She’s making this too easy for me. I don’t like that one bit.
Kelsey hasn’t texted me once since the other week when we did round two of an activity that I quite enjoy, and we are exceptionally good at.
This situation makes me feel apprehensive. Normally, there is some awkward exchange after, and I’m waiting for that.
Instead, I get radio silence and I’m not used to it. By no means do I have a thick book like Knox, but I can’t say that I don’t have experience when it comes to hooking up.
My brother Knox breaks my train of thought.
“What is up with you? One minute you look confused and the next you’re grinning like a man looking for trouble.” Knox takes a sip of his beer as he leans back in the booth at Rooster Sin, the local bar that, although is nothing fancy, will never leave you disappointed.
“I’m fine. Just wondering, that’s all,” I say as I look at my beer bottle.
“Fine, but it’s freaking me out slightly.”
I look up at him and I don’t feel particularly inclined to discuss Kelsey. Knox is the brother that I would least take advice from when it comes to women. I’m confident that I saw at least two women when I arrived who would throw a dagger at him if they could.
“Sorry I’m late,” Grayson announces as he slides in to sit next to Knox. “I wanted to wait ten minutes around the block, do a loop, and be certain that Lucy wasn’t letting anyone into the house while I’m away.” When all three of us are together, it’s obvious we’re brothers; sandy brown hair, sharp eyes, and we all fill out a pair of jeans to perfection.
I have to grin at Grayson’s tactics for our teenage sister. “Since you’re here then I am going to assume she passed the test.”
“She did, and now I need a beer because this week is killing me.” He indicates to someone behind the bar to bring the same as me and Knox.
“It’s not killing you, you’re just out of shape and can’t handle all the sex,” Knox informs him quite frankly.
Grayson just rolls his eyes because he won’t tell us what is going on with him and Brooke, otherwise it leads us into a debate of how he is handling living next door to his old flame.
“Shall we enjoy a drink without discussion of women, please?” I suggest, and they both look at me oddly.
“Something you want to tell us?” Knox has a sort of curious excitement in his tone.
“Nope.” I pop the P.
With a beer arriving for Grayson, he holds up his bottle in a toast, and we follow suit.
“We’re surviving,” he states simply, and we don’t need more words, as the last few weeks have put us all in a tailspin.
“I’ll drink to that.”
“Me too,” I agree.
We clink our bottles before drinking.
“By the way, I could have sworn there was a woman in your room the other night,” Knox casually mentions, which causes me to choke slightly on my beer.
Fuck, he’s been holding out on me and saving it for a moment when he could put me in a completely awkward position.
Grayson’s eyes go bold at learning this information.
“Nothing to share. I’m too busy with Olive Owl. We have a lot of wine-tastings coming up and need to prepare for pumpkin season already,” I begin to list.
Grayson seems to buy it or at least seems disinterested, before his eyes land on someone behind me. Turning my head, I look to find that Kelsey is here.
For some reason, I was hoping for this, as run-ins and unplanned encounters seem to be our thing, and I’m curious for her reaction because, well, I’m just not used to her laid-back approach.
Oh fuck, she’s wearing a high ponytail today that accentuates her cheekbones, and did she just lick her lips?
“I think I may go chat with Kelsey,” Grayson mentions as he begins to move in his seat.
“Intel on Brooke?” I ask because I know Grayson, and he has no problem using the best friend of the love of his life.
He pats my shoulder as he leaves. “Exactly.”
The moment he’s gone, Knox is staring at me with a wry smirk on his face.
“Kelsey? Really?” He looks directly at me, and I know he must know.
“Can we not discuss this?”
“Sure, your secret is safe with me. Just didn’t see this one coming.”
“Neither did I.” I blow out a breath.
Knox’s eyes study me. “One-time thing?”
I scoff a laugh. “Now isn’t the time to have anything else.”
“Maybe or maybe not. Anyway, you seem in a better mood these days—up until now, when she has ignored you since she arrived and hasn’t glanced over here once since Grayson started to chew her ear off. And I’m kind of confident that guy who just came in is eyeing her. But yeah, you’re doing great.” He gives me a little fist pump in the air.
I throw a peanut from the basket at him, and because my brother has magical powers, he catches it with one hand.
“You should probably save her, though. Grayson won’t stop trying to persuade her to help him win Brooke over.”
“She isn’t mine to save.”
He nods his head in disbelieving agreement.
It must be an hour or so later and we’re getting ready to go. I admit my curiosity has had me scanning the room and searching for Kelsey all night. Every time I landed on her, she was laughing with some girl who I recognize works at her salon. Our eyes never met, not even once.
Am I going crazy? Was I that bad of a lay?
My ego is beginning to take a hit.
This time, though, my eyes witness a scene that I don’t necessarily enjoy. Some asshole is talking to her; he has blond spiky hair and a too-tight t-shirt.
Grayson is heading home to Lucy and Knox has an early morning, so we’re already getting up to leave for the night, and it presents a perfect opportunity for me to linger behind.
“I’ll catch up with you guys later,” I announce, and Grayson, oblivious, bids me farewell. Knox just subtly shakes his head.
As they move on and out the door, I stop behind Kelsey just in time to hear her decline the asshole’s invitation for a drink.
“You know, I’m going to call it a night soon, so no thanks.” She politely turns away his advances, thankfully, and his eyes meet my warning glare that has him widen his eyes then back off.
It causes Kelsey to look behind her, puzzled, and finally our eyes meet with a hint of recognition of what we’ve done twice and a confirmation that this conversation was coming.
“Bennett.” She gives me a neutral look. “What brings you here?” she asks mundanely before taking a drink of some awful cocktail that looks red or orange. I bet her lips taste fruity now, shit.
“I’m confident that I was here before you arrived.” I move around and lean against the bar so she can’t escape my gaze.
“That is… right… true.” Her ability to counter with snark got lost somewhere.
Now I have to grin. “Ahh, I see what’s going on. You’re pretending to be unfazed by me. That our indiscretions haven’t affected you. But really, it’s written all over your face—I most definitely affect you.”
She does her best to maintain composure as she sits straight on the barstool but she’s attacking her bottom lip with her teeth.
“Want a drink?” I ask.
“No.”
“I do mean an actual drink and not the expensive kind that I lick off your skin.”
The corner of her mouth hitches up and I know she’s trying to show me that the thought of the other week didn’t just flash into her head.
“Want some peanuts?” I try again.
“No.” A gentle smile she tries to hide breaks out.
“Want a ride home?”
“No.”
“Want me to fuck you in the bathroom? I can hold you up, no problem.”
Her straight face completely breaks, and she finally relaxes with a soft smile gracing her lips.
“Okay, Bennett, what is it that you want?”
I reach into my pocket, grab my wallet, and throw a twenty on the bar to cover her bill.
“Let’s go chat outside.” I don’t give her the opportunity to answer and instead grab her arm and pull her with me.
By the time we’re outside in the dark spring evening, the neon signs of the bar and the light of the parking lot give enough illumination for us not to miss any details. We stop in front of my pickup truck.
She looks around to see that nobody is around then crosses her arms. I think she may be a little chilly or she’s hiding her perfectly erect nipples that pop out from her baby-blue top.
“Twice, two times now, that you escape before I even get a chance to offer you water,” I remind her.
“Twice we… this”—she motions between us—“has happened, so that is probably a sign that we shouldn’t be out here too long together.”
I step closer to her and cock my head to the side. “Why is that?”
“Because I know you’ll bring up the third-time’s-the-charm philosophy at some point in this conversation,” she answers, sure of herself, and I only step closer which causes her breath to hitch.
“Why would I do that? I’m not going to chase you, and you’ve made it clear that you don’t want me to.” I lean in to give her a knowing look as the closing gap between us causes her breath pace to change.
“Fuck, the urban legend of the Blisswood brothers is actually true, isn’t it? You really believe every woman is yearning for you, dying to get on her knees for you, and you don’t need to do anything.” Kelsey gives me a pointed look.
She steps back, I step closer. She takes another step.
I have to laugh softly to myself. “Darling, we know that’s not true. I did everything last time while you laid there moaning my name.”
Her mouth gapes open from my statement, then she holds up her hand. “We are completely even on that front.”
“Yeah, yeah, we are.” My jaw ticks in pleasure from both of those memories.
We stand there stuck in a gaze with two ridiculous grins forming on our faces because it’s fun, that seems to be us.
“What are we doing, Bennett?” It comes out humorously hopeless from her mouth as she glances away then back at me.
I shrug a shoulder. “Filling a void, reaping the benefits, something simple.”
Her eyes squint together. “Why isn’t any of that in the past tense?”
My final step to her causes her back to land against my car door and for the cutest little gasp to escape her mouth.
“Why should it be?”
She shakes her head gently. “Are you suggesting we don’t stop?”
“Exactly that. We both know what it is, so what’s the harm?”
I place a hand above her head and the smell of her hair hits my nose and she reaches out to touch my chest, sending wild thoughts through me.
“Friends with benefits.”
“Yeah.” I don’t have a clever comeback anymore because it’s simply what she says.
Every now and then, I want to be with someone physically without any ties but more than a one-night stand. Kelsey was there for me as a friend that night, and she’s the escape from daily life that I need now. But I can’t offer much further than that.
“No sleepovers,” she states.
“I’m sure you will really struggle with that,” I sarcastically retort.
“No romance, just good old-fashioned fucking to fulfill one another’s fantasies and that’s that.” She watches her fingers skimming down my torso.
“So, if I have special requests that fall into the fantasy category?” I tease her, but, well, we might as well lay down the rules too.
Kelsey raises her chin to me in contemplation. “Yes. And if either one of us has a need to fulfill, just send the code?”
I comb my fingers through her ponytail because I already feel like I’ve earned the right. “What’s the code?”
“Hmm, I don’t know. Something only we would know.”
I wait for her to come up with something.
“Got it. Blow on my coffee.”
“What?” I blink a few times.
“Blow—like the game of suck and blow. Coffee—because you know my coffee secrets.”
“Sally-Anne’s coffee tasting of rubber isn’t a secret,” I remind her.
“Yes, but you know my biggest secret, that I throw it away. She would crucify me if she found out.”
I grin at everything she says then gently pull her hair to bring her face closer and her mouth within distance of my own. “What if I want to suck instead of blow?” I taunt her, and she pinches the skin above my belly button.
“And no public displays of affection, so you should respectfully step back, Mr. Blisswood, or the townsfolk may start to talk,” she berates me with a playful smile.
“Okay.” I hold up my hands and step back.
“And when this runs its course, then we can just be friends.”
“Sure. So we have an arrangement?”
Rules are clear now, let’s move on. I have a plan for her tonight.
“Yep, now I guess I will go home and see you around.” She begins to walk away, and I instantly grab her wrist so she can’t get far.
“Not so fast, buttercup, we have guidelines to follow.” I give her a stern look.
She doesn’t quite understand what I mean.
I continue to explain. “Trust me?”
“I do.”
“Good.” I yank her with her me a few steps until we’re behind the building where nobody can see us.
Quickly, I back her to the brick wall, and her eyes are blaze with heat as her hands land on my upper arms that cage her in.
The light highlights her delicious smirk that I want to kiss off her face. “I’m not a behind-in-the-alley kind of gal.”
I chuckle under my breath. “Right here, Kelsey. Fast and good. I know as soon as I slip my fingers between your legs that you’ll be ready for me.” I grab her hand and guide it to my strained jeans that has my cock desperate to be set free. “Just like I am. But first tell me why you avoided me?”
Her devilish look is nearly a snarl. “You had my number.”
Touché.
“I was letting you set the tone. Now, why did you avoid me?”
Her lips quirk then curl in before a closed-lip smile spreads on her face. “Because I was afraid that this was the offer you would make.”
“Why does that scare you?” I ask as I sneak up under her skirt and move the fabric of her drenched satin panties to the side, already losing my will to form words.
Her eyes close then open as she sinks into my touch, and I enjoy it far too much that she lets go so easily with me.
“I don’t know, but I think it’ll be a while until I figure it out,” she breathes.
“That’s okay, we’re not in a rush. Well, for me to make you come right now, right here may be slightly hasty, but I have a feeling you’re going to like that,” I rasp into her ear before dragging my mouth along her jawline to capture her mouth.
She whimpers against my lips when my fingers drive inside of her.
“Bennett, don’t let us fuck this up,” she warns me as she unzips my jeans because we need to make this quick.
“Don’t worry, Kelsey,” I whisper against her lips before sealing our lips together.
For some reason, my reassurance is only a hint of playfulness and more of a caring promise that surprises even myself.