Wilde Chase (4 page)

“Ben?” Something
in Kelly’s tone made his chest tighten, and when he met her eyes there was
nothing but sincerity in her gaze. “I mean it. I’m not the kind of person who
is always wondering if the grass is greener down the road a ways. I know it’ll
probably make me sound pathetic, but this is the first date I’ve had since I
moved back to
Chicago
.”

“Then the men in
this town are morons,
myself
included. And since we’re
being honest, I’m not exactly a social whirlwind these days either. I’m just
sorry it took me so long to ask you out.”

She laughed and
placed her index finger squarely on his chest. “Funny. I thought I asked
you
out.”

“Yes, you did. But
I think I should get credit for coming up with a backup plan when you picked
Leo’s for dinner.”

“Fair
enough.
So, what do you recommend we order? I
don’t know about you, but I’m starving.”

“Double bacon
cheeseburgers and fries? I’ll provide the beer.”

“Sounds
good to me.”

“Then just let me
make a call.”
 
He unwound his arm from
Kelly’s waist and pulled out his phone, hitting speed dial. Jared was going to
bitch about family not getting special treatment, but Ben knew he’d come
through in the end.

Chapter Three

Kelly took Ben’s
hand as he helped her down from the passenger seat of his Jeep and into the
sweltering heat of the city street. Instead of letting go, he threaded the
fingers of his hand between hers, giving it a light squeeze. It felt right, and
Kelly squeezed back before falling in beside him as they headed up the road
toward their destination. She spent the short walk trying to stay calm, but her
heart was racing and she felt as if her feet weren’t touching the ground.

Being around Ben
always made her a little light-headed, but tonight, knowing that she was going
back to his place with him, she was nearly dancing on air.

The sound of
laughter and music flowed around them as Ben opened the door to Leo’s. It was a
loud and boisterous place, with dark wood paneling and brass fixtures, just
like so many other local pubs she’d been in. he differences.
took
her a little while to notice. The wood was polished to a subtle shine, every
one of the staff
were
smiling, and the air was not
tainted by the usual blend of stale beer and grease that often accompanied this
type of place. Instead, the savory aroma of grilling beef filled her nose and
made her mouth water. If the food tasted half as good as it smelled
,
she was going to be very happy.

The place was full
of patrons, so full that they had push through a crowd to get anywhere close to
the bar. They’d only made it about halfway across the space when a loud voice
boomed through the room.
“Benji!
I thought you weren’t
coming by tonight?”

Kelly bit back a
giggle as Ben grimaced. Clearly he wasn’t fond of that particular nickname. A
gap opened in the crowd and Ben aimed straight for it with Kelly in tow.

“Hi,
Dad.
Change in plans. We’re just here to grab a
takeout order and then we’re—”

“We?
Who
is
we
?”

“Right.
Dad, this is Dr. Kelly Towers. Kelly, this is my father, Brian.”
 
Ben made the introductions and then stepped
back so Kelly could get a proper look.

“Hi,
Mr. Wilde.
It’s nice to meet you.” Ben had
definitely taken after his father, though he was broader across the shoulder
and chest than Brian. Same hazel eyes, same dark hair and gentle smile, though Brian’s
hair was more silver than brown these days. Kelly liked the older man right
away.

“Doctor?”
Brian quirked a brow at that bit of information.

“Vet, actually.
I’m Chase’s veterinarian. And please, call me Kelly.”

“Well it’s nice to
meet you, Kelly, and you can call me Brian. I should have known the only thing
that would keep my son away from this place on a Friday night would be a pretty
woman.”

“Actually, we weren’t
sure he knew what a woman was. He spends all his time hanging out with that
mangy mutt of his.”

Kelly turned
around and found herself looking up at taller, long-haired version of Ben. “You
have to be one of Ben’s brothers. Do you all look alike?”

“Hardly.
I’m much better looking. I’m Tag, by the way, and you are?”

“Out of your
league, little brother,” Ben grumbled.

“I’m Kelly.”

“And I’m charmed.
If you’re having dinner with Benji, I hope you’ll consider coming back here
afterward and letting me buy you dessert?”

Ben growled under
his breath and Kelly squeezed his hand again. She wanted him to know that he
had nothing to worry about. “That’s a lovely invitation, but I’ll have to
decline. Ben has me booked for dinner, dessert…” She leaned in closer to Tag
and dropped her voice to a whisper, “And breakfast.”

Tag burst out
laughing and winked at her. “Then he’s a lucky man.”

Ben moved in
behind her, close enough she could feel the heat of his body through her dress.
“Yes, I am.”

His brother threw
up his hands in mocking surrender and backed up a step. “You can’t blame a man
for trying.”

“Wanna’ bet?” Ben
muttered.

“First one of you
yahoos to throw a punch in my bar gets punted and won’t be allowed back in for
a month,” a new voice announced.

“You are no fun,
bro.”

Kelly turned to
meet the newest arrival. He was a little shorter than Ben, with blond hair,
blue eyes, and a very familiar smile.

 
“Hi, I’m Jared Wilde.
Harried
barkeep and peacemaker.
You must be the reason Benji’s been in a good
mood the last few days.”

“I’m Kelly. Thank
you so much for organizing the takeout order for us. If I had known how busy
you were, I’d have suggested we try somewhere else.”

“What, and deprive
Chase of his favorite cheeseburgers?
No way.”

She turned and
frowned at Ben. “Just how many burgers does Chase eat, exactly?”

“Uh,
a few.”

“One of these days
we’re going to have a chat about your dog’s diet.”

Brian hitched a thumb
toward Kelly and grinned at Jared. “Meet Chase’s vet.”

Jared’s hazel eyes
glittered with laughter.
“Really?
Then do yourself a
favor and don’t let her see how many burgers are in the bag, bro.” He handed
Ben a large bag full of takeout containers.

“You are so
busted, Benji,” Tag snickered.

“That’s just our
order?” Kelly asked, stunned.

“You’ve clearly
never seen my brother eat,” Jared said, fighting back laughter. “He used to be
an adorably pudgy kid. If you want to stick around, I bet I can find some
pictures to show—”

“We’re not
staying,” Ben interjected.

“It was really
nice meeting all of you, but our dinner is getting cold. Maybe next time I’m here
you can bring out those pictures, Jared.”

“Not unless he
wants me to break his nose again.”

Kelly laughed and
twisted her head around to look up at Ben. “You didn’t!”

“Oh yeah, he did.
I deserved it though.”

“Beating on
younger siblings is part of a big brother’s job description,” Ben said and then
dropped his head down to brush a slow, lingering kiss to her lips. Kelly knew
he was staking his territory, but she didn’t care. Ben’s kisses were incredible
and she wanted more of them, no matter what his motivation.

Brian snorted with
laughter and waved them off. “Get her out of here before your brothers scare
her off, son. Kelly, you’re welcome back here anytime. Have a good night.”

“Night, Dad. Say
hi to mom for me, will you?” Ben said as he lifted his head and glowered at
both of his brothers. “And you
two,
go find your own
women. This one’s mine.”

“Holy shit, Benji
finally gets a date and instantly goes caveman!”
 
Tag crowed.

Kelly felt Ben
tense behind her and decided it was time they got out of there. Having Ben be
so possessive of her was flattering, but she didn’t want him fighting with his
brothers over her. Attractive as they were, they weren’t Ben. He was the one
she wanted.

Acting on
instinct, Kelly pivoted around to face Ben and stood on her tiptoes to kiss
him, lighting nipping his lower lip. “Come on, caveman. It’s time you took me
home.”

Heat filled his
eyes as he stared into hers, a smile turning up the corners of his mouth.
“Sounds good to me.”

He set off through
the crowd and she followed after him, waving to the others as he led her back
out into the summer night.

The minute they
were outside she found herself swept into his arms for a long, torrid kiss. The
world around them faded away until nothing remained but the heat of his mouth on
hers and the feel of his hands stroking up her spine. Tiny sparks of desire
zinged across her skin and Kelly’s knees turned to Jell-O. She leaned into him,
her nipples pebbling and her pussy getting wetter with every second that
passed. Holy hell, the man could kiss.

 
He ended the kiss with a groan as several
approving cheers and whistles sounded around them, bringing Kelly back to
reality with a crash. They had acquired an audience. Oops.

She blushed and
ducked her head as Ben slowly released her. Without a word he offered his hand
and she took it, both of them red-cheeked and laughing as they made their
escape.

“So what was that
kiss for?” she finally asked.

“For
being you.
Because you impressed my Dad and you’re
the first woman I’ve ever seen shoot down Tag when he was in full flirtation
mode.”

“I arrived with
the hottest guy in the place, why would I trade down?”

“Hottest
guy, huh?
That compliment just earned you
chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast tomorrow.”
 
He waggled his brows at her and grinned. “You
did say you were staying for breakfast.”

“I did, but it was
pretty forward of me to assume that we’re, uh…I mean, that you and I are going
to…” Kelly blushed and ducked her head, so embarrassed her ability to speak
vanished. She’d said that to Tag on the spur of the moment, but what if Ben
thought less of her for it? It was their first date, after all.

He stopped and
turned to face her. “Baby, what’s wrong?” When she merely shook her head in
response, he slipped a finger under her chin and tipped her head up so she was
looking at him. His hazel eyes were simmering with heat, but his expression was
as intent as she had ever seen. “If you stay with me tonight, I’m going to be a
very happy man. But just so we’re clear, this is not a one-night thing. If I
wake up tomorrow morning with you in my arms, I’m hoping that it will be the
first time of many. And if you decide you want to go home, I’ll be by in the
morning to take you to breakfast.”

There was no
denying the sincerity of his words, and Kelly nodded, feeling better. “I just
didn’t want you to think that I was…well, easy. Or that I do things like this
all the time. I don’t. My sister has been telling me I need to get out and find
a life besides work. I was hoping you might be able to help me with that.”

“You got it. I
have the same problem. Maybe we can help each other?” He traced his thumb over
her lower lip and gave her a slow, sexy smile that made her heart skip a beat.

“I’d like that.”

“Then let’s go
back to my place, have dinner, and see where the evening takes us.”

****

Ben already knew
that this was going to be one of those times that he’d remember for the rest of
his life. The laughter came easily, the conversation flowed, and by the time
dinner was done, he felt as if Kelly had been in his life for years instead of
hours. When he started clearing the table, it felt totally natural that she
rose to help him. The two of them made quick work of the dishes, despite the
fact his mind kept wandering into X-rated territory every time he watched her wet
hands glide over another plate or wipe a cloth up the length of a piece of
cutlery. It was the first time in his life that doing the dishes actually had
him turned on.

As she finished
the last of the plates, he came up behind her and slipped an arm around her
waist. “Thank you. You know you didn’t have to help me.”

“I know, but I
wanted to.”
 
She leaned into his chest,
wiggling her butt against him just enough to tease. “This is a really nice
place you have here. It’s not at all what I expected for a bachelor and his
dog.”