Page 22 of One Weekend in Perth

“Why are you thinking so hard?” Ben pressed his lips against the back of her neck and a shiver rippled through her. Her body was so aware of his, it wasn’t funny.

“I was wondering why we waited so long to do this.” The second she finished speaking, she wanted the world to swallow her up.

What on earth possessed her to say something like that to him?

If he pulled away from her, she wouldn’t be surprised, but if possible, his arms tightened even further around her.

“I don’t know, but I thought the same thing.”

Relief swamped her knowing he had the same thought. “I guess the timing was wrong,” she murmured, thinking of all the times when either one of them was with a partner.

After she broke up with John, knowing that the reason for the breakup was because of her epiphany that Ben was more than a friend and always had been, she’d decided that she needed to work out what she wanted. If she couldn’t have Ben, she needed to think about what her life would look like without him in it.

Now, though, after what they’d shared, there was no way she wasn’t going to fight for them to have more than friendship, and from the things Ben had said to her, she had to believe he felt the same way.

Twisting around so that she was facing him, she placed her hand on his chest, over his heart, the steady thump of it grounded her. Her gaze connected to his. “We can’t go back, Bento. Not after this.”

“I know. I don’t want to. I want to go forward. With you.”

For so long she’d kept her feelings for Ben under lock and key, but that lock snapped open and a sense of freedom flowed through her. “Are you sure? Because I want that too, so much.”

“So sure, Clarabelle.” Ben’s head dipped and their lips met again. This time the kiss was full of promises. Full of a future that she hadn’t thought was possible. Full of … love.

Ben rolled them so that he was on top of her again, his cock hard against her thigh. She wanted him so much. Wanted to always have this between them.

“I need you again,” she whispered against his mouth.

“I need you too, but I don’t have any more condoms.”

His talk of protection reminded her what he told her before they’d made love the first time. At the time she’d been so lost in her lust and need for him, she hadn’t questioned it. Now, though, she had to know why he was carrying a condom withhim. “How come you had a condom if you and Fern weren’t using them?”

Thinking about Ben doing what they’d done with Fern didn’t sit well with her, but it wasn’t like she could get upset about it. They were engaged, together for a while, of course they’d slept together and had gotten to the stage where they discussed what birth control method they preferred.

Ben sighed, and she prepared herself to hear something she knew she didn’t want to. “I got it from a guy at my bachelor party. And before your thoughts go off on a tangent that is totally wrong, it was innocent and a joke. All in good fun. I’m glad I had it.”

In all the time she and Ben were friends, he hadn’t lied about anything, except what he felt for her, but considering she hadn’t told him how she felt, she couldn’t be mad at him. She believed him about how he came to have a condom in his possession. “I’m glad you had it too, but I wish your friend gave you more.”

Ben chuckled. “Me too, but there are plenty of other ways we can have fun.”

Her body heated at the suggestion, and she plastered herself against him, grinding her hips against his hard cock. “Really? How about you show me?”

“With pleasure.”

Like the previous morning,Clara woke up hot, and she smiled at the reason why. The creative ways she and Ben gave each other pleasure had desire strumming through her again. She couldn’t believe how turned on she was. It was as though after the firsttime she and Ben had made love, the floodgates had opened and they couldn’t get enough of each other.

While she’d like to see what else they could get up to, they really needed to get some condoms because having Ben inside of her only once wasn’t enough. She wanted more. She wanted to be able to ride him and for them to try different positions.

Need pooled between her legs, and she clenched her thighs together, but it only made it worse.

She yelped in surprise when she felt Ben’s fingers between her legs. “What are you doing?” she asked, and then moaned. His thumb teased her clit, and she closed her eyes, letting herself fall into the sensations he caused.

“Your squirming woke me. I figured I could help you out.” He nipped the flesh between her neck and shoulder, and she arched against him, feeling his hard cock against her ass.

“I like the way you think, Bennett Bolton,” Clara said, as she reached behind her and grabbed his cock, squeezing his hard length.

“I need to see you,” he whispered against her ear. “I want to watch as you come apart. I want to hear you scream my name when you do.”

Clara couldn’t deny Ben anything. She didn’t want to. She wanted to give him everything. Reluctantly, she released her grip on him and batted his hand away so that she could roll over. A second later they were face to face.

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