Yeah. I totally just stepped into that shit pile, didn't I? Must've been something in that food.
"I don't. But I also don't want to be used and treated with the same respect a blowup doll gets either."
He looks down at me like he's studying me, then shakes his head and focuses back on the trail. The bass boat blares by us, and I offer a wave to Liam as he passes us.
"Why didn't you just drive me over on your boat?" I ask Benson.
"Because your dock needs to be fixed before I dock there again. I'll come work on it next week."
"You don't have to. I can get those dicks to do something. It's their dock too."
"They're the reason it needs to be fixed," he says, sounding a little angry.
"They'll fix it. They always do," I say around another yawn.
"And then I always re-fix it. Might as well cut out the middle man."
I don't bother arguing.
Right as we get to the cabin, I decide I'm really going to kill my brothers. All my underwear is hanging from my porch, on tiny little nails, and dangling.
Benson practically turns to stone.
"What the hell?" he asks.
"They're dead," I bite out.
"Why would they-"
"Because I burned all theirs after they wrecked my bed."
"But why would they-"
I turn to face him. "Because bugs, Benson. Bugs. I'll be too freaked out to ever wear those again, because … bugs."
I shudder dramatically, and he arches an eyebrow. Do you have any idea how many places bugs can hide? Or how small they are so as not to be noticed?
My vagina is sacred!
"Guess I won't be wearing panties for a while," I say on a sigh.
For some reason, Benson drops his rifle.
Chapter 2
Wild Ones Tip #115
Never trust a Wild One unless you're a fan of reckless endangerment.
LILAH
My two dark-haired, bushy-bearded brothers are blinking at me innocently as I berate them for over an hour. Benson talked to them before he left last night, and so they built my bed today.
All day.
They kept me out until it was finished.
Only …
"This bed takes up my entire room! I don't even have a mattress to fit it! I asked for a double."
They continue to stare at me with wide-eyed innocence.
"Fix it!"
It happens too fast for me to stop it. Suddenly, they're up and out my door, a fog of laughter in their wake.
I'm going to kill them.
I'm not sleeping on my mattress when it's on the floor. I get a little freaked out. I know it's irrational, but I feel like I'm more accessible to bugs if I'm on the floor.
I can't sleep on my couch. Last time I tried that, I woke up sore all over. It's not even comfortable to sit on anymore. It was a hand-me-down from someone else, who got it as a hand-me-down from someone, who also got it as-
You get the idea. This couch has been around since listening to Elvis was considered scandalous and poodle skirts were all the craze.
My one-bedroom cabin has no other options, and I grumble while walking out the door. I'm sleeping in a bed, damn it. And not Aunt Penny's guest bed, because she and my uncle have been hella loud since I can remember.
I'm still traumatized from hearing their sounds.
After our parents died, we moved in with them. At fifteen. The year the beard challenge began.
I often think the beard challenge was to give my brothers something to focus on other than the ache we all had. It seemed to work.
My aunt and uncle were thoughtful and considerate for a year, knowing we'd suffered a loss, which, so had Aunt Penny. My mother was her twin.
But after that year, they seemed to forget we could hear them fucking for ten miles away.
No thank you.
Instead, I walk on my creaky dock, untie my boat, and carefully climb down, praying it doesn't collapse-the dock, I mean.
And I drive across the lake to Benson's beast of a home. He has five extra rooms, and all of them have comfy beds. He has family come once a year, but I never see them.
No one does.
They stay at the cabin, and Benson doesn't invite anyone over. The lake is big enough that you can't see faces from across it either, at least not without the help of binoculars.
Yes, I've used them. I'm curious, so what?
Never seen more than a glimpse of the elusive Nolans family since I never know the exact time of their arrival. Benson just goes dark, and the town knows his family is in.
He even ignores me when they're here, and I'm his best friend. The second they're gone, he's at my house, picking me up, and taking me fishing or something. And he never talks about them at all. Trust me, I've tried to pry.
It makes me suspicious … sort of like everything.
I dock my boat, tie it off, and walk up the fifteen steps to his door. I bang on it for several minutes before it swings open, and Benson arches an eyebrow when he sees me.
"What have they done now?" he asks.
I love his voice. It's always so smooth and deep, but not creepy deep. In fact, it's that sexy deep that I used to react to. Total voice porn. I've trained my body against it. Mostly.
Because it's Benson. My mysterious friend Benson.
The guy I need in my life to keep me sane and doesn't mind being in my corner of crazy.
"My bed's too big for my mattress, and my couch isn't any more comfortable than it has been all week. If I don't get some quality sleep, I may kill someone, starting with the two anus leeches who caused this debacle. Can I borrow a room for the night?"
He steps back.
"You know you can. You should have come sooner."
He's in a T-shirt and sweat pants. The sweats look like quality sweats too. As though he went high-end. He always looks so different at home than when he's outside with all our friends.
Obviously I don't mention it aloud. As I said, he never tells me anything.
"I'll come fix your bed tomorrow. They're just doing it to irk you now," he goes on.
"No need," I say sleepily. "I've got something planned. Something major. I'll be staying here after I do it, because I'll need your protection."
He laughs under his breath. "My protection?"
I nod as he follows me up the stairs. "Which room?" I ask as he pulls me away from the wall I've leaned against and started falling asleep on.
His arms reach down and lift me like I'm weightless, and he cradles me to him as he finishes carrying me up the stairs. I really love how he smells.
Always have.
It's comforting and refreshing, and … Benson.
I'm really tired.
The last thing I remember is touching something soft, my body being covered, and something suspiciously resembling a tickling kiss is pressed to my head.
The next thing I know, I'm waking up to bright sunshine and the sound of pans rattling. My body feels as rejuvenated as I feel. I don't know why I didn't crash here sooner.
What has me stumbling over my feet as I head downstairs and into the kitchen, is the sight of Benson in a tight, black tank. Holy shit. Where's he been hiding that body?
His shoulders are broad and sculpted. His waist is tapered perfectly, which is showcased by the tight-fitted shirt. All that arm porn is twice as sexy today, because you can see more of it.
Suddenly, I feel self-conscious, because my hair is a mess, my flannel bottoms are five years old, and my T-shirt has a picture of a pink mammoth on it.
He's cooking. A body like that is already distracting. And he's cooking.
"Hungry?" he asks, and I debate the meaning of that word.
I am not gawking at Benson like I want a bite. No way.
Where's his oversized T-shirt?!
My eyes snap up to meet his, but he's just staring at me blankly, like he didn't notice I was practically wetting my non-existent panties for him.
"Very," I say tightly.
Apparently my sex drought is fucking with my head.
"So what's this plan of revenge you need my protection for? You passed out before giving me answers," he says, cracking some eggs in a skillet.
I move in beside him to take over frying the bacon, acting like this is our normal routine.
When my arm brushes his, I shudder. What is wrong with me?
I'm reacting more to him than I did the pretty boy. Surely I'm not being conditioned to overlook the unruly beard. Is this brainwash or something?
"Can't tell you. You might stop me."
I feel his smile.
"Doubtful. Spill."
"If you'll tell me how you ended up in Tomahawk, I'll share my awesome plan with you."
I arch an eyebrow at him, and he shakes his head, careful to keep his long beard away from the skillet.
"You know how I ended up here."
"I know you got your family's cabin, but not why you came to live here. You're a mystery, Benson Nolans. Like, what do you do for a living? How did your family afford to just give this to you? And why come to stay in the middle of nowhere?"