“Well, I won’t take up your whole evening. I just wanted to introduce myself. You have a great night, Mr. O’Leary,” the woman said, placing her hand on Ben’s forearm as she excused herself.
“Please, call me Ben,” he begged.
“I think I like ‘Mr. O’Leary’ better,” Pattie said with a wink, before prancing across the lobby towards the main room of the charity event.
“Oh, I’m so sorry about that,” Will immediately began explaining, once the woman was out of hearing distance.
“It’s fine. I needed something to clear my mind anyway,” Ben chuckled, as he glanced back to the front door, remembering the episode with Katherine and her—husband.
“She has the biggest crush on you ever, and always calls before events to see if you’re going to be there,” Will added, telling his old friend about the cougar who had demanded his attention.
“Is she a big donor?” Ben asked.
“I’m sure she will be now,” Will chuckled.
“So, you’re just pimping me out then?” Ben asked, and the two men laughed together.
“I’m sorry, bro. She saw you go outside and I think she thought you might leave and didn’t want to miss her opportunity. I had to stop her from following you out the front doors.” Will shook his head.
“Yikes, I’m glad you did. That would have been awkward.”
The two friends looked at each other for a long moment, and without words, Ben let Will know things only got more dramatic after he followed Katherine out. It was never like them to hash out the details of their love lives. When he was trying to understand women, Ben went to Rachel. Generally, he and Will were all about a good time together.
“They’re going to begin the exit process soon. Do you want to go ahead and head out or find Rachel?” Will asked.
“Did you two ride together?”
“No, she met me here. I had to come way early to set up and check on the presentation,” Will explained.
“Right. I think I’ll see her at the office. You two have a good night,” Ben extended his hand before pulling Will into a hug.
“You let me know if you need anything, Ben.”
“No problem.”
“I mean it,” Will insisted.
“I know,” Ben smiled before heading back down the front steps of the hotel.
Standing on the curb, he tried to piece together how things had gone south so fast, but it was impossible. There was no way he could have predicted the drama filled night he’d experienced. Tapping on his smart phone, Ben alerted his driver that he was ready to leave, and told him to meet him at the back entrance.
Ben needed a bit of time to himself, taking deep breaths as he walked down the narrow sidewalk beside the hotel. His mind was blown, and his heart ached in a way it never had before. Plus, a part of him felt deeply responsible for Katherine’s safety, so knowing she was with someone behaving so aggressively made him uneasy.
His worst fear was that Katherine thought he deserted her. When the big man refused to back down, Ben was ready to do whatever it took to get rid of him, but things had changed with his revelation. There was no way he was going to interfere with a marriage, and that’s what Katherine was in.
Why she hadn’t told him was a mystery that just made no sense. There had been plenty of time in their private moments together to tell him she was married, but Katherine had decided against it. She hid a really major part of her life from him, and the look on her face when her two worlds came clashing together was devastating.
He didn’t know whether to defend or console her. She looked broken, and terrified, but Ben wasn’t sure of what. The man was barking too loudly for anyone to think clearly, and Ben just wanted it all to be over as quickly as possible.
He should have fought harder for her, but he was frozen when she stood silent after Tim said they were married. She didn’t deny it and now Ben walked through the crowded parking garage at the back of the hotel wondering if there was anything more he could have done for her.
She was always meek and he had left her in the hands of a man who didn’t seem to know her worth. Whether he was her husband or not, Ben had watched the man disrespect Katherine, and that was enough for him to dislike the guy.
No matter how he looked at the situation, Ben couldn’t begin to understand why Katherine would be married to such a jerk. She was too special not to know she deserved to be treated like a queen.
“Mr. O’Leary!” A loud call from across the parking garage startled Ben as he turned to see his driver.
“Back to the house,” Ben said, before climbing into