Page 23 of Beauty and the Nerd

“A few reasons. My dad’s protective, especially when it comes to me and boys.

If he knew what happened, especially on top of me being hurt in an accident, then he would have done something stupid.

I didn’t want him to go to jail so I said I didn’t remember what happened, pretended I didn’t know anyone other than my mom.

It also kept Carter from trying anything else.

I was scared when he saw me in the hospital just after I woke up, worried what he might do if I told anyone the truth.

He just looked so angry, pissed at me, and I wasn’t up to any sort of altercation or argument with as much as my head hurt at that moment.

Every time I saw him, he was still angry, and I just wanted to find a way to get him away from me for good.

“The week when I was first back at school, he kept trying to touch me and I finally had to admit that I remembered in order to break it off with him. He didn’t want me to be the one to be seen as ending it and attempted to make me look bad in front of everyone by saying he wanted a girlfriend that wasn’t stuck up,” she added pulling a nod from him.

“When we were at the mall, he was furious to see me with my new boyfriend, even if he didn’t know he was my boyfriend at the time.

Carter used to bully Ben physically in junior high and early high school, and he still verbally tries to bully him.

He grabbed me at the mall that day and I kneed him in the groin trying to get him to let me go.

He sprained my wrist and almost reseparated the spot that’d just healed. ”

“Would you be willing to testify to what happened the night of the accident and at the mall if needed?” the detective asked, making her heart race with a bit of worry.

“Yes,” she told him, certain she wouldn’t have to. If Carter really did assault the other girl, and she suspected he had with what he’d done to her, he surely wouldn’t risk a trial if there was proof, especially not if there was DNA.

“Thank you. If you sign this statement that says we met today, and you are the individual on the recording, that should be enough for now. If I need anything else, I’ll call and have the police department here schedule something.

For now,” he warned after she’d signed the statement, the office secretary notarizing it for him, “do not let Carter know we’ve spoken.

You were right to be worried about what he’d do after the accident.

Based on what we’ve gathered, it seems he’s an extremely angry individual and someone who’s already assaulted one will do it again, especially if he’s worried you may talk.

The police department will be making regular trips by your house to keep an eye out for anything suspicious.

If you’re out by yourself and you see Carter, do not engage him in any way.

Get somewhere public or back to your vehicle and call the police immediately.

Don’t take any risks and don’t confront him. ”

“I’ve had two concussions in the past three months that have sidelined my life, Detective.

I’m not about to risk anything else happening now.

I’m not even allowed to drive thanks to this newest concussion and some swelling it’s caused, so I won’t be anywhere alone.

My boyfriend won’t begin to let something happen to me, and since the others now know that Carter tried to assault me, they’re not letting him near me here at school as well.

I’m not about to go seek him out,” she said, giving him a half-smile before he left, letting her head to her next class.

“What’s wrong, baby?” Ben asked, catching her in the hallway between sixth and seventh period. He turned her towards him as she stood at her locker, her shoulders tense, seeing Carter moving down the hallway laughing as he shoved some freshman into a wall.

“Nothing we can talk about here,” she said, kissing his cheek before she grabbed her books for the last two hours of the day.

Ben took them, guiding them down to their seventh period class they had together this semester.

He settled into the seat next to her turning her way when their teacher handed out assignments rather than lecture due to losing her voice.

“Do you want to talk about it now? Or I can take you home, say you’re too shaky to handle the rest of the hour and next? ”

It wasn’t really a lie. She was tired, yes, but learning what Carter did to another girl had her shaking inside and she wouldn’t say no to getting away from him sooner.

“Come on,” Ben said softly, helping her up from the seat, stopping them at their teacher who nodded giving her a sympathetic smile before letting them head to the office to sign out for the day.

“Take her straight home, Ben,” Ms. Bentley said, not arguing in the least and Emma suspected the woman was well aware what the accusations against Carter were, why the detective had talked to her.

“Okay, what’s going on, Em? That was entirely too easy to sign out, even with the school knowing you’re not to overdo it, they still generally check with parents first. Add in Ms. Bentley telling me to take you straight home…

something happened,” Ben said as he drove her home. “What has you so spooked?”

“Ms. Bentley wasn’t the one that wanted to see me.

She was just relaying me to a detective from Millersburg who was here asking questions about Carter,” she explained, telling him what had happened after making him swear he wouldn’t tell anyone about it.

“They’re supposed to have police driving by to keep an eye out for anything in case Carter learns they talked to me,” she added when he pulled into the driveway behind where her car sat in the garage.

Her parents would be able to get theirs parked fine no matter how long Ben stayed.

“Good, I’m not leaving your side while we’re out, baby.

I won’t let anything hurt you,” he promised guiding her inside and up to her room.

She changed into something comfy, moving back into the space seeing Ben sitting at her desk, going through her social media pages on her laptop to check on mentions of Carter.

She’d told him he could months ago since he didn’t have one of his own.

There was nothing to hide from Ben. He knew everything about her—well, almost everything.

“Ben…” The softness of his name drew his attention to her, and he pulled her down onto his lap, his eyes studying her tense face in wonder.

“What is it, Em? What’s wrong?” The gentleness of the question had her spilling the rest about the night of the accident to him, just slightly greater in detail than she’d told the detective earlier.

“I could taste him on my lips, and I felt so sick. That’s why I threw up on the EMT,” she admitted, seeing the fury in his eyes. “They thought it was because of the concussion but it was disgust from what he tried to make me do.”

“Shh, it’s okay, Emmy, I’ve got you,” Ben whispered, moving them from the chair to her bed, laying out with her.

His arms wrapped around her tightly and she let out the tears she’d been holding in for the longest time.

The pain of keeping it all to herself was too much and she buried her face in his neck when they finally stopped.

“Feel better?” Ben asked, his hand still stroking her back and she nodded, sinking into his hold more.

“I never want you to keep something like that from me again, baby. I don’t care if you think you’re protecting me, or that it might hurt me, I need to know.

You need to tell me, so you don’t do this yourself again. ”

Emma glanced up, seeing not one spec of anger on his face, just concern, and she fell even more in love with him. “I didn’t want anyone worrying about me, knowing how close it was. I didn’t want you pulling away thinking…”

“What? That you let it happen, asked for it somehow by even being with him?” he asked, hitting part of it on the nose.

“Never, Emma. I know you never liked Carter. You told me that kissing him was like kissing a dead fish. I hate that he did that to you, but I never would think you’d allowed it to happen by fake dating him.

I knew there was something holding you back from us even before you told me you weren’t ready. I just never thought it was that.”

“What?” she said, sitting up a bit in surprise.

“You want me as much as I want you,” he stated, his hands gently brushing along her sides, making her body respond with desperate shivers, her nipples tightening, poking against her top they were free beneath.

His hips rocked against her gently, showing his reaction to her body was the same and it made her shiver more.

“It’s not your body or heart holding you back, it’s been your mind, keeping this locked up, has kept you locked up, hasn’t it? ”

“Yes,” she whispered, resting her head on his shoulder, letting his body press against every inch of her. “I know you’d never push, but every time we’d start getting closer, heavier with something, it suddenly was Carter’s nasty hands on me, and I couldn’t.”

“And when you felt me against you, felt how much I wanted you, you went back to that moment, him making you touch him.”

She nodded, shivering when Ben lifted her chin. It had her opening her eyes to look at him, seeing the softness in his gaze, the warmth, the love in that expression.

“It’s okay, baby. It’d only been a couple weeks since the accident when I first let you feel that.

You had every right to freak out, not want to go back to something that hurt you, avoid something that makes you remember it.

You still do and if you want to move, don’t want to feel how much I want you right now, that’s fine.

I won’t argue or be angry about it. But, if you don’t want me to move, I want you to look and see where you are, who’s holding you, who’s touching you, Emmy. Because I will never hurt you. Never.”

“Ben…” She let out a sigh, lifting her lips to his, needing his kiss more than anything now. Her eyes began to close, and he pulled back, making her protest.

“No, look at me, Emma. Look,” Ben urged her, and she did, amazed at the heat blazing behind the softness in his eyes.

A vulnerability hit his gaze when she shifted slightly, bringing him deeper into contact with her body. That made her stop, her eyes staring into his as a ripple washed through his body. “Ben?”

“Did you think a guy couldn’t be just as vulnerable as a girl with this?

” he questioned, smiling at her shock, as her hands caressed his shoulders.

“I breathe and I want you, baby. I kiss you and I need to touch you. I touch you and I’d die to have you.

I can’t begin to stop it, and it has nothing to do with not having had sex in over a year.

It’s because of you. I’m vulnerable with you because I love you. ”

“I love you too,” she said, lifting her hips against his, once, then again, seeing the flames building his gaze. “Let me give you this.”

“No, not today,” he argued, stilling her hips, making her smile.

“No, not that.” A blush hit her, seeing the meaning in his eyes. “I’m definitely not ready for that yet. But you like feeling my body against yours, it gives you pleasure to…stroke mine, doesn’t it?”

“Emmy…”

“Let me,” she whispered, brushing his lips with hers, her eyes holding his as his hands loosened on her hips.

His hips pushed down against her a minute later, the strokes growing harder, until he shuddered, his eyes closing, and Emma kissed them, holding onto him watching his face tighten, his body trembling wildly against her.

“Emmy…” He groaned out, breathless against her ear few minutes later, and she smiled, holding him tighter still. “I shouldn’t have let you do that.”

“Why? I thought you wanted me to know you’re vulnerable with me that way.”

“I did, I do. It wasn’t supposed to be about pleasure though,” he stated, his eyes glowing with the remnants of it, making her smile.

“I just wanted you to see that what happened would never happen with us. Carter tried to take away your choice, your power. When it happens for us, it’s going to be indulging in it, in what we create together.

There’s no rush on that. I can take as many cold showers as possible or flog the log a million more times before I’d ever think of trying to rush you. ”

“I know that and that’s why I wanted to…to show you that I like feeling your body against mine and even though I’m not there yet, I’m not scared of you or this, not with you,” she said, “especially not now. You were beautiful when you…”

“Came?” he teased, kissing her softly when she couldn’t quite get the word out. “I almost lost it feeling your soft hands stroking my chest and neck, your sweet little kisses. It’s going to be incredible when it happens, baby. I’ll make sure you get everything you just gave me and more.”

“I know you will,” Emma said, snuggling closer not about to let him go now.