Love, Laughter, and Happily Ever Afters Collection (Eight Fun, Romantic Novels by Eight Bestselling Authors)
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She was going to itch for the rest of her life after he went back to Chicago.
âHold still,â he whispered against the back of her hair.
He ran a large palm down the side of her hip and thigh and brought her leg up and back to drape over his hip behind her. He slid his fingers forward then, stroking over her stomach, lower, pressing against her mound, circling her clit and slipping into the hot wetness that seemed to be constant for him.
Two fingers slid deep and she gasped as his thumb stroked over her clit at the same time.
âMason,â she choked.
âIâll never get enough of you,â he murmured, kissing her hair, her shoulder.
She knew the feeling. But she couldnât think like that. Hearing him say it was almost painful. She needed to keep him from talking, from saying all the things she yearned to hearâlike how they could work it out, how they could be together, how his hands would be the only ones to ever touch her like this again.
âMason, I wantââ
He thrust his fingers deeper and she forgot that she wanted anything else.
âReach a condom,â he urged.
Heâd brought several sheâd learned, so she reached for the pants that lay on the floor between the couch and coffee table and pulled one out. âI canât reach to put it on you.â He had her firmly pinned right where she was.
âIâve got it.â
He slipped his fingers from her, which made her want to whimper from the loss. Stupid. Dangerous. Bad.
A moment later, he lifted her thigh farther and she felt the tip of him at her entrance. Instinctively, she arched her back and he pressed forward, sliding fully, thickly into her.
They moaned together.
His hand returned to her, stroking her clit as he moved behind her. She had less leverage in this position, but Mason was doing fine, pumping deep, long and slow.
She was quickly breathing hard, feeling the coil of desire wind tighter, as if she was reaching for something just beyond her, something that only Mason could provide.
âI love you, Ad,â he said gruffly as he thrust deep.
And she shattered.
Her orgasm, her heart, her resistance.
âYOUâRE WHAT?â LAUREN demanded as Mason dodged two kids on bikes on the sidewalk on his way from Adrianneâs to the café. It was a beautiful morning.
âStaying in Sapphire Falls. Iâm in love.â He said it with a big grin even though she couldnât see it over the phone.
âYouâve got to be fucking kidding me,â Lauren muttered.
He grimaced as he heard a crash on Laurenâs end of the phone and the expletive that followed. âWhat are you doing?â
âDropping a pan of brownies on my ceramic tile floor.â
âYou okay?â
âOh, sure, Iâm great. I send you off to a reunion you didnât even want to go to so I could have a romantic weekend with Alex. And you end up in love and I get dumped. And I now have to go to the store for more brownie mix. Because I am going to eat brownies. But Iâm definitely great.â
Lauren never ate sweets. Unless she was upset. Generally, she was upset about something that happened in the lab or with their contracts and he could easily get her through that.
Damn. âYou and Alex broke up?â
âYes, she dumped me. Because my idea of having a life outside of work wasnât enough. She didnât want to be part of my life. She wanted to be my whole life.â
Mason wasnât sure what to say here. He was the best friend, so he knew it was his job to say something comforting, but Lauren was always the one to break up with her boy-and girlfriends. That generally required taking her out for a drink and telling her she was right to do it. This was new territory. He couldnât remember a time sheâd been dumped.
âI thought this weekendâ¦the pointâ¦â He really didnât know what to say.
âThe point was to show Alex I cared about our relationship, that I was willing to give her some time, focus on her, make her a priority. But as soon as I said something about Haiti, she freaked. She wanted me to give everything up. She wanted me to get a normal job.â
Mason frowned. âA normal job like what?â
Lauren sighed. âHell if I know. A science teacher, I guess, or a researcher in a lab where I can go home at five oâclock and have Christmas off.â
It was quite clear Alex had no idea what she was talking about. Dr. Lauren Davis couldnât work a normal job. There were plenty of talented people who could do those normal jobs extremely well. Lauren needed to do more than that. She was needed for innovative things, things that those science teachers would be talking to their students about, things that didnât follow a clock or a calendarâ¦things like they did together.
âThatâs ridiculous,â Mason said.
âBut itâs reality,â she returned. âMost people donât understand what we do, and they sure arenât going to understand how much we do it. If we want to be in love with normal people we have to have more normal lives.â
He could hear scraping sounds that indicated Lauren was cleaning up her brownie mess while she talked to him.
âI donât think thatâs true,â Mason argued. âAdrianneââ
âThis is your fault anyway.â
âMy fault?â Mason repeated. âI left town when you asked me to so you could be with her.â
âI mean all this craziness that Iâm choosing over her. We canât stop now. The stuff weâre doing at work is bigger than both of us, thanks to you being brilliant and stuff.â
âHave you been drinking?â he asked.
âNo, dammit.â She took a deep breath. âOkay, I put some vodka in my orange juice this morning. But thatâs not why Iâm saying this. Mason, weâre supposed to be in Haiti in two weeks for the preliminary visit. Weâre supposed to be in DC next week. I dumped Alex for this.â
He heard a thump on her end of the phone.
âI thought Alex dumped you.â
âAlex dumped me because I said I was going to Haiti instead of staying here with her. So you are not staying in Sapphire Falls.â
âThis is different. Adrianne isââ
âI get it,â Lauren said. âI do. Sheâs hot, right?â
âYes. Sheâsâ¦â Mason trailed off, at a loss for the perfect way to describe Adrianne. Beautiful wasnât enough. The way he felt about her was so much more than how she looked.
âI know,â Lauren said. âThe lips, the breasts, her smell, her skin, her hairâ¦I get it. But that heat that fast doesnât make sense. What about compatibility? What about what weâyouâhave in common? How can Iâyouâkeep her interested when IâI mean youâare sitting on the couch watching Dancing with the Stars and all you can think is how much you could be getting done at work instead?â
Masonâs knew his mouth was hanging open in shock. Lauren didnât rant and rave like that. She soundedâ¦crazy. She soundedâ¦
âAre you crying?â he demanded.
She distinctly sniffed. âNo.â
He really had no idea what to say now. Lauren didnât cry. She yelled sometimes. She slammed doors. She ate brownies. But she never cried. And sheâd never been crazy about anyone like she was about Alex. Alex was different. With Alex, Lauren had been distracted, spontaneousâ¦different. It had been fast and hot and crazy.
Like him and Adrianne.
He sighed. âMaybe you should just watch the show, Lauren. If thatâs what she wants, do it.â
âIâm still not there though. Iâm still thinking about other things.â
âThen maybe,â he said ca
refully. âShe wasnât the right one.â He hesitated with what he was about to say. âAdrianne gets it.â
âGets what?â
âWhat we do. Why we do it.â He paused. âWho I am.â Lauren didnât answer right away.
âDoes she?â she finally asked.
âYes. And she likes it. Admires it.â She let him write work notes on her.
âAh.â Laurenâs tone had totally changed. âShe likes you.â
âShe likes me,â he agreed.
He knew that Lauren understood what he was talking about and didnât feel pathetic about it. She was almost the only one who could really know him without him feeling vulnerable. Almost the only one. There was another woman, a short blond with the sweetest mouth, who he was more than willing to have as close as possible.
âOf course she likes you.â
âDonât say it like that.â
Lauren sighed.
Lauren knew women liked him. But not the real him. He was great at putting on the act. He was suave, polished, sexy, sure of himself. As far as they were concerned. But they didnât really know him. When conversation turned to fertilizer and irrigation, most lost interest, if they didnât just outright think he was weird. So he kept it superficial. They talked about social issues, politics, his travels, their work.
But Adrianne knew him. Knew about him, even some of his past here in Sapphire Falls. And liked him. Wanted him.
Heâd left her sleeping this morning. She was probably going to be sore when she got up this morning, he thought with a grin. Heâd been unable to keep from waking her every few hours throughout the night. At least when she wasnât wakening him.
Theyâd made love repeatedly in several variations, each more incredible and better than the last. Especially after he told her he loved her. She hadnât repeated it, but he could feel itâstronger every time.
âYouâll see,â Mason said gently. âItâs going to be fine.â
âThis is all my fault,â Lauren said. Something clattered on her end of the phone. âI made you go to Sapphire Falls. I made you so attractive that Adrianne couldnât resist. I told you that something had to be more important than work. But donât listen to me, Mason. Because of Alex, Iâve been distracted and leaving work early instead of focusing on the stuff for Haiti. And now sheâs gone and all of that is wasted time. But none of the time weâve spent on Haiti is wasted. Those people need us. Those people will appreciate us. They deserve us. Hot girls who make us think about nipple clamps and bubble baths and being in love forever and ever do not deserve us.â
Masonâs eyes were wide. He wasnât sure what he was more stunned byâLaurenâs continued ranting, his mental picture of Alex and nipple clamps, or the fact that his best friend really believed that Adrianne was bad for him.
Damn.
None of that was good.
âLauren, calm down. Everything is going to be fineââ
âAre you coming home?â
âIâll have to make a trip eventually. Iâll have to figure this DC meeting out.â
He thought about suggesting Lauren go without him. But the truth was she couldnât. She could explain everything, present everything, make the case. But the vice president was upset with Mason. Mason had to deliver the presentation and make nice. Not that he exactly cared if the vice president liked him or was happy with him, but it would undoubtedly make things easier in the future when he and Lauren wanted to work overseas. They could do what they wanted without the vice presidentâs blessing, but it would be easier with it.
Dammit.
âI was thinking we could do a conference callââ
âOh, sure. A conference call. Why didnât I think of that?â Lauren asked with sudden brightness. âI think thatâs a fantastic plan.â
âYou do?â
âHell no. That idea sucks.â
âWhy? Theyâll get the info they need. Iâll even apologize to Vice President Forrester.â
âYouâre seriously telling me that youâre going to ask the vice president of the United States to have a conference call with you so you can stay in Hicksville for a fling.â
âSheâs not a fling,â he said stubbornly. âSheâs the one. Youâll like her. Sheâsââ
âA distraction you, we, donât need.â
He arrived at the café. âI have a meeting. I have to go.â He could have told her the guys had invited him to coffee, but she would have thought he was making it up.
âMason,â Lauren said quickly. âI donât lie to you, right?â
âRight,â he said with some reservation.
âThen believe me when I say that if you are not on a flight to Chicago by tomorrow morning, I will do whatever I have to do to save you from yourself.â
That didnât sound good at all.
âI donâtââ he started.
âDo not make me come to Sapphire Falls.â
âIâll have to call you later.â
âSure, you do that,â she said. âWhenever you get a minute. No big deal. Iâll go ahead and do all of our work for the DC meeting without you andââ
He hung up.
Heâd never, ever hung up on Lauren before. But she was pushy and bossy and had been dumped and was blaming himâat least indirectlyâso there wasnât really anything good to come out of further conversation at the moment.
A minute later, he had to silence his phone as he stepped into the diner. Lauren could leave all her thoughts and opinions about all of it on his voice mail. Which he was sure she would.
âMason!â
Drewâs enthusiastic greeting made him smile in spite of himself. Maybe they were all faking it to make him feel good. But maybe they found him interesting. He was going to stay carefully away from the topic of his work and concentrate on things they cared aboutâthe Sapphire Falls high school football team, the University of Nebraskaâs football team and the Kansas City Chiefs football team.
All things heâd spent time researching on Adrianneâs computer that morning.
ââMorning.â He took the chair across from Tim. âI see the Huskers have a great new running back from Texas.â
CHAPTER EIGHT
âTHIS IS SO GREAT.â
Adrianne dropped her head onto her hands. âNo, Phoebe, this is not great.â
âHow is you falling in love with a great guy not great?â
Adrianneâs head whipped up. âWhat?â
Phoebe grinned and lifted the takeout coffee cup sheâd brought with her knowing, she claimed, that Adrianne would be too tired to get up and make anything. Sheâd brought Adrianne tea too.
She was tired. No doubt about it. And sore. But if she were given the chance to repeat the night, she wouldnât change a thing. Except for Masonâs declaration of staying in town. And she wouldnât have wasted even the time she had sleeping. He was leaving Mondayâhe wasâand she wanted to spend as much time with him as possible until then.
Until she had to swear him off with the carrot cake and drinking and staying up too late and her Blackberry andâ¦all the other things that sheâd loved and been addicted to.
âYouâve never been in love before?â Phoebe asked, reaching for one of the sugar packets sheâd brought along as well.
âIâveâ¦â Adrianne thought about it. Besides one college boyfriend, she couldnât honestly say sheâd been in love. And that had been first love, kid stuff. Certainly, sheâd never felt the way she did about Mason.
With a groan, she dropped her head back to her hands. âThis is terri
ble.â
Now not only did she know he couldnât stay, and she was going to be sad to see him go, it really was going to break her heart.
Dammit.
âHow did this happen?â
âHe came to town, you danced with him and the rest is the story youâll tell your grandkids.â
âStop it.â Adrianne lifted her head again. âSeriously. This canât happen.â
âIt already did.â
âThen I have to keep it fromâ¦continuing. Even if he has some feelings for me, he canât stay.â
Phoebe didnât look convinced.
Adrianne tried harder. âHeâs wrapped up in everything, being a part of the crowd, the phenomenal sex, the idea that the in crowd wants him for something. It wonât last. Itâs not real.â
Phoebe added another sugar packet and stirred her coffee. âI probably shouldnât say anything. Iâll make you mad. Again.â
âIf youâre referring to what you said about me not being willing to fight for him, then yes, please donât say anything,â Adrianne said. Phoebe was right. That was the sucky part. She didnât want to have to fight. She was tired of fighting. She didnât want to have to try. She wanted easy, simple, angst-free.
âIâm thinking that if the guy youâre in love with isnât enough to make you want to take a risk then I donât know what will be. I worry about you.â
Adrianne swallowed against the lump in her throat. âIâm fine.â
âWell, at least youâre getting laid. Thatâs more than I can say.â
That simple reminder was enough to make liquid heat rush through Adrianneâs body.
Phoebe must have seen something in her face because she whistled. âWow, it must have been good.â
It had been. It had been enough to ruin her forever for other men. It had been enough to make her want to beg him to stay.