Mr. Almost, page 11
“Un-fucking-believable,” Max mumbles under his breath, and I can’t help but agree with him.
I look back at my mother. “Is this what you really want for me? A woman who wouldn’t even care if I keeled over and died?”
“She fits your image. She would elevate your status. Maybe even pop out a kid or two for you to pass this all onto,” she informs me as if she’s done me a favor.
“Do you really want me to end up in a loveless marriage with someone who only wants to use me for the money in my bank account?” I ask bluntly.
Mother cuts her hand through the air. “Love isn’t real, Mason. Marriage is a business arrangement between two people. You need to let go of the idea of there only being one person out there for you. It’s your duty to settle down and marry a woman from the right family to strengthen our businesses.”
I point to my chest. “My businesses. They are mine, not ours. As for love, I’m sorry you feel that way, but it’s very much a real thing,” I say, thinking about how I feel when I’m around Livvy and Ari.
When I see them, everything else falls away. They light my soul on fire every time they laugh and smile.
“Who I marry is up to me and me alone,” I tell her after a moment.
Her eyes narrow.
“As for you showing up where you are no longer welcome, this stops now. I don’t know how you got in, but it won’t happen again. I will not let you come into my business and harass not only me and Olivia, but also my employees. You will be escorted out, and a trespassing notice applied. If you come here again, I will have Boston PD arrest you.”
“That woman is clouding your judgment,” she hisses. “You are throwing it all away for some piece of trash.”
I grit my teeth. I can’t believe she is talking about Olivia that way. I refuse to respond the way she wants. I’m angry, but she will never know it.
I shake my head. “No, she opened my eyes and showed me what life could be like without you constantly trying to play puppet master. She gave me a beautiful daughter, whom I love so very much. I’m sorry you will never get to know her, though. From this moment on, you are cut off. You are not part of my family anymore. You need to leave.”
“I won’t stand for it.” She crosses her arms, looking like she is going to plant herself there until I change my mind.
My mother isn’t used to not getting her way. I’m not surprised she’s so upset by this. I meant what I said, though. I love my mother, but I refuse to let her toxicity ruin my life any longer. I now know that she has only ever looked to control me. She doesn’t have my best interests at heart. Only her own.
“Frankly, I don’t care how you feel because you’re not welcome in our lives, and that includes our daughter’s,” I say, purposely not saying Arianna’s name out loud.
Even though she could easily find out her name, she isn’t getting it from me. I never want either of these people to have a reason to even look at my daughter. They haven’t earned the right.
“Now I want you to leave, and as soon as you do, know that I will be contacting my lawyer to draw up legal papers stating you are banned from my companies, and if you don’t comply, I will have a restraining order drawn.”
“Why I never,” she says, completely appalled.
I look at Victoria. “You and I will never happen. If we run into each other at an event, please stay on the other side of the room. I said everything I had to say to you back then. Nothing has, nor will it ever change with us. I do wish you the best, but we aren’t meant to be. Respect that.”
“Fine,” she says coldly. “You were a lousy lay anyway.”
I smile snidely. “My apologies for not wanting to fuck a corpse.”
Max chokes back a laugh, covering it with a cough.
I look over at him. “Will you please escort these women off the premises and send the head of security up? I want to know how they were able to get in when they weren’t supposed to.”
“With pleasure,” he says before ushering them out of the door.
As soon as the door clicks shut, I brace my hands on my desk and drop my head to my chest.
The fucking audacity of people.
I laugh. Out of all the women she could have brought with her, she just had to choose the one who I caught fucking the pool boy when we were together. I found out later that she only fucked him because he promised her some ring from his family. Something priceless. She couldn’t resist. Victoria is quite literally the definition of a sugar baby. She has no life purpose but to spend money and be waited on. It’s disgusting.
My door swings open, making my head snap up. I relax slightly when I see it’s Olivia.
“Are you okay?” I ask as she slams the door shut.
“No, I’m not okay! I have some things I want to say,” she hisses as she marches across the room and stands right in front of the desk. “Th-that woman is out of control.”
“She is,” I agree easily.
“I will not share you or Ari,” she says, poking my chest between every word. “You two are mine.”
I freeze at her words. Mine. I have wanted to hear her claim me for so long that I’m almost not sure I heard her right. She can’t be talking about me. She must be talking about Ari.
“I agree,” I say, my heart racing for an entirely different reason now.
I move to the other side of the desk, leaning against it in front of her.
“I refuse to split holidays with you.” She crosses her arms.
“Livvy,” I try to cut her off, but she doesn’t hear me.
“I don’t want some vapid Barbie who hasn’t eaten a full meal since 2010 around our daughter. I won’t do it. Nor do I want your evil mother near her. Ari doesn’t need her negativity affecting how she views herself. You have a choice to make right now, Mason. You better choose right. It’s us or nothing,” she says, poking my chest.
Fuck it.
Reaching up, I cup her face and drop my mouth onto hers, kissing her. Olivia gasps, and I can’t help but deepen the kiss. Her hands, which are pinned between our chests, clench my shirt as she leans into me.
I bite her lip and slowly pull away, making her whimper. I can’t help but smile as I rest my forehead against hers. “I told you, the only woman I want is you.”
“You kissed me,” she says quietly.
I smirk. “I told you the other night that I would, and I meant it. The only woman I want to kiss for the rest of my life is you.”
“You really mean that, don’t you?” she asks, searching my eyes.
“I do. As for my mother, I just put her on trespass notice. She is not going to be near any of us anymore. We don’t need her in our lives. All that matters is you and Ari. Victoria is a non-issue. We broke up years before I met you. She only showed up because her husband died, and she needs a new bank account.” I run my tongue over her bottom lip, making her eyes dilate. “Now that we’re on the same page, how about we get out of here?”
“I-I think I’d like that.”
Thirteen
Everything becomes a blur.
One second, I am storming into his office, ready to tell him that if he doesn’t choose us, then I’m taking our daughter and leaving.
The next, he is kissing the life out of me, telling me he already made the choice.
When he finally pulls away, he leaves me standing there, touching my lips as he moves around the office.
While I’m stunned from Mason kissing me, he manages to cover the rest of my shift, gathers all of our things, and ushers me out of the building.
Over the years, I’ve replayed our night together in my mind over and over. Especially on those lonely nights. I had put him on a pedestal and had convinced myself that it wasn’t as good as I remembered it to be. Only that kiss just proved me wrong. It brought me right back to that night all over again.
“You okay?” Mason asks, pulling me from my thoughts.
I look over at him and bite my lip. His dark hair is a little longer on top and in need of a trim, but somehow he manages to keep it out of his face, despite the fact that you can tell he’s been running his fingers through it.
His beard is a little longer than a five-o’clock shadow, offering him the perfect amount of scruff. I loved how it felt when he kissed me, and I can’t help but imagine how amazing it would feel between my thighs. I bet he would blow my world apart like he did all those years ago.
“You need to stop moving like that, or I’ll be forced to pull over and help you out,” he rasps without looking away from the road.
“Sorry.” I cringe.
I hadn’t even realized I had been rubbing my thighs together.
“Trust me, sweetheart, you have nothing to be sorry about. I love that you are so turned on right now, but I need to know what turned you on. Now tell me, what were you thinking about?” He smirks as he comes to a stop at a stoplight.
I feel my cheeks heat. “How I would love to steal your sweater.”
Mason raises a brow. “Is that all?”
I shrug as I bite my lip to stop myself from smiling. While it’s not what I was thinking about, it’s still true. He’s wearing a brown sweater with hints of gold and red that’s soft to the touch. If given the opportunity, I would totally steal it for myself.
Mason hums, but starts driving as the light turns green.
“So where are we going?” I ask, changing the subject.
“Well, I know you didn’t eat much this morning and I’m hungry, so I thought we could go grab some lunch.”
Mason reaches over and grabs my hand and pulls it into his lap as he weaves his fingers through mine.
“I’d like that,” I say softly.
He squeezes my hand. “Good. Are you in the mood for anything specific?”
“Surprise me,” I tell him as I relax into the seat.
“With pleasure.”
For the rest of the ride, the only sound in the car is the radio, neither of us feeling the need to fill the silence with mindless chatter. We have things we need to discuss, but I don’t feel the need to force it to happen right this second. It’s nice to just be in someone else’s presence and not have to be on.
Mason comes to a stop outside of a building and I look around.
“Where are we?” I ask as he puts the car in park.
“This is Pleasure.”
I raise my brow, making Mason chuckle.
“I know, not the best name, but the food is fucking fantastic.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” I tease.
“Sit tight,” Mason says as he lets go of my hand and gets out of the car.
I watch as he comes around the hood of the car and gives the keys to the valet before opening my door.
“My lady,” he says, holding out his hand.
“Such a gentleman,” I quip as I put my hand in his.
As soon as I’m out of the car, he pulls me into his body and whispers into my ear. “We both know I’m only a gentleman when I need to be,” he says before lightly biting the shell of my ear, making me breathless. “Now let’s go in and eat some food before I eat you.”
“Mason,” I scold with no heat as he pulls away.
“Too soon?”
“Just a little bit,” I tell him honestly.
While I’m completely on board, I’m still scared that this house of cards will come crashing down around us, and I’ll be the one left paying the price.
I only just decided I wanted to give this a real go, like twenty minutes ago. I need time to let my mind settle. Come to terms with my new reality.
“Got it. I’ll move a bit slower.”
“Not too slow,” I tell him, making him smile.
“Not too slow,” he repeats, kissing the back of my hand.
Mason ushers me into the restaurant, and the hostess leads us back to a table right away.
“Thank you,” I say as Mason pulls out my chair for me to sit.
“You’re welcome,” he says as he takes a seat next to me.
“What are you doing?”
“Sitting,” he deadpans as he picks up the menu.
“But why are you sitting next to me?”
He raises a brow. “Is there somewhere else you would prefer that I sit?”
I shift in my chair. “Well, no, but typically you sit across from the person you’re with.”
Under the table, he places his arm on my crossed legs. “Typically, yes, and I would if Ari was with us.”
“But…”
“But I just got you to admit that you want me as much as I want you. Which means I can openly touch you as much as I want, which I plan on doing a lot.”
“You do?” I ask softly, feeling slightly overwhelmed in the best possible way.
Mason squeezes my thigh. “Sweetheart, I’ve been waiting for the green light for weeks.”
“It’s not like you haven’t touched me,” I say as I think back on all the times he’s placed his hand on my back or brushed against me in the kitchen or when he held me as I slept.
“That was different.” He shrugs. “Now tell me, what looks good to you?”
I shake my head and look down at the menu and pick the first thing I see. “The omelet with hash browns.”
“Solid choice. I was thinking the stuffed french toast and sausage.”
“That sounds good, too.”
“We can share if you want.”
I turn my body toward him slightly. “Really?”
“We don’t have to if you don’t want to. It’s not a big deal.”
“No, I want to. Back before I had Arianna, Chloe and I would go out with friends. One of my favorite things was when we would all go out to eat together and order different things. Then we would all share so we could have a little bit of everything.”
“You don’t do that anymore,” he says rather than asks.
I shake my head. “No. When I got pregnant with Ari, all of my friends but Chloe drifted away one by one.”
“I’m sorry.”
I start shaking my head before he can even finish apologizing. “I’m not. As far as I’m concerned, the trash took itself out. Not that they were trash, but you know what I mean. They clearly weren’t the kind of friends I thought they were. We were in a different spot in life. I was a single mom who struggled to make ends meet. They were going out clubbing and shopping. Things I couldn’t do without money or a babysitter. The invites came less and less until they stopped completely. I’m not upset about it. It’s life.”
“Chloe stayed, though. She showed up for you,” he reminds me as I think about the past.
I was sad when everyone drifted away. It was Chloe that kept me going, though. She became a second mother to Ari. Hell, she held my hand during labor.
“She did.” I smile as I think about my best friend. “She jokes that she’s the baby daddy.”
“I mean, I’m here now, so she might have to give up that position, but I’m glad you had her. That you still have her. She is a little odd for sure, but she’s an amazing friend to you and an even better aunt to our daughter. She’s a blessing for our family.”
My eyes start to tear up at hearing him acknowledge my best friend.
“Thank you,” I tell him.
“For what?” he asks.
“Saying that. Being you. Being amazing.”
He smiles as the server comes over. He takes our order, leaving us alone once more.
“So, I want you to know I’m serious about us. I know you have put limits on how many times I can come stay at your place, but I would like to propose an amendment,” Mason says after a few moments.
“I’m listening.”
“What about if we start spending some time at my house? Just to get you both comfortable there. I know you don’t want to move in with me, and I respect that, but it is my home, and I would like to be able to bring both you and Ari there sometimes.”
“That seems fair,” I agree.
I’m surprised it’s taken him this long to ask again. I had a million reasons why it wasn’t a good idea, but they are fading away one by one.
“Good. How about we spend a few hours there on Saturday? We can have lunch and watch a movie or something.”
“That would be okay with me.”
Leaning down, he kisses my cheek, making me blush. “If I had known locking you down would make you so amendable, I would have done it a long time ago.”
“Uh-huh. Keep it up, smart guy. I can always go back to being sassy.”
He turns my chin then, kissing my lips. “I love Sassy Livvy. Bring it on.”
The smile on my face is so big my cheeks hurt.
I don’t hate it.
Ari laughs loudly as Olivia goes down the slide ahead of her. Once Olivia hits the bottom, she turns around with a big smile on her face and catches our daughter as she comes down.
“Daddy, did you see us?” Ari asks.
“I did, baby.” I smile at my daughter.
My heart beats rapidly in my chest as I watch them. I never imagined myself with a wife or kids, but I can see it clearly now. Looking at them, I know this is what I want.
They are perfect.
They are mine.
Olivia sets Ari down and walks toward me but doesn’t look away from our daughter as she runs off to play on the indoor play equipment.
“How did you find this place?” she asks after a moment.
When she’s close enough, I pull her to my side.
“A quick Google search,” I tell her as I drop a quick kiss to her lips.
“Mason…” she scolds with no heat as she looks around.
“She’s going to see us kiss eventually,” I point out.
Livvy looks up at me. “I know, but she’s never seen me with anyone, so I don’t know how she will react. It’s always been just the two of us.”
I frown. “Have I missed something?” I look back at my daughter, who’s spinning a fake steering wheel. “Has she made a comment or anything about me being around too much?”
“Hey,” Livvy says as she touches my jaw, bringing my attention back to her. “No, she hasn’t said anything of the sort. In fact, I know she loves having you around.”
“She’s said that?”
