Page 14 of Ben

She came to reality with a snap and the reason why she was here.

“You will find everything you need upstairs. I will bring you something light to eat. Are you hungry?”

She stared because he sounded like he was talking about the weather and not being bothered that he wanted them to get married in exchange for him helping her and that it was no big deal her friends and family were going to be missing from her big day. She always dreamed of her father walking her down the aisle to the man she loved.

“Ben, I−”

“It has to be this way. You were always meant to be with me.” He said it softly but also in warning.

She felt suddenly tired and nodded and turned to head up the stairs.

“Diamond.”

She turned with her foot placed on the first step.

“The coat.”

She scowled, and then, in a dramatic flourish, she took the belt off, shrugging her arms out, and let the coat fall to the floor. She turned and hoped he enjoyed the back of her ass and the wetness between her thighs.

From his low groan, she got her wish.

Chapter 7

Eternal ft. Bebe Winan song ‘I Want to Be the Only One’

Ben stood in front of his beautiful bride, holding out the ring and its matching band as he slid it onto her finger. A feeling of possessiveness and satisfaction came over him. He'd done it. He was marrying Diamond Jackson, and she was under his roof and soon, tonight, sharing his bed.

He’d spent a restless night, knowing that she was only one room over and that if he wanted to, he could go over and finish what he started when she’d arrived, but he knew he was taking a lot away from her; he could, at least this one time, control himself when it came to her, as he was able to with everything else in his life.

He knew time was of the essence; he’d temporarily got his brother to not arrive on his doorstep but knew that guilt would eat away at him, and Michael would show up with Ambra, and that would have ruined everything. He also hadn’t told his parents or Carter about what was going on. It was a blessing they were in Nevada with his older brother, as they were helping out Zahara and Carter with the twins and have so far been focused on them.

They were going to be pissed when they all found out he was married, but it had to be done. He just wanted it to be him and her with no one else there, except for a court-appointed witness and the woman reading the matrimonial words at their ceremony.

Ben admired the bright, three-tiered diamond engagement ring with a prong band to elevate the diamonds on her smooth, dark skin. Diamond's nails were red-tipped with clear polish, painted with the latest style in a French manicure. He found out that was what it was when he paid for a nail tech and hairstylist to come to the house to help her get ready.

He’d even sent for a wedding gown boutique owner to come over with some dress selections for Diamond to try on. She’d chosen a slip-style lace dress that fell to her feet, her toes a matching red color, and she wore white and very high heels to compensate for their height difference. The dress showed her figure to perfection; she had diamond earrings on in a three-tiered cluster that he had gifted her this morning, and her hair was in curls in a topknot on her head.

He recalled their brief discussion over breakfast before they both got busy getting ready for the wedding.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, all things considered.” She shrugged.

He nodded, not one to engage in a lot of conversation, but he wanted to try for her.

“Did you find everything to your liking?”

She snorted and then picked up a piece of strawberry from the fruit bowl in front of her; he knew she liked to start her day with fruit, then cereal, and then a full breakfast. Diamond had an appetite just like her sister Ambra, and they both took care of their bodies with working out and spa days. She waved it at him.

“How could I not? Everything I could have imagined or wanted was upstairs, including the exact replica of all of my things.”

“Like I said before, as your soon-to-be husband, I will take care of all your wants and needs. I don’t want you coming to me with anything from your past, and I don’t want anyone buying anything or giving anything to my wife, except family.” He warned.

She raised her eyebrows. “That’s very possessive and controlling, Ben.”

“Possessive yes, controlling no. You can come and go as you please and work if you wish to; you can use the credit card I am going to give you to purchase your stuff from now on, but I didn’t want you to bring anything here that Bryce and you shared over the time you were dating or any other man for that matter. I wanted you to come to me clean.”

"Hmm, interesting. Clean, in reference to being purer. You know—"