With the hair out of her face, and her skin freshly scrubbed, the scars were so much more noticeable than before. But she climbed into the bed anyway, and no sooner than she had pulled the sheet over her arms, Ben walked out of the bathroom.
“You know I forgot to grab my bag.” He shook his head and merely tucked the towel tighter. “I’ll be back.”
“You’re going outside like that?”
“Yeah, I am. It’s one a.m. and this road sees maybe thirteen cars during broad daylight. So I can safely assume that no one will even know. That’s one of the merits to country living.” He chuckled and Amelia sank further into the pillows at her back.
What would the neighbors think? Wait a minute and hold your horses, Amelia, she thought ruefully. The nearest house was a quarter mile away, so, highly doubtful that anyone could see anything this far away.
She dismissed her random train of thought and grabbed the remote for her satellite dish. Amelia flipped channels, not really sure what she was going to watch. As an author, she had a hard time watching TV late at night. Not only was the boob tube full of stuff that she didn’t want to see, as she could care less to how some movie star lost a thousand pounds, but what played at this hour of night was less than entertaining to boot.
Nor did she care about the newest breakthrough in skin care as she already had a specialized regimen.
When Ben walked back, Amelia had found an old episode of some sitcom that she hadn’t watched in forever. He carried the towel in one hand and only wore a pair of shorts that rode low on his hips. The reveal was extremely mouthwatering and made her even more wary of being naked in his presence. He wasn’t huge, but well-honed and lean. Every muscle of his chest and abdomen were in stark relief, visible for her hungry eyes to devour.
He was dusted faintly with golden hair all over, and the tiny filaments only added to the masculinity he exuded from every pore. Ben climbed into the bed as if it were his own and grinned.
“I used to love this show.”
She could do small talk, especially after the heavy conversation that they had earlier. “I just happened on it the other day. This satellite has so many channels that I didn’t even know existed.”
“Yeah and the bad part is that all of them show the same thing.” True.
“Exactly.”
Ben cocked his head to the side and looked at her strangely. Really, she had no idea what his expression meant. “Are you opposed to sharing a bed with me?”
That was from the left field, Amelia thought and the pun made her feel mirthful. “No… why?”
“Because you are clinging to the edge, and frankly, it looks uncomfortable as hell.”
Oh. That would make sense.
Amelia laughed at herself. Ben was right now that she looked at it. Her body rode atop the seam along the mattress’ border in a straight line and she couldn’t even roll sideways, lest she end up in the floor.
His gaze softened and she immediately felt guilty. He was a guest and she made him feel less than welcome in her home with standoffish body language. “Are you afraid to get close to me? If so, I can sleep in one of the other rooms. Or take the couch.”
“No, sorry. It’s just been awhile since I’ve had to share.”
“Duly noted. But the whole reason I chose to stay was that I didn’t want either of us to sleep alone tonight.” He scooted across the expanse half way and looked at her as if he was expecting her to meet him the remaining distance.
She conceded to the pressure of his gaze and slid over in slow inches until finally the two of them were side by side. Ben raised one arm and she leaned forward before she lay back atop the extended extremity. The feel of another person in close proximity to her was disconcerting, nerve-wracking and despite all of that, amazingly soothing.
It had been so long since she had touched another person that at first, Amelia was frozen stiff. She couldn’t move, she could scarcely breathe. There was no way. The entire tableau was too intimate, with them in bed and skin to skin at that. They were both dressed, but just the feel of another person touching her was incredible. It was even more than she remembered. The only hands that had touched her for years were either her own, or those of a medical professional.
And the lack showed. Ben turned towards her warmth. But, he made no other moves towards her. It was just his arms around her, their feet touched and that was magical as if something spread between the two of them like lightening. The tingle of electricity seemed to spark from every place his flesh met hers.
“Turn onto your side for me.” Ben asked and he gently caressed her cotton covered arm. Amelia turned over, aided by the gentle pressure he exerted at her back. “So what are we watching next?”
For the remainder of the night, neither of them spoke. There was nothing to say, at least in part because most of it had already been said. The positioning grew more and more natural over the course of the night until her eyes closed and she drifted away.
Benjamin watched Amelia, but she stared at the TV. Although he felt like neither of them watched the show, instead the LCD display watched them. She was still and silent until finally the moment came when she must have become accustomed to the feel of the man next to her in bed. Then the shallow breaths lengthened and her muscles relaxed slowly. He appreciated the way she felt in his arms, the slight weight of her skull pillowed by his arm and the thick curves of her hips flush with his.
His descent into sleep was much farther away than hers, as he watched her in repose. Saw the moments where she was unguarded for himself. There was nothing he wanted more than that, to see the real woman behind the veil she used to protect herself.
Ben closed his eyes and let himself drift away. He rose before dawn and looked over at his nocturnal companion, bathed in the pinks and oranges that ushered in the day. He had slept that night with the most incredible sense of peace as if all were right in the world. Amelia still rested so blissfully that he didn’t have the heart to wake her with his need for more of her company.
He stealthily disentangled himself from her, the mass of sheets tangled around them, beneath them. When he was free from the web of fabric and woman, he made his way into the kitchen and looked in the cabinets for something to break their fast.
He was lucky as a few minutes into his search he was able to locate some in season ripe fruits and some really spotty bananas. Ben knew a decent enough recipe for muffins and he used the sorry bananas to make nutty monkey bread. As the muffins would only take fifteen minutes to bake, he had a chance of actually having breakfast ready before Amelia woke up.
His timing was exceptional, as no sooner than he pulled the freshly baked muffins from the stove he could hear stirring above him. Ben placed the hot pan in the freezer and began to dish up the fruit salad he had made while the bread baked.
Amelia didn’t come down immediately and he was able to get the food upstairs although she wasn’t in bed. But her scent was everywhere as if she had perfumed the room with her own essence, a sensual brew of woman and wild blooming buttercups. He sat the tray on the freshly made sheets, with a quick decision to see where the woman had gone to. It wasn’t as if she could have gone far, he thought wryly.
As he walked into the master hallway slash closet, he found steam billowing from beneath the door and he could hear Amelia sing along with her radio. The sounds of the shower were more apparent as he was closer than before.
But after a few moments, Ben felt like a fool. Here he stood, in front of her bathroom as if he was a pampered pet waiting for its master to acknowledge him. He turned away, lest he feel any more of a voyeur than he already did.
No sooner than his back turned to the door, he heard her cry out and Ben did what any Good Samaritan would. He thrust the door open to see if she was alright.
Liar, you just want to see her naked.
But the sight that greeted him certainly said she was okay. The curtain around the tub was sheer, and parted at the perfect angle to see her. Amelia was nude, sav
e the scattered bubbles that revealed little yet in the same vein concealed nothing. Although, she did wear a clear cap atop her head and he assumed it was to protect her hair from the water. Her flesh was glorious in nudity, he didn’t understand how she was able to degenerate herself the way she had before. He could barely see that she was injured before.
“Ahhhh!” She screamed out at the sound of the door even before she could see the disturbance he presented with the amount of soap in her eyes.
“It’s just me Amelia.” He watched her rinse her face beneath the spray of the water.
“What are you doing in here Ben?” She cried out and he smirked, but he was sure that she couldn’t see him. Especially, considering how concerned she was with concealing her modesty.
She appeared torn, he could see that she wanted to hide her womanly parts from him, and she wanted to hide her scarred skin as well. Her hands couldn’t do both, and her fingers flexed as they scattered over her body in a hyperactive sprawl. All the motions did was expose her even more, highlighted the flesh that the bubbles had effectively concealed before.
“Don’t hide from me Amelia.”
“B-bbut…”
“But nothing.” He laughed, this was perfect. “Let me help you out.”
“How?” She gasped out at last as he walked towards her.
“Turn around.” Amelia cringed and finally she must have decided there was no way she could exit the situation gracefully. It was in that moment that she decided to comply with his request and turned her back to him.
Ben took the loofah that she used on her own skin just a moment before, rinsed it and re-lathered with the body wash she used. He rubbed the scratchy sponge over her, started with her neck then rubbed over her spine. Every inch of her back was given similar care. Once she was gentled to his touch, he finally allowed her to feel his bare hands as he kneaded over the tight muscles at her nape.
At the bare contact of his fingers, she shuddered slightly, the shivers told a story that her lips wouldn’t. Or couldn’t. She was his, the woman of his dreams, the woman he needed even before he knew what he sought from Kylie all those years ago. But they were worlds apart, and he didn’t think that he was perfect. Far from it. In fact, she was closer to the state than he was.
She just didn’t know it.
Her eyes were closed so tightly that he wondered what she was trying to escape from. Was his touch repulsive to her? Was she repulsed by the idea of him forever, the same way that Kylie seemed to be? Her head sagged and he felt the water splash his chest in fat droplets, now that her body no longer fully diverted the stream.
“Look at me Amelia.” She turned her head and he looked at her, truly looked into her eyes and saw something that astounded him.
She wanted him. Her eyes were soft with love but heat behind them burned violently with lust. Ben had never seen a woman who seemed so hungry, yet so removed. She was still and quiet, as if she were afraid of the heat between them. He wondered how a woman could be so vital, but still able to keep herself composed as if her needs had no sway over her reactions.
Ben wasn’t afraid of it. Actually, he felt as if he wanted to revel in it. He cupped the injured cheek in one hand and lowered his forehead to hers. The pants that he wore were sodden with water and he clasped her hand with his, bringing the meshed digits to the liquid logged band to push the fabric to the bottom of the tub.
She refused to look at his as the pants wetly plopped to the tiles. But he wasn’t having that.
“Look at me, Amelia, or I’m going to think that I repulse you.”
“No. I’m far from repulsed Ben.”
“Then why are you hiding from me?”
“Because, I don’t know what’s next.”
“Really? Well, if you haven’t had that talk yet, I can pencil you in.” He chuckled and waggled his brows. “The short version is, usually when two people love each other, they put tab A and slot B together, and that’s how babies are made.”
Amelia gasped then started laughed uncontrollably, finally her eyes met his and he was grateful that instead of shadows he saw mirth. Even if it broke the mood a little, he could recover that. His hand still gingerly cupped the scarred skin and he pulled away before he leaned in and kissed every inch of her jaw then gave the flesh up to her forehead the same treatment.
“I didn’t mean that next, Ben…” But he saw her put two and two together and get the four she was mean to. “Wait? Did you say…”
He cut her off. “I did Amelia.” He smiled as her eyes dampened and he watched one warm tear escape her right eye that he kissed away from her cheek. Although the left one was threatening to do the same and his thumb caressed the soft flesh beneath her eye as the water dripped from her lashes.
“Can we get out of here?” She smiled brightly.
“Sure can.” He leaned into her and pushed the valve until the water ran from the faucet instead of the shower.
Amelia turned the knob at her back until the water stopped running. Ben stepped from the shower and pulled her into his arms. He carried her through the closet framed hallway until they dripped in front of the bed.
“Oooh Ben and you made breakfast? Wow.”
“Yeah, I made breakfast. But I find I’m hungry for more than a mere snack right now.”
“I didn’t have any muffins.” She looked at him, her eyebrow cocked up questioningly.
“I baked them with the bananas you had in the kitchen.”
“If you can make those bananas look this good, I don’t want to know what you could do with real food and time.” Amelia laughed and he loved the brightness of her smile. Her teeth could rival the sun and the light in her eyes made her glow.
He wondered what she would look like in the glow of their lovemaking, or aglow with their child.
There’s only one way to find out.
Ben sat her at the edge of the bed and handed her one of the still warm muffins.
“Go ahead.”
She looked at him and took a fat bite of the crusty exposed edge at the top. “Mmmm…” Amelia muttered around the half-masticated mouthful. But Ben had other plans for her right now, though all she had to do was eat and he would take care of the rest in short order.
“I’ll be right back.” He winked and walked away.
Ben searched for a bottle of lotion. He knew she would need the lubricant on her skin to keep the scar tissue supple. There had to be some that was medically prescribed. He didn’t find anything with a scripted label. But he did find a jar with a thick viscous unguent and he knew he hit pay dirt as the lid opened. The balm smelled like honeysuckle.
He carried the jar out and brought it with him back to the bed. In the few minutes he was away, Amelia had polished off half of the huge muffin. Not to mention, she had covered herself with a robe.
“Take it off.” He said, and the statement was far from a question.
“But I’m naked!”
“Hmm, and here I thought that was obvious. As you can see, you won’t be alone.” He looked down at his cock, which had begun to thicken with her bold appraisal. “I had wondered for a long time, why you always smelled like my childhood. Honeysuckle drifted past me every time I was within eye shot of you. I like it.”
“Thanks, I make it myself.”
He sat the jar down and pulled the ties of the robe apart to reveal a strip of tan flesh that never saw daylight. He could tell as the skin there was several shades lighter that her face, hands and feet.
“Go ahead, finish your muffin Amelia.”
“Uh… Okay.”
When she put her lips back to the half-eaten baked good, he opened the jar and scooped a handful up. Ben rubbed his hands together to warm the contents and slathered her legs and feet. When he had spread the balm over her skin she gasped and choked a bit on the crumbs in her mouth. Ben leaned over and handed her a cup of juice from the tray.
Amelia finally took a normal breath and he resumed as she sat the mug back down.
“
You okay?” He asked and she didn’t verbally respond. Instead she nodded once and he let his fingers speak for him.
At first the digits roamed her feet, caressed the skin over her ankles and palmed the bottom. She groaned and he smiled, “Finish your muffin.”
“You are crazy. How do you expect me to eat while you’re touching me?”
“Yes, I am crazy enough to expect for you to eat the muffin I baked for you while I rub your body all over. And that’s not all you have on your plate either.”
Chapter Ten: Literal and Figurative Muffins for Breakfast
Scarred Page 9
