“You should have told me.” Her tears fell down her smooth cheeks.
“I’m sorry,” he offered weakly. “You must know that.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Her voice cracked. With her arms pressed tight to her chest, she was the picture of grief. One word away from crumbling.
“I wanted to be sure,” he admitted. Though he was confident in his deduction, he still wanted a second chance to examine Leith closely without additional eyes bearing down on him. “That is my only reason for holding back. Forgive me.”
Remi didn’t move for a long while. She just stood, lost in sorrow.
Ben squeezed his fists at his sides, willing himself to wait. He desperately wanted to offer her comfort.
“I’m tired, Ben.” She sounded small as she said it. “Edgar is dead, and now Leith is gone. These notes…so many notes. I can’t…I can’t go on like this.”
Ben approached her carefully, reminding himself to be gentle with her. “Remi?”
She looked up at him.
“I’m sorry about Leith,” he whispered. “About my father. About me.”
“Everyone is leaving me,” she choked. “Elise will be gone soon, too. There will be no one left…”
His heart ached. “I won’t leave. Not again.”
“Prove it.” Her lips shook as she grasped the front of his shirt, pulling him closer. Her voice was weak, yet her hold on him was strong. “Prove that you won’t leave me, too.”
His hands wrapped over hers, and he bent his head lower. “Tell me how, and I will. Whatever you want from me, I will give it to you.”
Her voice did not waver. “Kiss me.”
At her command, Ben felt the scorching heat of his needs and desires crash together, two demons of their own design that battled often in his mind. Ever at odds, it seemed, they were suddenly unified, singular in their desires. “Certainly,” he hummed deeply.
If she was keen to give him the lead, he would not waste a second longer lingering on the fantasy; he would make it real.
REMI
Ben’s fingers tangled in her hair, pulling at the roots just enough that there was pleasure in the pain. His other arm wrapped around her, pulling their bodies together as his mouth closed over hers. It was a heady kiss, thoughtful even. His teeth grazed her lower lip, nipping at her flesh, the sting soothed immediately with a gentle stroke of his wet tongue. She missed the feeling the moment his mouth left hers, traveling to nip her ear.
“Have I proven myself?” His voice was deep as he spoke. “Or is there more you want from me?”
Her mind still spun from the kiss. What more could she want?
Ben groaned, pressing into her. “Say it, and I will give it to you.”
She blushed, turning her face into his. “I want…everything.”
“Do you want me to touch you?” he asked, pressing his forehead to hers. His eyes probed hers, and she felt as if she’d explode into flames. “Is that how I’m meant to prove myself to you?”
Remi held her breath as she searched for the right words to say. “I want you to undo me,” she whispered finally, “and put me back together after it’s been done.”
Ben’s smile was tender as he nodded. “That I can promise.”
He kissed her again, softer. He lingered, pulling on her lips with his own. She was beside herself with the sweetness of it, the way it made her center warm. She felt his fingers on her chest, undoing the buttons of her blouse. The fabric brushed against her breasts as it fell away, making her gasp.
Ben moved on to her skirt, careful in his ministrations. Standing before him in her stockings and a chemise, she felt for the first time the chill in the room.
“Cold?” His eyes dropped to her chest.
Remi glanced down and bit her lip. Her nipples were peaked, pressing against the thin fabric of her chemise.
He turned on his heel and dragged the duvet and pillows to a spot by the fire. He surprised her, lifting her up into his arms and carrying her to the nest he’d made by the fire. Lowering them both, he kept her firmly on his lap.
“Swing your leg around here,” he murmured, kissing her shoulder gently.
Remi moved until she straddled his middle, her center pressed against the hardest part of his body. He nearly growled when she moved against him, gripping her thighs above the stockings when she finally settled.
“Better?” she asked.
“Much.” He slid a finger down the skin between her breasts with a teasing smirk. “But your chemise is in the way.”
“Then take it off,” she said, her voice tight with longing.
Ben didn’t hesitate. He grasped the hem and lifted it above her head, discarding it to the side. Dipping his head toward her chest, he closed his lips over the tip of her breast.
Remi jumped at the sensation, earning another groan as she rubbed against him. He rewarded her with a pinch to her other nipple, kneading the bud between his fingers as he continued his attention to the other. The pleasure was overwhelming but fleeting, for he moved away within a breath, leaving her wanting.
Ben watched her face as he eased back. “I want to taste more of you.”
Remi blushed. “Whatever do you mean?”
