The Ex-Girlfriends' Club

Bennett nodded grimly. “Believe it.”

“Why?”

“Oh, a combination of things,” Bennett said lightly, hoping to thaw her a little with humor. It had always worked in the past, after all, he thought, his gaze inexplicably drifting over the smooth line of her cheek. “Inciting revolts over the menu, gambling, not respecting the curfew.” He sighed, tapped his fingers against the steering wheel and stifled a grin. “But ultimately it was the womanizing that Eva couldn’t tolerate. She said it was unseemly.”

Eden didn’t smile, but her eyes twinkled. “I’d heard about that.”

From Kate, Bennett thought, remembering that Eden’s best friend was a nurse on staff at the retirement home. On the rare occasions their paths crossed, she never failed to send him a death-ray glare.

Eden frowned thoughtfully. “I didn’t think Grady was able to live alone anymore.”

“He’s not,” Bennett confirmed. His gaze tangled with hers and he shot her a distinctly uncomfortable smile. “I’ll be living with him.”

Blind panic—which made him feel like the biggest dick in the world—surfaced in that too-green gaze before she managed to blink it away. “O-oh?” she asked, clearing her throat. “What about your work? I’d heard you were doing quite well in Savannah.”

“I can work from here as easily as I can in Savannah,” Bennett said, pleased that she’d been keeping up with him. The only fly in the ointment of his recent success was that he hadn’t been able to share it with her. When it came to his woodworking, Eden had always been his biggest fan. “I’m keeping the store open there but will do the physical end of the job here.”

“From your grandfather’s?”

“Yeah,” Bennett confirmed. “I’m renovating the house and barn. The barn will be my shop.”

Eden waited for a line of cars to pass before speaking again. The blast of hot air tugged at a loose strand of hair hovering distractingly around her mouth. “Aunt Devi bought one of your rockers the last time she was in Savannah.”

He actually remembered Eden’s eccentric aunt coming in. Devi Darlaston, he thought. God, what a character. While Eden’s mom had always been cold and calculating, Devi had been a sweetheart, a grounding support for Eden. For whatever reason, she’d always reminded him of his grandfather. She’d chosen one of his favorite pieces, too—a rocker he’d crafted from oak, its back an intricate design of corkscrew willow branches.

“I hope she liked it,” Bennett said, hating himself for fishing for the compliment.

“She did.” Eden considered him for a moment, seemed to thaw just a bit. “It’s beautiful work, Bennett.”

The remark made a warm dart land in his chest and expand. He’d received countless praise for his work, and yet, for whatever reason, her opinion counted more than any other. Then again, it always had. “Thanks,” Bennett murmured, swallowing.

Eden released a small breath, inadvertently forcing his gaze back to her ripe mouth. Just looking at it brought back snapshots of kissing her, stuck on fast-forward.

The first time, at her locker, and she’d tasted like butterscotch candy.

At her back door—they’d broken apart guiltily when her mother had turned the porch light on.

Fire Lake, their first time, and he’d softly pressed his lips to hers—an apology for that brief flash of pain he’d seen in her gorgeous eyes as he’d carefully slid into her.

Heaven, Bennett thought now. The only time he’d ever felt right.

With his eyes Bennett traced the woefully familiar lines of her face—that hot mouth—and felt both his heart and his loins catch fire. Like a match to dry tinder, his entire body went up in flames, scorching him from the inside out. His fingers involuntarily tightened on the steering wheel, and he swore inwardly, praying for an instant downpour to put out the blaze. He watched Eden’s suddenly heavy gaze drop to his mouth and felt himself harden to the point of pain.

Motherfu—

He couldn’t do this, Bennett thought, setting his teeth against the tide of longing rising up inside him. Hadn’t he promised himself that he wouldn’t do this? He didn’t deserve her, and more importantly, he couldn’t hurt her again.

For both of their sakes he had to stay away from her. There was too much at stake. Grady needed him…and Eden needed him to leave her alone.

As if coming out of a trance, Eden blinked and an awkward smile caught the corner of her mouth. “Well, I don’t suppose I should write you a welcome-home ticket, so this time I’ll just give you a warning.”

Bennett’s lips edged into a grateful smile. “I appreciate it. Thanks.”

“See you around,” Eden said. Then, after a slight unsure pause, she turned and walked away.

That was exactly what he was afraid of, Bennett thought. He couldn’t afford to see her around. Because he’d do something stupid they’d both ultimately regret.

EVERY CELL IN HER BODY vibrating with nervous adrenaline, Eden slid back behind the wheel of her car and waited for her racing heart to slow. Her mouth was so dry it felt as if she’d eaten a pack of chalk. Her palms were numb, her fingers tingled…and yet her nipples were hard. She looked down, snorted miserably and shook her head.

This was what Bennett Wilder did to her. What he’d always been able to do to her.

Barely three minutes in his company and she was a wreck.

Jeez, God, did he have to be so damned handsome? Eden silently lamented. Was it too much to ask that he develop some sort of deformity or at the very least a serious skin problem since the last time she’d seen him? She let go a stuttering breath.

Evidently so, because he looked better than ever.

His dark, wavy hair was shorter than he’d worn it previously, and rather than keeping traditional sideburns, he’d trimmed his into the trendy edgy look she’d seen favored by hip urban professionals. If possible, they made him look even sexier. More dangerous. Hell, Eden thought with a miserable chuckle, he could have trimmed them into a fleur-de-lis pattern and he still would have looked like a badass.

Because that, in essence, was Bennett Wilder.

Eden sighed. And therein lay the attraction. Or at least some of it. Frankly, for her, there’d always been more to Bennett than his sex appeal. He was smart and interesting and talented and vulnerable. He had fix me written all over him and she’d tried to do just that three years ago and had gotten her heart filleted for her trouble.

Now that was not a mistake she’d be making again, Eden thought, glad that—other than that one little please-get-out-of-the-car-and-kiss-me moment when she’d been mesmerized by his mouth once again—she’d mostly kept her wits about her.

She waited for him to pull out into traffic, then dropped her head against the steering wheel and moaned with a combined cocktail of mortification, misery and self-disgust.

This was not good.

At least she hadn’t cried or ranted like a mad-woman, like the proverbial scorned lover. She’d kept her cool, kept it relatively professional—she hadn’t been able to resist asking about Grady or telling him that the rocker was beautiful. But ultimately she’d kept her head, which was nice considering it felt as if it had momentarily left her shoulders the instant she’d looked into those dark, brooding eyes. Eden knew he’d expected her to go off on him like a Roman candle, and there was something quite gratifying about the fact that she’d managed to surprise him.

Furthermore, the minute she’d found out that he was moving back here permanently, she really should have given him a heads-up on Artemis525. She’d started to but then had ultimately chickened out. How did one begin that conversation, anyway?

By the way, Bennett, after you broke my heart, me and some of your other exes started a Web site designed with the express purpose of maligning your character. One woman in particular seems to really hate you and wish you harm. Frankly she gives me the creeps, so you might want to watch your back. (Insert uneasy laugh.) Welcome home.

Ha. She didn’t think so.

Kate had volunteered to be the bearer of that news, not her. And as luck would have it, Kate was on duty and Bennett was on his way out to the retirement home. Talk about karma. Eden picked up her cell and dialed her friend, hoping that she’d be sitting at the nurses’ desk.

“Golden Gate, your home away from heaven,” Kate’s weary voice came across the line.

“Thank God,” Eden replied, relieved.

“Eden? What’s wrong?”

“You’re never going to believe who I just stopped.”

“Bennett?”