Page 16 of Hush

“And you’re pissed it didn’t, aren’t you?”

“Caitlin…” Elise groaned.

Caitlin steered Elise down a hallway to its dark end. “C’mon, I saw the way he practically lit up when he saw you.”

“He did not,” Elise said in a low tone as she paced in the dark.

“He most definitely did,” Caitlin replied matter-of-factly. “You guys talked for like, a half hour. Everyone else was mingling. Not you two.” She eyed Elise curiously. “What did you talk about anyway?”

Elise crossed her arms, her mind spinning. “He’s my son’s doctor. There are all kinds of rules about this, I’m sure.”

“But he’s notyourdoctor.”

Elise shook her head. “I doubt that matters. At the university, we have a strict policy. I couldn’t, say, date the father of one of my students.”

Caitlin narrowed her eyes. “What happened in the garage?”

A movement in the hallway caught her attention.

“Oh, I thought maybe you’d left,” Ben said as his handsome face appeared out of the darkness.

Caitlin slipped back down the hall. Elise wished she could beg her to stay, but knew that was ridiculous.

“You okay?” Ben asked, his dark eyes knitted with concern.

“I’m sorry about the garage,” she said.

He crossed his arms, his face open, playful almost. “Why are you sorry?” he asked.

Elise’s heart climbed into her throat. “I shouldn’t have reacted like that,” she said in a rush.

He tilted his head, watching her for a moment. “I got the feeling I’d frightened you.”

“You do frighten me,” Elise said, her breaths high and fast.

“Why? Because you feel something?”

“Yes,” she said.

One of his eyebrows shot up. “When you told me about that dating site, I nearly lost my lunch,” he said.

“You did?” Elise asked. “Why?”

His whole body stilled, and a thick silence passed between them. “Because I can’t stand the thought of anyone touching you but me.”

Elise stared. She thought of the way he’d touched her, tender yet almost…possessiveat the same time. It brought on a feeling of safety, of trust. Like he would never let anything bad happen to her. And after these past few years when so many bad thingshadhappened, the idea that she could have a partner who looked out for her, who cared for her, triggered a longing so powerful she realized she was clenching her fists.

“But I’m divorced, a mom…I live in a shack,” she said, knowing she sounded desperate, knowing her inner fears were rising to the surface to push him away.

He gave a little laugh. “You really have no idea how gorgeous you are, do you?”

Elise let her gaze fall. “It’s been a long time since I felt that way.”

Ben stepped close. “Well, maybe it’s time you let someone remind you.”

She thought about his confidence in everything: caring for Jaden, dealing with Garrett, and, now, this—the idea that someone like him would want her. And she craved that feeling—of being desired.

Ben took a step closer. She found herself leaning ever so slightly forward, anticipating what she had been longing for him to do all night. His lips touched hers in a soft kiss. He caressed the side of her face, kissing her again. A blissful tingle filled her head, like a balloon inflating with helium, expanding quickly so it bobbed on its tether, ready to break loose. Her skin prickled with heat, and she could feel her blood pumping hard. Ben shuffled her backward so her shoulders pressed against the wall. She made a noise in the back of her throat as his kisses deepened, the tip of his tongue flicking between her lips.

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