“Yes, you look wonderful tonight.” I look around and realize no one is paying attention to us anymore. Buried deep in a crowd, I close my eyes and relax against him, as he continues to impress. Ben pulls his head away from mine, grazing my cheek with his lips.
“Laila,” he whispers as his hand slides down my back. I lay my head on his chest and let him in a little closer. Everyone else completely disappears from my mind. It’s me and him. Ben singing, only to me, and swaying my body with his. “Are you ready to leave?”
“No.” I glance shyly into his eyes. “Not yet. Keep singing.” But just to me, please. Ben adjusts to allow me to fit right into his arms, as close as I can get to him.
Ben got Titus to agree to let us have the rest of the night off if I said, yes. If I didn’t, Ben was to give up his car. It was a bet Titus was willing to take. He does love his games, and Ben took advantage.
“That’s two yeses, you know? I’m not giving up.”
“I realize that. Don’t worry, I surrender. It better be a damn good date,” I say, and he immediately dips me backwards, smiling at me.
“Don’t worry. You’ll get your kiss, Tiger.” Pulling me back into his arms, he sings lightly, nosing my cheek with a tender kiss whenever he feels the need to do so. I don’t know what this feeling is, what these raw emotions are rushing through me. I haven’t felt it since I was a child, since my father told me it was all going to be alright—when I last felt safe from the world.
CHAPTER 14
Ben
I only have a few things to handle for Nathan today before my date with Laila tonight, so I go in early to avoid any issues popping up at the last minute. I am nearly done when issue number one pops up in my face.
“Hi.”
“Go away, Jolie. What are you even doing up this early? It’s only noon.”
“Funny, but I thought we could get some lunch when you’re done. I think we need to talk, really talk.”
“No, thank you.”
“I enjoyed your display last night. That was fun. I almost thought you might be interested in her.”
“I am interested in her. I am not, however, interested in talking to you any longer.”
“Ben, this can’t be how you want to end us.”
“There was never an us, Jolie. It was always just about you.”
“This attitude, this abuse towards me, is all because of her?”
“No, but the possibilities with her help.”
“Fine, I’ll do it.” Jolie submits oddly. “I’ll have a threesome with you and her. I’m sure she will agree to whatever you ask her to do.” Her hands move down my chest until I stop her.
“I realize you feel a little more desperate for attention than usual, but you’re not going to find what you’re looking for with me. And by the way, Laila? She doesn’t need makeup or fancy clothes to look beautiful. She doesn’t need anything more than who she is. I have never met anyone like her.” I hang up the schedules for the following week in the team room, but before I can leave, Jolie gets between me and the door.
“It’ll never work. You’ll be crawling back to me, yet again. Face it, Ben. You get bored with them easily, your side girls, and you will never get over me.”
I place my hands on her shoulders and guide her out of my way. “She’s not a girl Jolie. She’s all woman, and I plan to get to know everything about her, even the boring stuff.”
I thought a lot about planning the perfect date, but the perfect date is different for everyone. Considering I don’t know everything about her yet, I take my best guess at what she may consider ideal. I might be a little anxious because I show up early. She’s still living in this stupid hotel, and she still keeps the balcony door open. It’s like she is trying to give someone an opportunity to come in and kill her. Crazy woman. I jump onto her balcony, walk through the door, and smile instantly when I face the barrel of her gun—again.
“You really must learn to knock,” she says, seeming not as intent on shooting me this time.
“Just proving you’re vulnerable here. You need to get an actual home to live in.”
“Do I look vulnerable to you?”
“If I say no, will you put the gun down?” She rolls her eyes and backs off. “Why do you keep the door open anyway?” I ask, shutting and locking the door for her.
“It’s a small room, and I don’t like small spaces.” She gathers some things together, all of which are normal for a date— lip gloss, pocketbook, keys, mace, and a gun. I shake my head and try to keep my laugh to myself. “I hope what I’m wearing is okay. You said no need to dress up.”
“Oh, good. You got my note.”
“Yeah—flowers. Seriously? I thought you would be more original than that, Ben. I don’t really care for flowers, just so you know.”
“Yet you still put them in water and kept them,” I say, nodding towards the bedroom mirror. The reflection leads back to the bathroom, the flowers hidden in a corner, proudly sitting in a vase. “Where did you get the vase?” I ask as she huffs at me. “I’m paid to take notice of everything, remember?”
“It’s not a big deal. The hotel had an empty vase sitting in the lobby, no point wasting flowers when they could have a nice place.”
“In your bathroom?”
“I haven’t had time to take them back down to the lobby yet.”
“Uh-huh. Well, I can do that for you.” She puts her hand out to stop me and holds back my chest. “Or not.”
She slowly slides her hand away. “I don’t think they actually want it back.” Squinting, I look sideways at her. “They have a lot of vases. It was really too much. I did them a favor.”
“That was nice of you to steal from them when they needed to be stolen from. That’s the kind of community service attitude everyone should have.” She nods, turning away from me, a signal for me to drop it. She walks to the door, waiting for me to walk out in front of her. “Oh no. You first. I still don’t trust you not to lock me out.” She gives me attitude all the way to my car.
“Where are we going? It’s a little early for a date. I assume there is a reason for that?”
“Of course. We are going for a drive.” I smile, giving her no more information until we pull into the track. “I have a friend that runs this track. He always says that a good drive can calm all your frustrations and anger, and in this case, hopefully attitude.” The roll of her eyes is expected. “And hey! You don’t need a driver’s license here, at least not today.”
“I get to drive one of those?” she asks, pointing to a line of Porsches.
“Pick your favorite and suit up.” Laila leans over and kisses my cheek for once. Her eyes light up with excitement, and she is jumping out of my car and selecting her car for the day before I have a chance to respond. My friend, Charlie, sets us both up with suits and prepares Laila’s chosen car. I have been around this track countless times working out frustrations, so I am going to be the one to show her the ropes.
She comes out of the changing room smiling from ear to ear and looking hot as hell. I wave her towards me. Laila runs to me, letting me lift her up into my arms and help her slide into the car. I help her with her helmet, strap her in, and double check all of her security features. I don’t know who’s more excited, her or me. I slide in next to her and give her the rundown of what to look for, making sure she understands the rules of the track.
“I know you like to be a rebel, but my friend Charlie over there has been good to me over the years. I would appreciate it if you follow the rules and don’t get him into trouble. I would like to come back here again.”
“Can I come back here again?” she asks, bouncing in her seat.
“Only if you follow the rules and give me another date.”
“Let’s see if we live through this one first.” She laughs.
“Deal. Now go …” She takes off, switching gears and flying around the track like a pro. I only have to tell her to make slight adjustments here and there, but the rest of the time,
I enjoy her laughter and pure joy. At the end of our time, I slide out quickly to help her out, but she meets me halfway, running towards me and jumping into my arms, wrapping her body around me.
“Thank you! Thank you. Thank you. That was so much fun.” I receive another kiss to the cheek.
The joy in her eyes makes my heart skip a few beats. “You’re welcome, but the date isn’t over yet,” I say, wanting to kiss her so bad that I can’t move or let go.
“Hey Ben! Kiss her already. I gotta lock up sometime today,” Charlie yells, ruining a perfect moment.
She slides out of my arms to go change, and I give Charlie a nice wave of appreciation for his timing.
Our dinner place is based on what Laila says she’s in the mood for. No point in making a reservation and guessing the wrong place. Besides, it’s not like anyone will turn us away. As it turns out, the place she chooses doesn’t even take reservations. Bar food and drinks overlooking the beach it is. I sit back as she continues to talk about driving the car, and I’m loving every second. She’s so happy and even more beautiful. I don’t think she even realizes how much.
“Why are you staring at me? Say something.”
“You’re beautiful, especially when you smile.” She eases back in her seat. “Don’t look away from me now, I’m enjoying you being excited. Just forget what I said if that bothers you.”
“I’m not going to sleep with you tonight.”
“Okay,” I laugh, taking a drink of my beer. “Do you want to talk about that—not sleeping with me?”
“No. Tell me how you met Titus.”
“That’s a boring story. We met when I was a kid and stayed in touch. He helped watch over my brother and mother while I was away, and once she died, he offered me a job. That’s all there is to it.”
“You work for him because you owe him, because you have to?” she asks, insinuating Titus forced me to work for him as a payback. I shake my head and refrain from going into too much detail.
“And Luca too?”
“No. Luca asked him for a job. I didn’t know about it until it was too late.”
“So you don’t want him working for Titus?”
“Not really. I don’t care for the interview process.”
“You both did the same as I did?” I nod. “How many men did you take on, or were they all women?”
“No women, just men, and there were nineteen. Mine was the first time Nathan thought it would be fun to interview in a unique way, so more people showed up, not realizing only one was leaving. You may have noticed, but Nathan is not my biggest fan. So, I guess you can blame me for the new interview process. It was designed to keep me out. Obviously it didn’t work, even though mine was not in a controlled arena. Mine was in an alley with Titus watching from a balcony.”
“Did you jump on his balcony too?”
“No, but I used a few. I didn’t beat every man. Some got shot running away when they heard the rules.”
“I can’t believe the cops weren’t called and no one heard anything. And what about all of the bodies? Where do they go?”
“You ask too many questions. I warned you about that.”
“And Luca? How many did he kill to win? Any balconies?”
“I don’t recall the number. No balconies. I made sure it was in a place where he couldn’t lose.”
“How?”
I sigh. “I taught him what he needed to know, how to use the location to his advantage. He was the only one who got to practice ahead of time. And I made a promise to Titus.”
“What promise?”
“No more questions about work. Ask me something else or I’ll ask you a question.”
“How did you meet Jolie?” I roll my eyes. “It’s a different question.”
“She was a waitress at a restaurant I took a date to once. My date was less than kind to her, and Jolie stood up for herself. She was tough as nails.”
“Jolie was a waitress? Oh I bet she doesn’t like anyone to know that.”
“No, no she doesn’t. The debutant turned waitress, an embarrassment she was determined to correct. Her father tried to screw over the IRS, and it didn’t work out to well for him or his family. I was attracted to her, and I’m not used to being told no. She rejected me the first time. The second time was a yes. She was easier than you.”
“You just like what you can’t have, is that it?”
“No, I like women who don’t compromise who they are for a man. Like with my pursuit of you, I had to be a better man to win her over. With you, of course, I had to be even better.” Laila stays silent for a few minutes as the wheels spin in her head. “Have you ever been in love Laila?”
“Yes.”
“Please tell me you don’t mean Daisy?”
“I don’t know what your problem is with him, and I don’t care, but if you are trying to get back at him through me…”
I lean forward and smile. “Laila, I don’t care at all about Shepherd. My business with him ended. I’m here with you because I want to be. I want to know more about you.” She sits back, staring, doubtful of my intentions. “Tell you what. Answer my question, and I will answer yours.” She gives me a slight nod, and I jump right in. “Henry Musk. Why would he let you do this job? I thought he was your adoptive farther or something?”
“He’s not my father. He only got approval to be my caretaker. I kept running away, and the state didn’t know what else to do with me. He was my father’s best friend, so he always tried to look after me. However, he worked all the time and wasn’t married, not exactly the state’s ideal parent. Instead, the woman who locks you up in a closet or the guy who tries to watch you take showers, those people are way better suited. Is that what you wanted to know? You knew all of that, so why ask?”
“Why are you so angry with me? Ask me a question if it will make you feel better.”
She studies me for a while before responding. I can only imagine what she wants to ask. “Who has Titus chosen to take over for him?” I lean back, huffing and rolling my eyes. “I don’t want to work for Nathan. You said you would answer my question if I answered yours.”
“Titus hasn’t made his final decision yet. He’s waiting. And before you ask for what, he’s waiting on a decision from someone else. It’s not as simple as it sounds. Once he makes a decision, no one can go against it.” She opens her mouth to ask another question, but I stop her. “My turn. I never got a chance to ask you after, but how was your date with Daisy?”
She changes her posture and puts on a fake smile. “It was great. We went out for dinner, a movie, he walked me to my door, and ...”
I study her carefully as she begins to hide her eyes from me. “He didn’t stay. Why not? If you’re so in love, why didn’t he stay?”
“We both had to be at work early the next morning.” I sit back in my seat, feeling victorious. “Don’t act like you had anything to do with it, because you didn’t.”
“If you say so.” I lean over the table. “You know what I think? I think you were thinking about me.” She looks up, telling me exactly what I want to know. “Your eyes give you away, Tiger.” She won’t speak to me or even look at me now. “What are you so scared of, Laila?”
She digs into her food, making sure to keep her mouth too busy to speak. I don’t think much about it until she sighs and looks at me, ready to ask a question. “Do you have khakis?”
“What?” I have no idea what she’s talking about.
“Do you own, wear khakis? You know like …”
“I know what they are, and no. They’re not exactly my thing.”
“Yeah, I kind of figured,” she hums, stuffing some fries in her mouth, seeming to talk to herself in her head.
“Oh—Daisy! Are you comparing us? Wow. I never thought I would get compared to him. I’ll save you some time. We have very little in common. You might realize that if you would give me a chance,” I say, throwing my jacket around her shivering shoulders. She begins to let her focus wander. I have to b
ring her back to me. “You know, my first ever date, my mom drove me and my date to the movies. I spent the whole movie trying to figure out how to hold her hand. I was so nervous that I fidgeted back and forth in my chair. I moved near her and away from her until she finally turned to me and asked if I needed to go to the bathroom.” Laila laughs out loud. “I was mortified.”
“What did you do?”
“I went to the bathroom. I kept rehearsing what I needed to say and do to make it better. I took so long the movie ended before I could get a chance. She thought something was really wrong with me. I never spoke to her again.”
“And now you try to make sure every date is perfect.”
“Not every date, just the ones I care about.” We finish our meal and a couple of drinks before I convince her to walk the beach with me. Acting out each scene, I tell her more stories about growing up and one with Luca and me planning an elaborate scheme to catch Santa Claus. “We were stealth even at that age, creeping slowly down the hall with our water guns ready and then, BAM! My mom jumped out from behind the tree and started hammering us both. We were soaking wet, and she grounded us to our beds for the rest of the night.”
“She knew? I guess you weren’t as stealth as you thought.” She laughs, putting her hand on my chest.
I take her hand and keep it to my chest. “No, we were six and eight and had no clue how sound travel worked.” We lock eyes, and her breath hitches.
“Are you going to let go of my hand?”
“No.”
“You’re not going to kiss my cheek again, are you?”
“Where would you prefer me to kiss you?”
She steadies her feet and huffs. “Are you going to kiss me or not, Ben?”
“I am.” Cradling her face, I lean and breathe her in before taking hold of her lips. I open her mouth and reach in to taste her tongue. Her soft lips melt into mine, and I don’t want to let her go. I don’t want to stop. Her fingers stretch through my hair and take hold. My hand moves down her back and over her ass to pull her up to me. I have to fight every instinct not to take her back to my place and finish this night. Instead, I let go of her lips to settle down and keep myself from making a mistake, but I can only stay away from her for a moment. Our breaths are heavy. Our hearts are beating hard and fast. I caress her face, feeling more than I anticipated.