Page 108 of Stick Side
“Can I offer you a hand with those?” Ben asked, indicating the bags she was carrying.
“That would be great. Thank you,” she said as she walked through the door he was holding open for her before handing over the bags gratefully.
Not wanting to let the heat out, she quickly pulled the door closed behind her.
Before Ben had to ask, she enlightened him as to their contents. “I made us dinner,” she explained.
Ben’s eyes widened in surprise before a happy, grateful smile played at his lips and the corners of his eyes. “You didn’t have to do that, sweetheart. I figured we could just order some takeout.”
“We could have,” she acknowledged, “but I thought you might enjoy a home-cooked meal. I know the team caters a lot of food, but I don’t imagine it’s easy to eat the way you might prefer to while traveling.”
Ben pressed a soft kiss onto her lips. She reveled in their gentle pressure.
“You’re too good to me,” he said against her lips.
Melody thought back to the many kindnesses Ben had already lavished upon her over the past couple of months. The thoughtful lunch he dropped off at The Winchester from Epi-cure-ian Foods. The special dinner he’d planned for them atLe Délice Parisienwith Chef Henri. The daily check-ins. She could practically feel her heart expanding as she thought about all the ways, big and small, that he had already demonstrated he cared for her.
“I would like to think we’re good to each other,” she said as she snuggled into him as best she could while he was holding bags of food in his hands.
Ben juggled the bags around until he had a free arm to wrap around her shoulders. He pulled her in toward his chest before leaning down to kiss her temple. “That we are, sweetheart,” he stated simply.
Ben drew back and redistributed the bags between his hands. “Let’s get these into the kitchen, shall we?”
Melody slid off her shoes and shrugged off her coat before placing it on one of the hooks by the front door. “Lead the way,” she said with enthusiasm.
Ben led her down the hallway and into the kitchen. They passed the living room on the left and the dining room on the right. The space was sparsely furnished with only a few key pieces in each room, leaving her with the impression he had yet to find the time to fully make the house his own. No great surprise there. He’d barely been in Chicago for a few months and his travel schedule was ridiculous. Unless he wanted to hire a team of professional designers—and she rather suspected he wouldn’t—it was going to take some time to really settle in. Still, there was no doubt the bones of the house were gorgeous.
“Your home is lovely,” she observed, putting her thoughts to words.
“Thank you,” Ben responded warmly.
“I haven’t really had a chance to decorate,” he added, confirming her suspicions, “but I fell in love with the house when I saw the listing.”
“Were you able to see it before you put in an offer?” she asked with curiosity. Events happened so quickly in the world of professional sports that such things weren’t always possible.
She was actually surprised he’d managed to land a house. Most guys stayed in hotels for the first few weeks to months. If not that, then a furnished short-term rental of some description.
Ben’s ears visibly pinkened. “I wasn’t, actually,” he admitted with a little bit of sheepishness coloring his tone. He paused briefly before admitting, “I asked my parents if they could come over and check it out for me in person. We FaceTimed as they walked around.”
Melody quirked a thoughtful brow. “Are you embarrassed that you asked your parents to help you buy a house?”
He laughed softly. “A little?”
Ben deposited the bags on his kitchen island before coming back to her and taking her hands in his. “I guess I don’t want you thinking of me as some mama’s boy.”
Melody was surprised. That was so far from how she saw him that it was laughable. Because she could, Melody traced reverent hands up his chest, enjoying the prominent outline of his sculpted muscles. “I actually think it’s sweet that you have such a great relationship with your parents.” She gave her lower lip a gentle chew before adding, “Sexy, even.”
“Is that right?” Ben asked as he sought her eyes with his and traced delicious lines up and down her bare arms with his fingertips.
As so often seemed to be the case with her when in Ben’s presence, her smile couldn’t be held back. “It is,” she replied impishly. “I think it says a lot about a man when he has such a good relationship with his parents.”
Melody lifted herself up onto her tiptoes and laid another kiss on Ben’s lips. He’d only been gone for a few short days, but it wasn’t the same as having him in front of her. They’d texted often, but there was a delicious intimacy that could only be found in real-life interactions, and she’d missed it.
After treating her lips to everything they’d been missing over the past week, Ben drew back slowly and ran his fingers along the side of her face in that romantic way even the best authors struggled to fully describe.
“I don’t know what I ever did to deserve you,” he said with a delicate sweep of his fingertips along her cheekbone, “but I’m infinitely grateful for whatever it was.”
Melody heaved a contented sigh. “I was thinking much the same thing about you,” she admitted.
