Page 36 of Never Been Worse

I want more.

I wanteverythingwith him.

His lips trail to my neck, groaning as he tastes me, licking and nipping and sucking, and I move to try and get more from him.

Fuck it. What could it hurt to fuck my husband?

“We could…” I whisper, then clear my throat, my breathing coming hard despite my taking the edge off just minutes ago. “We could...you know, take the edge off. Scratch the itch.”

“Scratch the itch?” he asks, his body stilling.

“Friends with benefits,” I say, moving my body against his, suddenly needing him more than I’ve ever needed anything. “A year is a long time.”

Yes, yes, this makes sense. We could tamp out this burning desire between us, keep the marriage sham going, but also sate our needs in the process. Everything is so much simpler, so much clearer when it’s just the two of us, when my mind doesn’t get in the way.

“We could do more. Be more,” I whisper.

His lips leave my neck, and he stares at me for long moments. I think he’s going to give in, to agree to this and give me everything I somehow know he could giveso fucking well, but then he shakes his head.

“I don’t want you the way a man wants a friend, Harper Holden. I could never be just friends with benefits with you.” His hand moves up, brushing my hair behind my shoulders. I can barely focus on anything but how much I like him saying my name like that. Like I’mhis.

I bite my lip, knowing that is exactly why we can’t be anything more than friends with benefits. Why, in reality, we shouldn’t even bethat, but I’m a weak woman. I tip my chin up, looking at him, my pulse pounding, my eyes pleading, but my voice calm and even.

“That’s what I can offer, Wes,” I tell him. “I can’t make any promises for something more, but I can give you that.”

Wrong words, obviously. His lips tip up at the edges, his fingers moving to my chin, gripping it in between two fingers and forcing my eyes to meet his. His endless depths of green eyes consume me, making me wish I could ignore reality, that I could jump and pretend the fall wouldn’t crush me.

“Then, when you’re ready for more, I’ll be here. I get it, Harper. You were fucked over, and he messed with your head. You need time, and you need space. But I’m not letting this get fucked and complicated just because we have wild chemistry. So I’ll wait for you.

“Friends with benefits is all I’ll ever be able to do,” I warn, hoping he’ll change his mind. I just came, but it barely took the edge off, and even that isn’t much with his body too close and confusing.

His smile widens, making my stomach flip.

“I’m a patient man, Harper.”

I groan aloud, his stubbornness turning into something irritating.

“This is silly, Wes. There’s nothing to be patient for. I’m not doing a relationship again. Why do you even want that? Why won’t you just accept what I’m able to give you while we’re in this agreement? There’s no need for both of us to be miserable this whole year.”

His entire demeanor changes, and he shakes his head, stepping back. “I’m not going to let this be some itch you scratch, Harper, because this? You and me? It’s something special.” He steps back, leaving me feeling cold and empty, in desperate need of his touch in more ways than one.

“Wes—” I start, and he shakes his head, a small smile on his lips hiding something more. Hurt? Disappointment?

“When you’re ready to admit this could be something more, Harper, you let me know. I’ll be waiting.”

And when he leaves, I know two things for sure:

One, my husband mostdefinitelylikes me.

And two, I am sototallyinto my husband, even if it's a terrible idea.

FOURTEEN

WES

“They work fast,” Harper whispers as we move through the airport, her steps slowing as we walk past a rack of magazines. She moves closer to it, grabbing the gossip rag and flipping through.

There’s a photo of the two of us inside, Harper in that tempting bikini, in my arms. My thumb is grazing along her bottom lip, her eyes locked on mine. She looks like she’s fucking enraptured by me. I do, too, but I would fully expect to see that.

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