Page 176 of Between the Blue
He pulls back from me, a smile spreading across his face that meets his eyes.
“It’s nothing,” he assures me.
“It’s everything,” I insist.
The fashion show may only be fifteen minutes, but it makes my entire year.
I try to unlock my hotel room door, but fail.
Stubbornly, I insist on trying again, but find it increasingly difficult with Ben’s lips on my neck.
“Could you give me just a second?” I giggle, trying the key once more, but shuddering when his beard tickles my skin.
“Nope,” he mutters, then snatches the key from me. He somehow manages to spin me around and unlock the door with ease in the same breath, and in the span of a moment, we’re inside my room and he’s kicking the door closed behind us.
I had a plan when I asked Ben to come up here with me, but his lips crushing mine quickly derail that. I try to remind myself to focus, but the taste of him makes my brain foggy. Like red wine and sugar combined, he sends a wave through me of warmth and giddiness that has me smiling against his mouth.
We’re both walking backwards, and before I know it, I’m pulling him down onto the bed with me. He immediately complies, gently pushing me onto my back as he crawls on top of me. But when the firmness of him presses against me, it’s like it wakes me up, sending a signal straight to my brain.
While Ben is still unsteady above me, I grab onto him, rolling us both over so that I’m straddling him.
“Wait,” I say.
His brows pull together as he sits up. “Are you okay?” He starts to reach for my face and then stops himself, pulling back.
“Yes,” I tell him, squeezing his hand in mine and placing a gentle kiss on his wrist. “Totally okay.” I move back, hopping off of the bed, and Ben’s expression only grows more confused. “I just don’t want to forget.”
“Forget what?”
I kick off my heels that are still on my feet and pad over to the closet, sliding the door open. I reach inside, pulling out the box and little bag on the floor, then turn around and start walking back over to Ben.
He squints to see what I’m holding with only the moonlight streaming into the room through the curtains, and I see the range of emotions pass over his face as he slowly realizes what it is.
I sit down on the bed next to him.
“You knew?” he asks, his voice quiet.
“Of course I knew. It’s kind of part of my job,” I tell him. “Who do you think made your birthday social media post this morning?”
His throat bobs as he nods. “Yeah, I guess I didn’t think of that.”
I smile, shrugging my shoulders as I hold the gifts out to him. “Well, Happy Birthday.”
Ben doesn’t reach for either of them at first, running a hand over his beard. I know people react differently to their birthday, and I knew Ben wouldn’t be the type of guy to jump up and down over his, but I guess I didn’t expect him to be so shy either. Trying to encourage him, I place the gift box on his lap.
He looks between it and me, and when I nod, he removes the lid from it, peeling back the tissue paper. He takes out the two dry-fit t-shirts that are inside, just like the type he always wearsto the gym, one dark green and one navy blue, and holds one in each of his hands.
“I thought you could use a little color in your wardrobe,” I tell him.
When he doesn’t say anything, I ask, “Those are the ones you wear, right?”
He nods. “Yeah, they are.”
A few moments go by, and I find myself clearing my throat.
“Did you want to open the next one?” I ask.
I hold up the small gift bag, setting it in his hand.
