“It is. For you. But you won’t let it go.”
She lifted her head, fastening eyes with more than a hint of steel on his. “No. I won’t. If you don’t ask me and set a date soon, I’ll chase you down with a lawn tractor and turn you into fertilizer for Jon and Rachel’s garden.”
He sighed. “How about concrete shoes and dumping me in the river, old-school mob style? Being turned into organic mulch as part of their eco-revolution is more than I can bear.”
A small smile appeared on her mouth, which he preferred, since he knew behind the steel was worry, and uncertainty. Fuck, he had to get better at this. Since the others seemed to be involved in discussion over by the grill, he worked his hand into her snug back pocket, gripping her ass as he dropped his head to position his lips close over hers.
“Don’t get too bossy with your Master, brat. I’ll turn you over my knee right here.” He brushed his mouth over her parted lips and made a quelling noise when she would have moved to return the kiss more ardently. “Who do you belong to?”
“You,” she said, a hint of defiance to her tone, as if he needed the reminder more. Which he probably did. Fierce satisfaction at hearing it always seemed to come hand-in-hand with terror.
“I love you,” he said. He hadn’t expected the words to come from him so spontaneously, but he was glad for them when she softened in his arms and her eyes filled with that light he never tired of seeing.
“You better,” she responded, and made him smile. It put things on balance again.
“Can you two untangle enough to get this show on the road?” Lucas called out. “I have burgers to cook and a game to watch, which I can’t do with all these women underfoot.”
He chuckled as Cass slugged his side, much as Ben had Peter, only Lucas’s response to his wife was much different. He pulled her up against his side, taking her off her feet to kiss her soundly. Cass put her hands on his face, but when she at last pulled back, she had a retort for him.
“I’m still winning the bet on point-spread. Max is going to let me know the final score, so don’t even try to make it up.”
“Max needs his job.”
“Speaking of Max,” Marcie noted, drawing Ben’s attention away from the byplay, “I saw the limo out front with him at the helm. I thought you were chauffeuring us in the Escalade.”
“I realized the limo would allow more trunk room and female indulgences. It’s been stocked with strawberries, wine, and you ladies’ favorite snacks—in the limo, not the trunk. All made by my own hands.”
“I know. I vividly remember the melted chocolate for the strawberries.” She lifted her hand to her shoulder, subtly pushing the shirt neckline aside enough to reveal her bra strap. Next to it was a bite mark he’d left upon her, so fierce there was bruising on her skin. Her lips parted, moist. “Much as I liked the taste of the chocolate, I liked this better.”
So had he. Cleanup of the mess they’d made in the kitchen had been a bitch, but that was okay. Fuck it, he was just going to drag her inside and take five minutes to…
“Okay, let’s get this show on the road,” Dana said, looping her arm through Marcie’s to tug her away. Ben came out of his detailed fantasy to see the other women making their respective good-byes. Savannah was exchanging a lingering kiss with Matt, bending down to where he now sat, sprawled on one of the patio chairs. He had a drink in one hand, but the other drew her into his lap to give the kiss depth and impact. He caressed her hip and thigh before helping her back to her feet.
Lucas was exchanging some words with Cassandra. She smiled as he stroked her hair and let his fingers drift to the side of her throat to draw her to him for a brush of lips. And Jon, after exchanging his own kiss with Rachel, had brought her to him to hold her close, an embrace that seemed to increase the energy between the two of them.
Much as Ben didn’t give voice to such sentimental ideas, it was hard to deny that those multiple expressions of love spread out to touch and connect, somehow enhancing them.
To dispel such a gushy thought, he would have made some crack about the women only being gone for a few hours, not a few months, but he had a pleasant distraction of his own. As Dana drew her away, Marcie let her body brush his with provocative intent, her eyes and mouth promising him anything he wanted, now and forever. Thanks to his long arms, he was able to reach out and tug her shirt back on her shoulder, and get in a light caress of that bite mark before she was out of range.
Christ, it was going to be a nice, long day.
Marcie had curled up next to him in the limo. She’d discarded her ankle boots for the drive from Lucas and Cass’s home to the French Quarter of the city, so she had her legs tucked up under her. Thanks to his greater height, he could see swelling curves of flesh cradled in lace beneath her black shirt. He turned his head so he could nuzzle her hair, inhale her scent again. Her shampoo had the faint aroma of coconut and cocoa butter.
"So where to first?" he asked the general population. The women were arranged in the two facing cushioned seats of the limo, forming a comfortable circle of female energy around him.
"How about the Poppy Gallery?" Cassandra suggested.
"What's that?" Rachel asked. Next to her, Dana selected a strawberry and bit down on it, capturing it between crimson glossed lips.
"It's this gallery on Royal Street with a painting of poppies in the window,” Savannah explained as she re-crossed her fabulous legs. Ben noted she was wearing a slender silver anklet with a tiny fleur-de-lis charm on it, complementing her pair of low but fashionable heels. A whimsical accessory for their conservative queen. He liked it. “I love their work there,” she continued. “Sounds like a perfect first stop. I want to buy something new for Angelica’s nursery."
Marcie’s hand was resting on his thigh, a seemingly innocent gesture. “When did you get the anklet?” he asked Savannah, knowing the only way he was going to avoid sporting a huge erection all day was through distraction. Lots of distraction. Like car explosions on Bourbon Street or a five-alarm fire, but he’d try the small talk option first. Now that he'd agreed he wanted Marcie, the wanting absurdly never seemed to stop.
“Oh. Matt gave it to me. He found it on his last trip to Mexico. One of the street vendors did silver craft. It’s the one with the fleur-de-lis,” she added, for Dana’s benefit.