The Trouble With Lust
Page 11
Knowing when she was beat, Mandy apologized. “There’s no excuse for my behavior. If you’d prefer I introduce you to a different sales associate, I will.”
The embarrassment staining her cheeks bothered him. The longer he stood on the lot, the more he recalled from their lone date. She was a single mom with two kids to support. How many cars could she possibly sell in such a tiny town?
“I don’t think that’s necessary,” he cut in. “You’re a highly trained staff member or you wouldn’t be here.”
The intensity of Shonda’s stare caused him to shift uncomfortably in place. When he drummed up enough courage to meet her eyes, his heart pinged. He could tell she knew of Mandy’s circumstances, too. Small town gossip he imagined. Now she looked as if he hung the moon. In the past, it would have made him uncomfortable. That he didn’t feel that way presently concerned him.
Shonda’s smile bloomed wide. “I’ve changed my mind. I’ll take the red one.”
It didn’t come as a total surprise to Shonda when Mason disappeared a few hours later and Dane showed up in his place.
“I brought Chinese.”
“Shopping for a sedan freaked your brother out that bad?” she asked as she swung the door wide for him to enter.
“Pretty much.”
“Pfft. If it wasn’t so pathetic, it would be funny.”
“True,” he agreed. “I got crab rangoon. Erica said it was your favorite.”
Shit! If Dane had told Erica he was coming here, she’d know something was up. “How much does she know?”
Dane froze in place, confusion written all over him.
“Was she not to know I was bringing you dinner because you’re lonely?”
“Wait, what? Who said I was lonely?”
“My brother.”
“In case you forgot, you have two.”
“In case you forgot, only one has been hanging out with you,” he countered with a laugh. “But if he’s so forgettable, then maybe he is doing it all wrong.”
“I’m pretty sure I adore you.”
“Don’t tell me you said those words to Mason. He might be on the next plane to anywhere.”
“I hope you don’t take me for an idiot,” she said.
“Nah. I can already tell you have a higher IQ than his last three conquests combined.”
Shonda laughed and removed two plates from the cabinet. “Does he know you talk about him like this?”
He shrugged. “If he doesn’t, he needs to get his IQ tested.”
They continued to bond over orange chicken and verbal digs at Mason’s expense.
“Do you mind if I use your phone to text your brother?” she asked some time later.
“Please don’t tell me he never gave you his number.”
Compressed lips, wide eyes and raised brows told the tale.
“Do you suppose my brother knows he’s an asshole?”
“I imagine he does. I tell him all the time, and you don’t seem shy.”
Dane’s hearty laughter warmed her cold, tired soul.
“I tell you what, let’s really get back at him. Let’s run away and get married.”
“I ask you to keep her company for dinner, and before the plates are even cleared, you’re planning an elopement?” The deep, not-so-amused voice of Mason startled them both.
Hand on her chest, Shonda waited until her heart resumed some semblance of normal before she spoke. “How did you get in here?”
“It seems you were so wrapped up in each other, you forgot to lock the front door. Think that’s the wisest course of action?” Mason dropped the duffle bag in his hand next to the sofa.
“I vote her marrying me if we’re picking courses of action,” Dane volunteered, hand raised as if he actually had a vote.
Both Mason and Shonda ignored him.
“No,” she agreed. “I should have double checked and locked it behind him.”
Astonishment unhinged Mason’s jaw. “Are you agreeing with me for a change? Should I mark this date down?”
“Hardy-har-har.”
His booming laugh startled her, as did his sweeping her up from the chair and laying one on her right in front of his brother.
“Say goodbye, Dane,” he commanded.
“Goodbye, Dane,” she complied.
Mason lifted as she jumped and wrapped her long legs around him. He went in for a deeper, more mind-drugging kiss. She was toast and a damned pushover. But Mason was like a bad habit she couldn’t seem to shake.
“Seriously? You’re tossing me over for tall, dark and brooding?” Dane demanded. “I’ll just clean up here and put the food away. Don’t mind me.”
“Oh, we won’t,” Mason informed him and carried her to bed.
“Way to play hard to get, Shonda,” Dane called after them.
Chapter Fifteen
The parade of days, one after the other, marched by. Shonda was careful to keep the relationship they’d shared fun and light, careful to hide how deep her emotions ran. “Casual” by Mason’s definition. She never spoke word one of her love for him. If she did, he’d disappear faster than she could blink, and she’d never see him again. While she understood this couldn’t go on indefinitely, that long-term she wanted marriage and family, for now she was content to enjoy whatever stolen time with him she could eke out.
She had yet to see his place, and it bothered her to a small degree. However, she understood his unspoken reasoning. Had she thought about it in advance, she’d have never allowed him to set foot in her apartment. Everywhere she looked, every nook and cranny of her space allowed her to recall a moment of teasing or touching. Yes, she was forming memories here. Eventually they would come back to bite her in the ass.
Their arguments grew less frequent as they became more in sync. He’d even graduated to providing his phone number. Although, she waited for him to contact her in most cases, knowing that any advances on her part wouldn’t be welcome.
On the nights when he didn’t text, call, or come by, she wanted to rage. Deep down, she recognized if she took what they had to a needy level, he’d be gone. In her mind, a head’s up would be consideration. In his, pointing it out would be akin to forcing a commitment. That was something Mason would never do. If her heart ached on the nights she spent alone, she refused to acknowledge the hurt. Instead, she made plans with friends or visited Erica in the prison her stalker had created for her and Zack.
Of her own happy bomber, she heard nothing more. No bombs in her new car—which she was careful to park in a garage she rented at her complex—no break-ins, no more parents’ homes being barbecued. She realized it was probably too much to hope for that that psycho moved on. Mason did too, if his continued precautions were any clue as to what he was thinking. When he wasn’t around, he set it up so the local law enforcement scheduled routine patrols for her place as well as for her mother’s and father’s. Or like now, when food became a necessity, he escorted her to the grocery store, careful to use his car with its hyper-sensitive motion alarm that would go off if anyone got too close. He was also cautious in his route to the store, taking side roads and backtracking.
“It’s like we’re in a spy movie,” she laughed.
“Yeah, well, better safe than sorry.”
Tonight, something in his mood said he was upset. She couldn’t put her finger on what it might be. The tentative questions about his work and home life were met with a cold stare.
When he would have exited the car, she grasped his hand to stop him. “Mason, is something wrong? Are you mad at me for some reason?”
“No.” He moved to open the driver’s side door, and again, she stopped him.
“Is it so difficult to have a real conversation with me? Something more meaningful than what we plan to eat for dinner or what movie we want to watch?”
“Oh, for God’s sake. Here we go.” He sat back with a huff and threw his hands in the air. “This is the point where you tell me you want me to share my feelings, right? To commit to call
ing you my girlfriend? It’s not happening, Shonda. Give it rest.”
He might as well have hauled off and punched her in the diaphragm, the pain was so great. To not only misinterpret her actions, but to accuse her of trying to force a relationship on him that they both knew he damn well didn’t desire made her want to vomit. There she sat, unable to move or speak, staring at his gloved hands gripped tight around the steering wheel, wishing in a twisted way that he would’ve struck her. At least then she could claim abuse and find a reason to run, not walk, away as fast as her legs could carry her. For that matter, what was stopping her now?
Shonda took her power back. “I’m done.” She didn’t know where the words came from, somewhere deep and dark, but they lightened her soul. Without giving him a chance to respond, she flung open her door and strode in the opposite direction of the store.
“Shonda, get back here,” Mason’s fury-laced voice called to her across the parking lot.
She continued on her journey toward home. Each step she took made her feel lighter, cementing her decision to be done with self-torment. Done with longing for things she couldn’t have. Done with the best sex of her existence. The last thought almost made her pause her flight.
“I’m not fooling around,” he called. “Get back here. It’s not safe for you to walk home in the dark.”
It wasn’t safe for her to spend another second in his company either. If she did, she’d cave. She’d give in to his non-commitment demands.
She thought she heard his muttered “goddammit” across the still evening air. Things tended to echo off the snow. Now that she thought about it, she wished she had a warmer jacket. It wasn’t as if she wouldn’t survive the half-hour walk home, she’d just be a popsicle by the time she got there.
A car door slammed behind her. Mason. That would be him either coming after her, or leaving her to her own devices and going home. When she didn’t hear him immediately jog up behind her, all her romantic fantasies fled.
Moisture burned her eyes and nasal passages. No matter how many times she told herself she wouldn’t cry, her body had a mind of its own. Hot tears streamed silently down her chilled cheeks. She angrily swiped them away. The last thing she needed was to be a sniveling, snotty mess in case she ran into someone she knew. Although who she was going to run into in the dark at eight-thirty at night was anyone’s guess.
The irony being that someone literally crashed into her right then. She was knocked to the pavement as her assailant snatched her purse. Her right arm and shoulder hurt like a sonofabitch as she pushed to her feet and yelled. Her attempt to give chase was thwarted by the icy sidewalk. Down she went again.
Tires squealed, and Shonda wondered if someone was coming to finish her off. Mason’s Lexus skidded to a halt on the road beside her. His frantic, “Are you all right?” was met with an affirmative nod and a shooing of her hand.
“Go get that rat bastard and run him over, will ya?”
He flashed her a roguish grin, popped back into his car to give chase. After he’d gone, she wondered why the hell she’d encouraged him to leave her alone. A single step told her that her hip was going to feel the impact with the ground on the morrow. She released a groan and started to limp in the direction of the store. Cold, wet, and now exhausted on every level, she decided it was worth the wait for a taxi.
Ten more steps reminded her she didn’t have a wallet to cover the cost of the ride. Five more brought tears to her eyes again. Six more had her pissed off and ready to murder whomever was making her life a living hell. She was only four feet from the store entrance when Mason pulled up beside her, expression grim. A quick shake of his head let her know the perp had escaped. How he’d escaped on foot when Mason was hot on his heels, she’d never know.
“He must have had a car waiting,” Mason said, interpreting her frown. “I’ve called the police. They should be here shortly. Come get warm.”
The thought of those heated leather seats tempted her. Oh, how they tempted her. But in the end, she thanked him and said she’d wait in the store.
“Don’t be ridiculous, love. Get in the car.”
“Ridiculous? Ridiculous?” Yeah, she sounded mentally unstable with her voice ratcheting up so high, but she couldn’t give two shits right about then. “You know what’s ridiculous? You treating women like they have cooties if you spend more than twenty-four consecutive hours together. Another ridiculous thing might be your gamophobia. That’s ridiculous.”
“What the hell is gamophobia?” he asked, sounding outraged, as if she’d labeled him a serial killer.
“Look it up, asshole,” she spat before sailing through the automatic doors.
Once inside, she convinced the store manager to allow her to use the phone.
“Shonda Grant, right?” the guy asked.
For the first time she really looked at him. Sandy brown hair, azure eyes, and a ready smile. He looked familiar, and it took no time to recognize him. “Tommy McAdams? Ohmygod! It’s been forever! How are you?” She rushed forward and hugged him. Tommy had been her first unrequited love. Of course, she’d only been eight at the time, so it wasn’t bound to work out anyway. “Wow, look at you! All grown up and a heartbreaker.”
His joyous laugh drew forth a laugh of her own. “You look…” He trailed off, there was no way he could look at her tear stained face, dirty ripped jeans, and wild hair and say anything nice.
“Like a hot mess?” she grinned and tried to appear less pathetic.
“I was going to say beautiful, but I didn’t think you’d believe it, seeing as how you’re a little worse for wear at the moment.”
His sincere words went a long way in soothing her emotional hurts.
“Thank you.”
“So what happened?”
“Would you believe I got mugged?”
“In Stonebrooke?” Disbelief coated his words, and she couldn’t blame him for being shocked. Nothing happened in their small town.
“I know, right?”
“God, are you okay? Do I need to call the police? What can I do to help?”
“I’ve got it covered, cuz. They’re on their way.” Mason’s deep voice from directly behind her caused her to squeak in surprise.
“Mason! Hey, man! Were you outside when it happened?” Tommy asked.
“You could say that.” His dry tone was accompanied by an awkward silence.
Shonda waited for the count of ten and finally spoke up. “The phone, Tommy?”
“Oh, yeah, come on back.”
“No need,” Mason forestalled him. To Shonda he said, “I brought you here, I’ll damn well take you home.”
“I’ll call Eva, but thanks.” She had to wonder why her foolish pride wouldn’t give in and accept his offer. Maybe it was because if she did, she’d find herself allowing things to go back to the way they were. Back to what no longer suited her needs.
“You’re being a stubborn fool,” he ground out and stepped up to invade her space.
With each step he stalked her, she retreated until she backed into Tommy. When Tommy’s arm encircled her to keep her upright, Mason focused his icy gaze on the offending appendage, then cast the owner a withering glare.
Shonda felt, more than heard, Tommy’s rumbling laugh. “That’s not going to work with me, cuz. The McAdams clan is made of sterner stuff.”
“How about if I threaten to break it?” Mason growled.
“Ah, it’s like that, is it?”
Tommy couldn’t have said more perfect words to have Mason backing off. The hostility fled and left indifference in its place. “Not at all. Knock yourself out.” He turned on his heel and called over his shoulder, “I’ll be outside, giving my statement to the police. Call me if you want to have a beer sometime, Tommy.”
Ice had settled around Shonda’s heart. It allowed her to remain unaffected and casual when she faced her new champion.
“Let me know if you need a ride,” he smiled gently, kindness personified.
“I�
��d take you up on it, but Eva has the spare set of keys to my place. Thanks, though.”
“So, you and Mason, huh? That’s hard to believe.”
Her brows clashed together. “Why’s that?”
“You’ve always been a nice girl. It’s not his thing.”
She gave a sick smile and reached for the phone receiver on the wall.
Chapter Sixteen
Valentine’s Day sucked, pure and simple. It was a day for saps and die-hard romantics. Or at least that’s what Mason told himself. Commercialism at its finest. A day to spend hundreds of dollars to express one’s emotions with a gift or a dinner. No thanks.
He’d been working double-duty since Erica’s stabbing, because Zack had refused to leave her side. With him and Dane taking up the slack for the business, he didn’t have time to take a piss, much less anything else. That was the reason he gave himself for not seeking out Shonda to be sure she wasn’t suffering ill-effects from the attack late last week. For not mending the rift and buying her the token flowers for the holiday he loathed. Or so he convinced himself.
The truth was probably more along the lines of her relief when Tommy hugged her to him, as if he was there to protect her. From him! As if Mason would ever hurt her. Granted he’d probably looked like he felt, as if he wanted to rip Tommy’s arm from its socket. That he’d taken umbrage to another man touching her was to be expected. She’d been sleeping with him. She should have been loyal.
Mason sighed and stood, strolling to look out over the parking lot. Pretty scarce for this late in the day. It seemed all the saps and die-hards were still smarter than he was. At least when they played the romance game, they had someone to go home to at the end of the day. And wasn’t that the root of his problem? Shonda had made him care. Made him remember how fun it had been to be in love—when it was good, before the ugly end. Not that he loved her. No, he wasn’t ready to admit anything of the sort. But he did care.