He tossed the book aside and let my knees rest on either side of his legs. I glanced down to make sure the skirt of my dress wasn't riding up too far. Ben's warm hand rested on my back. My hand fell on his shoulder.
"I made you some coffee," I said. "Thank you," he said.
I sat on him and was silent for a few seconds. Ben stared at me and smiled. My eyes returned to the cup of coffee. I almost finally escaped. I wanted to pick up the cup and pour the scalding liquid down his throat.
"You'd better drink it before it gets cold," I said.
"I know," he said.
I screamed as he turned us around quickly. He caught us so that my back was against the couch and he was hovering over me. His lips were against mine, they were hungry. I kissed him, literally grabbing his wrist as his hand began to move up my thigh. He pulled his arm out of my grasp and moved his lips to my neck. His hands returned to my thighs and I began to squirm in his grasp, trying to pull him off me.
"Ben, what are you doing?" I asked.
"What do you think?" he asked. "I love you."
"I love you too." I lied.
I grabbed his hand and pulled it off my thigh. I wrapped my fingers around him so he wouldn't touch my private parts again.
"I'm just not in the mood," I said.
Ben took a deep breath. He brought our fingers together to his lips and kissed the back of my hand.
"I would never force you," he said.
He was lying on the sofa. I grabbed the coffee cup and handed it to Ben. He didn't sit up higher on the couch, cup hanging on his chest. He put one hand on the cup and the other behind his head.
"Has Oliver touched you?" Ben asked.
"No," I said, shaking my head. "Well, no."
"You know you can talk to me if he does, right?"
"Drink your coffee."
I gave him a smile that made him think I was joking. I really just wanted him to drink that cup of coffee.
"I will," he said. "I need to let it cool down first." There was a sound of something tapping on the window in the room. I looked out the window and saw raindrops hitting the glass. I grabbed the quilt from the sofa and draped it over my shoulders. It trailed along the floor as I walked to the window. The wind blew through the leaves.
The couch creaked as Ben looked at me.
The sliding door is on my side. I could start running, but that would ruin my plans. Ben would never drink this coffee.
Ben grabbed my hips and I jumped. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me against his body. He tilted his head down and rested his chin on my shoulder.
"I love when it rains," Ben said. “It always makes everything more comfortable.”
I turned around and put my hand on Ben's chest. I gently pushed him back, leaving a little space between us.
"Indeed," I said. "Today is a great day to sit on the couch, read a book, and drink coffee."
Ben smiled and took my face in his hands. He swirled his fingers around the ends of my short hair. "Are you feeling okay?" he asked. "You look a little strange today."
"I'm fine," I said. "I guess I'm still a little nervous."
Be
The smile disappeared briefly, but quickly returned. He kissed my forehead and pulled me against his chest. He flinched when my hand reached his abdomen and I slid it higher to avoid his infection.
"I'm sorry this is so hard for you," he said. "First there was your surgery, then training for dinner. Next, we were in the Caribbean, and a few days later we escaped Bethany and Oliver. Then there was my infection. But we're both fine now, honey. You You can relax now."
I took a deep breath and leaned my head against him. He tightened his arms around me and kissed the top of my head. After Ben finished his coffee I could finally relax.
"I'm happy," I lied. "Can we go back to the couch? I'm still tired."
"Of course," he said.
Ben kissed my hand and pulled me to the couch. He lay on his back,
To my dismay, his poisoned coffee lay untouched on the table. Ben moved the covers over us both. He ran his fingers up and down my back.
I kept my eyes on the coffee. Instead of grabbing it, Ben continued to rub my back. When his fingers stopped, I hoped he was about to reach for the cup. I glanced over and saw his eyes were closed and his lips were parted.
I wasn't planning on drinking this coffee. My perfect opportunity to escape slipped through my fingers. Poisoning is no longer possible, but I still have a chance to get out. When we go to bed, Ben closes the bedroom door because it makes a loud squeaking sound every time I try to open it. We're on the couch. He couldn't hear any doors opening. The only sound he could hear was from the front door. That doesn't matter at all. I had my car keys and I was ready to hit the road.
I lifted a corner of the quilt. I slid Ben's hands from my back and placed them on his chest. I walked to the carpet and tucked the quilt back over Ben. He clenched his fists into the quilt and turned over on his side. I held my breath as I watched him sit back down on the couch. He sat down again and I could finally breathe.
I tiptoed towards the bedroom. The duffel bag sat on the bench next to the door. I unzipped the bag and looked through it. Ben had unpacked all our clothes and at the bottom of the bag was just the leftover granola and chips we picked up from the gas station. I dug through the zippers and pockets on the side of the bag, but all I could find was an assortment of pill bottles.
Ben didn't leave the keys in the same place at home. When we got home from the pharmacy, I didn't expect to see him put away his keys. He can still carry it. He might be too paranoid to keep them out of his sight, and they might be in his pocket.
Ben did reach into his jacket pocket before walking into the pharmacy. He could have done just that when we got back to the cabin. He could have put them in his jacket pocket. I unzipped both pockets and reached in. I ran my fingers along the silk lining of the pocket. They are empty.
"What are you doing?" Ben asked. "You scared me," I giggled. "I couldn't sleep. I just wanted to see if these clothes needed washing."
"Diana, take a day off," he said. "You need a day to decompress. Don't worry about something like this again."
"I guess." I shrugged. "I try to keep myself busy."
"I think Bethany has some board games somewhere."
Ben turned and walked back into the living room. I looked at his jacket. His key is probably in here somewhere, but it's of no use to me right now. Even if I had them, I couldn't get out of this cabin until Ben pinned me to the floor. He handcuffed me to the bed again. My bandaged wrist throbbed at the thought.
I walked into the living room and saw Ben by the closet by the front door. He remained alert as he pulled a few boxes off the top shelf. He took them to the sofa and sat down. He blew away the dust that had settled on the lid of the box. I sat next to him and saw him find a Monopoly game. He opened it and started taking out all the pieces.
"It's going to be fun," he said. "The last time I played Monopoly I was in high school."
I worked with him to tidy up the pieces and set up the board. The coffee cup sits on the edge of the table. I tried to avoid staring at it, but I couldn't help myself. My freedom is all in one cup.
"Okay," he said when everything was ready. "Which piece do you want to be?"
"The dog is fine," I said.
"Great, I'll be the race car."
Ben reached for the cup and I thought I was going to jump off the couch and start cheering. I restrained myself and decided to give him a smile. Will be playing the game soon so hopefully it won't look out of place.
Ben took a sip of coffee. He turned away with a bitter expression and shook his head.
"Oh my God, it's so cold," he said. "This is disgusting."
He stood up with the cup in his hand. I watched him walk around the couch and into the kitchen. He poured the coffee into the sink.
He poured my escape plan down the drain.
I took a deep breath and fell to the ground as he poured my escape plan down the drain.
I took a deep breath and leaned back against the cushions of the couch. Ben sat next to me and started rolling the dice. I forced myself to smile as I played. Ben rambled on about our life together and I tried not to listen. I just nodded and gave him a weird kiss every time he leaned in.
It failed today, but I still have half a bottle of hydromorphone. I had one more chance to poison Ben, and I couldn't screw up this time.
