Chapter 79

"Ben?" The emptiness of the flat contrasted sharply with the thumping in my chest as my voice reverberated faintly. Where I thought he would be, the couch was covered in long slats of light from the sun streaming through the shutters. He appeared so exhausted from the argument last night that I was certain he would collapse here. But he was nowhere to be seen anymore. He had lost his jacket. He had left his shoes by the door.

I looked at my phone once more and called him for the third time that morning. Every ring was heavier than the one before it. No response. "This is Ben," said the voicemail, in a calm and businesslike tone. Make a note.

I was so frustrated that I hung up the phone without saying anything. He was avoiding me, and I detested it. Detested the secrets. Detested the barriers he had erected between us. Above all, though, I detested that aspect of myself and knew why.

I attempted to concentrate on the next logical step while leaning against the counter. Ben wasn't himself. It had been weeks since he had gone. The late-night phone calls, his silent pondering, and the way his eyes seemed to flash with something darker when he believed no one was watching all suggested that there was more going on here than just work-related stress. And I had had enough of being in the dark.

"Okay, Fisher," I murmured, reaching for my keys. "I'll find out myself if you won't tell me."

He was easy to locate. Ben was methodical, almost obsessive. He likely believed no one observed the pattern and repetition in his actions. However, I had known him long enough to see the trends. I followed him to a diner on the outskirts of town, the kind where the only thing worth eating was obscurity.

In order to watch covertly, I parked a block away and slipped into a booth in the corner. Fluorescent lights buzzed softly overhead, and the air inside smelled like fryer grease and old coffee. Ben was already there, sitting across from a man who was naturally authoritative. Even at this distance, I could see Richards, the predator, glinting in his eyes.

They were talking so softly that I couldn't hear everything they were saying. To understand and grasp the main idea, I didn't need to hear everything. One could feel the tension between them, like a coiled spring about to break. Richards reclined back with his arms extended across the booth, his body language relaxed, and his face looked arrogant. On the other hand, Ben was a tangle of nerves. His hands were fumbling with the jacket's edge, and his shoulders were taut. He had never looked so... trapped to me.

I listened intently, picking up tidbits of their conversation.

"...no choice, Fisher," Richards said with a biting edge to his voice. "If you stall me once more, you know what will happen."

Ben's response was more subdued, almost imploring. "I'm doing my hardest. You have no idea what's at risk, and you don't grasp it."

Richards let out a chilly, sardonic laugh. "Oh, I totally get that, thank you. To put it simply, do you?"

My stomach turned over. It was horrible, whatever Ben had gotten himself into. Worse than I had anticipated. Richards's gaze on him was like a cat playing with a trapped mouse. The impulse to storm over there and demand answers was strong, but I made myself stay still. I didn't have time to take action.

With my heart pounding, I ducked lower in my seat as Richards eventually rose up and slid out of the booth with a triumphant attitude. Without giving me a sidelong glance, he walked out the door and into a sleek black automobile that was parked outside. Ben seemed to have been crushed by the weight of the world as he sat there with his head in his hands.

As soon as he exited the diner, I went up to him.

"Ben!" I stepped into his path and called out. He froze, his face changing from one of surprise to one of shame.

"Sophie?" He looked about uneasily. "Why are you in this place?"

I refused to be intimidated and folded my arms. "I could ask you the same question. Who was that man? I've heard enough to know you're in serious trouble, so don't tell me it's nothing."

He raked a hand through his hair and sighed. "You don't have to get involved in this, Sophie. Simply return home."

"No," I retorted, taking a step closer. "Until you tell me the truth, I won't leave. Everything."

His jaw tensed as he paused. "You don't understand what's at stake. It might endanger you if I tell you."

"Ben, I'm already in danger," I shot back, raising my voice. "Do you think I haven't noticed your recent behavior? The conflict between Ethan and you? Whatever you're involved in is having an impact on everyone and everything in your immediate vicinity. Including me."

He looked aside, his shoulders dropping as the fight drained out of him. "It's complicated," he murmured.

"Then uncomplicate it," I murmured, getting closer. "Talk to me, Ben. Let me help."

He laughed cruelly, the sound laden with self-loathing. "Help? Sophie, you have no idea what you're asking. I've made mistakes... huge ones. And now, I'm just trying to keep my head above water without bringing everyone else down with me."

I reached out, touching his arm softly. "You don't have to work alone on this. We'll confront it together, no matter what."

At that moment, he gave me a serious look, and I could see the flaws in his armor. The terror. The fatigue. And something else, a glimmer of vulnerability that he seldom showed.

"Why even care?" he asked quietly.

My breath caught, and I blurted out the words that had been simmering inside of me for months before I could stop myself.

"Because, Ben, I love you."

The ensuing silence was deafening. His eyes grew wide, and I briefly believed I had made a grave error. But then he moved in closer, leaning in and putting his hand on my cheek. The world seemed to stop spinning when his lips found mine. The kiss was gentle and hesitant at first, but it soon became more intense as years of unsaid emotions were released in that one instant.

He pressed his forehead to mine when we eventually parted, his speech hardly audible above a whisper. "Sophie, you have no idea what you're getting yourself into."

"I don't care," I said firmly. "You won't have to face this alone."

The tension between us was evident when we returned to his apartment. Something I couldn't quite put my finger on made the air feel thick. As I had anticipated, Ben's flat was simple, almost sterile, and seemed to have been designed to keep people out rather than welcome them. However, everything felt different tonight. Warmer. As if the walls were at last falling down.

He offered me a glass and poured us both a drink, the amber liquid gleaming in the light. "This probably isn't a good idea," he said with a hint of doubt in his voice.

"Probably not," I said, leaving my glass untouched. "However, when did that ever stop us?"

Then he smiled, a rare, sincere smile that broke my heart. Then he was kissing me once more while drawing me in with his hands that slid around my waist. This time, the kiss was different, hungrier, more frantic, as if we were both attempting to temporarily forget the world.

I felt his heart thumping against my chest as my fingers got caught in his hair and drew him closer. As he intensified the kiss, his tongue probed every part of my mouth with such ferocity that I was out of breath, the heat of his body soaking into mine.

I felt the muscles beneath my fingers tighten and relax as I moved my hands down his back. With a gentle groan against my lips, he briefly separated to plant a series of moist, open-mouthed kisses along my neck and jaw. I wanted to feel every inch of his body on mine, so I arched into him in an attempt to get more of his touch.

His hands moved up beneath my shirt and touched the exposed skin of my stomach as he carried on exploring lower. I felt chills run down my spine as his fingers moved over my ribcage. He trailed back up to rest on the small of my back after pausing briefly and hovering above the waistline of my jeans.

I knew what was about to happen when he gave me that look, his eyes dark and eager. He started to unbutton my shirt slowly and deliberately, as if we were both engaged in a perilous game of want, with each button click sending an electric charge through my body.

He withdrew as the final button came loose, leaving me standing there in just my trousers and bra, my breathing becoming more rapid by the second. His gaze lingered on my breasts for a moment before settling on the silhouette of my body beneath the jeans.

"You're so beautiful," he murmured in a low voice that left me speechless. He looked at me like that, and I couldn't help but smile at him as a wave of confidence and desire passed over me.

Then, in one quick motion, he grabbed my jeans by the hem and pulled them off with a single, strong tug. As I stepped out of them, my legs shook, exposing me fully to his ravenous eyes.

After giving me one more look, he leaned forward and inserted his hands beneath my bra. I moaned softly as he grasped my breasts and massaged my nipples between his fingers, the pleasure nearly overwhelming me.

"You're so wet," he whispered against my neck, which made me quiver once more. "I want to taste you."

After saying those words, he dropped to his knees and made a single, strong motion that sent me whirling with ecstasy as his lips closed around my center. As he devoured me, his tongue darting and probing at every tender part of my body, I gripped his shoulders for support.

He reached up and unhooked my bra, allowing it to drop away as he continued to worship me with his tongue, just as I was starting to lose myself in the pleasure. As I felt the first waves of pleasure start to rise inside of me, I arched my back and pushed myself farther into his lips.

Then he withdrew, leaving me gasping for air and craving more, right as I was about to climax. We slid together with a slickness that sent another surge of want through my veins as he stood up and drew me against him once again, grinning wickedly.

"I want you inside me," I murmured as I struggled to control the need that was consuming me. At that moment, he gave me a knowing smile that promised me more satisfaction than I could have ever dreamed.

And I realized that this was only the start of a day full of passion, desire, and unrestrained pleasure as he picked me up and carried me to the bedroom.