I could tell how much it stressed him out to be in a foreign, uncertain environment with the stress over his father’s health hanging over him.
We said goodnight to each other, and he promised to stay in touch.
Then, predictably, he had to help his mom in our old hometown, and after he’d made sure his parents would manage on their own and he could return to his place, he was behind with work.
Anderson visited without me meeting him other than once for dinner since he spent only two nights at the rescue. It had all gone really well, and Lake said even his relationship with Theo hadn’t suffered from Anderson’s visit, even though there had been some initial hiccups with that.
I could imagine that. Having a brand new relationship where you were head over heels for each other, and then an ex makes a reappearance…Besides, Anderson was rich, wealthy, and a good person. That was a killer combination already, but he was also sort of old Hollywood handsome and well, yeah.
My work started to get busier and busier, with the occasional night call. We were up to about two night patients every week, and had decided that we needed to add one, if not two, nurses on the roster.
Ani was getting suspicious while Krystal was clearly in on something happening behind the scenes, but she made it very clear that she didn’t want anything to do with it.
Dr. Cobb and I had made sure there were clothing items and things street kids might need in different bins in the garage. So far, the only one we had had to take to the hospital had been a kid who showed up with a stab wound we couldn’t treat in good conscience. At least she’d understood and accepted a ride to the hospital, especially after I’d promised to stay with her.
Soon, it had been two weeks since Ben left, and we’d managed to at least message each other almost daily. Sometimes our schedules just didn’t mix, and one of us would wake up to a message from the other and that was it.
* * * *
One night, three weeks after I’d last seen Ben, I had a rare day off. I’d started to help Sierra and Lake with their grand reopening plans.
We also had another new face: Cook, the private chef who used the rescue as his home base, had come around soon after Anderson had left.
Rey had a crush on the man like whoa, enough that he didn’t have heart eyes for Seb anymore. Cook was six foot five with a beard and long hair, and he had this sort of charisma that didn’t care if he wasn’t the most handsome guy out there. He was a magnetic, kind man with some clear demons of his own.
So far, he’d said he’d stay, but eventually another yacht job would take our biker looking chef away again, or so at least Theo thought.
Either way, Cook was teaching Rey everything cooking related, and Rey hung onto his every word. They were planning on doing most of the cooking for the reopening party, even though Lake and I had put our foot down and told them there would be some catering, too. There was work and then there was too much work that sucked the fun out of what you enjoyed.
That day, after another meeting with Sierra and Lake, this time with Theo and a couple of the volunteers, I’d gone for a long walk with Bucky. He was always happy to accompany me on my wanderings, and I could trust that he’d help me out if I got lost.
I had dinner with everyone, and then retreated to my room, citing a headache I didn’t have. I’d had a nice day, but I missed Ben like I wouldn’t have thought possible.
Around ten, I was in bed, trying to watch a couple of episodes of Criminal Minds, when I realized I wasn’t paying any attention to my screen.
Sighing, I decided to do the thing that helped me relax some even in the direst situations when my brain whirred on and on; I slipped my hand into my underwear.
I couldn’t help it these days, my mind always went to Ben when I masturbated. It was as if seeing the gorgeous man he’d grown into had injected something directly into my brain where fantasies lived and taken the space away from anyone else.
I’d tried porn in the beginning, because it had felt weird to be thinking of someone asexual while I touched myself, but I was helpless to resist it.
Now, images of my straight laced, nerdy editor flashed behind my closed lids, and I smiled as I jerked myself to full mast.
Ben had the best hands. I loved the dusting of freckles he had in various places, like the backs of his hands or his toes, his shoulders and the bridge of his nose. His shy smile when he found something amusing when he wasn’t supposed to be listening in was about the cutest thing I’d ever seen.
I panted a little, thinking about how his eyes sparkled together with the light glinting off his red hair when we were outside, just chatting while we had our coffee break.
Even with the slightly preppy clothing he wore, there was no denying that Ben had a nice body. He’d told me he worked out sporadically but liked to jog on a treadmill he had in the basement of the house he shared.
I wondered if he worked out in shorts and a tank. Gods, I would’ve loved to see his butt and biceps in those kinds of clothes.
It didn’t surprise me anymore that I was already getting close. I remembered his scent and the way it felt sleeping against him. The warmth of him enveloping me.
I was almost there, when my phone rang.
Startled, I grabbed it with my free hand and fumbled when I saw it was Ben making a video call.
Feeling guilty, I let go of my dick and swiped to answer the call.
