Henley

I woke up to Bennett nearly suffocating me, his leg hooked over my waist, his arm over my throat, his hair tickling my ear from where his head was tucked into my neck. It was unbearably hot. His skin felt clammy against mine.

Is he a furnace? I thought to myself as I tried to kick the comforters off so I could breathe.

My thighs ached and I made a face. Why were my legs so sore— "Ah," I said, remembering how tightly I'd wrapped them around Bennett's waist.

Bennett stirred beside me and he raised his head, staring at me blearily.

"Morning," I said.

"Morning," he mumbled before closing his eyes again and putting his face back into my neck.

I adjusted my arm so I could run my fingers through his hair. "Tired?"

"Mm."

I felt around with my other hand for my phone to check the time. A little past ten. "Should we get up?"

"No," he said, pulling me closer to him.

I smiled. Sleepy Bennett was cute. I leaned down to kiss his head and he immediately turned his chin up, waiting expectantly. I pressed my lips to his quickly and tried to pull away, but his hand went to the back of my head, holding me in place so he could deepen the kiss. He pushed himself up on his elbow so he could roll on top of me, pressing me down into the mattress.

I wrapped my arms around his back, appreciating the feeling of his weight on top of me. "We promised Lee and Henry we would go plant shopping with them today."

"They only want the space in my car," Bennett mumbled into my neck. "And only those two want to make a day trip out of shopping for plants."

"I think it sounds fun."

"Staying in bed with you all day sounds more enjoyable." He pushed himself up so we could be face-to-face. "I'll make it worthwhile for you."

I put my hands on his cheeks. "Is that so?"

"I'll do that thing you like. For hours."

I blushed and pressed harder on his cheeks, making his lips purse out. He made a startled noise and pulled back. "Oh, sorry," I said, sitting up as he rolled off me. "Your offer is tempting, but I actually want to buy some plants for my place, too."

Bennett pouted a bit. "Fine." Then he smiled. "Well, at least I still get to be with you today. I'm content with that."

I stared at him for a moment. Then I threw myself at him, wrapping my arms around his neck, knocking him back down into the bed. "You're really cute, Bennett. How is it possible you're cute and handsome at the same time?"

He looked up at me, his hair a mess. "You know I don't like being called cute."

"Well, you are. Cute. What are you going to do about it?"

His eyes flashed wickedly. "Spank you."

"What—" He quickly reversed our positions and straddled my back. I squirmed under him. "Bennett—" I jumped as he gently slapped my ass. "Hey!"

"What?"

"Don't even," I said, protecting my butt. "I'm not going to be able to sit if you try that."

"Maybe I want that. You won't want to get in the car and drive to the plant nursery," he responded, but rubbed my skin to try and soothe the stinging.

"You're pretty selfish, you know that?"

He hummed. "I can be."

"And you admit it," I said, pushing myself up on my elbows, eyebrows raised.

"I think it's healthy to be a little selfish."

"Really?"

"I selfishly want you all to myself and no one else," he said, climbing off me and then off the bed. "I also selfishly want to take a shower with you right now."

I rolled over and grinned up at him. "I guess I can allow that to happen."

Bennett didn't hesitate to lift me off the bed and into his arms, marching straight to the bathroom.

It hit me later, as we were about to walk out the door, that the last time I'd seen Lee he'd seen me butt naked.

And the last time had been last night.

Suddenly horrified, I stopped. "I can't go."

Bennett looked at me, confused, adjusting his tie. I never understood why Bennett wore suits even on the weekend. It was like he was allergic to dressing down. "Why?"

"He saw me naked," I said. "I can never face him again."

"Henley, it's fine."

I shook my head. "I can't do it."

Bennett gave me a look before opening his trunk and taking out a large seat cover protector. "Don't make a big deal out of it and it won't be. Here, help me put this on my seats."

"You're protecting them from plants...?"

Bennett looked at me like I was crazy. "Plants are in dirt, Henley."

"Right," I said, going around to the other side of the car and opening the back door. Bennett opened his side and tossed the cover on the seat haphazardly and together we adjusted it to cover not only the seats but the floor as well. Bennett inspected his side and then came over to mine, adjust straps, and stuffing edges into crevices. I stepped back watching him work, staring at his butt as he crawled over the seats. I supposed the one good thing about Bennett wearing slacks all the time was that his ass looked nice all the time.

I moved forward and slapped it because I couldn't help myself and for payback.

He jerked and then threw a glare at me over his shoulder. "Henley."

I smiled innocently. "Sorry. I couldn't help it. It was just out there."

"You know I don't like—"

I moved forward, using my weight to push Bennett down on the seats. "I know."

"Get off me, you're going to wrinkle my suit."

I pressed down on his shoulder blades. "I wish I was strong enough to hold you down."

As if to prove that would never happen, he pushed himself back up, easily fighting against the pressure I was exerting. "Why?" he asked, trying to back out of the car, but being blocked by me still. But he easily pushed me back, standing straight with his back to me as he fixed the seat cover.

"You're so obsessed with your car. I wondered if you'd like it if I did naughty stuff to you in it."

He tensed, his back still to me.

I stood on my tiptoes to whisper in his ear. "Would you like that?"

He turned, pushing me away, red in the face. "I— No. Not in my car."

"Even with the seat cover down?"

He glanced at the seats, biting his lip. "Well... No. No. Not the car."

I had to admit his tenacity was admirable. Although I would never understand the love he had for his car. I didn't think anyone would. Well. Except maybe Cara.

Bennett walked over to the passenger door and opened it for me, a flush still on his cheeks. I smirked a little, knowing he was at least thinking about it. "Thanks," I said, purposefully brushing my body against his as I got in.

He shut the door harder than I figured he'd meant to. When he got into the driver's seat, he shifted uncomfortably. "They're meeting us there, right? Can you type the address into the GPS?"

I reached for the display screen, thinking about how there'd been a time he wouldn't let me touch it or listen to music. After typing it into the GPS I put on Spotify. Bennett didn't even complain anymore.

"I thought Lee would want to rest instead of going out this weekend," Bennett spoke over the music.

I grimaced and turned it down. "He does seem to be overworking himself."

"He is," Bennett agreed, frowning. "And with what's coming up..."

"What's coming up?"

"He wants to go visit our mother. I mean my mother," Bennett corrected awkwardly.

I whipped my head toward him, my pulse picking up as it usually did when anyone mentioned Dolores. "What? Is that really a good idea for him?"

"I'm going, too."

My heart sunk. "You are?"

"Yes."

I swallowed, unsure of what to say. "When?"

"In about three weeks."

"Oh."

He glanced at me. "Why do you look like that?"

I didn't realize I was clenching the fabric of my jeans under my fingers and I relaxed my hands, turning my head away from Bennett. Why did he want to go see his mother? After everything? Why did Lee want to go? What would happen when they went?

"Is that... Is that a good idea?" I asked, staring down at my lap. What would she say to them? What would she do? I knew Lee had met with her a few times recently, but that was before Lee knew what he knew now. And as for Bennett... he never went to see her after the airport fiasco.

"I don't really want to, but I want to be there for Lee," Bennett explained.

"But what if..." I trailed off. What was I thinking? That she would manipulate them again? It was too late for her to get her way. Wasn't it?

But...

Bennett put his blinker on and suddenly pulled the car off the road and into a small parking lot of an abandoned liquor store. I looked around, confused. "Why are you pulling over?"

"Because I want to face you when I say this to you," he answered, putting the car in park. He unbuckled his seatbelt and turned in his seat so he could face me properly.

My heart skipped a beat at the serious expression on his face, the way his eyebrows pinched together. "What?"

He lifted a hand to my cheek, cupping it gently. "I'm sorry, Henley."

That wasn't what I expected him to say. And his sincerity was throwing me off guard. "For what?"

"For putting you through what I did last year. For giving into my mother so easily. And for making it this way between us. You shouldn't have to feel anxious when I meet up with her because you think she can convince me to leave you again."

I froze. How did Bennett know what I was thinking? I was never going to say that out loud. I knew why he did what he did. I understood why he did what he did. And I would never hold it against him. He was desperate. But thinking about him going to see the one who caused everything...

I put my hand over his, meeting his gaze. "I don't want you to go see her, Bennett."

The corners of his lips turned down. "Henley."

"I'm not going to stop you, though. She's your mother. But I don't want her to say things that will hurt you and Lee. I don't want her to put ideas in your head. I don't want you to..."

"I won't let her," Bennett said, moving his hand to tuck my hair behind my ear. "I promise."

"I know you won't," I replied. "But I'm still worried."

He leaned across the middle console to press a kiss to my forehead. "It will be fine, Henley. Trust me."

"I do trust you," I said. Because it wasn't about trust. It wasn't even about him. It was Dolores I didn't trust. "But—"

He moved forward, silencing me with a kiss. "Would you feel better if you came with us?"

"I don't want to see her."

"What would you like me to do then to make you feel better?"

I smiled at him. "You don't have to do anything for me. I can't stop you."

"You can't, but if you really don't want me to go, I won't," he told me, taking my hand in his. "Your feelings are important to me."

"Lee needs you with him. You should go. Just. I don't know. Keep me updated on how you two are doing," I said. "I hope Lee is able to get whatever he wants from her. I get why he wants to talk to her."

Bennett brought my hand to his lips and kissed my knuckles. "Okay. But let me know if you change your mind."

"I won't, but I appreciate it," I said, taking our hands back to my face and kissing his knuckles back.

"You know, if you're really that worried, if we're married my mother would have a very hard time breaking us up," he said, smiling to himself as he returned his hand to his side.

I placed my hand back on my lap. "You're right."

He blinked. "I am?"

"She can't fake divorce papers."

Bennett stared at me blankly. "Uh. Yeah. Um." His cheeks flushed a little. "Right."

"Why are you blushing?" I asked, feeling my cheeks warm up. "You're the one that's always saying you want to get married!"

"Yes, but you usually brush off the idea," he mumbled, turning his head so he could hide his face. "And then I can move on, but when you don't do that it makes me want to ask you to marry me right now in case you say yes."

"In case I say yes?" I repeated. "Do you really think I'd say no?"

"I don't know. Marriage doesn't seem to be your priority."

"It's not my priority, you're right. But just as you said, your feelings are important to me, too, Bennett. Getting married isn't really a big deal to me, but it is to you. Of course I would say yes if you asked. And I would be happy to marry you because you're happy to marry me," I told him. "But right now isn't really the time. We haven't been together that long and everything is so busy. So, don't ask me yet."

He peeked at me, lips pressed together in a thin line. I could tell he was torn between being elated I said I'd marry him, and disheartened because I said right now. He was so easy to read. "But if I ignored you asking me not to ask you right now and did it anyway, would you say yes?" he asked.

I eyed him. "Is this a trick question?"

"No."

"I guess if we're engaged nothing really changes right away," I said. "So yeah, I would."

He straightened out and twisted to face me again. "Then—"

I pressed my hand to his mouth, grimacing. "No. Bennett. Don't."

He pulled my hand down, grinning a little. "I'm just kidding."

I frowned at him. "You understand why I'm saying not right now, right? I'm not trying to hurt your feelings."

"Yes, I know," he told me, putting his seatbelt back on. "Besides, I like chasing you, Henley. I don't mind waiting. Gives me time to keep making you fall for me more and more."

"You're still good at saying cheesy things," I said, shaking my hair over my face to hide my embarrassment.

"I just like seeing you blush."

"One day I'll make sure I don't blush anymore."

"I'll still like seeing your face," he said simply, pulling back onto the road.

When we arrived at the garden center, I spotted Lee's Maserati already there. Bennett grimaced as his tires crunched over the gravel of the parking lot. Lee was crowding Henry into the side of his car and Henry was trying to shove him away, red in the face as we pulled up next to them.

I empathized with Henry immediately. Both of the brothers were the same.

Bennett opened his door, purposefully smacking it into Lee's side as he did so. "What are you two doing?"

Lee rubbed his side, glancing over his shoulder at Bennett. "He's being shy."

"I'm not being shy, he's trying to harass me," Henry corrected, ducking under Lee's arms to escape him and coming to my side.

Did Henry think I could protect him? I immediately hid my face into Henry's back as Lee glanced over at us, body temperature rising. I couldn't even face Lee anymore!

"I'm not trying to harass you," Lee said, sounding mock-offended. "I was just trying to fix your shirt. You didn't tuck it in properly."

I glanced down at Henry's shirt. It was tucked in properly.

Henry's shoulders tensed. "I'm not trying to tuck it into my socks, Lee."

"No? My bad."

"Ugh. I don't want to hear this," Bennett said. "Come on. Let's go find your plants."

Henry moved forward and I stayed glued to his back, putting my hands on his shoulders. "...What are you doing?" Henry asked, coming to a stop.

"Nothing," I responded, urging him forward until we approached the first area of plants. Then I used the tall ones as cover, waiting until Lee walked ahead. I squatted down, inspecting a potted hosta. The leaves were heart-shaped and had a coarse texture when I reached out to touch it. It was pretty. I could see it on my porch.

"Those plants do well in the shade," Lee said, suddenly appearing next to me.

Startled, I fell back onto my butt in the dirt. "Ow."

Lee's eyes widened and he reached out his hand, offering to help me up. "Oops. Sorry. I didn't think you'd be that startled."

I stared at the plant, trying to avoid his gaze. "It's okay."

"Bennett told me you feel embarrassed about the other day."

I froze. Bennett...

Still kneeling beside me, Lee retracted his hand, adjusting his stance. "Sorry. I can't do anything to take it back, but, uh, I also didn't really see anything. You pulled your towel up quick enough. You just startled me. That's why I yelled."

I covered my face with my hands. "I'm sorry, too. You shouldn't have had to witness that."

"I'll be careful from now on," Lee vowed.

"I'm never going to try to surprise Bennett again."

"Don't do that. He'll blame me forever."

I grinned a little and turned toward Lee to see him grinning back at me. "Yeah, you're probably right."

"Here," he said, offering his hand out to me again, and helping me to my feet. We rose together and he didn't let go right away. "Actually, I want to apologize for something else, too."

"What?"

"The other day. When you asked if I needed help with anything." He squeezed my hand, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you like that. I know it's not an excuse, but I was kind of stressed out."

I put my hand over his. "Don't worry about it, Lee. You have a lot going on. But for future reference, if you need help with something, don't hesitate in asking me. I'm willing to do whatever I can."

His eyes crinkled as he smiled. "Thank you, Henley."

"Alright, that's enough," Bennett said, shoving his hand between Lee's and mine. "Look over here, Henley. There are some pretty flowers over here in the greenhouse."

"Pretty flowers?" Lee repeated. "You disappoint me."

"What kind are you looking for?" I asked Lee as Bennett led us to the greenhouse.

"Henry has a list. We're trying to find ones that aren't toxic to cats."

"Oh? Are you adopting cats?"

Lee nodded. "Yeah. We founded a bonded pair that are four years old. They're really cute. Henry read their description and just about started crying—"

"I did not," Henry called from across the greenhouse. "However, it was a little sad. They've been at that shelter the longest."

"Aww, how exciting. I'm happy for those cats," I said, my hands swinging at my sides as I walked. "They're going to be going to a good home. When are you bringing them home?"

"Tomorrow," Lee said. "I hope they adjust to their new home quickly. Thankfully Henry will be home all week."

"Are you going somewhere?"

Lee shook his head. "No, but I'm preparing to stay late this week. I have a lot to catch up on."

"Don't overwork yourself, Lee."

He smiled and said nothing else, catching up to Henry. I watched him, fiddling with the sleeves of my shirt. Was he worried about going to see Delores? Was Henry worried? Maybe I was overthinking it. What could she really do? They could walk away if she began harassing them. It would be fine.

I tried to convince myself of that.

It would be fine.

Author's Note:

I seriously have no idea where this book is going LOL. I'm so sorry. I don't know what to write.

Here, have this for now-- I totally forgot I got this fanart of all the characters last year and never got to show it! 

Left to right: Henry, Sebastian, Ariana, Lee, Brandon, Henley, Bennett.