All For You (Rocktown Ink #5), page 4
My client walked out, and I got down to the business of cleaning off my table, maybe a little to vigorously. Okay, a lot too vigorously. Where the hell did Mase get off, anyway? He’d acted like a dick for almost three months and now he wanted to…what? Be pals? Pretend he hadn’t been an unreasonable, rude jackass nearly every time we spoke?
Well, I wasn’t going to forget. I could hold a grudge, oh yes, I could, just like all the Faraday women before me. It was self-preservation, I guess. If you scorned us, we shunned you. Our family tree was filled with women who had been betrayed, usually by the men they loved. And not just me, my mother, and my gran, but my great-grandmother before that, and it went on. We had shitty luck with men. We always ended up alone. So we’d developed a thick skin with a Teflon coating for double protection.
And I wouldn’t let the Faraday name down by allowing some man to treat me like shit. It didn’t matter that he wasn’t a love interest—I cringed—I’d already done that. I’d had my betrayal.
My ex, Adam, had torn out my heart and smashed it into the ground. I’d given up everything for him, and he’d treated me like I was nothing. He’d told me he loved me, and I’d stupidly believed him.
Why are you thinking about Adam?
I shoved that bastard out of my head and focused my rage where it belonged, on Mase, the dog hater.
Asshole.
Jimmy was not weird looking.
Okay, maybe the mix of beagle, greyhound, and cattle dog was an odd one, but still! You insult my dog on top of all your other offenses, and you are done.
End of story.
“What’s up, Trix?”
I didn’t look up at Riff, too focused on my task. “I’m rage cleaning.”
Silence. “You’re gonna wear through the leather if you carry on at that level of aggression.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be meeting your wife for lunch?”
He chuckled. “Like that, is it?”
I huffed out a breath. “Shit, sorry, it’s not you…” I glanced up at Lila’s husband, and tried to control my scowl. “It’s Quinn’s arrogant brother. I did the job he wanted, despite him acting like a prick the entire time, and now he wants us to let bygones be bygones. I’m not down. Okay, yes, I could have told him where to go and refused to do the job, but he’s Quinn’s brother, you know? My trailer’s on their property. What the hell could I do? But honestly, I’ve reached my limit. I don’t want to be his friend or even friendly. I’m not into being fake. And I’m not going to pretend I like the guy just so I don’t have to move.”
Riff crossed his tattooed arms and winced.
I straightened. “What?”
“Don’t be pissed…”
“Grifter.”
“Look, you’re my girl’s girl, and you’re also my friend, which is why I have to tell you…even though Quinn was only trying to help…it would be a dick move to let you be ambushed, so even at the risk of Quinn’s wrath, you should know that Mase is on the way here to talk to you.”
“What?” Was steam coming out of my ears? I felt like steam was literally coming out of my ears. “Screw that, I’m out of here.”
“Or you could just stay and talk. You have to get this shit over with sometime.”
I snatched my bag off the table by the door. “I decide when that happens, Riff, not him. Jesus, of all the arrogant, egotistical things he could do. He decides we need to talk, so he’s just going to force me?”
Riff shrugged. “I think you two got off on the wrong foot. He’s Bull’s friend, and you know Bull doesn’t suffer fools.”
I scowled. “I’ll talk to him when I’m good and ready and not before.”
Rushing through the shop, I ignored Dane’s questioning look and walked out the door. Dane was married to Eves, and I’d bet money as soon as Riff filled him in he’d call his wife, my friend, and fill her in on my latest drama.
Jumping in my car, I fired Veronica to life and took off. I was running away, and yes, it was cowardly. I knew I had to talk to him, but I needed to cool down first. My temper had gotten me into trouble on numerous occasions, and the way I was feeling after our last conversation, if I talked to him now, I’d only make things worse.
Also, he didn’t get to win this!
I loved Quinn, and hating on her brother would only upset her. So yes, Riff was right, I had to find a way to get along with Mase for her sake…but when I was ready and not before. And selfishly, forcing myself to be civil to the guy would mean I could stay where I was until I had enough of a deposit for the small section I had my heart set on.
My grandmother’s voice filled my head.
Don’t put down roots, girl. Roots are shackles, they’ll hold you down. I raised you to live free.
Which was why staying in Rocktown had never been the plan. I never imagined I’d fall in love with the place, that I’d make friends who were like family.
For so long, Gran had been the only person I’d allowed myself to trust, the only person I could rely on.
I thought about the letter she’d written me—her dying wish for me—and my stomach sank. I didn’t want to let her down, not again.
But I wasn’t sure I could say goodbye to everyone here either.
Was I shackling myself by staying here? Was I only asking for more hurt down the line?
Stop.
I’d think about that later. I couldn’t do it now.
I drove around for a while, then ended up at the lake. I came here a lot. It was so incredibly peaceful. The water glistening under the summer sky, the sound of birds and insects, the breeze moving through the trees and long grass.
I breathed deep…then groaned as I blew out a frustrated breath.
Okay, maybe…just maybe, Mase wasn’t the only one who’d been a little touchy. I hadn’t been myself, lately. I could admit that, and I knew why.
Kiss me, kitten.
A shiver slid through me. His voice, my Adonis, was so clear, and Mase, well, he kind of sounded like my sexy stranger. Every time I’d talked to Quinn’s brother since that night, there’d been a pang in the center of my chest, and then I’d get angry with myself for running away that morning. Basically, Mase, the giant jerk, had been an easy target.
Which meant my excuse for acting like an asshole was no better than Mase’s.
We’d both lost people that we loved. Him, his wife, and me, my gran. I could only speak for myself, but I was still hurting…and I was really fucking angry that I’d had to say goodbye. I’d known she didn’t have long left in those months before her death, and I’d used my default, anger, to protect myself from feeling the fear and pain. Mase had been an easy outlet.
I could only assume he felt something similar after ending his marriage.
So yeah, maybe we were both in the wrong.
Goddamn it.
Which meant I needed to talk to the guy and clear the air, so we could at least be civil in the future. We had the same friends. I lived in his backyard, for Christ’s sake. I had no choice but to talk to the guy.
But first I was going to cool down some more. Making sure no one was around, I stood and stripped down to my underwear, then ran into the water.
It was dark by the time I pulled up outside the house. Jimmy tore across the yard to greet me as I opened the gate and followed me to the back door of Mase’s house.
Here goes nothing.
I knocked and waited.
I had a weekly catch-up with my girls at Lake’s End, Addy’s cafe, and I didn’t want to have this whole Mase thing hanging between me and Quinn when we next met up. I had to deal with it now.
There was no reply.
I tried again.
Still nothing.
Ugh. I wanted this over with.
“Come on, Jimmy.” He followed me to the trailer and trotted inside when I opened the door. “Did you miss me today?” With big, adoring eyes he watched as I filled his bowl with kibble and fished out a little piece of steak left over from last night’s dinner. The neighbor across the street checked on him regularly throughout the day. Quinn had an encounter with a mountain lion once—yes, it was a long time ago and it hadn’t been back, and yes, the house now had a decent fence—but still I didn’t want to risk it.
While Jimmy woofed down his dinner, I jumped in the shower to rinse off the lake.
I moved quickly, not wanting to miss Mase when he got home, and dressed in shorts, my favorite pink ones covered in yellow roses and a yellow tank to match.
I’d just finished drying my hair when Jimmy barked at the door. Pulling back the curtain, I peeked up at the house. The kitchen light came on. Mase was home.
As much as I wanted to keep on avoiding the guy, enough was enough, right? I needed to pull up my big girl panties and get it over with.
“Come on, Jimmy, let’s show him what a handsome guy you really are.” I gave his boxy head a rub and opened the door.
My mind raced as I strode across the yard.
What the hell are you going to say?
No idea.
Awesome.
Looked like I was just going to have to wing it. Probably a good thing. Because if I thought about all the shitty things he’d said, and the way he’d said them with that short, surly attitude, I’d just get pissed off all over again.
Marching up to the back door, I dragged in a steadying breath, gritted my teeth, and knocked.
“Who is it?” a male voice called from inside.
I was at the freaking back door, who else would it be? “It’s Trix.”
“Just a sec,” he called back.
Jimmy danced around, his excitement increasing at the sound of Mase’s voice. He wriggled between me and the door and bumped it with his butt. It obviously wasn’t latched properly, because the thing swung open.
Jimmy took his shot and rushed inside.
Shit. “Jimmy, get back here.” I ran in after him. Mase already wasn’t a fan of my dog; he sure as heck wouldn’t want him in the house.
Jimmy bounded down the hall, full of excitement, right as someone stepped out of the bathroom’s open door.
I could see it happening in slow motion, and there was no stopping it.
Jimmy collided with the tall, half-naked body that stepped out, knocking who could only be Mase, right off his feet. He landed hard, the air bursting out of him when he hit the ground with a deep oomph. Jimmy instantly closed in, standing over him, wriggling with glee and licking the guy’s face.
Mase was going to kick me out.
He was going to tell me to hitch my trailer and get the hell off his property.
I rushed forward, grabbed Jimmy by the collar, and dragged him back. “Bad dog. Sit. You sit there and don’t move.” I spun back to Mase still sprawled on the floor. “Shit, I’m so sor—”
Electric-blue eyes slammed into me.
Adonis.
He was blinking up at me in shock, and my expression no doubt mirrored his, because I was suddenly struggling to breathe.
I opened my mouth. Closed it. We stared at each other, neither one saying anything. My mind was struggling to process what my eyes were seeing. It’s him. No, it can’t be. But it is. No. Yes, it is!
I stumbled back a step as he climbed to his feet, tall and muscled, that body achingly familiar, in only a pair of running shorts. The tattoos, the body I’d spent hours worshiping, all there, all gorgeous. My eyes darted back to his face, and that mouth that had worshiped me back was currently pressed in a thin line.
Say something!
I cleared my throat, once. Twice. “So, uh…this is unexpected.”
His gaze moved over me, and he shoved the fingers of one hand through his hair. “Trixie?”
“That would be me. Which means you’re…Mase?”
“Yes,” he kind of growled.
I took another step back. “I’m not sure what to say.”
That blue gaze moved over me again, and his nostrils flared. “What the hell were you doing at that bar?”
How could I not have recognized that voice? Hearing it now, thinking about the calls we’d had, there was no mistaking it. But I never thought the man I’d spent the night with…I never imagined in my wildest dreams…or nightmares, that he was the same man who’d barked and grouched at me for the last three months.
This can’t be happening. “I was on my way home and I…stopped. You?”
“There wasn’t anywhere else to stay. Couldn’t get in here since you had the keys and everything in Rocktown was booked up. I took the closest motel.”
“And we ah…” I chewed my lip. “What are the chances, huh?”
His eyes did not waver. They were locked on my face, his supple, muscled body shifting in a tantalizing way as he crossed his arms. “You left before I woke.”
Oh boy. “I didn’t think…I mean, the night was over. I never thought I’d ever see you again, so I—”
“Snuck off without saying anything,” he said.
His voice was so low and gritty, I shivered. Jimmy tugged against my grip on his collar, struggling to get to Mase. “I didn’t want to ruin it with…reality.” The truth slipped out under that penetrating stare as if he’d pried it out of me.
“No? Well, it’s feeling pretty fucking real right now.” His biceps bulged, abs tightening.
I glanced back at the door, wanting to escape through it so damn badly.
“The note you left—”
“I don’t think we need to talk about what happened that night…or the next morning, any of it, really. This whole thing is…it’s…” I had no idea what it was. I was still in shock. “Okay, yes, we had sex. So what, right? People do it all the time. I say we just put it all behind us, forget it happened.” I was babbling, panicking.
“We had sex five times,” he said in a flat voice.
I nodded, trying not to freak out or hyperventilate or just pass right out on the floor at his feet. “Yup. Uh-huh. We did do that. But we didn’t know who we were having sex with. So yeah, we had lots of sex, but—”
“Really fucking good sex, and then you left, but not before you left me that note.” His biceps flexed again. “That note has fucked with me ever since I first read it.”
I wasn’t going to address the “really fucking good sex” part of what he’d just said. He wasn’t wrong, not at all, but we didn’t need to go down that particular rabbit hole. “I’m not sure why my note would fuck with you? It was a perfectly acceptable goodbye—”
“‘Thanks for getting me through one of the shittiest days of my life’?” he said, quoting me. “How did you think I was going to feel reading that after you left? Not being able to ask what happened or if you were okay? No way to contact you. It made me think that what we’d spent all night doing wasn’t something you really wanted. That whatever sent you into that bar and into my bed, the thing that hurt you, had messed you up to the point you might not have been thinking straight. That maybe you’d woken up beside me in that motel room and freaked because you’d fucked away your feelings with some creep who’d taken advantage of you at your lowest.”
I stared at him dumfounded.
“Is that what happened?” he asked roughly.
I swallowed, my mouth bone dry all of a sudden, and forced myself to answer. “No.” I may not want to talk about this, but I also didn’t want him thinking he took advantage of me.
A muscle in his jaw jumped. “Why was it one of the shittiest days in your life, Trixie?”
I crossed my arms, something I did when I felt vulnerable, and right then, I felt so utterly exposed, in so many ways, I didn’t know what to do with myself. “My gran…it was her funeral.” I drew in a steadying breath. “Though she was more than that.”
He bit out a curse. “Christ, kitten—”
Our gazes collided when he said that, when he used that name, and the muscle in his jaw jumped again.
I took another step back. “I promise, you didn’t take advantage. I wasn’t confused. You helped me that night more than you know. So don’t worry about it, or think about it. It’s done. Over.”
“Don’t think about it?” he said softly. “That’s all I’ve done.”
Oh hell.
“It was one night of…madness. You’re Quinn’s brother.” I threw up my hands. “We don’t even like each other, for Christ’s sake. I came here to put all the animosity behind us and move on. I sure as hell didn’t expect any of…this.” I waved my hands between us. “Let’s just agree to move on. This doesn’t need to be a thing.” I dragged in a breath to steady my racing heart and forced a smile, holding out my pinkie. My lame way of attempting to lighten the heavy atmosphere, to pretend I was cool and unaffected. “Swear on it?”
His gaze dropped to my hand. “On what?”
“On pretending that night never happened.”
He closed the space between us, ignored my pinkie, and curled his fingers around mine. “Not sure I can do that, kitten.”
“Don’t…do not call me that,” I whispered.
“And for the record, I do like you, Trixie.” He searched my gaze. “I’ve been an asshole to you, and I regret that more than you know. I should never have treated you the way I did. I haven’t got a good excuse for it. I know I’m a surly son-of-a-bitch. I actually…I enjoyed sparring with you. Liked the way you’d growl under your breath and give me shit back. I was too fucking dense to realize I was the only one having a good time. I’m sorry I was a dick.”
I had no idea what to say to any of that. None. “I’m…I’m sorry too. I was a bit of a dick as well.”
He didn’t answer, just watched me.
“So, you ah…won’t tell anyone what happened between us? I don’t want Quinn to find out.”
A grunt.
“Please.”
“It’s no one else’s business. And Quinn wouldn’t be pissed with you, if that’s what you’re worried about. If anything, she’d be angry at me. But I’m a big boy. I can take it. She knows my love life is none of her business, like hers was none of mine.”
Love life? “There’s nothing to tell, Mason.”
Another grunt, followed by a smirk. “Mason now, huh?”
I ignored the smirk and how good his mouth looked doing it, or how hot my skin flushed. “Do you agree to forget about that night?”
