Page 23 of More With You

I frown. “I can’t imagine the DuCates renting out their house. It’s not like they need the money, right?”

“They don’t. They rent it out to friends, friends of friends, sons and daughters of friends, people they want to impress or get a favor from, that kind of thing. All very nepotistic.” He laughs wryly. “Everyone gets a background check, though I guess they missed the obvious part about twenty-something guys going wild when one of them is about to get hitched.”

I let a kiss linger upon his chest, hugging him at the waist. “You could’ve gotten badly hurt.”

“Nah, they all calmed down when they saw me. I’m not much of a DuCate, but the name has a bit of power when you need drunken guys to shut the hell up, pack their stuff, and get out,” he says, tilting my chin back up so he can kiss my lips again. “Plus, the threat of calling “Mommy and Daddy” had them running pretty scared.”

I hold him tighter, trying to buy time. “Did they break anything in the house?”

“Nothing anyone would notice.” His kiss moves down to my throat, his tongue tasting the deep groove at its base. “The bachelor party wrote a big apology check and there’s a cleaning team coming tomorrow, so everything will be back pristine again by the time my parents get home. Just the way my mother likes it.” He chuckles against my skin. It tickles and his kiss traces the ripples that shiver down into my chest, sending a fresh pulse of desire into my belly.

It’s hard to concentrate as his hands slide over my skin once again. I’m falling into him, into the distraction of him, into the presence of him, into the world of him. I might only know the outer limits, but I don’t mind the exploration. The only thing I fear are pitfalls or hidden roots that are going to trip me up before I get to the core of him.

His tongue brushes my throat, his harsh breath cooling the sensation onto my skin, before his warm lips burn it up again. My eyes close and I’m lost in his embrace, my mouth finding his, urging my kiss against his to chase away any thoughts of exes or troubled sisters or Levi’s last petulant jab. It has no place here, now that I know what being with him is like.

“I’m sorry I worried you,” he whispers, his arm grasping my waist as he shifts onto his side.

I rest my forehead against his, our lips parting for a second. “Seriously, stop apologizing.” I pause. “Unless there’s something you really feel you need to apologize for.”

I can’t push this any further, to where I really want us to go again, without knowing. I wish I could. I want to forget everything that stupid, smug, smarmy Levi said, but it’s buzzing in my head like a wasp nest. If I don’t quiet it, I’ll be thinking about it until morning, even if Ben makes me forget again, temporarily. I’m still not an expert in crafting a mood, but I’m fairly sure that thinking about another woman’s name is going to dampen the desire a hell of a lot. After such a perfect experience, I’d hate to tarnish it, or be denied a perfect repeat because of my brain.

He frowns at me and I can feel the passionate moment slipping away like morning fog on a stormy gust. “What do you mean?”

“It’s nothing,” I mumble, lowering my gaze. My fingertips are still splayed in his hair, my heart is still racing with want, and his lips are still parted in a half-kiss. I can carry on if I just push Levi to one side.

Why do you have to ruin everything?

Ben tilts his head, his hold on me tightening. “Is something bothering you?” He squints. “You can tell me. If you weren’t ready for all of this, that’s not a problem. We can work through it, as slowly as you need.” There’s a hopeful smile on his face, and I hate that I might be about to wipe it away.

“It’s not that.” I swallow.

Real concern flashes in his dark blue eyes. “What’s wrong, Summer? Is it something I said? Is it something I did?” His forehead furrows. “It’s the DuCate thing, isn’t it? To me, they’re just my dysfunctional family. Same as anyone else’s. I don’t take money from them; I don’t even see them that often.”

“It’s not the DuCate thing,” I assure, though it’s not entirely true. It’s just another part of him that I’ve pushed to one side. When his parents come back in two weeks, then I’ll start worrying about it. But, I can only dwell on one concern at a time, or I’ll wonder why I got involved in the first place. So far, he has no red flags, so there’s no harm dipping a toe in the water. Now, I’m just trying to find out if there are dangerous currents further out, before I’m already swimming out there, too invested and too deep to retreat to shore.

His thumb strokes my cheek gently. Patiently. “What is it, Summer? You’re worrying me, now.”

“It’s… something Levi said.” The words stick in my throat like swallowed gum. Why am I letting that asshole have any kind of control over this? It annoys me all the more, because I know it’s what he wants.

A dark cloud settles over Ben’s head. “Has he been here? Did he try something again, while I was at the house?” He bites his bottom lip. Not sexily, but angrily. “I swear to God, I’ll ride over there right now and—”

“Who’s Grace?” I blurt out, desperate to avoid him getting into another altercation with Levi. For his sake, not Levi’s. I couldn’t care less what happens to Levi.

The dark cloud disperses, and shock registers in his eyes. “What?”

“Who’s Grace?” I clear my throat of the figurative gum. “I remembered it when I was walking back from the inlet. Levi mentioned that your parents were getting back into town with someone called Grace. Sure, I know he said it to cause trouble, but if he thinks it’s going to cause an issue between you and me, then it must be… something, right?”

My heart is in my mouth as I watch Ben’s beautiful face flit through a kaleidoscope of emotion: anger, irritation, sadness, remorse, hope, bitterness, and everything in between. It seems to settle on remorse, as he unleashes a sigh so deep and weary that it pushes him further back into the cushions.

His hand falls away from my cheek, and he rolls away from me to sit up against the pillows. In that second, I wish I could claw back my question. Do I really care who Grace is? If she’s important, he would’ve mentioned her already. Maybe, it’s none of my business just yet, since we’re just starting out, getting to know each other.

Ben shakes his head. “I don’t remember him mentioning her.”

“I didn’t make it up.” I’m on the defensive. I hear it in my voice.

He smiles sadly. “I didn’t say you were.” He swallows, and I watch the anxious movement of his Adam’s Apple. “I should’ve known he’d pull something like this. These days, he’s addicted to causing drama, but I don’t need to tell you that.”

I say nothing, but I sit up with him, waiting for him to continue. I don’t know what reaction I expected, but I suppose there was a silly part of me that thought it would all just be a big misunderstanding. Apparently, there is something to this mysterious “Grace.”

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