Mafia Desire (Erotica)

“Dessert, anyone? We have Gelato!” Gabriella said with a smile.

-=-

Once the meal was done, the kids cleared the dishes and cleaned up. Hannah had to pick up her son from Trish’s place, so she thanked Gabriella, and Catherine and Ben gave her a big hug, which sent the flush up her neck once more. She headed home before she did something silly… like, kiss him.

They settled into the living room and played it cool, the women taking the chairs and Ben on the couch. Miriam and Daniel finished up, so they raced into the living room and plopped down on the sofa on either side of Ben. Daniel looked up at Ben and did the eye pointing gesture again, and his mother got upset, but Ben just smiled.

Ben put his arms up along the back of the couch, and the kids tucked themselves in against him. He looked down in surprise, and Gabriella beamed. Catherine grinned as well.

“Ben told me this morning that he’s never traveled anywhere,” Gabriella opened with.

Miriam spun to look up at Ben in shock. “Never?”

He grinned down at her look. “No, I’ve never been anywhere but here.”

“Mom! We have to bring him with us to France!” the young girl gasped.

Gabriella hadn’t expected that, but now that the idea was out there, she saw the appeal. Especially after the events of the morning.

Catherine looked at her curiously, so she answered. “After I returned from my last trip to Europe, I promised the kids I’d take them to France for two weeks this summer. I’ve taken them to the big theme parks in Florida, and we flew out west and did a driving tour ending up at the Grand Canyon. The kids are a joy to travel with. I’ve never taken them to Europe, so I thought France would be the nicest place to start. We’ll start in Paris, then drive south, stopping in little boutique hotels and bed & breakfasts, and end our trip in Nice.”

Miriam was still looking up at Ben in excitement. “You could come with us!”

“But this is a family trip. I wouldn’t want to intrude,” he argued.

“Cat, would you be available to join us too?” Gabriella asked.

Catherine’s smile was threatening to split her face in two. “I’d love to go to France, especially Paris!” She leaped out of her chair and jumped on Gabriella’s lap to give her a big hug.

Ben smiled over at the two ladies squealing like teenagers. He looked down at Miriam, who was just shaking her head in embarrassment. “If Catherine is going, I guess it’s okay for me to join you, too,” he said. Then it was Miriam squealing and jumping up to hug him.

He looked down at Daniel. “That is if it’s okay with you, Daniel.”

The boy pretended to consider it carefully, then nodded. “I think that would be fine,” he said.

“Thank you,” Ben said.

Daniel nodded.

Gabriella looked at her kids with pride.

Catherine crawled off of her friend’s lap. “Oh, damn. I promised my girls I’d go on a trip with them this summer. France would have been incredible, but there’s no way,” she said sadly.

“Bring them, and I’ll pay for the trip. We’ll travel first-class, all the way,” Ben said. Gabriella and Catherine stared at Ben blankly.

“I was going to use my points for the flight and car rental,” Gabriella mumbled.

“You said this morning I should travel and find someone experienced with the location to guide me. Well, if you’ll have me, I’d love to go with you all to France. But I insist on paying,” Ben said. “Shouldn’t we book now to ensure we all get seats and places to stay?”

Catherine and Gabriella jumped on Ben, and much squealing and playful kissing ensued. Daniel was the recipient of many of those kisses and finally managed to crawl out from under the pile and stomp off to his room. Ben caught the smile the boy was struggling to hide.

“Cat, call your daughters and make sure they are available,” Gabriella said, and Cat immediately dialed her house first as Megan was home. Gabriella grabbed Ben’s hand and dragged him to her office. Miriam followed, holding Ben’s other hand.

Catherine waited in the living room and told her youngest to come over immediately. She hung up and dialed her oldest, Sophia, as she walked to the front door. Moments later, Megan came in breathing hard from the run took off her coat and boots. Her face was filled with curiosity.

Sophia picked up. “Hi, Mom! What’s up?”

“Is Rachel with you?” Cat asked.

“Yes, she’s right here. What’s going on?” the daughter asked curiously.

“Put the phone on speaker. I’ve got Megan with me here.” She put her phone on speaker and heard Sophia’s speaker activating. “Do you remember our plan to go away together this summer?” Catherine asked.

“Yes?” all three of her daughters said anxiously, fearing their mother was going to cancel.

“How would you feel about going to France?” Cat said with a grin. She grinned at the phone as Sophia and Rachel screamed in glee. Megan jumped up to cling to her mother as she squealed as well.

“Wait! Wait! We can’t afford France!” Sophia exclaimed.

“Ben is paying for the trip!” Catherine told her excitedly. “First-class!”

“Mr. Shepherd? Why is he paying for our trip?” Megan asked.

“Because Ben has never traveled anywhere before, and he’d like company on his first trip. He’s bringing us, Gabriella and her kids. We’re working out the logistics, but it sounds like we will be starting in Paris, then traveling south to explore, and finishing off in Nice.”

“Mom, that’s eight people! How can he afford that?” Sophia asked.

“Sweetie, don’t worry about that. Ben does very well in his business,” she deflected.

“No way! He’s built like a Sex God, and he’s rich? I’m SO gonna marry that man!” Rachel said.

Catherine snorted as she saw Ben standing in the doorway. He’d come looking for her to help them in the office.

“Uh, he’s in the room now, and he heard that, right?” Rachel said weakly.

“Good evening, Rachel,” Ben said.

“Good evening, Mr. Shepherd,” Rachel and Sophia said in reply.

“Please call me Ben. Catherine, we need your help working out the number of rooms we’ll need to book, starting with the hotel in Paris,” he said.

“Oh my god, this is happening!” Sophia’s voice blurted from the phone, her excitement evident.

“I hope you don’t mind me tagging along on your family vacation,” Ben said with a serious tone.

The girls spoke all at once to assure him they were more than okay with his being there. Catherine just grinned at him. Megan rushed up and hugged him fiercely, and Catherine joined her. “Sophia and Rachel make hugging sounds! We’re giving Ben a group hug!” the mother called out to her daughters.

“God, I wish I was there,” Rachel moaned.

“Yeah, why is it that Megan gets all the glory?” Sophia complained.

“Born under a lucky star, I guess!” the youngest gloated to her sisters.

Ben peeled himself away and tugged Catherine down to Gabriella’s office. She promised her daughters to email them the details once they were set.This is property © NôvelDrama.Org.

The group spent the next three and a half hours roughing out an itinerary. Most of the calls to the smaller hotels and B & B’s would have to happen when their reservation desks and booking people were open for business. Gabriella promised to get started on that in the morning. Ben would help her in the afternoon after speaking with the counselor.

It was just past midnight when they decided to call it a night. Everyone was tired yet excited. Catherine, Megan, and Ben got their coats on and gave Miriam a hug good night. She headed off to bed. Once the coast was clear, Ben gave Gabriella a kiss good night, and she slipped her tongue into his mouth and kissed him passionately. He returned it, and when their lips parted, you could have heard a pin drop. Miriam had snuck back down the stairs and witnessed the most beautiful kiss she’d ever seen. She was so happy for her mother, who deserved happiness, and she loved Ben dearly. She smiled at them when they turned to spot her on the stairs then raced back up to her room.

Gabriella looked up at Ben to make sure he wasn’t worried about Miriam. He just looked a little embarrassed, so that was okay.

They turned back to Catherine and Megan. Cat had a loving smile on her face, but Megan’s eyes were wide with surprise. More embarrassment for Ben.

“I want my kiss goodnight here inside where it’s warm,” Catherine said to Ben. She squeezed herself against him and used her hands to hold his face and block his view of Megan. When her lips caressed his, Ben’s attention locked onto her, and she was able to truly enjoy his attentions. God! He was a fantastic kisser! Tingles shot through her body, and she had to pull back, or she’d tear off their clothes and take him right there in Gabriella’s foyer. As she turned from Ben, she saw her daughter’s shocked expression had doubled.

Ben was trembling. “OK, new rule! No more kisses like that before we go our separate ways,” he said hoarsely.

“Sorry, Ben,” Cat said sincerely.

“Can-can I hug him?” Megan asked her mother.

“I think you’d better keep it to just a hug,” she said quietly.

Megan stepped forward quickly and pressed her body hard against Ben, and hugged him tightly. Sure enough, the evidence of his excitement pressed against her, and she gasped silently before he gently pushed her back.

“Sophie and Rachel are gonna scream!” she whispered to her mother as they left amidst shared giggles.

Gabriella grabbed Ben’s arm as he turned to leave. He looked back at her. She pointed to the lights which were on at Trish’s place. He looked at her in surprise, but she just smiled and nodded. He gave her one more loving kiss as he touched her cheek.

Ben made his way over to Trish’s place and noticed a car in the driveway that looked familiar, but he couldn’t place where he’d seen it. He walked up to the door and knocked. He didn’t want to use the doorbell in case he woke the kids.