Page 111 of You Only Need One

“Me?”

“Are you excited about becoming a lawyer?”

We haven’t really discussed Ben’s major since the day he first showed me his tattoos. Bravo on his part for finding exactly how to distract me. Even now, my body yells at my brain to shut up, turn around, and rip his shirt off.

But that’s what you do when you’re hooking up. Not when you want to get to know someone.

“Sure.” He retreats, unwrapping his arms from my waist.

The loss of his warmth is like stepping out of a hot shower and straight onto ice-cold tiles.

“You know, we’ve been friends slash ‘more’”—I air-quote around the word before returning to my salad making—“for over two months now. We’ve talked about your art and tattoos plenty of times. But you’ve only ever talked about being a lawyer once.”

Turning around to wipe my hands on a towel, I find Ben pouring broth into the soup pot, his shoulders tense.

“So?”

Trying to keep the conversation light, I reach for the croutons instead of making him look me in the eye like I want him to. “Why is that?”

He lets out a frustrated sigh. “I know what you’re trying to lead me toward, Holly. Yeah, I find art more interesting than law. But I’m still going to be a lawyer. Work at my parents’ firm. It’s a good, stable job.” When he says the word stable, there’s extra emphasis.

I don’t get why he’s so worried about having a stable job.

And what’s wrong with pursuing a career that’s more about passion than money?

Even though I want to keep digging, I get the sense that, if I try, we might get into a fight. When I first walked in the door, Ben was smiling and relaxed. Now, his lips are pinched tight, and he’s not looking at me.

I don’t want to argue with him, especially not when he’s in the middle of helping me cook all my meals.

Once the salad is done, I store it in the fridge and then turn to watch Ben stir the soup. He’s still tense, so I move behind him and place my hands on his hips. Slowly, I slide my fingers forward until they meet on his belly. I rub my nose on his soft shirt again before peppering a couple of kisses on his spine.

“Thank you for helping.”

The muscles on his abdomen twitch as I lightly run my fingers up to his chest and then down to his waistband.

“Anytime.” There’s a choked quality to his response, and I smile in satisfaction, knowing he’s just as affected by the touching as I am. He clears his throat once, twice, and a third time before speaking again, “Happy to help.”

“Mmm.” The hum comes deep from my chest, brought on by the delicious smells and the warm man in my arms. “Anything I can help you with?” My hands continue to wander.

Ben gets tense again, but this time, I doubt it’s because he’s upset.

“Holly …” His voice is low and growly.

Shivers scatter over me, and I press in closer. “Mmhmm?”

Beneath my arms, his chest expands on a deep breath. “If you keep this up, I’m gonna burn the soup.”

With my face pressed into his back, Ben can’t see how wicked my grin is.

“Oh. Sorry. Am I distracting you?”

He huffs out a laugh before grabbing one of my hands and pulling it to his mouth for a swift kiss.

When he lets go, I back away but not before giving his round butt a squeeze.

BEN

I have to finish cooking, sporting a partial. Not that Holly seems to mind. She keeps giving me looks that make the blood pound in my ears before traveling south.

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