Twist of Fate (27 page)

I tossed the foil in the trash can, just as Ben wrapped one arm around my neck, dragging me away. "Let's go get a spot on the beach."
 

We walked out, our toes sinking in the sand as we did until we decided on a spot. He threw down the blanket we'd brought. It was chilly, the wind whipping around us, but Ben still ripped off his sweatshirt, lying back in the sand. When he realized that I was still standing, he propped up onto his elbows. "What? Not a good spot?"

"No, it's fine." I slowly yanked up on the hem of my University sweatshirt, goosebumps covering my stomach before it was even over my head. When I finally was brave enough to lift it all the way off, I could see Ben watching me, but then he closed his eyes quickly. I lied down next to him on the blanket. "It's freezing."

Ben rolled over to my side of the blanket, pulling me into him.
 
I lifted my head as he tucked one arm behind my head. I tensed for a quick second, but his body provided the warmth I was craving. So, I let him spoon me, smiling as the waves crashed around us, lulling me into a peaceful place.

When I opened my eyes, Ben still had a firm grip on me, and the beach had cleared out some. The lifeguard stands were pulled back, the kites that were flying earlier were almost all gone, and I had a sense of peace that I hadn't felt in weeks. I stirred, lifting his arm off of me, rolling over to look at him. His brown wavy hair was in his eyes, the curls in the back were full of sand, and his face was untroubled, content looking as he rested.

His arm wrapped around me, tugging me softly in closer, his mouth curved up on one side, barely opening
 
one eye, while keeping the other shut. "Would you just do it already?"

"I thought you were asleep." I blushed. "Do what?" My voice sounded husky even to my own ears.

"Would you just kiss me already. I know you want to."

I sprung back slightly. "I didn't say that."

Both his eyes opened, and he shook his head with an impish grin on his face. "You're the most stubborn pain in the ass I know." He flipped me over on my back, placing both of his hands on either side of my face, searching my eyes. His lips crashed onto my mouth briefly, then softly he peppered kisses around my lips, then down my jaw. "Ben..."

"Shh," was all he said, while grabbing my hands pinning them behind my head. "Don't, Paige. Don't over think this. Let it happen."
 

I took a deep breath, counting numbers, watching his eyes, and the possibility of this perfect chance fading away before me. I whispered, barely being able to breathe, knowing that all I had to do was ask. "Kiss me, Ben."
 

And, he did. He collapsed on top of me, completely pinning me beneath him. His hands buried themselves in my knotted windblown hair, his legs wrapped around me like a pretzel, hugging me into him tightly, and then he kissed me like it was our first kiss ever. And, I wanted more of him. I always had. Suddenly, it had never been more obvious that it wasn't just about wanting him in my life, I needed him in my life. It was Ben that made me feel safe and special. Maybe it was being back to the beach where we first met, or maybe it was his declaration of love for me weeks ago, but something inside of me changed. I wasn't afraid of anything anymore. And, I refused to let this one get away, because he meant everything to me.

BEN

Chapter 34

Paige was taking a shower, trying to get all the sand off of her, while I forced myself to hang out on the balcony looking out to the ocean, when I really wanted to be in there helping her. I couldn't seem to take the damn smirk off my face since we left the beach. I wanted so badly to grab a hold of her the first night, but she'd held back and tensed up, so I let her go to sleep. At one point, I was positive she was faking it. It was that moment that I realized that if I wanted this weekend to work, I was going to have to take my time with her.

This girl had been through too much for me to be the cause of any more heartache. I couldn't bear to see her have a setback because I misjudged the situation. I knew she wanted to be here, I could tell looking into her eyes today. And, when she asked me to kiss her on the beach, I knew she was finally ready to stop pretending.
 
It took all my will power not to do things I'd dreamt about right there on the beach. But, those lips, I swear I could kiss them all day and still die a happy man.

I was sipping a beer from the minibar, thinking about school, Paige, everything that had led me up to this point, that I didn't hear her come up behind me. The soft feel of her hands covered my bare shoulders, and I closed my eyes, letting myself get lost in her touch, the smell of her shampoo. I tipped my head back, and when I did she dipped down, placing a soft kiss on my mouth. "What are you thinking about out here?"

Her hair was dripping wet, hanging over my shoulder, her cheeks were slightly pink from the beach today, and she had never looked more gorgeous than right then and there. I reached around pulling her onto my lap, kissing her shoulders. "You really want to know?"

She kissed the tip of my nose, wrapping her arms around my neck.
 

"I was thinking about us," I told her.

"What about us?"

I smiled softly at her. "Paige, I've loved you since you were twelve years old."

She sat up, grabbing my beer off the ledge, then took a swig. "That's not true. Now I know you're just trying to get lucky."

"Yeah, it is true. For three summers in a row, I got the chance to fall in love with you for those two weeks you'd come, and then just like that, I was supposed to turn it off because you went home." I shook my head, remembering her back then.
 
"Well, I never forgot how I felt when I looked at you, or how I felt when I was around you, Paige. You were the first girl I ever loved," I paused to brush my lips against hers. "And, I really want you to be the last, Paige."

She hadn't taken her eyes off of me as she listened. "How do you do it?"

"What?"

"How do you know exactly what to say to me? You make me feel so special."

I kissed her lips quickly. "That's because you are."

She nestled in between my legs, tipping her head back into my chest. "I love it here."

"We should move here," I whispered to her.
 

"What?" She sat up, spinning around.
 

I shrugged, giving her a smile. "Not now. I mean after you graduate." Her face went from confused to shocked. "Unless you don't want to. It's okay."

Her eyes flicked back up to meet mine. "Are you asking me to move in with you after graduation?"

"Yeah, I am. I love you, Paige. I'd move in with you tomorrow if you'd let me."

She stood up, leaning her hands down on my knees. "Let's get some dinner, and then make a bonfire tonight? Only this time you might just get past first base." She winked, kicking up her foot as she walked away, leaving me to wonder if she was accepting my offer, or if I was being turned down in the nicest possible way.

We headed into the gas lamp district to find this little Italian place she remembered going to. The streets were overflowing with people, lamps illuminated the streets, and the outdoor seating was limited at most of the places we stopped and asked. Finally we chose a place to eat, since she couldn't remember which one it was they had eaten when she was little after all. We ordered a bottle of wine, and two different pasta dishes to share. I couldn't keep my eyes off of her the entire time we ate. It was our last night, and I was anxious to get her back to the room. I smiled, even though it made me nervous when she looked at me. Part of me wondered what it was going to be like when we got back on campus. Would she change again?

She hooked her fingers in mine, making me blink, before studying her face. "You look a million miles away," she remarked, noticing I didn't quite have my head in the game.

I mustered up a small smile, and simply admired her beauty. "It's nothing."

She leaned slightly over the table. "It's not nothing. Tell me."

I let go of her fingers and set back in my chair. I looked into her eyes unsure of telling her, but it was like they were pleading. "I don't want anything to change when we get back." She frowned, so I leaned forward again. "I'm a little gun shy I guess about us, our future."

We sat staring at each other until the waiter finished filling our glasses. Paige ran her finger over the rim of her glass, looking down at her wine. Then she lifted her face, showing me her smile. "Hmm, that's really weird."

I sighed, not sure where this was going, and threw my napkin on the table. "Paige..."

She signaled to someone behind me who I could only assume was our waiter. She still hadn't finished what she was going to say. The waiter stepped over, placed the bill on the table, so I quickly slipped a hundred dollar bill inside, unable to take my eyes off of Paige. She was up to something, and I was not sure if I was in for the night I'd dreamt of for so long, or if she was
 
going to send me packing. At that point, I didn't care about unfinished pasta, or wine, I just wanted to know what she was thinking, doing.

She led me by the hand out of the glass doors, into the warm spring night. I yanked her softly back. "What's weird about me thinking about our future?"

Her mouth caressed my chin, then she moved to my lips, until she hovered next to my ear. "I could have sworn you asked me to move in with you. Are you taking the offer back?" She asked in a whisper.
 

I didn't move one muscle. I let her question sink in, before I cupped her face with both my hands. "Are you serious? You're ready to move in together?"

She smiled, nodding.

"So, when we get back, I can pack my stuff and move in with you and Tommy?"

She shrugged with a smile, before turning to walk away. "If you don't want to...I"

I picked her up from behind, spinning her around until she was facing me. "I love you. I really, really love you."

It was the moment I'd been waiting for. I didn't care about anything else. The frat house, my old life, nothing could compare to my need to be with her.

"I've loved you since our first sleep over."

"You did?" I asked, surprised.

"Yeah, I did. I do. I love you, Ben."

I had never been so nervous to be alone with a girl. Paige had been inside the bathroom for at least twenty minutes. When she finally stepped out, she had her hair up, and she was wearing
 
jeans and a sweatshirt. So not what I thought she was doing in there. Now, I was officially confused. She looked over at me lying on the bed. "I thought we were going to build a bonfire?"

"Oh, um, you still wanted to do that?"

She looked over to the nightstand, then back to me. "I guess we have some time before we go. What do you want to do?" She gave me those come get eyes, so I didn't hesitate.
 

"You drive me crazy," I mumbled into her ear.
 

"Wait until you see what I'm wearing underneath?" I stepped back, letting my imagination go crazy as I took her in. I crashed my lips onto hers because I couldn't take it anymore. I slowly parted her lips, sucking on her bottom one before I slipped my tongue inside her mouth.
 

Paige stepped back to lift her sweatshirt over her head, and I almost went into cardiac arrest. She had this light purple lacy bra on that screamed to be taken off. I locked my arm around her waist, lifting her against me. I grabbed onto her thigh, guiding her leg around my waist. Pushing her up against the wall, my hands reached around to hold her up. Her lips were kissing my face, then my neck, but I needed to taste her. I tilted her chin with my one hand before baring down on her lips once more, wanting to savor her, and when I did I almost lost it right there. These were not Paige's usual kisses, these were explosive, hot ones, that were setting me on fire. I nudged myself between her thighs, "I love the way you feel," I whispered as I buried my lips onto the side of her neck.
 

Paige made these little moans, that almost made me take her right there, but I held back, remembering my goal for tonight. I wanted Paige to know what it was like to let go of all her inhibitions, to finally take her where no other had been able to. Her head tilted back as I slowly nipped at her neck. I lowered my hands, unbuttoning her jeans, flicking it open, as I kept my mouth on hers. The band on her jeans loosened when I unzipped them, slinking them down her hips. Paige's hands slipped under my shirt, gripping her nails into my back, murmuring my name, "Ben, oh, God!"

Girls had called out my name before, it was something I was use to, but when Paige let those three little letter's slip off her tongue, it was like nothing else mattered. I picked her up, placing her softly down on the foot of the bed. Her eyes glazed over, and she stared at me with more emotion than I'd ever seen from her. I got on my knees, tugging her jeans down, tossing them to the floor, to find matching panties.
 
She smiled adoringly at me as she sat up to unbuckle my belt. Once she snaked it through the loops, I unhooked her bra, watching the straps fall down her shoulders, then eased her back down. I placed one knee on either side of her waist, just staring at her body, her face, taking in the moment. Because I knew I wanted this picture engrained into my memory. She was smiling up at me, waiting for me, but I still couldn't take my eyes off of her. She tugged me down with one hand. "Come here, Ben."