“Exactly. I’ll get him to agree to drop the suit before the settlement meeting. Meredith won’t need to waste her time and maybe, I can get him to sign the divorce papers while he’s there,” she said. Excitement shining from her eyes.
“That would be nice. I would love to have that man out of your life for good.”
“Me too,” she muttered.
They laid together a while longer, chatting about his work and how the relationship between Rachel and Will was progressing. They didn’t bother getting dressed. Ben had not had his fill of her yet. He was going to take advantage of every minute he had with her. After losing her for a week, he had made himself a promise that he would never let a single minute pass without appreciating her in his life if she was to return. She had returned, and he planned on making good on the promise he had made with the universe. He wouldn’t risk upsetting the cosmos and having her ripped out of his life again.
“What are you thinking about?” he asked, rubbing his fingertips up and down her arm.
She smiled. “Lots of things, but mostly, how we’re both naked and in bed.”
He chuckled low in his throat. “We are that.”
Her hand reached out to touch his chest. “Don’t you think we should do something about that? I mean, I’m naked, in your bed, completely at your mercy,” she said in a soft voice, her fingertip trailing a circle around his nipple.
“At my mercy, huh?”
She nodded her head, her eyes looking into his. “Completely and totally, and very willingly.”
“How did I ever get so lucky to have you in my life?” he said, leaning forward and kissing her gently.
When he pulled back, she smiled. “I think it’s the other way around. You’re kind, patient and really good in bed.”
He laughed. “I think I better remind you of that last bit.”
“Me too. I’d hate to forget an important detail like that.”
He slowly pushed the blanket down her body, scooting closer and pulling her into his arms. The skin-to-skin contact was hot and fiery, each of them already primed and ready for another round of lovemaking, even after they had worked very hard to slake their lust a short hour ago.
She was exactly where she belonged, he decided. She was supposed to be in his arms, under his protection. He was the man for her. Now all he had to do was convince her of that.
Chapter Twenty-One
Katherine
IT FELT GOOD TO WAKE up in her own bed, in her own place. Although it was nice to wake up with Ben, she had been longing for her bedroom and all the little things she had left behind. When she had been on the run, she had nothing special with her. She had picked up nothing and taken nothing. That had all changed in San Francisco. She had enjoyed little shopping sprees at the secondhand stores picking up cool little things that helped her personalize her home. When she’d left, everything had stayed behind.
She opened her eyes and rolled to her side, grabbing her phone off her bedside table and finding a text from Ben. He was always so thoughtful, wishing her a good morning and a good night every day when they weren’t together. She had missed him when she was gone; far more than she had even thought she would.
Her next order of business was to grovel at Talia’s feet and beg for forgiveness. She’d been completely horrible as a friend and she wanted to make it up to one of the only friends she had in the world. Talia was such a kind, generous person, someone Katherine wanted in her life for a good long while.
“Hi,” she said, when Talia answered the phone.
“Oh my gosh. Are you okay? Where are you? Did you call Ben?” Talia asked the questions so fast Katherine didn’t have a chance to actually respond.
She took a deep breath. “Yes, I’m fine. I’m back in town. I went to Ben’s house first so he knows I’m okay.”
“Oh, thank god. You bitch!” she shouted.
Katherine burst into laughter. “I’m so sorry. I’m a horrible friend. A horrible person. Please forgive me?”
“I don’t know. I was worried sick, plus your boyfriend was calling me day and night asking if you had checked in. That kind of torture is difficult to take,” she quipped, and Katherine knew she was being very understanding.
“I’m sorry. I should have called you or left a note. There is no excuse for what I did.”
Talia sighed. “Yes, there is, and I might be able to forgive you if you can hang out one of these days.”
“I’m free today. What are you doing?”