Feels Like Love by Jenna Hartley

Chapter Fifteen

Istared at the ceiling of Wren’s guest bedroom. Tick. Tick. Tick. Outside, the crickets chirped, adding their melody to the orchestra. Tick. Tick. Chirp. Tick. Tick. Chirp. I was losing my goddamn mind.

But was it really all that surprising? I’d been living at Wren’s for nearly a month. A month of teasing and laughter, a month of hanging out, of feeling like we were a family. Of falling even harder for her and her son.

Then there was the sexting this morning. I still hadn’t deleted the photo she’d sent me. I couldn’t bring myself to do it, though I knew I should. And our conversation this afternoon… All of it was just…surreal.

I tucked my arm beneath my head, struggling to get comfortable. After Wren had suggested “batting practice,” she’d avoided me the rest of the afternoon. She’d hidden in her room until River returned and then taken pains not to be alone with me. But she’d responded to Ben’s messages. Had she chatted with Arlo too?

I was driving myself insane.

I kicked off the covers and reached for my water bottle. Empty.

I rolled my eyes. Of course.

I pushed out of bed, needing a cold drink—something. I opened the door and padded down the hall, when I noticed a light was on in the kitchen. I peeked around the corner and spotted Wren with her back to me.

She was hunched, shoulders curled over something. What was she doing? Besides driving me crazy with those damn pajamas. The silk shorts rose higher on her thighs, almost high enough to reveal the bottom of her ass cheeks to me.

I considered turning away, going back to my room. Maybe jerking off while I thought about her. But instead, I found myself whispering her name.

“Jesus, Bennett!” She whirled, pastry box in hand. “Were you trying to scare the shit out of me?” she hissed.

“No.” I stepped closer, careful to keep my voice low. “Sorry. I just needed some water.” I held up my empty bottle and shook it.

She stood there a moment as if dazed, her lips parting as she scanned my body. I glanced down, remembering that I wasn’t wearing a shirt. Just a pair of gray athletic shorts that hung low on my hips. The way she was looking at me, I felt as if I might as well be naked. And then I started imagining her naked. Us naked.

I swallowed hard and turned to the fridge, needing to put some distance between us. As I filled my bottle with water, I asked, “What were you doing?”

“What does it look like?” she scoffed. “Eating my feelings instead of dealing with the issue head on.” She pushed herself up on the counter and sat. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have pressured you to coach me. And I definitely shouldn’t have suggested what I did earlier. But all your tips have been so helpful. It’s really improved my confidence when it comes to dating. And, well, I don’t want to suck.”

“Look, Wren, I get it. You’re nervous. And you’re not used to being bad at anything.”

She scoffed, running a hand through her hair. It was messy, and her face was devoid of makeup. She was stunning. And…I was staring.

“Oh yes, I am. I’m terrible at lots of things.”

I narrowed my eyes at her as I screwed the lid back on my bottle. “Like what?”

“Um…have I mentioned that I’m terrible at dating? Science homework. I’m already dreading when River goes to high school. Meal planning. I always get excited when I plan, then I waste a lot of the food. I’m a disaster—”

“Wren, you’re not a disaster. And those flaws…they only make you human. Everyone has things they aren’t great at.”

“Really?” Her brow raised in a sexy little show of defiance. “And what are you bad at, Dr. Perfect?”

I sighed. Lying. Sticking to my rules when it comes to you.

“I hate trimming dogs’ toenails. God, pugs are the worst. The sounds they make are so dramatic.”

“Seriously?” She tilted her head and smiled.

I nodded. “They hate having it done, and it’s something the owners could do themselves.”

“Yeah, but you probably aren’t bad at it. You just dislike it.”

“Okay.” I crossed my arms. “I’m terrible at telling people their pet needs to lose weight. It’s the most awkward conversation.”

She hid her laugh behind her hand. “Does that happen a lot?”

I nodded. “Probably more than you’d think.”

“I see your point, Bennett, but…”

“But what?”

“But that’s all at work. This is different. Personal. And I’m nervous.”

“It’s okay to be nervous, Wren. You haven’t dated much.”

“Much?” She blew out a breath. “I haven’t really dated at all. I got pregnant when I was eighteen. And then between running a business and being a mom and…other stuff, I didn’t have the time, energy, or desire. Now, I finally have this opportunity, and I like Arlo. He’s fun and nice. But I’m afraid to say yes to another date.”

I clenched my fists, remembering the odd way she’d been acting earlier. The more I thought about it, the more my stomach filled with dread. “Did he do something? Try something?”

“No. Not exactly.”

“Wren.” My blood was pumping, vision turning red. “You have three seconds to tell me exactly what happened.”

“Calm down, caveman. Geez.” She rolled her eyes. “You’re not my brother.”

Thank fuck for that.

“What. Happened?” I was panting like a bull, ready to charge. Because if Arlo—or anyone—pressured Wren in any way…

“At the end of the date, he walked me to my car. And when he went to kiss me…” She sighed, and I scrutinized her expression. Did she want him to kiss her? Not want him to? “I turned my head at the last minute.”

Some of the fog cleared, though I was still pissed. I didn’t want to think of another man kissing Wren. I wanted to be the man to kiss her.

“Why?” I asked, trying—and failing—to remain calm.

“I don’t know.” She threw her hands in the air, and I’d rarely seen her so flustered. “Because I was nervous. Okay? I choked. And if that’s how I react to a kiss, what’s going to happen when Arlo or someone wants more?”

I went over to her and placed my hands on her shoulders, the silk of her shirt cool beneath my hands. “Wren. You should only do what you’re comfortable with. Don’t let anyone ever push you into something more if you’re not ready.”

“That’s the problem,” she said, eyes focused on her hands, which were smoothing up and down her thighs. Slowly, she stopped and lifted her head, her eyes pinning me with their intensity. “I want more.”

If I weren’t careful, I’d get sucked into thinking she wanted more with me.

“Wren.” I started massaging her shoulders through her shirt, needing to do something with my hands. “Wren,” I sighed. I could feel my defenses lowering, my resolve weakening. I hated seeing her so distressed. Even when we were kids, if it was in my power to fix something for her, I did. And while we weren’t kids anymore, I still wanted to make things better for her.

“Are you opposed…” She swallowed, glancing away. “Is it because you aren’t attracted to me?”

I squeezed my eyes shut. Was she serious? Me—not attracted to her? And here I thought it was completely obvious. It had been getting harder and harder to hide my feelings—and my body’s reaction to her—what with all the time we spent together.

“No. That’s not it.” I couldn’t say anything else, not without telling her everything.

I slid my hands up her neck, into her hair. She let out the sexiest damn moan. My cock hardened, breath bottoming out. I’d imagined it so many times—kissing her, touching her. And these past few weeks, I’d grown more complacent. I’d gotten used to being in her space, placing my hand to her lower back. Hugging her whenever I felt like it. And then the picture she’d sent me of her breasts…

“Is it because I’m younger?”

I barked out a laugh before she pressed her finger to my lips, reminding me to be quiet with River sleeping just down the hall. “No.”

We were only six years apart. Our age difference didn’t bother me. That was the least of my worries.

“Because of Liam?”

I nodded, latching on to the obvious answer. And because I’m so in love with you, and my head is already fucked up enough as it is.

I mean, I’d made a fake online dating profile to “keep an eye on her.” I’d lied to her brother about the reason for it. I was her dating coach, but I wanted to date her. I wanted to be the one to kiss her. Not this Arlo guy. Not someone else. But me.

I tilted my forehead to hers, sliding my fingers into her hair. I shouldn’t kiss her, but god how I wanted to.

She placed her hands on my chest, and my skin tingled from her touch. I trailed my nose along her skin. She smelled amazing, felt amazing. Our noses were touching, lips so close. She drew in a shaky breath, pupils blown out and darkening the iris like a lunar eclipse.

“Bennett,” she murmured, and I could feel her breath against my lips. Warm. Inviting. “Please.”

“Please what?”

I wanted to hear her say the words, even if they weren’t real. At least for a moment, I’d allow myself to pretend.

“I want you to kiss me. I’m asking you to kiss me.”

I rubbed my nose against hers, not wanting to lose contact for even a second. It was so easy to get lost in the fantasy. To believe it was real. It felt real—the way she was looking at me, her body’s response.

Maybe…maybe this could be like the sexting. Maybe I’d finally get her out of my system.

Oh, who was I kidding?

Even so, I found myself saying, “This is just practice.” Though, I needed the reminder more than her. She was the one dating other people after all. I was the one sitting home, pining after her.

She nodded. “Exactly. Practice.”

I held her gaze a moment longer before fusing my lips to hers. Kissing Wren was heaven. She tasted sweet, and I couldn’t get enough of her. When she tilted her head, parting her lips to let me in, I groaned.

My hands were in her hair, her arms locked around my neck. It didn’t feel like practice. It felt like she was mine. And I was certainly hers.

She wrapped her legs around my waist, pulling me in closer. Closer to her center and exactly where I wanted to be. My dick was pressing against her, growing embarrassingly hard the longer we kissed. But it was her lips that held me captive. The sexy whimper she made when I pulled her to my chest, crushing her body to mine. Our hearts beating against each other. The taste of her mouth—like hazelnut and mint. Decadence and sin.

I should’ve pulled back, put a stop to it. But instead, I explored her mouth with my tongue, her body with my hands. She felt even better than I’d imagined—like my every fantasy wrapped up in one beautiful package.

And she was eager…fuck was she eager. She kissed me like I was the key to her happiness. Like she’d been waiting all these years just for this moment. For me.

I could’ve stayed like that for the rest of my life, locked in her embrace. Her soft heat pressed to my hard length. Time passed—I didn’t know how long. Until, finally, I cupped her cheeks, ending the kiss. And for a minute, we just stared at each other, panting, as if neither of us could actually believe that had happened.

“Um, okay,” I said, stepping back and adjusting myself discreetly. I couldn’t…my brain couldn’t process it all.

“I-I—” Wren’s eyes were wide. “I. Wow.”

“Yeah.” Wow was an understatement. In movies, people talked about fireworks in reference to a kiss, and I’d always thought it was ridiculous. But kissing Wren had definitely proved me wrong. Forget fireworks. It was like a nuclear explosion. Searing. All-consuming. I didn’t know if I’d recover after that kiss.

“Yeah?” Her attention snapped to me, lips plump, hair mussed. “Yeah? What does that mean?”

“It means…” I sighed, still in a daze. “I don’t think you’re going to have any issues with kissing.”

She didn’t seem convinced. Why was she not convinced? That was the best fucking kiss of my life. Not that I could tell her that.

She was Liam’s sister.

I’d just kissed my best friend’s little sister. Well, she’d asked me to kiss her. But only because she wanted to impress another guy. Talk about fucked up.

“Wren.” I placed my hands on her thighs, smoothing my thumb over her skin. “The kiss felt good to you, right?”

She nodded. “Yes, but I don’t have much experience. How did it feel to you? Was I too aggressive? Was there too much tongue?”

I chuckled. This woman was something else. “Baby.” I cupped her cheeks, and if she was bothered by the pet name, she didn’t show it. “It was perfect. But…” I smirked. “If you need to try again…”

Her eyes glazed as if remembering our kiss from only moments before, and she nodded. “I think…I think some extra practice would make me feel better.”

I grinned. It would make me feel better too.

“I only want to reassure you,” I said, dipping my head as she pulled me back to her for another searing kiss. And this time, I didn’t hold back. I forgot about Arlo. I forgot about Liam. And I forgot this was only pretend.