closer to Ben and whispered, “Grace needs you in there, Ben. If not for you, do this for her.”
Ben nodded, reading the plea in John’s eyes.
A hushed wave of silence befell the crowd when Ben re-entered the courtroom. Ben focused on Grace who looked like she was on the verge of tears and made his way back to his seat and remained standing under his counselor’s advice. The judge asked him if he could cooperate and abide by her courtroom rules. Ben agreed, sneaking a glance at the defense. Barnes’s lawyer had the remains of what looked like a bloody nose and Barnes had a scowl on his face while his neck was flam
ing red, revealing his true feelings. A wry grin spread across Ben’s face while looking down at the papers in front of him, trying to appear “controlled.”
The rest of the afternoon was spent listening to Barnes’s testimony. Ben and Grace rolled their eyes at least ten times each and shook their heads in disgust repeatedly. He claimed he saved her from the scene of the accident and was dutifully portrayed by his attorney as a hero. Ben and Grace could agree that he did save her, considering the extensive injuries she suffered from the car hitting her, but their attorney argued how Barnes entered her into the hospital records as Jane Parker instead of Jane Doe, which violated hospital protocol. This accounted for no one knowing who she was. The police came up empty-handed since no Jane Doe or Grace Stevens had been admitted. The missing-person flyers were removed to make sure that no one put two and two together and her property had been left at the scene of the accident only to have all her belongings and identity stolen. They had the Starbucks barista testify to what happened inside the coffee shop prior to and after the accident. Stringing all those little things together, Barnes was given the perfect opportunity to obtain the affections of a woman who had rejected him minutes prior.
A psychiatrist had met with Barnes before the hearing and determined that not only was he not crazy, but he knew full well what he was doing. The term “God Complex” was used several times to Barnes’s dismay. It was determined that he hadn’t planned the violation. There was no way for him to know this would happen, but he took advantage of an opportunity with an ill-conceived plan that he conjured on the spot after the accident. Guilty without malicious intent. The mere act itself was malice. Ben couldn’t watch this play out. His insides raged in frustration.
Ben crossed his arms across his chest and leaned back in the chair. The facts were on their side, but it didn’t feel satisfactory as all the details of that day came to light. He wanted him to pay, and an upscale jail in New York wasn’t enough. Suddenly, Ben had an idea. He didn’t know if it would fly, but he was willing to do whatever he could to get back at the monster. He leaned over to his lawyer and whispered his thoughts.
