Luckily, there was still some caramel coffee left to comfort her, which she went on to down.
Benny joined her on the cream cushions, taking a sip of his own coffee as he studied her a bit too hard.
“There must have been a reason you moved back here in the first place, right?”
Not about to discuss her biological clock with him, she swiftly changed the subject.“How’s your mom?”
“My mom’s fine.So’s my dad.Now, are you gonna change the subject again or you gonna tell me why you came back?”
Urgh.
“Because therehasto be a reason?”she snarked.“What about it being my home, y’know, the place I was born, the place I grew up, where my parents live—that’s not enough?”
Benny’s head shook as he let out a humorless laugh.“Right, B.Although, I don’t seem to recall that being enough to keep you here in the first place, was it?In fact, I remember you not being able to get out of here quick enough.”
Ow.She felt that swipe right in the gut.And she didn’t miss the bitter edge he’d coated each word with.
How fricking rude.She was the dumpee, not him.Her words should be the ones coated in bitter.Not his.
“Are you really going to go there?”Bethany’s spine snapped straight as she slammed her empty cup onto the coffee table.
Gone were all traces of humor on Benny’s face as he also sat up a little bit straighter.“And where exactly am I going, B?”
He totally knew where.
“If you think for one second, I’m gonna let you spin our break-up into something it most definitely wasn’t, you’re sorely fucking mistaken.”Pushing up off the cushions, she began to pace.Anger hit her hard.And really frigging fast.
Talk about triggering.
“Oh really.”Benny followed suit and rose, too.“So, you’re telling me you didn’t leave town...without saying goodbye?”He didn’t wait for her to answer before he continued.“Or change your number?And you certainly didn’t ask your parents to make sure I didn’t get your new address?Oh, and let’s not forget how you didn’t step foot in this town again forten fucking years...not for birthdays or holidays or your parent’s goddamn anniversary!Nothing.”
Benny’s voice might have been rising but Bethany could barely hear it over the pounding in her ears.It propelled her forward, into his space, where she could poke his shoulder, sharply.And then prod it again.
“Don’t you dare!You’re not the injured party here, I am.I was.I get to be mad, not you.I get to change my number and avoid you.Me.That’s mine.That’s what happens when you break a girl’s heart.Shegets to move on, and you don’t get a say on where or how she does it.”
Benny’s eyes narrowed as her finger assaulted his shoulder once more.“Are you trying to tell me my heart didn’t break too, B?Because I’m damn fucking sure it did.And I get to feel it, too.I get to be mad that you left.That you refused to speak to me.That you broke my goddamn heart and left me to bleed out.”
It was getting hard to breathe.Every word felt like a blow.She tried desperately to think back.To remember how everything went down.She’d spent so long trying not to think about it, she struggled.But when the memories resurfaced, the pain was still as raw as it was then.
“No!”she shouted, her voice shaking.“Youbroke up withme!Youchanged your mind!Youchose to stay here!And—” she let out a bitter laugh.“I believe your exact words were,I have to let you go.”
Benny took a step forward, his head dipping until his breath was close enough to hit her lips.“Even if it breaks me,” he ground out, making her chest squeeze.“That’s what I said, NeNe.I have to let you go,even if it breaks me.And make no mistake...it didbreak me.”
Why is it so damn hard to breathe?
Oxygen not making it to her brain was the only excuse she had for leaning into him.Or perhaps she was bleeding out, too.The old and badly stitched wound he’d left her with was starting to split.Leaving her raw and exposed.
A slight lift of her chin left her gazing into deep green.She didn’t know what she expected to see, but it wasn’t the unguarded pain she found.As uneven breaths sunk into her skin, neither of them moved.The air charged with every unsaid word.Just when she thought she couldn’t take anymore, callused fingertips grazed her jaw.Seeking permission.
Fuck.
Yes.Fuck.That was the last thought she had before she traced the tip of her nose against his.With the slightest tilt of her head, she closed what little distance was left between them, her lips parting as her mouth met his.
His hand pushed into her hair, as the soft brush of their lips skipped hesitant and went straight to frantic.Benny kissed her like he owned her.There was no teasing, no testing.He knew what he wanted, and he was taking it.Every tongue swipe took him deeper, his grip on her hair only growing tighter as he feasted on her whimpers.
His big body moved her backward until she found herself up against the wall.The last of her control snapping as he pressed his full weight against her.Forget whimpering, she was moaning.Begging.Her hands gripping his shirt, tugging him closer, pulling him harder as if she couldn’t breathe without him.
It was when his thigh slipped between her legs that the real desperation took hold.The familiar burn making her body ache and her pulse pound.With a soft gasp, she surrendered, rolling her hips against him, chasing the friction like her life depended on it.Every slow grind sent her spiraling higher, the pressure building with each deliberate movement.Benny’s guttural groan vibrated against her lips.He was urging her to take more, reminding her just how easy it was to become lost in him.
