The two ladies following Liliya caught up to her. Something passed between the tall blonde and Agent Russo, the air seeming to crackle with suppressed anger and frustration. Then they all continued walking across the field.
Ben smiled as the group joined him at the edge of the party. The General joined them as well.
“Liliya, I’m so glad you’re home. Your little girl has been wonderful, but she missed you as you can see.” The woman had tears of joy rolling down her cheeks, so she wasn’t able to do more than nod and smile to him.
He looked to the tall brunette. “Tatiana, welcome and thank you.” She smirked and nodded.
Then Ben looked to their handler. “Agent Russo. Are they home or visiting?”
She smiled at the steel in his voice. She locked eyes with the man, unwilling to show weakness. “They’re home. For a while at least. They’ve been busy, so we have to let the dust settle.” She was determined not to be rattled by the big man.
Ben nodded and took her hand between his. “I’m not going to ask you what that means but know I’m grateful they’re home,” he said sincerely as he gently squeezed her hand.
The woman paused, unsure how to respond to his honest emotion for a moment, then her knowing smile was back in place. “Remember that gratitude. I may need it in the future.” Her smile became coy as her words had a few interpretations. She nodded to the General then turned and headed back to her parked car. She waved at the soldiers on the way.
“Are you two ok?” Ben asked the two ladies in concern.
“Yes, but it’s nice to hear someone ask us that sincerely,” Tatiana said with a sweet smile for Ben.
“Did you have luggage?” he asked.
“They gave us small duffel bags. Russo left them with the soldiers in the first house on our way in,” Liliya said.
Ben frowned. “That’s not the home we renovated for you.”
Liliya looked at him cautiously. “You renovated a home for us?” Her eyes slid to the General who remained silent.
Ben nodded. “Number 2 Ashburn Court has been redone from roof to basement. I took Rose for a tour in it just the other day.” He playfully reached out to gently tug on her ear.
She burst into giggles. “Stop it, daddy!”
Liliya’s expression froze, and Tatiana’s eyes went very wide as she pinched her lips together to stifle her nervous laughter.
The mother’s eyes locked on Ben’s and he saw her fear, panic, and rage struggling to get free.
“Rose missed her Mom very much. One day she just started saying that. She didn’t need any more instability in her life, and it’s harmless, yes?” He held Liliya’s eyes and saw her getting control once again. Suddenly, her emotions swung wildly to the other direction and gratitude overwhelmed her. She stepped closer to hug Ben with Rose still in her arms.
“I- I cannot thank you enough for protecting my precious little Rose!” She gasped against his shoulder as tears flowed once more.
“It was my pleasure. Rose is such a sweetie! And her ears are so tasty!” Ben said and pretended to eat the girl’s ear before her mother’s tears got her going again.
More squeals of laughter then a bold voice. “No daddy! No eating my ears!”
“But I’m hungry, and I haven’t eaten anything!” Ben whined pitifully. Rose couldn’t hold her frown at Ben’s silly expression. A burst of giggles from her drew the other kids, excited to see what Ben was doing.
“OH GOOD! More EARS!” Ben grinned as he licked his lips happily. The kids shrieked in excitement and scampered off as Ben moved to follow.
Gabriella blocked him with a wry grin as she looked to the new arrivals. “Hi! I’m Gabriella Wallace, Ben’s next door neighbor.”
“I am Liliya Sokolov. This is my friend Tatiana Pushkin.” They shook hands with her then Gabriella shook the General’s hand.
“Nice to see you again, General Davis.”
“You can call me Alex if I can call you Gabriella.” The woman nodded with a wide smile, and he sighed happily. “It’s always a pleasure to see you.”
Gabriella turned back to Ben. “The food is ready, so have a seat. Everyone, please take a seat at one of the tables in the tent.”
They followed her directions as the older kids collected the younger ones and got them into the tent as well. Rose wiggled in her mother’s arms so she could join her friends. Liliya set her on her feet, and she went three steps away and turned to look nervously back at her mom. Ben put an arm around Liliya’s shoulders and Rose relaxed and ran to the kiddie table.
“What have I done to my child?” Liliya said in dread.
Ben gave her shoulder a little squeeze. “Nothing that can’t be repaired with a little attention and lots of cuddles.” When she looked up at him curiously, he released her and took a step back. “I meant you and her!”
Tatiana snorted. “I think Liliya wouldn’t be resistant to cuddling with Daddy too!”
Liliya sent her friend an annoyed look, but she didn’t deny it.
Ben changed the subject by beginning to introduce the General and the two ladies to his neighbors and friends. Everyone was in good spirits and seemed pleased to meet their new neighbors.
“It’s about time they let you live in the home we built for you!” Dominic gushed as he stood to shake their hands.
“I’m very eager to see this house!” Tatiana gushed.
“After lunch. I promise!” Ben smiled.
“You’re the man responsible for building the Spa?” Davis said to the construction company owner.
Dominic nodded with a smile. “That was one of the more challenging construction projects we’ve had, but my team learned a lot from it. I’m proud of the result!”
“I’d like to pick your brain on some of the improvements you made,” Davis said.
“Any time,” Dominic replied with a grin. As he sat down next to Sophia, she was all smiles.
They slowly made their way to the middle of the tent, Ben stopping them to make introductions.
They met Chanel, Catherine, and her daughters. Hands were shook and Tatiana smiled at Chanel’s grip.
“You are… a police officer?” the Russian brunette said to the French brunette.
Chanel’s brow rose slightly as she nodded and released the hand.
Tatiana looked to Ben with a sly smile. “Two squads of soldiers and a member of the local police living in the neighborhood. I feel safer already.” She moved on as Ben held back slightly.
Chanel held Ben’s eye, reminding him of her earlier promise. He nodded and she sat down with Cat and her family as Ben caught up to the new arrivals.
Finally, they found seats at a table with Tina and Lucy who were very impressed with the tall ladies. The Hernandez and McKellan families were working the grills, so they began bringing in trays filled with seasoned steaks and chicken from the barbeques. Different kinds of salads were already on the tables including the bowls, plates, and cutlery.
A short time into the meal Tatiana, sitting at Ben’s left, leaned closer to speak in his ear. “You have many beautiful women living in your neighborhood, many of whom are in a relationship with you.” Ben looked into her eyes in surprise as he hadn’t mentioned that. She smiled demurely. “A woman can tell. With all of these young soldiers living here now as well, aren’t you concerned your women will be taken from you?”
Ben cleared his throat then turned his focus on the brunette. He spoke quietly but clearly to ensure she got his message. “Please don’t misunderstand. I am in relationships with many of them, but I don’t own them, and I would never deny them love, even if they found it with another. I can’t do casual affairs as I get emotionally involved.” He looked to the women in his life seated at the tables nearby and smiled to himself. “I’m deeply in love with them. It would be extremely selfish for me to expect them to restrict their love to just me. That would make me an asshole. The only thing I ask is for them to be completely honest with me. If they don’t love me in return, I need to know. If they continue to love me but also find comfort in the arms of another, I need to know that as well. As I said, I would never deny them love or physical closeness.”
Tatiana was watching him closely in surprise. “You mean this! You are not lying.”
He blinked at her. “What? No! I won’t lie. It’s a… thing with me. Brutal honesty. Always.”
A huge smile bloomed on her face. “That’s very refreshing! My field of work has so many lies.”