They had all day, but he wanted so much more time with her. It never seemed to be enough. Her father always seemed to be hanging right over their shoulders, waiting to take her away from him. He wanted some time without that worry.

  He felt her moan more than he heard it, and he brought his hand up to her side, his fingers sliding over her ribs, and his thumb slid over the swell of her breast. Her back arched into his touch, and desire slammed into him. His tongue streaked into her mouth, and her hands came up to clutch at his shirt. He almost forgot where they were. Almost laid her down there in the bed of his truck. Almost took this thing all the way.

  Before he could make another move, the phone in his pocket dinged with a message and broke the spell. He groaned and leaned back. Her eyes clouded, and her chest rose with each breath. She was as turned on as him. Then, her phone gave a short buzz, too. With a little laugh, she reached for it. He grabbed his as well.

  "Brian," they both said at the same time.

  Mason laughed, nervous now, and still turned on, despite the distraction. "Party tonight. At dark. What do you think?" he asked, looking up at her from the screen of his phone. "I'd thought about seeing what was playing at the drive-in, but we could hit the party instead." They'd still be able to have privacy there. They probably wouldn't be the only ones hooking up. "I can still have you home by curfew."

  She shook her head and glanced down at her hands. "I told him I'm staying at Ashley's tonight. I figured it would give us a little more time together."

  He couldn't stop a laugh. "Does Ashley know you're spending the night?"

  Her lips twitched as she looked back up at him. "She said she'd cover for me. You're taking me there after dinner. I'll go there to change for the party. Call him from her house."

  "Does your father know how sneaky you are?"

  "If he did, he'd never let me out of the house. Thank goodness he doesn't."

  "Yeah, thank goodness." He slid a hand up her thigh. "You don't have to change. I think this is perfect."

  "I'll still have to go and set up my cover story. We won't be there long, don't worry."

  "I'm not worried about it," he assured her. He sent a quick message back to Brian saying they'd be there then gathered up the trash from their lunch. "We should probably get going. People are looking at us."

  "That doesn't bother me," she said, leaning down toward his ear. "Does it bother you?"

  His blood burned. Did she even realize what she did to him? "We could go somewhere a little more secluded. There's things I want to do they don't need to see."

  The flush rose to her cheeks; she was as turned on as him. "Well, why are we still sitting here then?"

  #

  Mason stood by the door while Lila talked to her father on the phone. She assured him she had made it to Ashley's. They were settling in for the night. They'd be fine there for the night. No, he didn't need to call and check in again. He nearly snorted at that, and she shot him a look from across the room. He pursed his lips together, not wanting to do anything to destroy the image of her spending the night with her friend. If Luca ever learned the truth, he was a dead man. That thought unsettled him. He didn't like to think of the reason she lied to her father. Even though she didn't seem to have a problem with it. After what she'd told him this morning, he was sure it wasn't the first time.

  She finally hung up with her father and crossed the room to him. He wrapped an arm around her waist, and she turned back to Ashley. "Are you sure you don't want to go to the party, too?"

  The other girl shook her head. "No, I'll stay here. Just in case I do still need to cover for you."

  "You shouldn't have to. If he gets suspicious, let me know, and I'll take care of it."

  The unsettled feeling came back. They shouldn't be lying, shouldn't be sneaking around. It wasn't likely to end well. Then, she turned toward him, brushing her body against his, and he forgot all about it. "Let's get going," she said.

  He waved goodbye to Ashley before they turned and walked out the door. He kept his arm around her waist until he helped her up into the truck. Then, he went back around to the other side and pulled himself up into the seat. He didn't turn the key in the ignition. Instead, he sat there for a moment.

  "What's the matter, Mason?" Lila asked, when she was buckled into her seat and he still hadn't moved.

  He stared straight ahead. "I'm not so sure we should be lying to your father."

  "What? You wanted to go to this party. You wanted to go with me."

  "I really do. I'm not sure sneaking around is the best thing. What if he finds out?"

  "He's not going to find out. What did you want me to do?"

  "I don't know. Maybe you could have asked him about staying out a little longer."

  "He never would have let me. He's not like your father, Mason. He's not understanding, not about us, not about anything."

  He let out a sigh. She was right. He knew it. "Okay, I'm sorry. I don't want him killing me when he finds out."

  She laughed and slid her hand along his leg. "He won't kill you, Mason. He can't be overprotective from prison."

  It wasn't really much consolation, but it was all he got. If he didn't want to take her back inside, to turn her lie into the truth, which he definitely didn't, then he couldn't turn back now. He twisted the key in the ignition then pulled away from the curb. It was a short trip to the other side of town, but Mason's fingers drummed on the center seat the whole time. When he pulled out into the field, he could see the last streaks of sunset on the horizon. There weren't too many other vehicles there, either. Some people would walk from their houses. Brian already had the music blasting from the speakers in his truck. There really weren't any neighbors too close who would complain about it.

  Brian jumped down from the back of his truck when Mason stopped. He started toward them but barely looked at Mason, flashing a cocky grin at Lila instead. "Hey, baby. Can't get enough of me, can you?"

  She shook her head but held onto Mason. "I didn't like that term two years ago, Brian. Did you really think I'd like it any better now?"

  He shrugged one shoulder, but the grin didn't leave his face. "Always a chance. Want some beers?"

  "You never had a chance, Brian," Mason said, his hand sliding down to Lila's hip. He held his other hand out for the beers.

  He finally had to release her to open the two bottles Brian handed him. He passed one to Lila then grabbed the blanket they'd had their picnic on earlier from the back seat of his truck and laid it out on the ground. It would give them somewhere to sit if they wanted to. Lila wasn't interested in sitting. She pulled him out to the field where some other couples danced, swayed, really. He set his beer bottle on the ground so he could get both arms around her. He pulled her so her body was flush against his.

  His hands moved down her back, over the loose fabric of her skirt. She gasped as he molded his hands against her, and her breath whispered against his neck. It sent a shudder down his spine. He slid his hands back up, to a hopefully much safer position. She didn't want much of that, either. Her beer joined his on the ground, and she grabbed onto his hips. Her mouth moved to his, and she moved her hips against his. He moaned into her mouth, as her body brushed against the ever-growing erection. He finally broke away from her mouth, burying his face in the crook of her neck.

  "Oh God," he murmured. "You're killing me, Lila."

  "Well, that certainly isn't my intention. You're not going to be much fun if you're dead."

  He couldn't stop the laugh bubbling up. "You're just as sassy as ever."

  "Did you really want me to change?"

  No, he didn't. He hoped she never did.

  Chapter 10

  Now

  Mason drained the last of the beer from the bottle and tossed it toward the garbage can. It knocked against the other one in there, causing a clang that made him wince. His sandwich still sat untouched on the plate in front of him. His stomach still felt twisted up even though it had been more than an hour since Lila left.

  He picked up the sandwich then dropped it back onto the plate. Getting to his feet, he walked over and let it slide off the plate into the garbage can. Then, he set the plate in the sink and walked back to the refrigerator. He reached for a third bottle of beer, when the car pulled into the driveway.

  No, she wouldn't come back. Not tonight. Hadn't he made it clear she needed to stay away from him?

  He let the refrigerator door close, leaving the beer in there, and walked out to the front door. It wasn't Lila's beat-up car coming to a stop in front of the house, though. He'd wondered why she was still driving that. He'd heard she'd lost a lot in the divorce, but surely she could afford better. She had to be used to better than that.

  As Brian stepped out of the mid-size car, Mason couldn't help compare it to Lila's. It was definitely in better shape. Fairly clean, on the outside at least. Through the rear window, he could see the high back booster seat. They'd recently switched Brian's daughter into that from the toddler car seat. Toys littered the rest of the backseat. It wasn't just a lawyer's car, but a father's. Ashley had her own, and he'd seen its backseat as well. It made this one seem clean.

  Mason stepped out onto the porch and leaned against the railing. "What are you doing here, Brian? Don't you have a wife and daughter to get home to?"

  Brian smiled. "Oh, I'm pretty sure they'll wait for me. I wanted to see how you were doing."

  Mason groaned and scrubbed his hands over his face. "I don't need you to check up on me, Brian. I'm a grown-up. I don't need a babysitter."

  Brian stepped up onto the porch. "You look like shit, man."

  "Is that your professional lawyerly opinion?"

  "Yes, and if you were on the stand, I wouldn't give any credit to anything you had to say."

  He caught Brian's smile but couldn't find it in him to return it. "The day started shitty and has only gotten worse."

  "What's the matter?"

  Mason let out a breath and shook his head. "The same thing, really. It's been one of Dad's worse days. The tractor quit on me again, and I don't know if I can fix it this time. It all got compounded when I found Lila waiting for me here."

  "I heard she stopped by."

  Mason looked over at him then. "You heard? How did you hear? Pretty sure I'm the only one who saw her out here."

  "Yeah, well, I heard from her. She looked absolutely miserable, Mase. You can't keep believing you're the only one hurting here."

  Mason spun around and headed for the door. "She's the one who left me, Brian. You want me to open my arms to that again?"

  "You know you're going to, anyway. I don't think the two of you can stay away from each other. Mason, you have to forgive her sometime. She was eighteen. We were all dumb at eighteen."

  Brian wanted him to laugh, but he couldn't. Instead, he strode right back into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. The door opened again, but he didn't back out of the refrigerator. "You want a beer?"

  "You know the answer to that, Mason. I don't know why you bother asking."

  "Right," Mason said and only grabbed one bottle.

  Brian shook his head as Mason twisted the cap off. "Why are you doing this to yourself? You should know by now alcohol doesn't change anything. You need to make things right with Lila, man. She's not leaving this time."

  "It doesn't matter," he said, tossing the bottle cap toward the trash. "It can't matter, Brian. I can't let her hurt me like that again."

  "I don't think you ever stopped," he muttered. Brian glanced in the trash, then his face paled. "Damn it, man. You've gotta stop this. It's not worth destroying yourself over."

  "I'm not destroying myself," he insisted. "I feel like getting a little buzzed. Then, it won't matter so much."

  He didn't look over when Brian sighed. "It's always going to matter to you, Mason. When are you going to figure that out? God, you're an idiot. And you're right, Ashley and Alyssa are waiting for me. Trust me, I'd much rather be with them than you when you're in one of these moods." He didn't leave, though. Instead, he took a deep breath. "You need a break from all this shit. How about we go grab some dinner Friday night?"

  "You wouldn't rather have a date with your wife?"

  "I, uh, I think she said something about a girls' night this week. Her mom was going to watch Alyssa."

  Mason glanced over at Brian, but he'd taken his phone out and stared down at it. "Yeah, I guess that will be all right. I'll see you Friday. Go see your family, Brian. You got lucky with them."

  Brian did look up then. "You're right. I damn well did. I'll see you, Mase. Take care of yourself."

  Mason nodded, but he still caught Brian's frown when he brought the bottle up to his mouth. Then, his friend turned around and stepped out of the house. He was wrong. He and Lila weren't meant to be together. He couldn't set himself up for that much hurt again, no matter what. He didn't see how they could ever make things right, anyway.

  #

  "I'm not so sure this is a good idea, Brian," Ashley said, looking over her shoulder at her husband with her hands submerged in the soapy water. He'd waited to pose his idea until they'd put Alyssa to bed, and his wife was cleaning the kitchen. "Maybe we shouldn't be meddling."

  "You've seen both of them, Ash. Hell, you've seen the way Mason's been for the last seven years. I know you put all the blame on him-"

  She shook her head, breaking him off mid-sentence. "You know that's not true. Just because I stuck up for her, for my best friend, doesn't mean I think she was completely blameless. Maybe they need to figure this out for themselves. You can't fix everything, Brian."

  "I don't think I can fix a damn thing," he muttered.

  Ashley sighed and wiped her hands on a towel before turning to him. "You saw your mom before you came home, didn't you?"

  He let out a breath. "Yeah," he said, rubbing his fingers over his eyes. "She was…it wasn't one of her worst days, but not the best either." He'd told Lila she was doing good, and it wasn't completely a lie. Most of the time, she was doing better. He figured anything had to be better than being under his father's thumb. His mother didn't agree. "She wishes he was still alive. Then at least she'd have someone who would take care of her."

  Ashley rested her head against his shoulder. "She doesn't really mean that. She knows how much you've done to help her. What about Patrick? I thought he'd been taking her to dinner."

  Brian smiled slightly at the mention of his boss. Apparently the man had liked his mother for a long time, but he'd had to step aside when she'd chosen Caleb Sharrock. "He keeps asking. She keeps turning him down. The bastard's been dead almost five years, Ash, and she still refuses to let herself be happy. I don't know what to do."

  She wrapped her arms around him. "You can't do anything to force her to be happy, Brian. She has to come to it on her own."

  "He made her miserable for so long, Ash. I thought it would all get better with him gone."

  "It is better, Brian. Neither of you have to worry about him putting you in the hospital. She'll find her happiness. Mason and Lila will, too. We can't force them to it."

  "I don't want to force them. I think if they have to spend some time together, they might be able to see past this."

  "What part is not forcing them, Brian?"

  "Nothing says either of them has to stay. Mason's already agreed to go out to dinner with me Friday night. All you have to do is see if Lila wants to spend some time with you, a girl's night. If nothing happens, it still won't be a loss."

  She let out a long sigh. "I still think this is going to backfire, Brian. I don't want to see either of them hurt when it does."

  "You'll call her, though?"

  She sighed again and set her chin against his shoulder. "I'll call her," she agreed, "but you're going to pay for this, Mr. Sharrock."

  He laughed and squeezed his arms around her. "I can't wait to collect on that debt. I love you, Ash."

  He could feel her smile as she pressed her lips to the side of his neck. "And it's a damn good thing I love you too, Brian."

  #

  Mason sat across the table from Brian, moving his glass of beer around on the table. He hadn't really felt like coming out tonight. Ever since his father had announced he wanted to sell the farm, Mason's world had been turned upside down. He was still shaken by the visit from Lila the day before. Brian had been insistent, though. Mason did have two high school boys to do the chores. He didn't have to be there for everything. It's what people kept telling him. Since his father's accident, he'd felt the burden of responsibility. The weight of making sure the farm could support them. He seemed to be failing at that now. If not, his father wouldn't have to worry about selling off everything that had always been their life. He took a drink of the beer then set it back down on the table, a little harder than he'd meant to. "This sucks. I don't want him to sell."

  "He doesn't see that he has much choice. All he sees is the money going out, and not nearly as much coming in. He doesn't want to leave you with only his debts."

  The thought twisted his stomach. "What does that mean? He's not going anywhere yet. He's not dying." Oh God. "He's not dying, is he?"

  Brian shook his head. "Not that he's told me. He does want to make sure things are in order for when he does. I'm taking care of it for him, Mason. I'll make sure he gets a fair deal for the land and everything. You know you can trust me."

  That brought a quick smirk from him. "Only lawyer I could say that about."

  "Funny."

  "You know it's not just the land, or the buildings, or the damn farm equipment. None of that means anything to me. I have so many memories there." Like the first time he'd kissed Lila. Back when he thought he'd have her forever. At fifteen, he hadn't thought anything, except her father, would take her away from him.

  At the ache in his chest, he reminded himself he needed to stop thinking about her. He hadn't been able to since the night before. All through dinner with his parents, as he tried to go over the books for the farm to see if there was anywhere they could shore things up and make it through. He'd never been good with the books. That had been Kyle's strength. Acid churned thinking about his brother, and he shoved the thought away. He'd tried to understand the books, but even when he had finally gone to bed, his thoughts had been with Lila. It had to have been why she even haunted his dreams. As if she didn't do that every night, anyway.

 

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20