by L. P. Dover
Little did he know it, but I wasn’t going anywhere.
We arrived at the Bellagio, per my request since Mason’s former idea of a hotel ended up being the crappiest one in Vegas. Not that I was high maintenance or anything, but staying in that rat hole just wasn’t going to do. We’d probably get mugged as soon as we stepped out of the cab.
Mason busied himself with getting our bags out of the trunk while I waltzed inside to see if the hotel had any rooms available. The Bellagio was my favorite hotel out of all the ones on the strip and it was mainly because of the fountain of lights in front of the hotel. Each night they would play music and the water would dance in an extravagant display along with the sound. It brought me peace, it relaxed me, and most importantly it also helped bring me out of my depression.
Memories came flooding back as soon as I entered through the front doors. My eyes immediately went straight to the massive fixture on the ceiling. It had to be one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen. There were over two thousand different colored glass-blown flowers made into an enormous chandelier. It was absolutely breathtaking.
By the time I got to the front desk, I was able to walk right on up to the lady at the counter whose nametag said her name was Laura. She looked to be in her late thirties with her chocolate brown hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail, wearing a silky cream colored blouse and a knee-length brown skirt.
She smiled warmly and greeted me, “Good afternoon, what can I do for you today?”
Pulling out the wallet from my bag, I laid it out on the counter and answered, “I’d like a room, please, preferably one that overlooks the fountain if you have it.”
She grinned and typed away on the computer for a few seconds. “Okay, let’s see here. It looks like the only fountain view room we have available is in one of our Cypress suites. It’s an open floor plan with a king size bed along with a his and her bathroom, but we do have other rooms available if this doesn’t suit you.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mason finally come through the front door carrying our bags, starting straight for me. Pulling out my credit card, I handed it to Laura quickly and said, “The Cypress suite sounds perfect. I’d like to book it for two weeks if that’s possible.”
She nodded and ran my card before giving it back to me. I tucked it back into my wallet and shoved it into my bag just as Mason came up to my side with a scowl on his face.
“Did you just pay for our room?” he muttered incredulously.
Laura handed me the paperwork and the keys with an amused expression on her face as she gazed back and forth between us. I knew he would insist on paying for it so that’s why I did it as fast as I could. Mumbling under his breath as we walked off toward the elevator, I tried to take one of my bags from him, but he held on tighter and wouldn’t let me grab it.
As soon as we got inside in the elevator, I patted him on the back, hard. “It’ll be okay, Mason. If I let you pay for the room we would’ve ended up with one bed and no view,” I teased, trying to get a rise out of him. Yes, I got us a room with one bed, but I didn’t want him thinking I did it on purpose. It was probably childish of me to do that, but I wanted to see the way he reacted when I told him we have a room with two beds.
The elevator doors closed and we were off to the Cypress suite on the fourteenth floor, which I knew was going to have the most phenomenal view. “So,” Mason began, “you think I would’ve gotten a room with one bed, huh?”
“Yep, which is why I got one with two,” I told him, trying to hide my smirk. “Now that I think about it, maybe I should have gotten two rooms. I might go back down there and do that.”
Mason chuckled and turned to face me, a gleam sparkling in his eyes. “Are you afraid of something, Claire? Perhaps maybe afraid of what you might do being in the same bed with me.”
“Now why would I be afraid of that? I don’t have to worry about it since we’ll be in separate beds,” I challenged. He stepped closer, but when the elevator doors opened, I rushed out and walked briskly down the hall until we came to our suite. Maybe I should’ve gotten a room with two beds. The only thing I was afraid of was falling too fast and getting hurt again. He said he wanted me back, but I needed to know for sure he wouldn’t leave me the way he did before. It was hard to give value to promises these days.
Mason sidled up to my side, leaning against the wall, and brushed a strand of hair away from my face. My skin tingled where he touched. Softly, he murmured, “Actually, I think I’m the one who’s afraid. Sharing a bed with you would be like waving alcohol in front of an alcoholic. The temptation to take a sip of that sweet burn would be too much to bear with it being so close yet so unreachable at the same time. I would have no restraint, and I fear of what that would do to me to have you only to have you go back home to someone else. I meant every word I said in my letter, Claire. Please … give me another chance to show you how much I love you.”
My breath hitched in my throat and immediately my eyes misted over with unshed tears. I never thought I would actually hear the words come out of his mouth, but there they were. Mason was not a man of words; he was a man of action. To hear him say such things to me were beyond his comfort level, but he knew that was what I wanted to hear … needed to hear.
Knowing he was taking a risk, he leaned down and kissed my lips gently, unsure of how I was going to take it. I moaned at his touch and opened my lips, inviting him in. More firmly, he cupped my neck, pulling me even closer and slipped his tongue between my lips, tasting me.
“Claire,” he whispered, resting his forehead to mine, “what are we doing?”
Smiling, I licked my lips and put the key in the door, opening it wide. When he pulled away, he looked into the room and his eyes went wide before lifting a curious brow my way. He carried in our bags and I followed him through the suite to the king size bed that overlooked to the exquisite fountain below.
“There is no going back, Mason, and I don’t want you to show restraint,” I murmured heatedly. “You said you wanted to show me how much you love me. Well, here’s your second chance. Show me …”
“I can’t allow myself to do that, Claire. Not when you belong to another man,” Mason argued. “I’m an honorable man and I fight fair. Doing this behind Cooper’s back was never my intention. I was selfish before with you, and believe me I want to take you right now and feel every ounce of your body around me. I just can’t do it this way.”
Well, there went my plan.
When he’d asked earlier how Cooper took my leaving, I never gave him an actual answer. I just told him it wasn’t any of his business. What really happened was that I made my decision and let Cooper go. It hurt to let my friend go, knowing that this break up might have ruined the friendship we spent years building, but I had to. Even though I hated Mason for leaving me before, I couldn’t deny how much I still cared. I loved him.
Turning away from me, Mason gazed out the window and let out a frustrated breath. There was no way around it; I had to tell him the truth. “Cooper and I aren’t together anymore, Mason. I ended it before I left. I chose not to tell you when you asked because deep down I wanted you to suffer, but in all reality I guess we both suffered while we were apart.”
There, I said it.
He turned around abruptly, furrowing his brows with a smirk on his face. “So what you’re saying is that you ended things with Cooper for me?” he asked craftily.
Smiling, I bit my lip and moved closer. “Maybe. Does that mean you’re ready to show me what I asked for?”
Without another word, Mason closed the distance between us, fisting my hair in his hands and pulling me tight against his lips in one quick second. Everything burned with his touch like I was on fire; my lips, my skin, and most definitely the spot between my legs rubbing against his thigh. He lifted up my dress and cupped my ass, earning a strangled moan from deep in his throat when all he touched was bare skin. Months of not being together came crashing down on us in one scorching second, with need
being the driving force.
“That is so fucking hot,” Mason whispered, holding me firmly against the hardness between his legs.
When he met my gaze, he grasped my face in his hands and ran his rough, calloused thumbs across my cheeks. “I know we don’t have much time together before you leave, and even then there’s still that chance I might not make it back home after this, but—”
“Stop,” I cried, putting a finger to his lips. “Let’s not talk about that right now. We have today and that’s all that matters. Forget about everyone and everything other than me and you right now. Nothing else exists.”
He rested his forehead to mine. “Nothing else exists,” he repeated, whispering across my lips.
He lifted me in his arms and I linked mine around his neck, straddling his waist with my legs as he carried me over to the bed and set me down on the edge. He lifted his T-shirt over his head and unbuttoned his jeans, letting them fall to the floor. I slid further back on the bed and got to my knees, watching him stalk closer. He was hard and ready, and by the dampness on my underwear and the throbbing of my clit I knew I was ready, too. I was past ready.
Mason lifted my dress up slowly, and as he did he kissed my bare flesh as he exposed it, going higher and higher. His tongue traced lightly from my stomach on up to the mounds of my breasts, which were still confined in my bra. However, it didn’t stop him from biting my nipple through the fabric, resulting in a strangled moan from my lips. It hurt, but it felt so erotically good in the process. Every single inch of my body felt hyperaware of the man before me. Each little touch or kiss made my insides feel like they would explode. I wanted him inside me; wanted to feel his hands on my body and kissing me with those lips I had craved but thought I would never feel again.
After throwing my dress on the floor, Mason wrapped his arms around my back and unclasped my bra, groaning when my breasts became free. He pushed me back onto the bed and slid my underwear off quickly before doing the same with his boxers. His large hands, the ones he would soon be using to fight with, clasped my thighs and spread my legs apart as he moved closer.
“You are so beautiful, Claire. You have no idea how many times I dreamt of you beneath me, making love to you,” he said, his voice deep and husky.
I gazed up into his stormy, sea green eyes. “It probably doesn’t nearly compare to the times I dreamt about you.”
Settling himself between my legs, he lowered his head to my breasts, first kissing along the mounds before licking one of my sensitive nipples with his warm, wet tongue. Moaning, I arched my back off the bed and squeezed him tight with my legs. He chuckled and decided to tease me with rubbing his cock along my opening and pushing it in just a tiny bit. It was his turn then to grow impatient.
Mason growled low in his throat, “You have no idea of my restraint right now. All I want to do is go hard, to hold you in my arms while tasting and kissing every single inch of you.”
“No one’s stopping you,” I muttered breathlessly. Taking his hand, I placed it on one of my breasts while I reached down and wrapped my fingers around his cock between my legs. He squeezed and massaged my breasts, sucking and biting my nipples, while I pumped his cock up and down with my hand. The harder I stroked, the harder he sucked.
“Please, Mason. I’m so close and I want to come with you inside me,” I cried.
His gaze never left mine when he pushed himself completely inside my body as far as he could go. He only had to thrust in and out a couple of times before I exploded around him, raking my nails down his back as I screamed out his name. When the fog cleared, and after the tremors of my orgasm subsided, Mason slowed his pace and smiled down at me.
“Damn, that was fast. I don’t count that one so let’s see if I can give you another one,” he uttered humorously.
Breathing frantically, I grasped his face and pulled him down to my lips. “I don’t think that’s going to be a problem.”
I licked and sucked his lips, rocking my hips along with his until I could feel him getting closer to his release. Wave after sensual wave rocked through me from his penetrating thrusts, and another orgasm slowly started to build. I could feel his cock throbbing and pulsing inside my body so I clenched as hard as I could, feeling him come inside of me as I gave in to my own release. I had craved this intimacy with him for a long time and that time had finally come. I prayed that my happiness wouldn’t be taken away once the reality of the situation finally kicked in.
Mason brushed the hair out of my face, and kissed me softly on the lips, still hard and erect between my legs. “That felt so fucking good, and it’s only the beginning of the night for us. I have four months to make up for.”
Oh hell, I thought to myself. I’m not going to be able to walk tomorrow.
But I sure was looking forward to it.
It was eleven o’clock at night, and while the city below was vibrant in colorful lights and people looking for a good time, Claire was passed out on the bed, sound asleep. We ordered in room service and watched the fountain show a couple of times before making love again … and again. I was pretty sure I lived up to my promise to make up for the past four months lost. She fell asleep in my arms, but I was too riled up to relax. The folder in front of me was a stark reminder of why I was in Las Vegas to begin with.
There was a list of places where the dead fighters had been seen last and a list of names of the people they were associated with. The only one who didn’t have connections in Vegas was Austin.
Quickly, I dressed in a simple black T-shirt and jeans with a solid pair of black boots. Those boots were known to knock out many teeth on several occasions when I’d use my MMA skills while on duty. In case Claire woke up and found me missing, I scribbled out a letter to let her know I was going out scouting and that I would be back soon. I wasn’t sure if she’d be pissed at me for leaving her alone, but she had to realize I had a job to do.
I left the room as quietly as I could, and when I got off the elevator on the first floor, I headed straight outside to hail a cab. The first stop for the night was about two miles away so it wasn’t far.
The cab pulled up at the curb and I jumped in. “Where to?” the driver asked, gazing back at me in the mirror. He was a scruffy little man, probably in his late forties, with graying hair and a voice that was gravelly from most likely smoking.
“I need to go to The Labyrinth, please,” I said, shutting the door. The Labyrinth was the number one spot on the list so I thought I’d try it first to see if I got lucky.
The driver nodded and started the timer on his dash to calculate the miles. It didn’t take long to get there since thankfully the driver avoided the strip traffic. When we pulled up, I groaned looking at the line of people backed around the side of the building. It would take me at least two hours to get inside.
“Is it always this crowded?” I asked the driver.
“Yeah, usually. You need to have connections to get in. It’s not a place for just anyone,” he informed me.
“What kind of people do you have to know?”
“Not sure, son. All I know is I’ve had to take many people home after they’ve been turned down. So if you don’t know anyone to get you in then you aren’t going in there.”
“Fuck,” I hissed under my breath. The one place I was sure to find some answers was the one most unattainable. I’d figure out a way … somehow. For now I would just go to my next choice. Surely I’d be able to get into that one.
After three hours of searching through the crowd for the man with the dragon tattoo on his neck, I decided it was time to give up for the night. It was three in the morning and I smelled of cigarette smoke and cheap perfume from all the women trying to rub their shit on me. The night was deemed unproductive for me other than the time I spent with Claire. I planned on going over my notes with her later in the day to see if she knew of the places I needed to go. Hopefully, with her experience in the big city she’d be able to help and direct me in the right directions.
Wh
en I got back to the hotel, I took a quick shower and climbed into the bed beside Claire. She was still sleeping peacefully and it wasn’t long before I passed out along with her.
Mason was still asleep beside me with his arm draped over my stomach when I woke up. My muscles were sore from our many trysts the night before, but at least it was a good sore. Slipping out of bed, I snuck off to the ‘her’ bathroom since the suite we got had a his and her bathroom. I washed up and did my usual morning routine before walking back into the suite, thinking that since an hour had gone by Mason would be up … but he wasn’t. He was still sound asleep.
Hmm … interesting.
It wasn’t until I saw the note on the desk that I realized why he was still passed out on the bed; he had gone out last night. Deep down I knew he was itching to get started, and I didn’t blame him. He had a job to do, but he was also trying to find out who killed his friend and the other men. I was going to help him whether he liked it or not, even if he wanted me to leave.
Also, on the desk was a file that I didn’t remember seeing last night. It had to be the file for the case. Would it be illegal to look at it since I am a civilian? I wondered. Mason hadn’t talked to me about the specifics yet of where he was supposed to look or who to look out for. Surely, he wouldn’t care if I read through it, would he?
Opening the file, the first thing I came to was a picture of Mason’s deceased friend and his wife who was currently missing. I never thought the bad shit you saw in movies or on the news would ever happen to me, at least until my brother went over the deep end with Melissa and kidnapped her. Anything could happen to anyone; it was all real, and Mason had to deal with it every day. I flipped past the many pictures of the deceased fighters who had been killed, not recognizing any of their names, and moved on to the list of places and acquaintances of the deceased.
