Page 9 of Just Enough

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Benjamin

2 years 8 months prior…

It was aweek before Christmas. I had just gotten back in Wells, Virginia, and the first place I stopped was Crash’s.

I knew Emily was working; we texted daily without missing a beat. If one of us went too long without hearing from one another, we’d automatically assume something was wrong. I hadn’t seen her since the summer break, and I needed to see her face like something fierce.

We’d been having a mild winter, with no sign of the first snowfall, but the cold air was bitter this evening as I opened the door and stepped inside.Maybe we’ll get a white Christmas, I thought as I wiped the fog from my glasses. The warmth of the diner fogged them up the moment I stepped in. I placed them back on just as she saw me.

“Benjamin?” I grinned at the tickled sound of her voice. She walked away from a table after placing their food down. “I should have known you were lying when you said you weren’t coming home.”

I took her in as she walked toward me. The first thing I noticed were her curvy hips and full breasts. She’d gained weight since I’d seen her over the summer. If there was one thing about Emily, she never looked her age. In high school, she attracted older guys because she looked older. Her body was curvy and perfected so that it could be mapped out by someone’s hands.

It was a startling realization, but she looked her age tonight. Actually, she could have passed for a high schooler if not for the sinful way her body was built. Her makeup wasn’t heavy tonight like she normally wore it, and the dark red curls that she usually destroyed with a straightener were wild and stringy around her face.

I was so spellbound by how absolutely breathtaking she looked. I’d seen her every day of my life since she moved in next door, though it wasn’t until kindergarten that I got to know her, but maybe it was because I didn’t see her at all now that she had me mesmerized.

That’s funny, Ben.

She had always ensnared me, even as a kid, only I used to know how to recover. I used to know how to hide it.

She tilted her head at me and moved her hand over her stomach where she thought my eyes were focused on when truthfully; they were focused onallof her. “I know, I’ve gained weight.”

Realizing she’d mistaken my staring for the wrong reason, I lifted my eyes and met her tentative green orbs. “I’m just trying to decide if I’ll have enough days in town to beat the shit out of every guy that hits on you.”

“What?” She laughed, shaking her head. “You wouldn’t know who.”

“I will after you tell me.”

She stepped forward, and I grabbed her for a hug. She let me, quick to return one of her own. I enjoyed myself as I pushed my nose into her hair and breathed her in while I had the chance to. I even peeked over and looked down at her ass. “Your ass looks bigger.” Every guy talked about it in high school much to my annoyance. I couldn’t stand people objectifying her. When in reality, guys should notice how charming she was as a person, then they’d realize the beauty of her outer appearance was a bonus.

Like me. She needed someone like me.

She pushed me away, looked up, her expression equally mortified and amused. “Benjamin, that’s so uncalled for…” Her eyes raked over me. “I don’t talk about how big you’ve gotten.”

I smirked. “It’s all muscle.”

“I know.” She huffed. “It’s weird that you work out now.”

“Why?” I cocked a brow at her.

“Because you’re you.”

I was really curious as to how she saw me in that pretty little head of hers. I knew I was different from any other guy because she kept me around, and she never noticed me like she did the rest.

“Can I get a refill?” someone yelled at her.

“Sure thing!” She smiled quickly. “Are you eating?”

“Nah, I just wanted to see you before I went home.”

She shook her head like I was crazy. “You’d still see me in a few hours.”

“This way it was sooner.”

She studied me. “Go away, Benjamin, I need to work.”

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