Princess Margaret Suite ….
Meg waited patiently for Ben to take the dinner dishes to the kitchen, eager to hear the next few chapters of Black Beauty. She'd settled down into bed, her mind still pondering his early kiss. Meg recollected how his thumb had danced over her cheek and how Ben had swept in and kissed her. She'd felt herself blushing long after he'd closed the door and left.
"Are you ready, Meg?" Ben's voice interrupted her musings.
"Yes, whenever you are, Ben." She smiled, happy to use his name, happy to shed the formality between them for a change.
Ben perched on the side of the bed and picked up where he'd left off. Both of his feet were still on the floor, a self-imposed precaution. A part of him that the Mountie had only listened to once or twice wanted to crawl beneath the covers with Meg and pull her against his chest and hold her until her world was right again.
Meg listened as he read, sitting silently, absorbing Ben's every word. She let herself get lost in the sound of his musical, reverent tones as they wove the spell of the story across her imagination. It wasn't like the times Meg had called him out on the carpet to explain his behavior or a report, this was Ben wrapping himself in the shroud of fiction, swirling with the turn of every page. His voice conveyed the sadness and the joy of the story.
Ben stopped in mid-sentence when he heard the first of ten chimes signaling eye drop time. He finished the sentence before bookmarking the page. Meg sighed, wishing that the hours had passed more slowly. Her few hours with Ben were the highlight of her day.
"Let's get it over with." Meg said as she rolled her shoulders to rid herself of the tension. She leaned her head back against the headboard.
"Has there been any change in your vision yet?" Ben asked as he rolled the medicine bottle between his hands to warm the liquid.
"Yes, there's beginning to be a noticeable change, but I still can't make out anything useful just yet." Meg wished she could see Ben's face while she had her eye patches off. What she could see of him was glorious, yet blurry. Even blurry, Ben was handsome to her.
"Try to look back at the wall behind you, please." Ben instructed. Meg frowned at him a moment, but did as she was asked. She rolled her eyes backward. Half a second later she felt the drops hit her eyes a microsecond apart. Jerking, Meg blinked rapidly, trying to get the drops to settle and not drain down her sinuses.
"Was that better than last time?" Ben asked, meaning the drops.
"Yes." Meg answered, thinking to herself, "No, last time you kissed me."
"I'll see you in the morning." Ben set the book and eye drops on the dresser, turning to leave he heard,
"Ben, could you read a bit longer, I'm no where near sleepy." Meg asked, hoping she wasn't imposing, but secretly wanting to spend more time with the Mountie in this informal setting.
"That is if you aren't too tired." She rushed to offer. If only she could have seen him smile. Ben saw through her.
"That would be fine, I'm enjoying reading." He said, actually saying in his own way that he was happy to keep Meg company.
"Thank you, Ben." Meg smiled, her face turned in his direction.
"My pleasure, Meg." He saw her wiggle her toes beneath the comforter. Ben sat back down on the bed after retrieving the book. Once again they dove into the story of one horse's life from his point of view. Meg hoped there would be time for a second book before she was officially well.
Midnight …
Meg heard the twelve church bells but didn't say anything. She knew it was getting late and that Ben woke up early every morning. Two hours of bliss had passed since he'd given her her eye drops. Two hours of listening to his steady, wonderful voice. Her heart sank when she heard Ben yawn.
"I've kept you awake far too long haven't I?" Meg said after he yawned a second time a moment later.
"I'm fine, we're almost finished with this chapter." Ben tried to allay her concerns.
"You're indulging me, Ben, I know you're tired, you should get some rest before work tomorrow." Meg insisted, her tone edging into Inspector mode.
"Yes, I am indulging you, that's what you do when you love someone." Ben thought, surprising himself. Love? That thought hadn't hit him in a while.
"Go on, get some rest." Meg nudged his leg with her foot through the comforter, nodding her head toward the door. "I'll make it an order if you argue." She said softly, teasing him. Gently, she felt him squeeze her ankle as he set his feet on the floor.
"You rest as well." He still held her foot. "Good night."
Meg waited silently, wondering what Ben's next move would be.
"See you in the morning." Ben turned off the lamp on the nightstand as Meg scooted down into the bed. She caught his hand by the wrist, sitting back up. Without saying a word, she pressed his hand to her lips, kissing his knuckles. Her spontaneity surprised even Meg.
"See you in the morning, Ben." Meg released his hand and pulled herself back into the warm, comforter cocoon.
"Sleep well, Meg." Ben said softly very near her ear.
"You too." She answered into the darkness. A moment later the lady Mountie heard the door close and Ben's footsteps on the stairs.
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Ben walked down stairs and out onto the back stoop to take a deep breath. He needed a lung full of fresh, night air to clear his mind and keep himself from going right back up those stairs and crawling into bed with Meg. Ben craved her touch, ached to smell her intoxicating, mysterious Meg scent and feel her against him.
"I've been single too long." He told himself as he looked at the small circle of light cast by the security light in the miniscule back yard. Dief walked up to his human friend and sat down to stare at the city surrounding them.
"Still haven't taken control of her have you." Dief looked up to say, his amber eyes looking ageless in the yellow light.
"That doesn't work with human females, they get upset about it." Fraser shoved his hands into his pockets as he looked down at his furry friend. "Female wolves and women are two, entirely different species."
"They're both mammals and both can be very vicious." Dief countered, turning to stare into the night.
"And both absolutely endearing." Ben said aloud with a smile.
"She's got you pinky wrapped as Ray would say." Dief shook his head, rolling his amber eyes. That started a friendly bickering session between the two. Male bonding is bonding, despite the species difference.
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