“She sounds like a lovely small town girl. You will have to bring her out to have dinner with me some time. Maybe at the weekend?”
“Ooh, I don’t know, Mom. Maybe, it might be too soon though. I don’t want to put the pressure on.”
“Maybe I should just pop into the city sometime then, swing by and meet her then in a much more casual setting. What do you think?”
“Yeah, that would probably work, Mom, but if you do come around please be cool. Don’t come in all heavy handed and freak her out. There’s no point in giving me that look, you know as well as I do that you could.”
Mom holds up her hands in defeat. “Fine, if I pop by I’ll be good. I won’t say anything to embarrass you.” Her face softens and I can see that she’s about to talk about Dad before she even begin. “You know, my Dad always humiliated me in front of your dad when we first started dating. It was awful, I hated him for it. I was so desperate not to give him any reason not to love me and I thought my father would be a problem... luckily he wasn’t.”
“It seems like Dad loved you a lot, Mom.” I always feel silly and stiff when I make these remarks because I don’t know. He might be genetically a part of me, but that’s it. “From everything that you’ve told me, it sounds like you had it great.”
“Let me go and get some pictures,” Mom says wistfully standing up. “I haven’t looked through the photographs in a while, but hearing about you and Serena has inspired me. You don’t mind, do you?” I shake my head, knowing that she will anyway. “Oh he would be so proud of you, finding the one.”
“I didn’t say that she’s the one Mom...”
But it’s too late, she’s already gone leaving me to stew in the sheer terror that she’s instilled in me. I know Serena isn’t expecting much, I can tell that she understands me, but what if that changes? What if our differences suddenly become too apparent and that translates into what we want? What if this is all novelty at the moment, and it wears off? What if just as I’m getting bored, Serena is getting more into it? Or the other way around, I can’t deny it could happen that way too...
Oh God, just stop it, I warn myself. I knew this would happen, coming to see Mom. I just need to stop freaking out before I wreck everything.
I get up and pace the room while I wait for Mom to come back with the endless photographs. There’s far too much of an itch in my foot for me to keep still. It’s okay, logically I’m sure it’ll be fine if me and Serena take this one step at a time, but now my brain is a bit too messy for that to be the only thought I have.
“Ooh, look, I’ve found one where he looks just like you.” Mom’s back and she has the photos with her. “Same eyes, same hair, same everything.”
Maybe getting myself lost in the past for a little while will help me to forget about my uncertain present. It’ll keep Mom distracted too, and since she’s the one pushing for me to have a happy ever after, she’s the one I need to calm down. The wild dancing look in her eyes is already dying down, if I can just get her to forget about Serena for long enough so I can leave without her messing me up even more, then that’s what I’ll do.
“Let me have a look. Mom.” I take the picture from her, trying to ignore the sheer pain it gives me inside. This isn’t for me, this is for Mom. I’ll do anything to keep her happy. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that one before.”
Chapter Fourteen – Serena
I’m singing, actually humming a tune with happiness as I set about making breakfast for me and Ben. Jenny has left for her cruise, the rug of my life has been yanked out from underneath me, and yet I’m happy. I guess not all change has to be bad news.
Admittedly, I was a little nervous when I first moved into Ben’s home. There was a small part of me that could see over the rose tinted glasses into everything that could go wrong, but nothing has so far. It’s been smooth sailing. I have my own room – not that I’ve stayed in there much to be honest – we have our own space and privacy, but we can be together a lot too. It’s actually really awesome. Every moment I spend with Ben I find myself liking him more and more, he’s growing on me in the best way possible. I feel like I might well be falling in love with him, and it’s the most gorgeous, velvety feeling of all.
Of course, he wants me to leave the club and at first I thought I wanted that too, but as I spoke to the manager, who I now know is called Burt, he freaked out. Me and Jenny leaving at the same time was just too much for him at once. Apparently he doesn’t have as many girls wanting the job as he once did. So I negotiated with him. I asked him if I could take a couple of shifts a week behind the bar in normal clothing, which is something that I’m much better at than being a shot girl anyway. I actually quite like it, even if the money is less. It gives me some independence and a little bit of a nest egg to get me started when the moment comes.
“Good morning.” Ben comes up behind me and he circles my waist with his arms. As he buries his face into my hair my heart races faster. Everything he does makes me feel amazing, I have yet to find anything I don’t like about him. “How are you doing today?”
“I’m good,” I reply with a smile on my face. “I’m just cooking you some eggs because I know you must have a busy day at the office today.”
“I might not go into work today,” he replies while running kisses over my neck. “I might just stay home with you all day.”
I turn around and I wrap my arms around his neck. I push myself up onto my tiptoes so I can press my lips up against his. “I don’t think you should take any time off work because of me, I don’t want everything to go under without you.”
“It won’t,” he insists. “I have people who can do everything for me.”
“But you were never away before.” I don’t phrase this as a question, despite the fact that I don’t really know the answer. I just assume that’s the case judging by his ambitious nature. “So I don’t want you to change things up for me.”
He wraps his fingers around my butt and smirks. “I know, but I want to. You’re so damn worth it.”
The dream is so real, I try not to get caught up in the whirlwind nature of it anymore. Somehow, we’re making it work. Ben hasn’t been out partying every single night since I’ve moved in, he prefers to spend time with me, I think he’s actually calmed down quite a lot, and I find myself opening up to him more than I ever have anyone before. We’ve changed each other, and I think it’s in a really good way. So far it seems like we’ve brought the best out in one another.
“Well you have to have breakfast first, I didn’t spend all morning slaving over it for nothing!” I take a step back and Ben lets me. He’s so horny all the time, but he’s also really respectful when I want to do other things as well. I think I’ve met the perfect man in him. “I’ve made this nice for you, whether you’re going to work or not, and I’m going to make sure that you do, so take a seat and wait for it.”
“Ooh, I do love it when you boss me around,” Ben teases. “I’ll just sit right here like a good boy and wait for it.”
I plate up the food and put it in front of him. Then I join him at the dining table to eat my own. I only have one of Ben’s oversized tee shirts on, it barely covers my butt, but around Ben I don’t have any reason to feel self conscious. Nothing can be worse than the shot girl attire, and that’s what I was wearing when he fell for me.
“So, how was your visit to your Mom?” I ask while stuffing a forkful of food into my mouth. “I forgot to ask you yesterday.”
“It was really something,” he answers me, sounding a little weary at the memory. “She’s quite full on, I warn you. When I tried to tell her about our new situation she got really excited and even started talking about marriage.”
Ben rolls his eyes but the idea of a big white wedding gets me excited. I’ve always dreamed about my big special day and the thought that Ben could be at the other end of the aisle is an awesome idea. I would absolutely love for him to be my husband and with the way things are going at the moment I can’t see that
changing.
“But she hasn’t ever met me,” I joke instead of saying all of that. “She might hate me, how can she think that we should get married.”
“Oh the description of you was enough, trust me.”
I want to ask Ben what she said, I’m really intrigued to know how Ben would speak about me to others, but I can’t ask. If he doesn’t want to divulge the information then what can I do? I just nod and say nothing, internally praying that he’ll reveal all anyway.
“Then she got out all these pictures of Dad and started saying that I look like him.” Oh, okay, this conversation has taken a much more serious tone. “It was weird because when she talks about him I don’t know what to say. Sometimes I don’t think she realises that.”
“I’m sure she wants to just keep him alive and part of your history,” I reply gravely. “I’m sure she assumes that she’s helping when she talks about him.”
Ben doesn’t say anything but I can see him contemplating my words. It’s like I can see the cogs in his brain spinning at a million miles an hour. I remain silent and let him think things through, while enjoying my breakfast. I never had food as good as this back at the apartment, I always had to buy the cheapest of the cheap. I’m sure I’m going to put on a lot of weight while being here and it tastes so good that I don’t even care.
“Anyway, I don’t want to worry about that today.” He stands up and puts his empty plate on the kitchen side. “If you’re going to force me back into work then I need to get my head back in the game.”
“Right. So why don’t you tell me what you have to do today? Maybe that will help you get your head in the game.”
He leans over me and places kisses all over my cheeks. “I don’t want to talk about work, I want to talk about you.”
I jump up and laugh. He thinks that he’s about to lure me into something sexual this morning, I can tell by the glint in his eyes, but he isn’t. Much as I’m tempted I would much rather him get into the office. I’m concerned about his company, I might not understand anything about it but I’m sure he’s the key element. The last thing I want is for him to end up resenting me because I’ve made him fail.
“I’ll tell you what.” I lean up and kiss him again. “Why don’t you go to work now, and I’ll send you sexy little text messages all day long. I don’t have work today at all so I can focus solely on you. When you can’t hack it anymore, come home and we’ll do whatever you want.”
“Urgh, you’re killing me,” he groans. “That is such a hot idea, but what if I can’t hack it for very long?”
“Oh I think you will,” I smirk back. “Because you know for a fact that the messages will get better and better throughout the day. It might be delayed gratification but you know that it’ll be worth it.”
Finally he takes a step back from me and he runs his eyes up and down my body, dragging them slowly over. “You really know how to play the game, Serena. I think I might have met my match in you.”
I wiggle my hips playfully and send him a wink. I want to keep him on his toes, I love that he feels that way about me. The way that Ben sees me honestly brings me right out of my shell. “You certainly have. Now get to work. I shall see you when you get home.”
“Fine, but I want my first message before I even get there.”
I walk him to the door and wave him off, already feeling like a wife. My brain spins, trying to plan my first text to Ben that will start things off in a slow and sexy way, but before the car is even out of sight it rings. I half think it might be Ben trying something new with me, but the name on the screen tells me that it’s my best friend.
“Jenny!” I crow into the handset. “How are you? How is life out at sea?”
“Good, good.” Her voice is distant which reminds me just how far away she is. “Things are really great, I’m loving life as a dancer, I think that’s what I was always meant to be.”
“Oh that’s wonderful.” I can be genuine with my happiness for her now that I have my life settled too. “I’m so glad to hear about it. It’s good that you’ve found your life’s calling. Where are you right now?”
“Headed towards somewhere in Asia. I’m not sure exactly.” She pauses for a moment. “How are you doing?”
“I’m good actually.” I feel pleased that I can actually say that and be truthful. “Things are working out alright.”
“You found somewhere to live in the end?”
Admittedly I haven’t told her the truth about what I’m doing but that’s because I know she’ll freak. She’s a bit of a cynic when it comes to romance, nothing like me. I smile to myself but still remain evasive for the time being.
“Yes, I found somewhere. I’m still at the club too, but not as a shot girl anymore, behind the bar.”
“There’s less money in that,” Jenny warns. “But I’m sure you’re much happier. I probably should have thought about that for you in the first place.”
“Oh don’t you worry about that, it all worked out okay in the end. It’s good to hear from you though, I didn’t think I’d get anything for about ten months!”
“Hey, I promised to keep in touch and that’s what I’m going to do.”
We chat for a while about some of the hot guys that she works with now, with the promise of pictures to follow. I’m so happy to hear from Jenny, I’m glad we can keep our friendship alive, but I’ll keep things with me and Ben a secret from her for now... at least until I work out just how serious we are about one another. Once I’m certain that we’ll go the distance I’ll tell her everything... she’ll be so damn surprised.
Chapter Fifteen – Ben
Come home now, baby, I can’t wait any longer... xxx’
The final message attached with a picture that shows her finger starting to dip into her panties is the last step. I’ve got a semi productive day of work done, which has been hard since the messages have been getting steamier over time, but now I cannot cope. I need to get home now before I explode. I keep nagging the driver to get me there quicker, but obvious just as is my luck, there’s endless traffic.
Finally I get close enough to jump out of the car and I pretty much run. I don’t even care how I look to the rest of the world, my eyes are on the prize and all I can think about is the end goal. Serena, and those fingers of hers.
“Hey,” I yell out as the door swings open. “Where are you?”
“Oh, I’m in the living room,” she groans. “I couldn’t wait any longer for you.”
“Fucking hell.” I drop all my stuff on the floor and tear into the room to join her. She’s spread across the couch running her fingers up and down what I imagine is a very wet slit. “Oh, girl, you are sexy aren’t you?”
I jump on the couch with her and move my fingers over her. I guide her in and out of herself, over her clit, all while kissing her tenderly. She was right about one thing, the delayed gratification thing is a good game and one that I’ve never played before. Before I met Serena I couldn’t even wait until the end of the party to have sex, now I’ve waited all day long.
“Oh, you’re so wet,” I murmur into her mouth. “It’s so sexy.”
Her back arches and her hips roll into me. “Oh, that’s because I’ve been thinking about you all day long. You’ve been making me hot as hell.”
She’s killing me, I’m actually dying. My cock is straining painfully against my trousers, it’s about ready to explode. “Don’t say things like that,” I growl. “You’re killing me.”
She flips me around until I’m sitting and she slumps to the floor on her knees. I want to ask her what’s going on, but I don’t get a chance to because her fingers start fiddling with my zip, needing it down. I try to help her because I want to be freed too, but my fingers are trembling too much for me to do so. I’m in such a state that I can’t even pull my dick out.
“Ooh, someone looks excited,” Serena gasps once I’m free. “Seems like the sexy texts have been working then.”
“You have no idea how well.”
Oh, spoke too soon. As Serena moves her head closer to me, forcing my thighs further apart as she goes, my breath hitches in my throat. She’s tickling me, sending me even wilder.
“Oh fuck,” I groan. “Serena, you’re just too much. You have no idea...”
She silences me by moving her lips in closer and wrapping them tightly around me. She moves her mouth up and down me, flicking her tongue all over me. Her warm, wet lips feel incredible, I honestly don’t think it’s ever been so amazing. Maybe the feelings that I’m slowly developing for her are making it better.
My heart thunders painfully against my rib cage, I run my hands into her hair, but not to guide her, just to feel her. Serena doesn’t need any help pleasuring me with her mouth, she’s doing an utterly phenomenal job.
“You’re going to have to stop in a moment,” I pant breathlessly to her. “This is too much, I’m gonna lose it in a moment.”
As Serena pulls her mouth off of me I’m disappointed, but only for a second. As she pulls herself up onto my lap to straddle me, I forget all about that. Any second now I’ll be plunging deeply into her and that’s all I care about.
“Take your top off,” I growl as I pull her panties to one side. I’m too needy to take them right the way down. “I want to taste your nipples.”
She whips it off just as I angle myself into her then Serena slides down onto me. The tight fit that she gives me sends me wild every single freaking time and this is no different. A loud groan flies out of my mouth, I can barely contain myself. This is going to be quick, and probably not enough.
The Most Eligible Bachelor: A Texas Love Story Page 47
