Where I Belong (Alabama Summer #1)

“Hmm mmm. Yeah, me too,” I reply. Ben pulls his wallet out of the back of his pants. Where his ass is. That. Ass. It’s this perfectly sculpted entity in itself. There should be internet sites dedicated to it. Fan clubs. Parades even.

“Oh wow. That sounds really fun. I’d love to do that,” I respond. Ben reaches over his shoulder and scratches his back, pulling his shirt tight across his muscles. My God.

“That’s crazy. I hate it when that happens.” I have no idea what Reed just said to me. No idea. His chuckle catches my attention and I whip my head around. “What?”

His eyes drift from the men at the counter back to me. He grins amusingly. “I just asked you how your sandwich was, and you answered me with ‘that’s crazy. I hate it when that happens.’” His body shakes with silent laughter.

I slap my hand over my eyes and bow my head in embarrassment. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry, Reed. That was so rude of me.” I drop my hand and turn my body toward him completely, granting him all my focus. “I’m paying attention to you, I swear.”

He tilts his head. “So when should I set us up for sky diving?”

“Huh?” Sky diving? Hell no. I’d never agree to something like that.

“You said it sounded really fun and that you’d love to do it. Remember? Just two minutes ago when you were paying attention to me.”

I open my mouth to apologize when the door chimes, causing me to whip my head around. Ben smiles at me before he walks out and I wave like some obnoxious fan girl trying to flag down her favorite celebrity. Real smooth. I turn back around and see how much this is entertaining Reed. “Did I mention Ben and I are trying out this whole friends thing? I don’t have the slightest idea what I’m doing.” I filled Reed in on mine and Ben’s history at Rocky Point the other day, leaving out the small detail of the mind blowing five orgasms he gave me. Five!

“Clearly.” He smiles and throws his crumpled up napkin at me. “It’s not gonna work.”

“What?”

“Friends. You and Ben. I’ll bet money on it.” He crosses his arms over his chest, leaning back in his chair. He is grinning at me like he has it in the bag. Like he is already holding my money and counting it arrogantly in front of me. Oh the smugness.

“Why are you so sure that it won’t work? I can be friends with Ben.” I mimic his appearance and lean back in my own chair. “We can totally be friends. It’ll work.”

“It’s not going to work, and I’ll tell you why.”

“Okay, smart guy. Why?” Don’t ever tell a woman that we can’t do something, because we’ll die trying to do that thing that you’re so sure we can’t do. I think the female race is stubborn as a whole. Maybe it’s a design flaw, but whatever. I’m here to prove a point.

“Because—” He sits forward, pulling my half eaten sandwich in front of him before he picks it up. “—I don’t know about you, but I don’t usually eye fuck my friends.”

“Who’s eye fucking?” I half yell. Thank God we are the only two people currently in the sandwich shop. But it doesn’t save me from getting a stern look from the owner behind the counter. “I was not eye fucking,” I harshly whisper.

“And I’m not about to eat the rest of your sandwich.” He grins condescendingly before taking a huge bite of my sub.

I roll my eyes, the eyes that were so not eye fucking anyone, before I respond. “What’s your opinion on him anyway? Do you think he’s a good guy?”

He nods and swallows his bite. “Yeah, when he’s not threatening to beat the shit out of me.” We both laugh and I take a sip of my water. “He’s really good with his kid. Even when Nolan was a baby, he just knew what to do with him. And he wasn’t even nervous about it. I’d be scared shitless if someone threw a baby at me.”

I giggle and watch him pop the last bit of my sandwich into his mouth. I could tell just from being around them once that Ben was amazing with Nolan. They were so sweet together and Ben seemed like the type of dad that would do anything for his kid, which is exactly how it should be. “Well I think anyone would be scared if babies were flying at them,” I counter, getting rewarded with a sneer and another crumbled up napkin tossed at my head. We both stand up and push our chairs in. “Thanks for lunch. It was memorable, even without the finger fucking.” He winks, unable to form any words with a full mouth. “You’re a really good friend, Reed.”

He grimaces and swallows his massive bite uncomfortably. “Friend zoned like a boss.” I buckle over at his statement, laughing so hard my eyes filled with tears. “No worries. You’re not my type anyway. I prefer really dumb girls with low self-esteem and Daddy issues.”

I shove him in the direction of the entrance. “Oh that’s nice. Daddy issues? Really?”

“Hell yes.” He holds the door for me and we both walk to our vehicles. “Girls with Daddy issues are always looking for a new Daddy.” He throws his head back, cracking up at himself and the disgusted look I’m currently giving him. “See ya later, Mia.”

I shake my head disapprovingly. Men.

* * *

Chapter Nine

Ben

Fucking Reed Tennyson.

I didn’t know what he was playing at, but I was sure as hell going to find out. And I couldn’t waste any time doing it either. Not when he was taking my girl out to lunch and shit. I was not okay with that. I didn’t know what his intentions were. If he just wanted a friendship from Mia, fine. Anything more than that? Fuck no. She was mine, and apparently, he might need a reminder.

I know where Reed lives so I stop by his house later on after work. We never really hang out that much but I used to pick Tessa up from his house all the time before she could drive. His truck is parked in the driveway which is a good thing. I really don’t feel like driving all over the place looking for him, but I will if I have to. This shit needs to be cleared up tonight. After parking behind him, I knock on his front door and see his head peer out the small window next to it. I hear a soft “fuck” before he swings the door open and greets me with raised eyebrows.

He studies my uniform, keeping his hand on the doorknob. “Are you here to arrest me for taking Mia out to lunch yesterday? Because if I have a choice, I’d much rather have you lock me up than beat the shit out of me.”

I lean against the railing, ignoring the smart ass undertone that all of his words seem to be laced with. “What the hell do you want with Mia?”

He chuckles then and I straighten up, causing him to wipe the smile off his face. I really don’t want to hit him but he isn’t making the decision easy on me. I’ll deal with the ramifications later. “Nothing. I mean, she’s a cool chick and I like hanging out with her, but just as friends. Maybe if you hadn’t marked your territory I would’ve tried something, but I’m not stupid. I don’t think she’s interested in me like that anyway.”

“She’s not a fucking fire hydrant for me to piss on, dick. Don’t refer to her as territory.” I step closer to him, remembering what he said yesterday in the sandwich shop after Mia insisted the two of them weren’t on a date. “And if I ever hear you joking around about touching Mia again, it’ll take a lot more than Luke to stop me from tearing you apart.”