My Ex or My Next

Chapter 9

Diana woke up feeling refreshed. Today was the day of the town event that Ben invited her to. He still hadn't told her what kind of event it was. He just said that it would be fun and she would enjoy it. For some strange reason, she already trusted Ben. She wasn't supposed to trust anyone, because trust was what made her heart break. She had completely trusted Jack and he betrayed her in the worst way possible. The crazy thing is, his employees looked like they knew what was going on all along. Sometimes she thought that she wanted her marriage to work, and other times she was happy that it didn't work out. Imagine if they had children. That would have made the situation more complicated and delicate.

Diana got out of bed. She decided on light foods today, since Ben promised to make sure her belly was full to her heart's content later. He was fun to be around, and whenever he was around, she felt lighter somehow. After her morning routine, she went outside to check on the garden. It became her habit to look over Ben's house ever since they became a little closer. Ben told her to water the seeds daily. After watering it, she made some coffee and toast. She decided to sit on the porch and relax while reading a book. Lately, that was her favorite thing to do.

She was completely lost in the book when she felt something fall on her. She screamed and jumped thinking it was a lizard, but it wasn't. There was a completely sweaty, shirtless Ben standing in front of her. He looked like he had just come back from a morning run. The prank he tried to play on her was totally forgotten. She couldn't stop staring at his abs. She wasn't supposed to look, but she couldn't tear her eyes away. It was out of character to be staring at a man who wasn't hers. He was extremely muscular. 'Girl stop playing. You might be a traditionalist, but you know you don't want to look away." Her subconscious told her. She saw a hand waving in front of her face, which broke her from her trance.

"If you don't close your mouth, you'll catch flies." Ben told her.

"I'm sorry. It's just that I-I..." She stuttered.

"What? You've never seen anybody as sexy as me." He teased.

"No. I mean yes. I don't know." She didn't know what to say to him.

"So you think I'm sexy? Don't worry. I think you're sexy too." Diana's face turned red when he said that. Of course, she thinks he's sexy, but he doesn't have to know that. But he think she's sexy? That was a new one for her.

"Get off my property. You stink." That was the only come back she could come up with.

Ben ran over to his house, dying of laughter. He loved the way Diana was shy whenever such a topic came up.

"I'll pick you up later." Ben shouted from across the street. Diana gave him a thumbs up, telling him that was OK.

Diana relaxed until it was lunch time. She took a long soak in the bath tub. She told herself that she was trying to look pretty for herself, but she knew it was for Ben. No matter how much time she convinced herself. The shaving she did for herself, because she got used to shaving after Jack told her that she had too much hair on her privates. She hated hair on her body after that, because it made Jack uncomfortable.

Diana made lunch for herself and a thought came to her mind. She had never seen the inside of Jack's house before. He was over there the couple of times they met. She was going to bring him lunch. She put some of the sandwiches she made with tuna salad and put them in plastic wrap, and then in a food container. She made sure she was presentable, because she was dressed comfortably in her t-shirt and shorts. Diana grabbed the container and went across the street. She walked up to Ben's house and knocked on the door. It took a minute or so before he answered. He was still covered in sweat.

"I-I made lunch. It was a lot, so I brought some for you." She said, avoiding looking at his chest. She didn't want a repeat of this morning.

"Come on in. You can make yourself comfortable while I shower." Ben told her.

"OK. Sure." He went inside a room which she assumed was his bedroom.

When she knew he was already in the shower, she decided to look around the house. The only difference between his and her house was the interior decoration. The design was the same. He had turned one of the rooms into a gym. When she was passing by his room, she noticed the room door was slightly opened. She saw Ben in just a towel and it made her heart skip a beat. He was muscular all round. She was about to walk away, because it was rude to spy on someone in their own home, but Ben saw her before she could take a step. They stared at each other for a while until Ben broke the silence.

"I'll be out in a bit." He said. She walked back to the kitchen, trying to calm her heart down. It was beating 300 miles per hour. She grabbed a bottle of water from his fridge and down the whole of it. A couple of minutes later, Ben emerged from inside his room and sat on a stool at the island.

"I'm sorry for invading your privacy. I was just looking around." She told him, not wanting to look into his eyes.

"It's fine. If the roles were reversed, I would have done more than just look." Ben said, half teasing her. He would have had to enforce his restraint in order not to do something he would have regretted later. every time he saw Diana, the need to make her his multiplied.

"I took a bottle of water from your fridge." Diana said, in order to change the topic.

"OK. What did you make for lunch?" He asked.

"I made sandwiches with tuna salad."

"Delicious."

"Where are your plates?" Diana asked.

"They're in the cupboard atop the sink." Ben replied.

Diana walked over to the sink and opened the cupboard. The plates were high up, but if she stretched enough, she could reach them. She decided to ask for help, but was surprised when she felt Ben pressing up against her back. She should have pushed him away, but she didn't want to. Even if he had kissed her then and there, she wouldn't have opposed it. He took two plates out of the cupboard and gave them to her, then walked away. Diana took a moment to compose herself.

Ben knew what he was doing when he did that. He didn't want to push her away by making her uncomfortable, but he couldn't resist the chance to press up on her. He wanted to show her that he wanted her in many ways, but he would be moving too fast. She had just gotten a divorce.

They were quiet the entire time they were eating. Neither of them knew what to say to the other. He was conflicted about wanting her, but was afraid she didn't want him. While Diana was conflicted about the way she felt about him in a very short time and if it would be wrong to start something so soon. She would just let nature take its course. What is to be will be. Diana took the plates to the sink to wash them.

"Leave them. I'll take care of it." Ben said.

"I'm going to go so I can start getting ready now." Diana told him.

"Let me walk you to the door." They both walked to the door, not knowing what to say to each other. Diana abruptly turned around, not knowing that Ben was so close to her. She was about to fall on her b*tt, but ben caught her and enveloped her in his arms. This was his chance of getting a stolen hug and he took it.

"I-I-I. Thank you." She said.

"It was my pleasure." Ben replied. He wanted to kiss her, but didn't know if she would be against it.

"I-I have to..."

"Go. I know." Ben let her go. She opened the door and walked as fast as she could to her house. If Ben wasn't feeling the way he was, he would have laughed at how she looked, trying to get away from him as quickly as she could. Sigh. Making her his would be a challenge, but one that he accepted with a willing heart.