Give Me Tonight(62)

Caroline eyed the pair thoughtfully and then turned to her husband with—a smile. "Peter, take me into the house, please. If I don't have a glass of water in the next minute, I'll die of thirst. "

Ben gave them an absentminded nod as they left, and re-turned his attention to Addie, while the excited crowd milled around Ruthie and Harlan. He noticed the shadow of a bruise on Addie's wrist and frowned, reaching out to catch her forearm in his hand. She made no move to pull it away as he looked down at her delicately veined wrist.

"From him or me?" he asked gruffly.

"I don't know." She sounded much calmer than she felt. "Does it matter?"

"Yes, it matters." Though his voice was laced with irritation, his thumb was gentle as it stroked over the bruise. "I didn't intend to hurt you."

Her breath shortened. The movement of his fingers on her skin, there in the middle of hundreds of people, caused her heart to drive crazily against the wall of her chest. This couldn't continue. She had to make certain things clear, about what she would and wouldn't tol­erate from him.

"Ben, what happened last n-night can't . . . You and I . . . just can’t.”

"Yes we can," he returned softly. "And will as soon as I get half a chance."

"No, Ben—"

"You look a little tired, darlin’." His eyes caressed her strained face.

"That's your fault. I couldn't sleep after we . . . after you . . . I spent the whole night tossing and turn­ing."

"I wish I'd been there to join you."

"Hush up! Someone will hear, and please don't touch me like that!"

He released her wrist with deliberate care, and Ad­die knew the wisest thing to do would be to turn around and leave as quickly as possible. But something rooted her feet to the ground, keeping her there, close to him but not quite touching.

"When are you leaving?"

"Soon." Ben laughed quietly. "You're not anxious for me to go, are you?"

"Yes. Oh, stop looking at me like that. I think Mama just noticed us talking together—"

"So?"

"She doesn't want me to associate with someone like you."

"I know that. But what do you want?"

She took a deep -breath and looked at him directly. "I want us to forget about last night. It was a terrible misunderstand-ing."

"Not at all," he countered. "I think we understood each other quite well."

"Do whatever you want. I'm going to forget it ever happened. "

"Do you actually think you can?" Ben raised his eyebrows and folded his arms across his chest as he peered down at her. "No. It's going to be there be­tween us from now on. Every time I look at you I'll remember the taste of your lips, the feel of your—"

“Damn you," she whispered, now more worried than before about the mess she was in. She could man­age him when they were fighting, when he was angry, but not when he was gentle and teasing. Not when he was looking at her with a gaze that seemed to burn through her clothes. She could remember the taste of him, too, and the devastating touch of his hands on her body. She was shaken by the urge to wrap her arms around his neck and press her face against his throat and simply breathe in the smell of him.

"I want you to stay away from me from now on."

"Don't tell me you don't want me to hold you ever again. Or kiss you, or—"

"Never again!"

"You want it right now," he said, smiling at her appalled expression. "Just as much as I do."

"Ben, stop it," she hissed, aware that people were beginning to turn around and look at them. Picking up her skirts, she brushed by the rows of chairs and headed toward the house, discarding her pride in order to beat a quick retreat. Ben was right on her heels. Aware of his presence behind her, the long, measured strides that carried him so much farther than hers, she turned to face him as soon as they reached the ve­randa.

"You don't make any sense at all, Ben Hunter! All of a sudden you've decided you want me, when you wouldn't have me on a silver platter that day in the barn. What changed your mind?"

"Damned if I know. I haven't bothered to analyze it. "

"Of course not. Like any man, you chase after the nearest female whenever the urge to rut strikes you. I seem like a good prospect this week, is that it? Well, you won't be welcomed in my bed, not ever, so set your sights on someone else."

"If the urge to bed someone was all that concerned me, Addie, I wouldn't look to you to satisfy it. Know­ing who you are, do you think I'd be fool enough to wait at your heels, hoping for a quick tumble? I haven't been deprived of a woman's company in a long time. If I wanted to sleep in a woman's arms tonight, I could find one easily. Someone a hell of a lot more experi­enced than you, and not half as much trouble."

"Then what do you want from me?" she whispered.

His smile was designed to annoy her. "Haven't I made it clear?"

"No," she groaned miserably. "Ben, you've got to stop. You're turning everything upside down. You're making me miserable out of pure meanness. You know any kind of relationship between us is impossible."