Page 6 of Sexy AF
I let out a laugh and slapped the table. “From what? From you going out with half your class?”
His face turned a shade darker. “I dated some of them. It didn’t help. I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
I traced my neckline as I imagined, for one second, that I was unforgettable. I knew that wasn’t true, but I realized the fight in me was fading. I glanced up, and a memory of being in his arms as a teenager replayed. “Seriously, I don’t need to be protected. I’ve seen more than most people ever should.”
“I remember.”
My ears alert, I stared at him. “You noticed me. No one ever notices me.”
“You’re hard to miss. I remember how you saw your old man get shot. I brought you home, and you wanted me to knock on the Maraganis’ door. They ended up keeping you as their own.”
A pulse rocked me as I remembered. I’d been ten, and the Maraganis had been family friends. I sighed. “Yeah, but that was long before you didn’t call. What could be worse than that?”
“My dad planning a life for me that didn’t include a good girl like you.”
Damn.NowthatI believed. Tears formed in my eyes. “I’ve not been a girl since you left.”
“Fair enough.”
I moved my hands closer but then pulled back. If he’d truly wanted to protect me, that changed everything. “One more question.”
“Go for it.”
I pressed my hand to my heart. “Why me? Why now?”
He reached out and took my hand. “Our fathers were making a deal, and there is zero chance I’d share you with any of my brothers.”
I wondered what our future was. If he used me—if we had a child together, as he’d requested—and then he kicked me out of his life again…No. I stopped that line of thought. I asked, “How are all your brothers?”
He squeezed my palm to his. “Johnny’s married, Zane and Damon both have serious girlfriends, but the others are all still single.”
If I kissed him, I’d find out if he was the same or if I’d just made up how wonderful he was. I felt a buzz in my veins. “That wasn’t what I meant when I asked how they are.”
He let go of my hand and signaled that we should go. The waiter came with the bill. He handed his credit card over and said, “They’re fine.”
I pivoted to go, but my lips tingled as a bad idea played out in my mind. The waiter returned, and Benny signed the bill.
As we stood to go, I said, “Well, Benny, I need to see if I feel anything.”
“Feel what?”
Without explaining, I threw myself into his arms. His kiss reverberated through me. I forgot where we were and was lost in the moment.
As I let him go, I realized I hadn’t made up anything. He was real and was now my husband. I stepped back. “I’m screwed.”
He wrapped his arm around my waist. “Not yet. Soon.”
