What Comes With It

Chapter 10

I am too stunned to form sentences.

"How did you... where did you...what the ... who?!" I stammer.

Ben laughs. I take a beat to drink him in. He is so ... big. I feel tiny next to him. I wonder what it feels like to be embraced by someone of this stature and before I know it, he's pulling me into a hug.

"Shh, shh, calm down. I wanted to surprise you, not send you into a tailspin," he assures me.

I think I could die in his arms. I own several mansions but I want to pack my bags and hibernate in his embrace. He is a human weighted blanket. I melt into him.

I take a deep breath, then begrudgingly push myself back from his chest. He takes my hand in his (huge, by the way), and leads me to a quiet booth in a corner. Nick is utterly beside himself as I shoot him an accusatory look.

"OK, first question. Obviously, my security team is in on it, but who else? How did you know where I'd be and how did you clear it?" I demand.

"I started with Ivy. She's a tough cookie, but I got her to agree to let me see you tonight, as long as I get you back to your place by midnight. I assume she coordinated with your security. Then, I DMed Lena because I knew you were going to be meeting her, she gave me every detail – had you already told her about us talking? Because, damn, she is like, really on board with me being here tonight."

Guilty, I thought to myself. But also, I would expect nothing less from my best friend.

"OK, fine, but how did you get here on such short notice? Why didn't you answer my texts?" I push.

He puts an arm around me pulls me closer to him in the booth.

"You're not the only one with access to private jets. I called in a few favors. And I had shit service up there. Now, what are we drinking?"

"I'll have a glass of wine, but I really can't drink much, I –"

"I know, you have a flight tomorrow. I got you," he says as he summons a server.

He proceeds to order the most expensive bottle of sauvignon blanc and what seems like the entirety of the sushi menu. He catches my questioning look.

"I'm an athlete. We eat a lot. Besides, that caviar and junk on the PJ is not filling and you know it."

A few hours later, he pulls my legs over his lap like the world's most annoying couple. I love it. We've covered all the first date chit-chat and then some. At one point, Lena popped over briefly to introduce herself and then quickly disappeared. I suspect I will have a barrage of texts to answer tomorrow. I have butterflies already thinking about getting to relive this night with my friends.

His hand has been steadily stroking my bare back, while his other arm has been protectively draped over my legs. I once read that women store their sexual tension in their lower back, and I start to suspect he read that same thing, because I'm putty at his fingertips. This dress was the best and worst idea I've ever had.

We are in the most exclusive club in the country's most populated city, but here, in this booth, it's just the two of us. I don't want it to end.

"Now this. This is the date I envisioned for us," he says, nearly whispering, since our heads are so close together.

"Thank you for doing this. Thank you for finding me and figuring out a loophole. I really don't know when I would have seen you," I say.

What I want to say is that no one has ever done this for me. That no one has chosen me so intentionally and thoughtfully. That no one has set their ego aside to make me feel like this.

"I can't believe this is the first time we've ever hung out," I murmur into his neck. "It feels like I've known you for 20 years."

He laughs.

"20 years?! Don't will our best years away like that! ... But I feel the same way."

I see my security team assembling. They have likely already summoned the car. Ben feels me stiffen. He holds me closer.

"Let me walk you out," he says, squeezing my hand a few times to reassure me. "I promise, this isn't the last you'll see of me."

We untangle ourselves, shuffle out of the booth, and smooth our clothes and hair. He grabs my hand protectively and follows Nick. Lena winks at me from across the room as he pulls me toward the back exit.

We walk briskly down a nondescript hallway. I know several bodyguards are tailing us, but keeping their distance. He knows it too. He's on high alert. Nick turns a corner up ahead and as soon as he does, Ben comes to an abrupt stop, turns around, and pulls me into him.

His giant hands encircle my waist as he gently pushes me against the wall. Our mouths are mere millimeters apart.

"I can't wait another second to—" and before he can finish, his lips are on mine. I reach up and hold his head in my heads, pressing him into me, as if I am trying to absorb him. Our bodies fit each other perfectly and I ache for more time and more privacy.

A second later, we hear the shuffle of my security team's feet and pry ourselves apart. I fix my hair, he tries (and fails) to wipe the lipstick off his mouth. My team looks the other way. I look down as he pulls me the rest of the way to the car.

I am totally fucked.