Forever Is Not Enough [Council Enforcers 2] (Siren Publishing Classic) (8 page)

Instead of taking Jacqi to the bedroom he had found her in earlier, Ben took her to his room and placed her in the center of his bed. He stood back and admired the way her long dark hair fanned over his pillow. When he went to bed that night, he would be surrounded by her sweet scent. Unable to resist touching her, Ben eased himself on the bed and stretched out beside his mate. He ran the tips of his fingers across her smooth jaw, admiring how soft her skin was. At his touch, Jacqi moaned and rolled over on her side. When she curled into his chest and sighed, Ben’s cock went from semi-hard to fully erect in an instant. It seemed, even in sleep, his mate recognized him. She was beautiful, and Ben felt a swell of pride that she was all his.

Laying an arm across her waist, Ben pulled Jacqueline closer until their bodies were molded together. He ignored his cock and just lay there enjoying the feeling of having his mate next to him and being able to hold her. For three months, he hadn’t been able to touch her. Her scent had teased him each time she had stepped into his cell to inject him with drugs. Her scent had meant betrayal, and he had been disgusted with himself that he still looked forward to that scent, even after what she had done to him. Now that they were safe, and he realized his mate had been trying to help him, there was nothing stopping Ben from doing what he had wanted to do all those lonely nights in his cell.

His intention was to hold her for a few minutes before going back downstairs to work on the plan with the guys, but Ben must not have been as fully recovered as he’d thought. Almost three months of captivity and then the injury to his side caught up with him as his eyes slowly shut and he drifted off to sleep next to his mate.

* * * *

Jacqueline snuggled deeper into the heat surrounding her, not wanting to move. For the first time in as long as she could remember, she had slept deeply. Normally, she slept with one eye open for fear of her father finding out what she had done or one of his men thinking he would be the one she let into her bed. There had been plenty of times she had been woken up from her light sleep by the sound of her bedroom door opening and one of his guards easing in. Once her father found out, that guard was never seen again, but with new rogues constantly coming in, word that she was off limits didn’t get around fast enough, and there was always someone new willing to try.

Now, she knew the warm, hard chest she was pressed up against was Ben’s, and it didn’t frighten her to wake up with the large guy in her bed next to her. He wasn’t the largest man she had ever seen, but compared to her petite stature, Ben was huge. Even with her head resting on his muscular chest, her feet only reached the middle of his calves. His size should have frightened her, but for some reason, Jacqueline wasn’t scared of this shifter. In fact, Ben made her feel safe, safe enough that she was willingly curled in his arms. Being next to him made it seem as though the outside world didn’t exist. There was no man hell-bent on taking over the world, no shifters going wild, and no drugs meant to turn innocent men into raving mad lunatics. There was no guilt, just the two of them in bed together, happy and relaxed.

Jacqueline opened her eyes and came face to face with the most handsome man she had ever seen. In sleep, Ben’s face was relaxed. She studied his thick, long brown lashes as they fanned out against his cheeks down to his thick lips, slightly parted. In her twenty-six years, she had never had the urge to kiss anyone, but suddenly, Jacqueline barely held back the urge to lean over and press her mouth against Ben’s. She traced the lines on each side of his mouth and the corner of his eyes with her finger. They were laugh lines, and to her, they were his best feature. In her eyes, the instant he smiled and the lines appeared, they made him go from handsome to devastating.

Laughter was something she had rarely seen or heard in her life. At lunch, Jacqueline had seen how the guys, and even Tessa and Nico, had joked and laughed with each other. She could tell they all loved each other in some way. They had the kind of life she had only ever dreamed of. She wondered if that was what her life would have been like if her mother hadn’t died. Was her father the way he was because he missed his mate? Or had he always been so evil and determined to take over the world? Sadly, there was no way for Jacqueline to know the answers to those questions.

“You keep staring at me like that and I won’t be held responsible for what I do next.”

Jacqueline jumped at the sound of Ben’s voice, rough from sleep. “I wasn’t staring. I was just admiring the view and wondering how we ended up in bed together.”

“The view is nice, isn’t it?”

A shiver run down her spine from the way Ben was looking at her. She was used to her father’s men staring at her with lust in their eyes and was able to ignore it with no problem. With Ben, she didn’t want to ignore the lust. In fact, she welcomed it, which was a first for her.

Their faces were inches apart, and all Jacqueline could think of was if she leaned in those last few inches their lips would touch. She wondered if his lips would be soft. Her breath hitched from the thought.

Ben groaned. “You’re killing me, Jacqi. I’m trying to be good, but your scent is making it hard.”

Jacqueline giggled and shifted her hips. “I can tell.” Not only was she shocked at herself for being so bold, she was surprised at Ben as she watched the blush slowly creep up his neck and into his face as he tried to move away from her.

“I didn’t…I wasn’t…”

His stammering made her laugh even harder. “I know what you meant, Ben. It’s okay. I was just joking with you.” She held on to him, not ready for him to move yet. She didn’t know what it was about Ben that made her want to be next to him, but she wasn’t going to question it. For the first time in her life, she was attracted to a man, and she was going to do something about it. Not giving herself time to chicken out, she closed the distance between them and pressed her lips to his.

At first, Ben was stiff in her arms, and she wondered if she was doing something wrong, but then Jacqueline heard him groan and felt his hands in her hair. He tilted her head to the side, as his tongue brushed against the seam of her mouth. Although she was innocent when it came to anything sexual, she wasn’t naive. She knew what he wanted and happily obliged by parting her lips. It was her turn to moan when Ben thrust his tongue into her mouth.

Jacqueline became more and more aroused with each thrust. She felt her panties dampening and couldn’t stop her hips from shifting forward as she rubbed herself against Ben. She felt his erection pressing against her stomach and wondered what it would feel like inside of her. When Ben slid his tongue back, she followed with her own, tangling it with his before she let it go. She licked his bottom lip before sucking it into her mouth and releasing it with a
pop
.

Panting for breath, Jacqueline pulled back and stared at Ben. “That kiss was beyond anything I’ve ever imagined. Thank you.”

“I should be thanking you, little mate, for allowing me to kiss you.” Ben trailed his lips down her neck as he spoke. “I’ve wanted to do that since I first laid eyes on you.”

“Why? After what I did to you, how could you be so forgiving? I don’t understand why you even tried to save my life in the first place.” Pulling away from him, Jacqueline sat up. She knew it wasn’t the time or place to get into the conversation they were about to have. She was ruining the mood, but she needed answers. She also needed to know what she was feeling wasn’t one-sided. “Also why do you keep calling me little mate?” The first time he had called her that, she had been able to ignore it. Not this time, though. There was no way she could brush it off as something said in the heat of the moment. From everything she had heard from her father and hearing his men talk, shifters didn’t just throw the word mate around at random.

Ben sighed and propped his head on his hand. “I know you don’t know much about shifters, but do you know what mates are?”

Jacqueline felt her stomach knot. “I’ve heard a few of my father’s men talking about them. They are supposed to be the one person fate chooses for each shifter. Once they meet, they won’t be able to live without each other. That is about all I know. “

Ben nodded. “That’s close. Mates are chosen for each other by fate. They are perfect and complement each other in every way. Once a shifter meets their mate, they never want another for as long as they live. I’m sure you already know, but we don’t get sick. We can’t catch human diseases, and we heal pretty much instantly. Because of that, we can live for a really long time. We aren’t immortal, but barring a horrific accident or someone killing us, we can live practically forever. Knowing there is someone out there specifically meant for us gives shifters something to look forward to rather than the burden of living forever alone.” He paused before continuing, “The night I met you, I scented you before I ever even saw you. I knew then you were my mate. That’s why I saved your life that night.”

Jacqueline was stunned silent. She didn’t know whether to jump for joy at him confirming she was his mate or to run from the room screaming and crying because of what she had done to him. “If what you say is true, then you should hate me.” If he didn’t hate her now, then he definitely would once he found out he was dying because of her. All his talk about not getting sick and shifters being hard to kill meant little because he would soon see just how untrue that was unless she found a way to cure him.

“I don’t hate you, little mate. From what you’ve told me, you did what you had to do to stay alive. How can I be mad about that? Besides”—he brushed the hair back from her forehead—“you made the right decision when it counted the most. You went against your father to help me escape. You more than likely saved my life.”

Jacqueline jumped from the bed and began pacing. She didn’t want or need Ben’s praise. “You say all of that now, but when you find out what I’ve done, I wouldn’t be surprised if you never wanted to see me again.” She wanted to scream at fate for being such a cruel bitch. It wasn’t fair. He was the first man she’d had a connection with in her life, and she had to go and try to kill him.

She sat on the side of the bed and covered her face with her hands. Tears burned her eyes, and she didn’t want Ben to see them. The last thing she needed at the moment was his pity. Jacqueline bit her lip to keep from sobbing, when she felt Ben’s warm hand on her back trying to comfort her.

“Tell me what’s bothering you, little mate. I can’t help you unless you tell me.”

“There is nothing you can do to help,” she mumbled through her hands. She was the only one who could do something, and she was sitting on the side of the bed throwing herself a pity party.

“Whatever it is, it can’t be that bad.”

Jacqueline couldn’t hold back the hysterical laugh. “Can’t be that bad? You have no idea.” She made the decision then to tell Ben exactly what was going on. He deserved to know the truth. He would hate her, but at least he would know. She also knew there was no way she could have a relationship with him with the secret hanging over her head. She took a deep breath before speaking. “When I found out about my father’s plans for the rogues he was creating, I was so upset. I couldn’t believe he would do something like that, and I was hurt he would use me to do it. I wanted to make him pay for what he had done. When I sabotaged to rogue drug to make them more docile, I also did something else.”

“Just tell me what it is, little mate. It’s okay.”

“I didn’t want my father to be able to take the formula to another scientist to fix what I had done. I didn’t want the blood on my hands if they succeeded in creating the killing machines my father wanted, so I added something to the drug to kill the rogues. They’re meant to die six months after the drug is injected unless they’re given the antidote.” Jacqueline waited for the yelling and name-calling to begin. Whatever he said, she deserved it and so much more.

“I’m going to kill your father,” Ben growled.

“What?” Jacqueline asked, confused. That was the last thing she had expected to hear.

“I said I’m going to kill your father when I get my hands on him. The man should have never put you in that position. You were his child, and he failed you.”

“Wait, so you’re mad at him and not me?”

“How could I ever be mad at you for doing what you needed to do to keep people safe? It wasn’t your job, yet you took it on at a young age with no questions asked. How can I be mad at that?”

“You don’t understand. I just told you that you were going to die because of me. I didn’t have time to finish the antidote.”

Jacqueline didn’t fight when Ben pulled her into his lap. It felt good being wrapped in his arms, and she accepted the comfort he was trying to give her. She was amazed at the man. He was the complete opposite of her father. Where her father was cruel, vindictive, and mean spirited, Ben was kind, good natured, and forgiving.

“Listen to me, little mate,” Ben said as he lifted her chin with his finger. “You just told me I’ll die if you don’t find a cure in time. Of course, I’m scared to death. I don’t want to die anytime soon. I want to spend a long happy and healthy life with you. And yes, I’m angry, but like I said, not at you. None of this is your fault. Your father is to blame for all of this, and I plan on making him pay.”

“Yeah, but—”

“No buts. You told me you brought all of your work with you, so the way I see it, instead of sitting here talking about not having the antidote, you could be using that time working to finish it. Tell me what you need, and I’ll make sure you have it.”