Page 53 of A Different Form of Oxygen
I chuckle. “Don’t roll your eyes at me, brat. I don’t even know why we even packed clothes if you’re going to keep suggesting we do everything naked. Also, I don’t swim in lake water. I’ve never liked being in water I can’t see in, and it’s filthy.”
His brows knit tightly together. “Then why on earth did you bring me to the lake? You do realize we are at a house on a lake, right?”
“I’m very aware. I brought you here because we both needed to get away. This was always my favorite place to escape to, and we can always go on the boat or go fishing.”
“Yeah, I don’t know a single thing about using a fishing pole. Maybe you can show me how, Papi.” He bats his lashes, causing sleep dust to fall onto his cheeks.
Gently, I swipe it away with the blade of my thumb. “I don’t normally offer free one-on-one lessons, but I suppose I can make an exception this one time.”
He smiles cheekily, shoving his hand down the white sheet, uncovering the top part of my body. Ben traces his fingers over the white and pink lines trailing my skin. “You have scars too.”
I nod. “My father was a drunk with a short temper, and I always seemed to be right there when he needed someone to take it out on. I preferred it to be me rather than my brother.”
Sadness fills his eyes. “I had no idea.”
My hand hovers over his. “Most people don’t. I usually don’t tell people about him.”
His fingers continue to trace the faded rigid pink lines, making my skin tingle in each place he touches. His green eyes feel heavy on my skin as he moves them over every part of my body.
“I’ve spent years covering my scars, thinking I could replace each memory of them with a new one.” He glances down his own body with sadness filling his eyes.
“Even though our scars remind us of our dreadful past, they are proof of what we’ve managed to overcome, and we continue to grow despite them. Over time, they become nothing more than raised flesh that continues to fade.”
He smiles, moving his hand over my stomach, tracing my happy trail. “Maybe that’s why I’ve struggled to cover my last one. I keep holding onto it, feeling as if getting rid of it would be getting rid of a part of me. It was the last scar that healed after I got away. The last scar I ever let him put on my body. It’s what finally gave me the strength to walk away.”
I press a kiss to his forehead. Knowing he has been holding onto all this for so long breaks me up inside. It makes me rage with anger toward the asshole who did this to him. It makes me wonder what I would have done if I knew that was him in the restaurant. Maybe it was good I didn’t know. I doubt I would have allowed him to walk out of there alive. His words have played in my head the last few days and his threat hangs over me.“Sometimes people just get in your way when they don’t belong there.”
He was wrong, I did belong here. He’s the one who doesn’t belong. I pull Ben close to me, knowing if I tell him exactly what David said, it will only heighten his fear. I didn’t want to add to the nightmares. Ben presses his warm naked body more into mine, and all I can think about is how much I want to keep him hidden away here in this house on the lake, but I know we can’t stay here forever. Eventually our problems would follow us here too. “What do you want to do today?”
“You.” His hand slips below the covers, massaging my erection. “Besides that, I don’t want you to get bored of doing the same thing over and over.”
“I doubt that would happen.” He presses open mouthed kisses over one of my scars. Every time I’m reminded it’s there, I think of the day my father got mad at Maverick and me for borrowing his truck, shoving his burning cigarette into my stomach. The memory doesn’t hurt as much with Ben lying beside me. Ben’s fingers trailing over my chest have me no longer caring about the wretched memory.
“There’s still so much we haven’t done yet, and I want to do it all.”
“As much as I want to lay here naked with you all day, I think sunshine will do us some good.”
“Are you saying we should lay naked together out in the sunshine?”
I laugh. “You are impossible, you know that?”
“I’ve been called worse.”
I lightly squeeze his ass cheek. “Come on, let’s go get something to eat. There are few places we can grab lunch at the marina. It’s already almost the afternoon; we apparently slept in today.”
He sighs before climbing out of bed. “So much for naked Saturday.”
I laugh. “We can always have naked Sunday.”
He reaches into his bag and pulls out a pair of navy joggers. He’s even mesmerizing sliding on a pair of pants. He has a way of making the simplest things appear graceful. I walk up behind him, fumbling with his drawstring. Gravitating to him, I move my lips to the skin below his ear.
“Finish getting dressed and I’ll meet you in the kitchen, Angel. I just need to make a phone call.”
“Well, hurry up and get dressed because the longer you stand here naked, the more I’m tempted to be naked with you.”
I give him a light swat on the ass. “Give me fifteen minutes, brat, and I’ll meet you out there.”
I grab on a pair of shorts and the first short sleeve t-shirt I pull from my bag. I make sure to have reservations for us set at a seafood restaurant on the lake for an early lunch. Ben is resting his elbows against the counter in the kitchen while peering out the window.
“It really is beautiful outside today.”
My gaze rakes over his beaming green eyes, appearing brighter in the sunlight, and his messy brown hair falls freely against his head. His dark tan skin is radiating in the sunlight, carrying a beautiful glow.
“I think I prefer the view here much more,” I say before pulling him into my arms. There’s always an unexplainable force that has my body gravitating toward his every time. Then he releases a satisfied smile, relaxing his body against mine, and I know I’m right where I need to be.
