Page 46 of Knot Just Their Nanny
He doesn’t answer me.
“Everything okay?”
“Fine,” he croaks. “Go back inside.”
Twisting my lips, I debate whether to leave him or press further. Whatever is in his hand has set off a downward spiral.
“I’m here if you want to talk. I don’t judge, and I’m a great listener.”
“Zara… just go back inside.”
“No,” I say with a huff and walk up next to him. “I don’t think I will.”
He turns to face me. He is haggard, and the bite on his neck is ugly, red and oozing blood. It is nasty. His mating bite.
“Oh, Ben,” I murmur and reach out instinctively to cup his face. He leans into my palm and lets out a choked sob that rips its way through me and brings tears to my eyes.
He turns to me, sobbing, holding onto me as he bends himself practically in half to press the top of his head to my chest. Wrapping my arms around him, I stroke his hair and make a shushing noise as I would to a baby.
“I wish I could take this pain away from you,” I murmur as he leans so far into me, I stumble. He grips the sides of my top with his hands, throwing us both off balance, so I grab him and sink to the wet grass with him. He curls up, his head on my lap as I comfort him, feeling helpless and lost. There is no way I can bring up Eddie now. But it’s eating me alive. I don’t know what I was thinking, but Ben needs to know.
Now is not that time, though. Hearing the back door open, I look over to see Liam hovering. I shake my head as he sees us, and his face goes sober.
Liam doesn’t move towards us but doesn’t go away either, clearly sensing the raw emotion that’s gripped Ben. He looks at me, eyes asking a thousand questions, but I give him a small shake of my head again. Not now. He nods slightly.
Ben’s sobs gradually subside to sniffles as he clings to me like a lifeline. It breaks my heart to see him like this, so vulnerable and shattered. His fingers grip my top less fiercely now, and his breathing starts to even out. He lifts his head from my lap, wiping his face with the back of his hand.
“Sorry,” he mumbles, looking embarrassed and lost.
“Don’t be,” I say softly, giving him an encouraging squeeze. “We all have our moments, and I’m here for you.”
He nods, swallowing hard as he tries to piece himself back together in front of me. I help him to sit up properly on the damp grass before standing up and offering both my hands to pull him to his feet. His legs are unsteady for a moment before he finds his balance again.
He has something in his hand that digs into my palm. A small tube of something. He glares at it and scowls so fiercely, I think he’s going to break his skull. With a growl so loud and fierce, it rumbles the ground under our feet, he turns and hurls the tube back towards the house.
I watch helplessly as it hurtles towards Liam, who is still half asleep and not sharp enough to duck.
It smacks him square on the forehead.
“Oof!” he exclaims as I stifle my inappropriate giggle. “What did I ever do to you, man?” He rubs his forehead as I hide my smile behind my hand.
“Get rid of that,” Ben grits out. “And sorry. Didn’t know you were loitering.”
“Not loitering,” Liam points out huffily as he bends to pick up the tube. “Hovering to make sure you were okay.”
“Get rid of that, and I’ll be fine.”
Liam glances at it and then opens the top, giving it a sniff before rearing back. “God, that’s potent. What the hell is it?”
“Nicole’s fucking hand cream. Get it out of my sight.”
Ben stalks back to the house, and Liam quickly steps aside to let him in. I feel a bit raw and exposed after that. Ben has dismissed me without a second thought but I can’t let that affect me. He is in so much pain. The mating bond knows it’s been rejected fully now, and there’s no going back. Ben is going to have to ride it out, and all we can do is be here for him when it gets too much to handle on his own.
Liam’s expression softens as he watches Ben storm back inside, the hand cream now squeezed in his fist like it’s responsible for all the world’s ills. He chucks the tube in the wheelie bin by the back door and follows Ben’s path with quieter steps.
I take a moment, staring at the space where Ben disappeared, feeling the dampness of the grass seep around my flip-flops. My heart aches for him, but I also think there’s something more I should be doing—something other than just standing here.
Sighing, I follow them back inside, leaving the cool morning air for the warmth of the kitchen.
