Company Ink (12 page)

“That’s neither here nor there at this point,” Lisa insisted. “She and I have always been on the outs. When you guys first started dating, she let me know in no uncertain terms that she thought our relationship was unnatural because of how close we were.”

Violet’s bemusement matched Ben’s as he replied, “Why didn’t you tell me this?”

“Would you have believed me?” Lisa asked, leaning back into the couch. “Would young, starry-eyed Ben have believed his barely-of-age sister when she said the hot hostess wasn’t on the up and up?”

“You should have given me the chance to prove you wrong.”

Violet looked to Lisa. “You know, she saw us coming out of the movie theater about an hour ago.”

“She’s on a mission,” Lisa said. “And, honestly, I don’t know what she’s up to—but either way, I’ve got his back.”

Ben shook his head. “I told her I don’t need a bodyguard. But here she is.”

He expected to hear Violet’s laugh in response, but instead she nodded. “I can respect that. Every guy should have a protective sister.”

Lisa smiled and looked at Ben as she gestured toward Violet. “I like this one.”

• • •

When Ben woke up the next morning, he was going over his morning routine before he even opened his eyes. He was usually running around from dawn until dusk, even on his day off. But today he liked the idea of staying in and lounging around, and the reason for the change in pace was lying right next to him. The gorgeous woman with the wild curls, impossibly gray sparklers for eyes, and strong but feminine curves lay fast asleep just inches away. He examined her with a content smile, able to see every contour of her face thanks to the scrunchie Violet had borrowed from Lisa to put her hair up before bed. She stretched comfortably in her sleep and turned over, effectively barring Ben from his preferred view. He leaned forward and gave her shoulder blade a careful kiss.

His sister was a fair enough distance away that she wouldn’t be disturbed by his stirring, but he took care to avoid waking her anyway. He smiled to himself again—Violet, try as he might to persuade her otherwise, had refused to do any more than kiss him because Lisa was, in her mind, “right down the hall.” He’d pointed out the size of the apartment and the fact that a rather large office separated his room from the living room, but Violet would have none of it. So Ben was left holding her, chatting until they fell asleep; he realized, just as his eyelids were about to close, just how long it had been since he’d emotionally connected with anyone. And the thought terrified him.

Violet could have been just like any girl. Hell, she could have been just like Elena. Sure, the last two nights with her had been amazing, but what would she be like in two weeks? Two months? Two years, if he dared think that far ahead? Two years was exactly what it took for Elena to pull away from him. And he still didn’t fully understand why. What if, like Elena had been insisting, their divorce really
was
his fault? What if there was something fundamentally wrong with him that drove Violet away? His stomach officially in knots, Ben climbed out of bed.

He stepped into the kitchen to call his building maintenance department about changing the locks on his doors when his cell phone rang. He raised an eyebrow at the “private” listing flashing on his screen before throwing caution to the wind and accepting the call.

“Hello?”

“It’s Tommy. What were you up to last night?”

“I had a date. Why?”

“Because Elena saw you, that’s why.”

“I know, I looked her in the face. Did you know she showed up at my house unannounced and said she’d destroy me?”

Tommy paused. “I heard about that, but of course that wasn’t how she described it to my source.”

“How did she describe it?”

“That she showed up to talk and you verbally assaulted her before physically tossing her out of the condo. And now that she’s seen you with someone new, she’s looking to prove that you were cheating on her way before you kicked her out.”

He turned away from the sink, water blasting out of the faucet and splashing large droplets all over the pristine counter as he took a seat at the dinette. “Kicked her out? She left me!”

“I know, but this is what she’s saying,” Tommy warned. “Just keep it together, and watch what you do in public. She may have a private eye follow you. And I wouldn’t be surprised if she tried to postdate the photos.”

“How would she even pull that off?”

“We’re in the age of digital photography, my friend. A little Photoshop goes a long way.”

Ben remained silent, dropping his head in his hand.

Tommy continued, “I know this is frustrating. She’s trying to break you, I know this for a fact. What it comes down to is that you’re worth a lot of money if she can angle things right—even more if she can prove abuse or infidelity. And if she can get a judge to see both, you’re screwed.”

“But none of it’s true!” Ben exclaimed. “I spent seven years treating her like a damn princess! Anything she wanted, I gave her. She wanted jewelry, I gave it to her. She wanted a car, I gave it to her. She wanted
space
, and I gave it to her. What did I get in return? Elena walked out on me with Ethan carrying her full set of Chanel luggage—which
I
bought her!”

“Bro, I know,” Tommy reassured him. “It’s a house of cards, I promise you. And the case I’m developing will break her; if I can get this source to come out of the shadows, her entire story will fall apart. You’ve just got to trust me.”

“Is your source credible?”

“Highly.”

Ben frowned. “And you’re sure they’re not playing you?”

Tommy paused. “Like, 97 percent sure.”

“You’re giving me condom odds on a source that can make or break me?”

“It’ll be a 100 percent soon. Just let me do what I do.”

“Don’t make me regret this.”

“Just be careful. And you’re gonna have to tell me about this new girl.”

“I’ll tell you all about her, but you already know who she is.”

Tommy only needed to think briefly before laughing. “Whoa, the production supervisor? How? When?”

“Long story,” Ben answered.

“I can’t wait to hear it. I’ve gotta run, but I’m going to text you later. Maybe we can have a drink in your neighborhood.”

“Yeah, that’s a possibility. I’ll let you know later.”

After the call ended, Ben placed his phone back on the table and spent a long moment staring at it. Most guys fresh out of a marriage and headed toward divorce, especially when they were the ones who got cheated on, had a much longer mourning period than the handful of weeks he’d spent in the Caribbean. Then again, most women weren’t like Elena. Even saying her name in his mind set off a wave of anxiety; he couldn’t understand why she wouldn’t just go away. If she had kept proceedings clean, he might have even paid alimony without so much as a grumble. But the idea that she was after much more than that—that she was out to
break
him—hurt more than the fact that she’d spent most of their marriage laying with the guy who’d claimed to be his best friend.

He picked up his phone, turning it over and over in his hands as he hoped to God he wasn’t wrong about Tommy. The lawyer/drinking buddy and only classmate he’d managed to stay in touch with after college had been the one to reach out to Ben while he lay on the hot sand in the Bahamas, contemplating leaving Elena the condo and moving back in with his parents to start over. Tommy had begun representing Ben without a retainer and kept him in the loop constantly. He appreciated Tommy, more than he could ever express, for lighting a fire under his ass and getting him to come home and fight. But now, for the first time in weeks, he felt a small twinge of doubt where his lawyer and longtime bud was concerned.

Yeah, his guard was up further and, taking Tommy’s advice, he’d be careful going forward—with everyone. Besides, he didn’t want Violet getting involved in a mess that was only getting uglier. It was on that train of thought that he finally swiped his fingers across the screen of his Galaxy S5 to call maintenance for the lock change.

Glad that he’d at least taken care of one thing today, he returned to his bedroom, planning to wrap his arms around Violet and stay in bed for another few hours. What he found was the glamazon baker sitting up in his California king, his white V-neck undershirt clinging to her killer curves. Her olive-skinned gams were drawn to her chest, and her arms were wrapped around them. She’d taken her hair out of the messy ponytail she’d had sitting at the top of her head, and her unruly raven curls now cascaded down her back and over her shoulders. She gave him a sleepy smile, and he grinned at her sheepishly.

“Our first sleepover.” He chuckled.

Violet blushed; she let out a whisper of a giggle and lowered her head onto her knees. “It was fun,” she murmured.

“Would you like some breakfast?” he offered. “I’m a pretty decent cook, but I bet I can bribe my sister into making some of the best French toast you’ve ever had.”

Violet looked up with a grin, stretching her long legs out before turning to let them hang off the bed. “That sounds amazing, but I do have to go. Baking day, remember?”

“That’s right, baking day. If you’re still up for company, I can be over in a few hours.”

Violet stood thoughtfully, allowing herself a stretch that revealed enough of her boy shorts to make his heart race. “Are
you
up for it?”

Ben raised an eyebrow. “What does that mean? Of course I’m up for it.”

Violet tilted her head to one side, folding her arms behind her. “Look, I heard some of that phone conversation. It sounds like Elena’s giving you more than you’re bargaining for. I mean, changing locks, going through a divorce—it’s all trying, and I get it. Are you sure you want to start something new?”

He approached her carefully, wrapping his arms around her waist as he took a deep breath. “Look, Vi, I may be working some things out, but I want to look toward the future. These last two days have been interesting, and I feel like if we just take things one day at a time, we might be all right.”

He searched her expression for traces of doubt. The fear that he was actively destroying any hope of falling in love without realizing it threatened to consume him. “Are you having second thoughts?”

Violet smiled up at him warmly. “No, I’m really not. But my last relationship nearly destroyed me. I like you a lot, Ben, and I would hate for you to end up resenting me for jumping from one relationship to another with no real healing time in between. Even worse, I’d hate to end up being a rebound with all that’s happened between us in the last couple of days and … Oh my God—am I a rebound?”

“No, no,” Ben assured her. “I’m too old for rebounds.”

And as fast as he wondered if she was having second thoughts, he was hit with his own. His mouth said he was too old for rebounds, but Ben couldn’t help but wonder—was that what this was? Could he have been a rebound of sorts for her? He felt like he’d had sufficient time to heal on that quiet expanse of beach in the Bahamas, but was it enough? They were questions he wanted to bring out in the open; he wanted to be straight with her, but he was concerned that blunt honesty would make her walk out faster than you could say cupcake.

Violet wrapped her arms around his waist and snuggled into him. “I hope so. I’m sorry you’re going through this, Ben.”

Without another word, he tucked one finger under her chin, lifting her face to his as he leaned down for a kiss. Violet’s eyes fluttered closed. Their lips had barely touched when there was a knock on the door. Ben let out a frustrated groan and pressed his forehead against Violet’s shoulder; she laughed loudly and wrapped her arms around his neck in response.

Lisa’s voice was loud and clear from behind the door. “All right, bunnies. I’m going downstairs for breakfast—I’ll bring you guys some Gatorade!”

“Get the hell out of here, Lisa!” he called out.

Lisa let out a boisterous laugh, followed by footsteps and the opening and closing of his front door as it echoed down the hallway. That was the cue for Ben to begin sampling Violet’s soft flesh with the tip of his tongue. He tightened his grip around her waist, lifting her off the ground and inciting another delighted giggle.

She tried halfheartedly, playfully, to wriggle out of his grasp. “Ben, stop! She
is
coming back, you know.”

He lowered her onto the bed gently, his muscles flexing as he positioned himself over her. “If she knows what’s good for her, she won’t be back for at least a half an hour.”

It wasn’t long before her legs were once again wrapped around his back, his hips grinding against her as his member filled her again and again, slowly, deeply, perfectly …

• • •

Violet arrived home a few hours later, sufficiently full from an amazing breakfast and a little sore from the half hour of bliss in Ben’s bedroom. Slow, deep strokes had given way to a superb pounding, drawing guttural groans she wouldn’t soon forget. She sighed softly as she went weak in the knees thinking about Ben turning her over and claiming her doggy style. It had never been that good with anyone.

A nervous energy took over as she left the elevator, walking to her door with a spring in her step. Her door was in her sights when she stopped short, a dreadful sinking feeling sweeping over her as her gaze dropped to the doormat.

A bundle of grocery-store roses stood there, balanced against her door. A card was pinned to the floral paper and, without opening it, she knew they weren’t from Ben. She looked behind her, a little frightened by the prospect that he might still be in the building. What frightened her more was that she hadn’t given him this address.

Carefully, she tugged the card off the paper wrapped around the bouquet. She frowned as she read the card, her fears confirmed as she immediately recognized the untidy scrawl.

Violet took a steadying breath before picking up the bouquet of flowers and tossing them in the building’s trash chute across from the elevator. The card she kept, angrily staring at it as she walked back to her front door. Who did he think he was? She could only deduct that he’d followed her home, and it made her angry and scared at the same time. How many times would she have to say no before he took the hint? Feeling violated, she tore up the card into as many pieces as she could with trembling fingers and dropped it on her welcome mat. If Steve came back, she hoped that would be the first thing he saw.