People want a real man, I made 'em wait this long.

People want a real man, I made 'em wait this long. by pinklipstiiick featuring leather shoes

I shoved my hands into my pockets, careful not to accidentally touch one of the girls in an improper way since I had just entered a party full of what looked like high schoolers. Long legs everywhere, dresses that were short enough to be t-shirts, yet their faces couldn't hide the truth. Not even with pounds of make up. I found Ben who had a huge grin on his face, the phone held up to his ear. I couldn't remember the last time he had looked so happy. "What's that look for handsome?" I asked after he slid the phone into his pocket. 

He turned his head in my direction, only just now realizing me standing there. Raising one brow at me, he kept smirking, "You're late." 

I grinned at how much he sounded like a girlfriend, knowing that if the straight life never worked out for me I'd make him my little bitch. Okay, not really, but still. "Now what I was talking about," I shook my head and shot him a smirk. 

"Cami told me to say hi to my boyfriend," He grinned back at me before taking a long sip of beer. 

I kept quiet for a few seconds, so confused by the Ben and Cami situation. They both were seeing other people, yet they couldn't stay away from each other beyond their obvious reason; Gabe. "Cami, uh?" I replied, not a fan of Celeste, but still not sure if Camille was the right woman for Ben either. They weren't over each other, that was clear, but then why did they break up?

"I called her to say good night to Gabe," He explained with a shrug, probably regretting bringing her up in the first place since he always froze up at the mere mention of his ex's name. He downed the last sip of his beer and glanced at me, giving me a look that lead me to expect a subject change, "I need another one. Ready to meet your future girlfriend?" 

And there it was.

"I know that the tall, hasn't eaten in a week type is what you prefer," I said, referring to the last few girls I had seen Ben with since we met. "But I like a girl with a little meat on her bones." And this girl he wanted to set me up with? My man boobs were bigger than hers... not that I'd ever say that out loud. 

His brows shot up as he tried not to grin, "You're a chubby chaser?"

I laughed at the term and shook my head, "I like curves. If her face isn't that great? My eyes need a good distraction while she's riding me."

He shook his head and clasped a hand on my shoulder to lead me in the direction of what I was hoping was the bar. "Such a romantic. Now I see why you don't have a girlfriend," He joked, making me grin.

"Did you forget, I have two," I joked back, knowing that in a way Evie and Erin were technically like girlfriends. I hated labels though, I hated the officialism of it all and when it ended? It made everything that much harder.

"Still no word from Brigitte?"

I parted my lips then shut them, stopping as a drunk girl stumbled in front of me. She didn't look a day over 16 and while I wanted to complain to Ben for having dragged me here? I remained silent on the subject. "If the cops show up, we're not going to get busted are we?" I asked instead, genuinely curious. 

He rolled his eyes, "They're all over 18."

I highly doubted that.

"You're avoiding my question," He added when I didn't say anything, reaching the bar finally and getting us both a bottle of beer. I felt like I was in a bad episode of 90210. 

"She sent over a box of my things. Honestly, I didn't even know I had left anything of mine at her house... maybe she took them from mine instead," I said with a nonchalant shrug, not wanting him to know it bothered me. I wasn't heartless after all and Brig was one of the first friends I had made when I moved here.

He stared at me as he took a sip of his beer, "Doubtful." He paused, then decided to go on, "Just like that, it's over?" 

"You make it sound like we were married," I shot him a grin, playing it off as if it were nothing. He raised one brow at me, neither surprised or happy with my answer. But he said nothing. "After the scene she made there wasn't much left to say," I added and then took a long sip from my bottle.

Ben turned around and leaned his forearms on the counter as he kept his head turned in my direction, looking genuinely curious about what I was going through. "I agree on that one. From what you said? She was worse than Chloe and that's a lot." At the mere mention of his sister, I groaned and he smirked, "First and last time I'll say her name, I swear." 

"Thanks," I said flatly, only making him grin wider. I had enough on my plate already, I didn't need him grilling me on his sister yet again. I didn't know what Celeste had told him, but gossip was gossip, vicious lies spread to piss people off. Unfortunately for me, I got pissed off a little too easily. 

"Anyway, isn't it weird?" 

"What is weird? What are you even saying?" I smirked this time, treating him like he was talking nonsense.  

He ignored me and shot me an amused look before turning serious again, "Ending things after so long, without even a word. She used to be your friend at the beginning," He pointed out, remembering when I had told him the story of how the two of us had met. It wasn't love at first site of course, but god was Brigitte gorgeous. She carried herself with confidence, the first thing that had drawn me to her... well that and those curves.

"Yeah it's weird, but that's what women do," I grinned at him and wrapped an arm around his shoulder to pull him closer so we were side by side. "Thank god I still have my favorite girl."

He grinned and shook his head, "Man you mean."

"Sure," I smirked back at him and winked, dropping my hand to my side and taking another sip of my beer. "Where's your girl by the way?"

"Eager to meet her friend?" He joked, knowing I didn't want to be here tonight. The things I'd do for this man, I swear. 

"Dying to," I replied in a monotone, scanning the crowd before my eyes landed back on Ben. "Did you tell her about the trip yet?"

"If I did, do you think I'd be here now?" He replied back, getting a chuckle out of me since that more than answered my question. Celeste was naive, but she wasn't stupid enough to let her boyfriend leave on a romantic getaway without at least putting up some sort of fight. Women were territorial, sure Gabe would be there, but my guess was she'd focus on Cami's presence instead. 

"Has Cami told Dante yet?" I grinned at my new round of questions, thankful the subject was once again off me. "Better question, will you two be sharing a bed and cuddling again?"

At the mere mention of his name, Ben rolled his eyes. "I didn't say we cuddled," He grinned as he spoke. "Not that time." 

I raised one brow, processing his words because I was almost positive I had heard him wrong, "Not that time? Am I missing something?" 

He shrugged and played innocent, "Do you want another beer?" 

"Do you want me to go away?" I threatened, amusement showing on my face as he rolled his eyes yet again.

"I was just trying to create some suspense," He grinned eventually and took a sip from his bottle before tearing his eyes away from mine and staring in front of him. "We slept together again." 

"I can't say I'm surprised even if I am in a way," I said from beside him, my tone borderline silly since we were never able to stay serious. He brought out that side to me... the one most people thought I had been born without. 

He shot me a side glance as he let a small smirk play on his lips, "We cuddled like old times..." He trailed off, looking lost in his own memories. They couldn't have just cuddled... not with that goofy ass look on his face. "I was so hard," He muttered under his breath, shaking his head as if he was talking to himself. And maybe he was.

I stared at him blankly, struggling not to touch on that one. But come on. "Excuse me?" I cleared my throat and a grin appeared on my lips. 

He looked back at me with a brow cocked, "What?"

"You were hard? Did she notice?" My grin widened as I imagined that, Camille probably blushing since she seemed like the type. Nowadays, women rarely blushed since you could turn the TV on and find porn oh HBO.

Ben shook his head and I think he was trying to resist the urge to roll his eyes at me again, "Of course she noticed."

"So what did she do?" I asked curiously, wondering if that smile on his face was for another reason than a silly comment his ex had made. I swear I'd never understand the two of them, but Ben seemed fine with how things were... then again, if I got to cuddle Cami then go home and fuck my model girlfriend? I wouldn't be complaining either. 

"What do you mean what did she do?" He asked, stalling. 

"Did she dominate you in bed? Claim you as her bitch?" I joked with a smirk, trying to picture how the petite brunette might be in bed since they say that the quiet ones are always the craziest. 

At that, he couldn't help but laugh, "Yeah, I wish." 

I grinned, knowing that he was joking but still meant it even if a little. "Was she gentle instead and begged you to-" 

"Nothing happened," He cut me off and sighed, his tone giving him away. "She just kind of ignored it." 

"A low blow for your ego. Literally," I smirked wider, beyond amused by his words and the way he was opening up. "I bet she was wet though." 

"I hope so." 

I grinned back at Ben who rarely ever talked about his personal life in detail, I was the same way, but suddenly it was like he wanted to share. It was about time, we were basically boyfriends after all. Letting out a low laugh, I digested his last confession. "You hope so?" I echoed him. 

He shrugged, not very nonchalant. "It'd mean she still finds me attractive," He said simply before finishing his second beer.

I finished my own beer and set it down on the counter top, nodding my head, "Well that one is a no brainer."

"I know you find me attractive Tristan," He grinned, motioning for the bartender to bring us two more.

"And so does Cami, so does Celeste," I scanned the room, noticing more than a few eyes on Ben. He was a good looking man, hard to notice. When I told him that he could have literally any woman? I meant it. "Hell, half the girls in this room are checking you out right now..."

He let out a chuckle, "They're probably looking at you. Maybe they overheard us and know you're down to two women and have an opening in your harem."

"Ha," I snorted and shook my head, needing a break from the drama women could bring. "Two is more than enough for me right now, but I don't need to tell you that. You have your hands full with Celeste and Camille."

He shot me a glance, trying to act like that wasn't the case at all when it was. "I have my hands full of nothing instead," He said back flatly, reaching for his freshly opened beer and taking a sip. 

"Well I'm sure that's about to change..." I trailed off, looking in front of us as Celeste navigated her way over to us with her head down and her fingers typing out a text message quickly. I scanned her body and kept my face neutral, no curves in sight. "You should take her to dinner more, poor girl I bet she hasn't seen a steak in forever." 

"You totally picked the wrong job, comedian would have been the right one for you," He smirked, not even bothered by my words since I never missed a chance to remind him of how thin Celeste was. He turned his head in my direction with a somewhat worried look on his handsome face, "Please don't say anything like that when she's here." 

I raised one brow slowly, wondering if he really thought I would do something like that. At work maybe, but not here, not when she was dating my best friend. I wasn't that fucked up. "I'll try to bite my tongue," I said eventually as my smirk fell back into place. 

"Good, or I'll spank your ass," He grinned back.

"I'll leave the spanks for Celeste," I smirked, not even able to picture having sex with that girl. She wasn't bad looking, she was gorgeous actually. But she was good looking in the high fashion sense... not the kind of woman you were dying to get into bed.

"Cami's the one who likes being spanked instead," He said right before Celeste looked up at us and smiled, saving Ben's ass since I was about to go to town on him with his last confession.

"Kari's running late," She said and sighed, leaning her body into Ben's while he wrapped an arm around her waist. Her eyes were still on her phone and they lit up a little, "She said she's down the block."

"Great, I can hardly wait," I said sarcastically even though I knew she wouldn't catch it. Ben though? He shot me a look that had me grinning since he caught it and he knew me well.

"Oh! Now she's stuck in traffic."

"Damn traffic," I sighed dramatically and shook my head. "Thanks for the play-by-play by the way. The suspense was killing me."

She looked up at me as if just noticing I was there, her lips parted and for a second I expected a smartass comment back. Until her phone beeped. "She's out front. Want to come with me baby boo?" She smiled at Ben.

I glanced at Ben, noticing him cringe. Couldn't blame him. When he raised a brow and said nothing, she let out a chuckle and leaned into him to kiss him chastely. "Sorry," She said with a smile on her pretty face before pulling away from him and winking at me, "I got it. I'll leave you with your man." 

I watched her walk away before looking back at Ben with a smirk on my face, "Adorable." 

"She's pretty cute," He agreed. 

"I was talking about you baby boo," I said back and my grin got so big that it went from one ear to the other, making Ben groan instantly. 

"You're going to bring that up forever now, right?" He asked flatly as he glanced at me. I knew that if positions were switched? He'd do the same thing.

I nodded and took a sip of my beer, amusement still showing on my face, "It's kind of impossible to forget." 

He sighed but didn't argue, knowing that I had a point. A silly one but still. Glancing away from me, he looked lost in his thoughts again. "I think I'm going to leave her soon." He paused, not looking at me as he dropped yet another one of his confession bombs on me. "I saw Cami with that man the other night and I don't want her with him. I want her with me again," He said in one breath then stopped, my eyes widening on their own since once again? I was not expecting that.

"Baby boo, you're drunk and I'm officially cutting you off," I said after it seemed like five minutes had passed, making a show of reaching for his beer. I didn't know what to say to be honest. I was so used to only mentioning the name Cami when I wanted to rile Ben up... but now he was thinking that he wanted to be with her? Where the fuck did that come from?

"I'm not drunk," He shook his head and grabbed the bottle back, taking a slow sip.

I lifted a brow and just stared at him, trying to calculate how many beers he could have had tonight and no, he couldn't be drunk. Unless Celeste could drink him under the table and that was highly doubtful considering she weight about as much as a bag of wet feathers.

"Well?" He asked when I said nothing.

I shrugged, "What do you want me to say? What you want to hear or my real opinion on the matter?"

"What do you think?"

I grinned at his response then got serious again since we were talking about the mother of his child after all. "You only want Cami because she isn't available to you anymore," I said seriously. 

"That's not -"

"If it's not true, then why are you here tonight? With Celeste," I asked. "If you wanted Cami then you'd be with her instead of dating another girl, because honestly? Sleeping with another girl doesn't exactly scream that you want to get back with your ex." 

He parted his lips, processing my words, then closed them again. I stared at him, silently urging him to go on when he finally did, "I tried to make it work with Celeste, it just took me a lot to realize it couldn't because of Cami." 

"A lot of cuddling?" I asked as I smirked again, "Or a lot of seeing her with that man?" 

He shrugged, "Both probably. But I'll be done with Celeste soon, that must count for something." 

"And then? What's the plan? You'll just go and take Cami back like a caveman?" I raised one eyebrow, not able to stop teasing him even if the subject was a serious one. Maybe that's why I joked though, to make the situation seem lighter.

He let out a laugh, even if it was a weak one. "Yeah sure," He rolled his eyes. 

I took a sip of my beer, then licked the foam off the corner of my mouth, "If you'll wear a piece of leather only you can have good chances to succeed." 

"I'll do nothing instead," He said and forced a smirk as he looked back at me, "Can we go back to your harem? It was much more fun to talk about."

I shook my head and grinned, ignoring the harem reference, "You'll do nothing or wear nothing instead? That's a good way to make her forget about Dante."

"You keep bringing him up," He narrowed his eyes on me. "Is he your new best friend or something?"

I let out a small laugh, "No. You wouldn't fight for me and I'd lose my boyfriend."

"Lies," He said as a small smile played on his lips.

I shot him a look, the same one I'm sure every member of his family gave him... hell, anyone who had ever seen him interact with his ex. "You won't even fight for the woman you -"

"Miss me?" A small voice cut in and I widened my eyes, finding Celeste back on Ben, grabbing at his arm like a lost puppy. I wondered how much she had heard but by the clueless look on her face? It was safe to say she hadn't heard much. 

Beyond her shoulder, a tall brunette smiled at me and extended her hand, "I'm Kari. You must be Ben's friend."

"Tristan," I said and shook her hand, wanting to remind her that we'd met before. Five times or so. But I thought better of it. 

"Why are you being so quiet?" Celeste poked at Ben's nose, a move I'd seen him do to Gabe before.   

He groaned and grabbed her finger, a ridiculous pout appearing on her face that turned Ben into a softy within seconds. "Tristan talks a lot, I can barely open my mouth," He smirked at her, bringing her finger to his lips and biting it playfully. 

I raised one eyebrow, about to speak when Kari beat me to the punch, "It means he's an interesting person." 

"Interesting sounds boring," Ben smirked as he let Celeste's thin body lean against his, her arm around his waist and her head against his chest. 

I shot him a blank look again before moving my gaze to the brunette, "We already met once." 

Her lips formed a small o, her eyes widening a little in surprise as if she was trying to recall ever meeting me. "Tristan's a casting director." Celeste cut into the conversation. 

"Sorry, I've seen so many..." She trailed off and blushed. She wasn't bad looking, I'd booked her half a dozen gigs in the past in fact, but she wasn't my type. The high fashion look got you far in the industry, but it didn't get you into my bed basically.

"I guess I have a bad memory." 

"Don't worry, it took me a few times to recognize him too at the beginning," Ben smirked as he shot me an amused look to make the moment lighter. 

"You mean it was love at first sight instead," I tossed a grin his way, Kari giggling like I had just said the funniest thing on earth and leaning her body into mine. This had to be a setup, something Celeste thought would be a brilliant idea to get the double date that she'd been asking Ben for. 

"You're not his type," Celeste said seriously, making me resist the urge to tell her she wasn't either. I'd play nice for Ben's sake.... plus she wasn't doing anything wrong. It wasn't her fault her boyfriend had no idea what he wanted in life. 

I shrugged instead of speaking, Ben shooting me a thankful glance since he knew me and where my mind was. He did just drop that huge Cami bomb on me not more than ten minutes ago. "So you two are roommates," I looked at Kari then at Celeste and back at Kari again.

She nodded and bit into her bottom lip, her eyes wide and reminding me a lot of Bambi. "We are," She pressed up against me, almost making her way onto my lap. "And best friends."

"Do you stay up all night doing each others nails and hair?" I joked with a grin, not sure what the hell girls did with each other when they had sleepovers or considered each other besties... but I'm pretty sure it was nothing sexy along the lines of what men thought. Instead of lacy lingerie, I pictured old beat up shirts that they recycled for pajamas... and sweats. 

"It doesn't take all night but yes," She answered and bit down on her lip again, making it obvious that she was more interested in me than her hair. 

Celeste looked up at Ben, her lips curving into a smirk as she lowered her voice, nearly purring, "Not tonight anyway." 

He stared at her and parted his lips, sensing my attention and looking a little uncomfortable. "I can't tonight," He said eventually, her face change instantly as the smirk was replaced by a straight line. "But we're still going out for lunch tomorrow, okay?" He added, brushing his thumb against her cheek. 

"Okay," She sighed eventually, not looking too happy but not too upset either. Women were so god damned confusing, Celeste especially. Sometimes I wondered if she could sense Ben's feelings for his ex... it made me wonder why she settled on being his second choice. Her eyes moved to her friend as she pulled away from Ben, "I need to freshen up." 

Kari nodded as she gave her a look that had to be a girls thing, both of them walking away from us again just as Ben let out a deep breath. "So you say no to sleeping together tonight, but yes to lunch tomorrow?" I asked in confusion. "I don't understand you sometimes." 

He turned his head in my direction and shot me a blank look, not annoyed but not amused either. "I'm leaving her tomorrow," He said flatly and left it at that, turning away from me to get the bartenders attention. 

"Not with a hangover you won't," I grinned, trying to make light of the moment. Sometimes I tried to be supportive but only ended up sounding more judgmental than anything else. I wasn't sure how Ben had been so willing to stick around and put up with me, but I was more than thankful for that... thankful for him. 

"I'm not a lightweight like you," He joked back, still looking as serious as ever. The guy had a lot on his mind and that was obvious. Love fucked with emotions, changed people completely. 

I let out a chuckle and shook my head, "Whatever you're about to order? Get me one too."

"Two whiskies," He told the bartender then looked back at me. 

"I'm not judging you. You haven't done anything wrong," I said seriously, only wanting him to be happy whether it meant him ending up with his ex or a leggy model he might meet tomorrow. 

"I know," He said with a small nod, glancing away from me as two glasses slid across the counter in our direction. 

"Are you sure this is what you want?" I asked, noticing how his mood had changed. He wasn't heartless, the complete opposite instead. He might not be in love with Celeste, but he cared enough about her to not want to hurt her. 

"Yes, I love whiskey," He answered seriously before breaking into a genuine grin as he brought the glass to his lips to take a long gulp. 

I rolled my eyes but smirked to myself, my action mirroring his. "One time I try to be serious with you and it goes to waste," I shook my head. 

He shrugged as the burning alcohol went down his throat, "Thanks for trying." When his eyes moved to mine again and he noticed the dead serious look I was sporting, he looked like he might laugh. "What do you mean this is what I want? What's this?" He asked eventually, a sigh escaping him and showing his frustration.  

"I don't know you tell me," I said back, studying his unreadable expression. There was confusion mixed with that frustration... and something else. 

"I want to finish things with Celeste, and I'm sure about that," He ran his hand through his hair, wincing at the thought of it. No matter how messed up things might be in their relationship, the whole no label thing, she'd still get hurt. 

"And?" I asked with a brow raised, sipping my whiskey slowly. 

"And I want to try again with Cami, but I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon," He sighed, his timing awful since it made his intentions questionable. His serious face turned into a silly one as he looked back at me, "You can have me all for you for a while."

"I like the sound of that, but I'm not going to cuddle you," I said with a smirk, winking at him which caused him to laugh. I missed seeing Ben happy. Obviously Celeste wasn't making the cut since she'd failed to keep him happy... maybe Cami would be better for him. As much as I had discouraged the idea of them getting back together in the past? I'd never been in love before, so what did I know?  

He faked a pout and I broke into a laugh before he even had the chance to speak again. 

"Are we interrupting something?" Celeste asked and looked at Ben with wide eyes. She wasn't used to seeing this side of me, the nice side.

He shook his head and kept his grin in place, "Tristan was just trying to get me over to his house for cuddles."

She looked at me while I shrugged, "Guilty. I can't stand the thought of him sleeping alone tonight."

"I can do something about that," She said softly as she tried again, a coy look on her face. 

"Actually, tonight you're mine," Kari cut in, tossing a sexy look my way. Maybe she wasn't my type, but she had that come hither look on her face and probably wasn't used to being turned down. It made me wonder what they had talked about in the bathroom because I pictured Kari telling Celeste to play hard to get while she did the exact opposite of her own advice. Women were a complete mystery like that. 

"Does the birthday girl want cuddles?" Celeste asked her friend and grinned, my eyes moving to Ben and then I rolled them, knowing what game they were playing and having no interest in it. 

"The birthday girl wants shots!" She replied back while I silently prayed that they wouldn't refer to her as that for the rest of the night. She waved the bartender over, "A round of tequila shots for me and my friends! It's my 21st birthday!!"

Oh god. 

"Can I see your ID?" The guy flirted back, "You don't look at day over 20."

She raised one eyebrow at him, not impressed, "So what? For what I know you need to be 18 to drink here." 

The guy laughed and shook his head, aligning four shot glasses on the counter before filling them to the rim. "Well, happy birthday," He said with a smirk. 

She turned towards us as Ben glanced at me, my brow raised which summed up how I felt. "Happy birthday to me!" She said when we all downed the shots, my friend and I not as excited as the girls.

Ben set the empty glass back on the counter and looked at Celeste, "It's time for me to go." 

I glanced at him, surprised by his announcement since I had literally just showed up at the club... and he was the one who made me come in the first place. "No, please," She pouted as she leaned her body into his, looking at him with her best bambi eyes. 

He forced a smile and pulled away gently, setting his hand on her hip, "I have to get up early tomorrow." 

Kari shook her head at him before moving her eyes to me, looking at me like she had every intention on bringing me back to her place for a night of missionary sex. There was something about exceptionally good looking women... like they thought men should feel honored to sleep with them and in return, expected them to do all the work. "You're not going too, are you?" She asked and bit her lip, trying to impress me with a sexy move when it took a lot more than that to impress me. I was immune to pouts and coy looks.

"Unfortunately, I am," I said back, my expression showing how much I wasn't sorry about it. 

Ben shot me an amused glance, "He needs to keep an eye on me to be sure I'll get home safe...he's overprotective like that."

"He loves being tucked in," I added with a shrug, keeping my expression serious since in all honesty, I was relieved to get the hell out of there. 

Kari threw her head back and broke into a fit of giggles, "Oh god! You guys are too much!"

"Usually I get a lot worse than that," I smirked and stood up.

Celeste had a frown on her face, big wide and innocent eyes to complete the look, "Are you sure? I can leave now if you want company..."

"No," Ben shook his head and pushed her stray hairs out of her face and behind her ear. "Stay with your friend and have fun. I'll call you tomorrow and we can decide on a place for lunch."

"Or we can go to our place..." She trailed off and leaned back into him, pulling every stop and still failing. I had to give it to her, she didn't give up easily. "The one where we first met."

"If it's what you want," He said simply and kissed her head before pulling back, either choosing to ignore the sad look on her pretty face or genuinely missing it. 

"Yeah," She said quietly and nodded her head before looking at me and the distance I had already put between myself and Kari who had given up on me and was flirting shamelessly with the bartender now. "Take good care of my baby. It was good seeing you Tristan!"

"As always," I smiled with a small nod, turning to leave before one of the girls tried protesting one more time. "You didn't tell her about the vacation, did you?" I asked when we were out of earshot from them.  

He looked straight ahead, avoiding my gaze on purpose. "I didn't," He said simply and shrugged, leaving out the part that included any real feelings. I knew that he cared and didn't want to hurt Celeste. He was a stand up kind of guy like that. 

"That's all you're going to say?" I pushed, curious where his mind was at and genuinely wanting to help. I wasn't great at advice, but the least I could do was listen.

As we stepped outside, Ben finally glanced at me with a serious look on his face, "I had no reason to tell her about it, it would've made things ever worse."

"She's going to find out," I pointed out and raised one eyebrow at him, both of us walking with our hands in the pocket of our jeans. From the outside, we probably looked pretty silly, even if we were being serious for once. 

He sighed and looked lost in a thought, making me wonder what was going on in that pretty little head of his. "There's not a right way to handle this situation, whatever I could do it'd be wrong in some way and Celeste will get hurt no matter what," He reasoned out loud, his tone showing how frustrated he was.

I nodded my head but shrugged my shoulders, "True, but she had to know what she was getting into. First off? You have a son who is your life and second? There's Cami and..." I trailed off, pulling a hand from my pocket to run it through my hair. 

"Go on," He said when I didn't.

"Anyone who has ever seen you and your ex together knows that you two aren't over each other," I said honestly, saying it out loud for the first time since I always chose to stay out of Ben's business when it came to Camille. I made a few jokes here and there, but the serious shit? That was usually off limits. 

He kept silent with the serious expression on his face only getting more intense. I'd hate to be in his position, stuck in love with someone and trying to more on, only to realize it was useless. Plus everyone got on his case about it, taking the girls side since men were so bad and blah blah blah. "Maybe," He said finally and simply. 

"If she wasn't seeing that douche, would you still feel the same way you feel right now?" I asked curiously and looked at him from the corner of my eye. "The vacation... dumping Celeste..."

"Yes," He answered quickly as he nodded his head. "I'd feel the same. Damn, I've been feeling this way for years." 

"And you realized that just now when you saw her with him?" I asked, genuinely skeptical. "Talking about timing." 

He let out a deep breath, knowing that I had a point. "It's not like I saw her with him and I decided that I want her back just because I'm jealous," He tried to explain and when I stared at him with an eyebrow raised he lifted his hands in surrender, "Okay, that too. But it's more like, seeing them together made me understand how much I'm missing her in my life." 

"I'm not sure if I'm getting this right," I told him with a grin on my face, trying to make the moment lighter since this shit was getting a little too serious for comfort. The things I'd do for Ben. "You sound confused handsome." 

He glanced at me and sighed, "That I am. Handsome and confused." I laughed as he smirked, turning serious again as he went on. "The idea of the vacation though...that's a whole other story. I had been thinking to take Gabe away for months, then I realized that Cami would have hated to stay away from him while we were on some beach having fun. That's why I asked her to come, not to get her back."

"So it'll be an innocent vacation with your son," I reasoned, watching him nod his head. "And you're not going to try anything."

"Is that a question or a statement?" He grinned and I shook my head. 

"How many rooms are at this place? Maybe I need to come and be the buffer," I joked when he made an unreadable expression. "What?"

He was running a hand through his hair again and I knew that the next words out of his mouth were going to make me groan. "There's only two bedrooms, but if you like sleeping on the couch, you're welcome to stop by," He grinned and I groaned.

"Let me guess, you two will be sharing a room?"

He shrugged innocently while I forced myself not to laugh again, knowing my friend well and knowing that he was only a man. "Nothings going to happen," He said and I wondered if it was more for my benefit or his.

"So when Cami starts taking off her clothes for bed time and she's wearing something lacy and see through, you're just going to look the other way?" I grinned.

"This isn't that kind of vacation," He narrowed his eyes on me. "She's not going to walk around in lingerie."

"Walk around in it? Probably not," I concurred. "But its a vacation and women always bring skimpy lingerie on vacation. And since you two are sharing a room, you'll probably shower together to conserve water also. But yeah, I'm sure that nothing will happen."

"You're so hilarious, really," He said flatly, even though he couldn't hide the hint of amusement in his voice. I just shrugged, my grin still in place. "If she asked, I wouldn's say no. You know I care about environment and stuff." 

At that, I laughed and shook my head, "Oh yeah, next step is becoming vegan." I joked with him, "But as your friend I should remind you that less then one minute ago you said nothing is going to happen." 

"I said I'm not going to try anything," He retorted and smirked, being a smartass, "But I said nothing about her making a move on me." 

My grin got wider as I turned my head to look at my friend, "Now I think you're just overrating yourself, you're not that irresistible." 

"Ouch," He faked a pout and brought a hand to his heart, faking offense. "I wish I was, like you." 

"You're lucky I don't get to spend time with Camille," I said suggestively and he didn't even groan, too used to me to know the way I joked.

"You wouldn't do anything anyway, you'd never cheat on me," He joked back and shot me a silly face that had me grinning, "I, on the other hand..." 

"I don't think any straight man would be able to turn down a woman like her," I said seriously, knowing how hard it was to find a woman who wasn't just gorgeous, but could carry a conversation also. 

"I know, she's just too perfect," He nodded in agreement, "But she'd never try anything with me, so I'll just die of frustration by the end of the vacation."

"Death by spooning your ex? I could think of worse ways to go," I smirked and tossed a wink his way. He let out a small laugh and parted his lips before I spoke up again, "And don't even tell me that you're not going to cuddle her. You know it and I know it."

"Oh, there's nothing wrong with cuddling," He agreed and grinned wide. I smiled at my friend, never seeing him this happy when he spoke about Celeste... usually he'd just grumble at me how they weren't really together or serious. "What?"

I shook my head, "You look happy."

"I'm always happy," He retorted quietly. "Where are we going?"

"My house. I'm not done drinking yet," I replied as my phone vibrated in my back pocket. I pulled it out, lifting a brow at the picture Kari had just sent me of her making some face that resembled a fish. "Did you give Celeste's friend my number?" I groaned, a few more texts appearing instantly. I wasn't a texter, I hated in in fact. I felt bad not replying and always ended up in awkward, never ending conversations.

 Ben leaned closer to look over my shoulder, smirking and shaking his head at the picture, "Not interested?"

"I left with you," I said flatly. "What's that say?"

"That you're a dedicated girlfriend?"

I laughed and slapped the back of his head gently, "You're lucky you're so pretty."