Ben didn’t know how to thank his mom. She had kept his wife safe, his children safe, and there was nothing better than that. He frowned when he heard it though. She had gotten out and if not, if he would have been smarter, she would have died. Ben didn’t know how to feel about that.
“The cabin was burned up. I thought you were in there, Teri.” His voice broke with the last of it, and Teri could see that he had thought that she was dead. He hadn’t taken it well by the way he was looking at her then, his lower lips practically quivering.
Teri let him pull her back to his heaving chest. She had been so worried about him, her and Jill. They’d tried not to talk about it, but after days of not hearing anything, Teri was ready to burst. Now, she felt the same way, but her implosion would be a good one this time, she was sure of it. Teri just wanted things to go like it should.
Jill left them to it for a while because she was likely thinking that Ben and Teri needed that time. Ben was emotional and Teri had never seen him that way before. She could feel the love that was pouring out of him and when he held her tight, Teri felt complete. The nights she had spent lying in bed, wondering and waiting. It was torture for Teri. There was no other way to describe it than simply torture.
His mom came back in after a while. She had tea for everyone, and Teri could tell from the way she was holding herself that Jill’s nerves weren’t all the way gone. She had other things that she wanted to talk about. Teri wasn’t sure what those things were. The two women had gotten to know each other well in the time they’d spent together, but Jill was still wrapped in mystery.
“It is time for you to tell us what happened, Ben. I need to know.”
Ben sighed and Teri could feel the tension rising in the room. Another moment where she didn’t know what was going on, but she knew that it wasn’t going to end well. Teri wanted to know what she was missing. Her mind was only on Ben and now that he was back, she was able to breathe again.
“I think you know what happened, Mom.”
“I need you to tell me.”
“You want to hear it said out loud?” He sighed louder and then shrugged like he wasn’t going to worry about it anymore. “Fine, I killed dad and several of his guys that worked underneath him. I smashed the stones, got their power and I took the throne.”
Jill smiled in the barest way and Teri was glad that it was out there. She didn’t know what to say to everything he’d just said, how the end had worked out as good as it could.
“I am sorry that you had to take him out.”
Ben agreed that he was sorry too, but he didn’t regret it enough that he would hope to go back and not do it again. He wished that he didn’t have to kill them, but Teri was never safe with them alive. He told Teri that she didn’t have to worry about it then, and Teri didn’t know what to say. She was sorry that he had killed James, and Mark she would find out, but she did feel safer. Knowing what they had done to Ben made it easier for Teri to accept what apparently had to be done on his part.
Teri didn’t want to let Ben go. She stayed right next to his side on the couch, halfway on his lap. She didn’t know if she was ever going to let him out of her sight. Teri was sure that she was going to have to figure out how to let go figuratively, but not yet. When he went to go to the bathroom, she had to fight the urge to go with him.
Jill saw her look and assured her that everything was going to be okay. Was it true? Teri had no idea if it was or not, but she was grateful that there wasn’t anything to be done about it.
“I can see that you are still worried that something will happen.”
Teri agreed. She had a bad feeling, had one since she found out she was getting married. Was that the dread that she had lived with, was it enough? Teri liked to believe that it was, but there was a part of her that knew better than that. She knew that there was something else, like it wasn’t bad enough. It was just sitting there on the outside of her mind, waiting, and Teri was driving herself crazy with it.
Jill told her that there was going to be an attack on the village. “Don’t worry though, I saw it coming. You aren’t the only one that can see ahead. They will come, our enemies will have to see for themselves that we don’t have the stones anymore. Ben will show them that he is the one that possesses the Pearl’s power, and they will leave it alone. Trust me, this is all going to work out just fine.”
Ben was back and Teri watched Jill kiss her son good night and tell him that she would see him in the morning. Teri was glad that Ben was giving her the eye when it finally came down for the two of them to be alone. She had waited a week for him, which didn’t seem like a lot, but when he had that look on his face and lust in his eyes, it felt like an eternity.
Teri was quick to let him drag her all the way onto his lap. She giggled when he nuzzled her neck. “I thought I had lost you, Teri.”
She told him that she wasn’t going anywhere, and Ben seemed to like that answer. They kissed, but Ben wasn’t ready to let her go, not even for a minute. Like her, Ben seemed unable to think about anything else but what had happened before. “You know, I watched that cabin burn down, and I thought that nothing was ever going to make sense again.”
Teri told him that she was okay, everything was fine, but Ben wasn’t having it. He just held her tightly and they hugged for the longest time, Teri facing him with her arms around him. “I am so glad that you are back, Ben. I was so worried that I was never going to see you again.”
Ben told her again that he was never going to let her out of his sight, and Teri wondered how they could manage it. She was willing to try. As he started to kiss her, Teri’s mind went blank, just like it did when she was with him. When she was with Ben, nothing else in the world mattered but the two of them. That moment was no different.
Chapter 31
Ben
Teri felt good in his arms and when she was going along with his desire for her so easily, Ben knew that he was never going to be able to find another woman like her. It was clear that she was in need, Teri’s body shook, and he could feel the tiny bumps on her flesh as his fingers ran up and down her arm.
His lips were on hers, pulling the desire he needed and feeling the rhythm that took over. Teri was riding him without even knowing it. Her hips were moving constantly, and all Ben could do was grit his teeth. She was too much, and he wasn’t in the right place. They were on his mom’s couch after all. He picked her up after a moment and she asked him where they were going. She was laughing and he was trying to keep his composure, though it was harder than it seemed.
Teri was sure that she was going to fall, as fast as he was walking with her. She didn’t even mind the snow as they left one building to go into the next. Teri just clung to him and the feel of her made Ben glow on the inside. He wanted to keep her safe so badly. Having her there safe in his arms was the best feeling, and he never wanted it to go away. He wanted more than safety then though, he needed her as his wife. He missed her immensely.
When they got to their place, Ben kicked the door in, and he went back to kiss her. His face was flaming red with the interior temperature. His eyes were taking in all the desire she had that was showing off. Teri was beautiful, intoxicatingly so, and when he finally let her down, the first thing she did was start to take her clothes off. Ben didn’t have to ask what she was doing, he already knew. She must have read his mind. There was too much between them in the way of clothing and the faster he took everything off, the better off he was.
Ben tried to hurry along with the process, but Teri wasn’t going for it. She smacked his hands and started to move her body to some song in her head. The rhythm was unknown to him, but Ben wasn’t trying to guess the song. His eyes were on her moving hips, and he was reminded of the first time he had seen her naked. She was dancing and singing in the woods. It was those moments that he had fallen for her, and the moment he was in now was no different. She had such a haunting voice as she hummed and moved. His eyes were taking in all her curves, hoping that he would be able to focus on anything else but what she was showing off. Ben was going to be too ready. He was already shaking inside from desire.
