Tolerance (Heart of Stone)

by Sidebottom, D H

  It was dark but there were lamps scattered around and I walked a path round the side of the cabin and was greeted by a huge manicured garden but beyond that was a beautiful serene lake, the moonlight bouncing of its calm water and I made my way towards it, still numb from Mason’s revelations. What the hell was I going to do? I would not see him marry Rebecca, ever!! Especially not for me.

  I grasped some large reeds on my way through the garden and I noticed a small jetty perched on the edge of the lake. Sitting on the end of it, dangling my legs over the edge I hugged my stomach and stared out over the tranquillity and serenity and I knew what I had to do “I need you to understand what I’m going to do peanuts” I said gently to my babies. I knew I would go to prison for what I had done and it broke my heart to leave them “Your Daddy will love and care for you while I’m gone. But never forget that I will always love you, just like I love your Daddy and that’s why I need to do this” a tear slipped free and my heart now broke for my children instead of myself.

  I knew what it was like to grow up without a mother, the constant longing for her arms and soft voice, her arms around you holding you close but I couldn’t let Mason pay the price for my monstrosity of a life. He had put himself in this position for me, to help me and alleviate my pain and terror of that night five long years ago. It was my life and my responsibility and I had to end this nightmare now.

  I felt him sit behind me as his legs flanked me and his arms shrouded mine, holding our babies together. “I know what you’re gonna do Ava and I won’t let you” he said quietly as his chin settled on my shoulder “Mason” I said softly “I won’t let you do this for me. Dean was my problem. It was me that shot him, not you” his arms tightened and he kissed my neck softly “Baby, I would walk through hell twice over for you, if you go to prison my life will be over anyway” We were both quiet for a while, looking out over the calmness of the water and binding this moment to our memories, both of us not knowing what would happen from here.

  I reached my arm round behind me and round his neck “I need you to promise me something Mason” I whispered as I turned my face towards him and held his eyes. He nodded once “Look after them” I said softly and he closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he understood what I was asking for. As he opened them I could see the strength, resolve and determination in them “Baby, I won’t need to, because you will” he admonished, his voice low and steely but I shook my head “I would rather die than see you with that…that fuck whore” I snarled and he chuckled slightly “My little warrior” he breathed and kissed my ear, nibbling on the lobe “Mason please…” he placed a finger over my lips “Listen to me Ava” his voice had dropped to the level when I knew not to argue with him “I AM going to marry Rebecca and I AM going to have an affair with you” he whispered “Because I can’t stay away from you; from your beauty, your laughter, your smile, your sense of fun and spirit, your smart mouth and your amazing body. It’s you that makes me whole Ava. Don’t ever think that I love Rebecca but I WILL marry her just to keep you. If you go to prison I can’t have you Ava and I am never gonna let you go!” he rumbled in my ear “But it will be hell Mason; waking beside her every morning, listening to her grating voice constantly, her paws all over you every bloody night, her leery bloody grin and the smug glint in her eyes every time she looks at you and you will have to take it just for me” I sobbed “And I’ll take it with a fucking smile on my face Ava, just because I will know that you are there waiting for me with our children” he stated sternly and I sighed and rubbed my face with my hands “I’m just so tired Mason. I’m so sick of fighting to live” I sighed and he huddled me closer, wrapping his ankles round mine “I promise you Ava, we will be together and I swear with everything that I am that I will make you happy” he tipped my face to his and brought his mouth to mine in a hot, smouldering kiss; his hand on the back of my head and his other arm wrapped me tight, holding me to him “You’re mine Ava and I will never let you go” he breathed against my mouth as he swooped in for another ownership kiss.

  We strolled back up to the cabin as Mason held me into his side, with his arm wrapped around me tightly. Both of us silent in our own thoughts and as we approached the door he pulled me to a stop. “I am going to explain what’s going on and then we forget it for the next three days and enjoy each other and Christmas” he told me “I need to be with you Ava, without the worry and stress of all this before I go back” I nodded, understanding him perfectly. He smiled “Okay, let’s do this but no more running” he stroked my stomach in a silent warning and I smiled “Okay, I promise” he nodded and kissed me then led me back in.

  CHAPTER 13

  We entered the house to the smell of something swoon worthy “Food!” I cried excitedly and Mason chuckled beside me as we approached the kitchen where everybody was working together to cook supper. I strolled over and snooped into each bubbling pot “Yum” I grinned as I found chilli, rice and garlic bread. Courtney slapped my hand away as I scooped some chilli onto a spoon “Leave it!” she warned and I pouted “You’re a bitch” I grumbled and she narrowed her eyes on me “Say that again and I won’t give you my leftovers” she scolded and I kissed her cheek “Hurry though…please” I pleaded and she shook her head “Sit mama!” she ordered and I did, picking up my knife and fork and waiting impatiently.

  Greg placed my jar of peanut butter, gherkins and curry paste on the table and I dived into the gherkins hungrily “Thank you, I so love you Greg, at least you care” I flirted with Greg to piss Courtney off “Hey, you leave my man alone. You’ve got your own now” she winked and smiled and I grinned back as Mason embraced me from behind my chair, slipping his arms around my shoulders.

  He turned my hand over that was rested in my lap and placed a piece of garlic bread in it secretly and kissed my cheek “Ssshhh” he whispered and I sighed happily, breaking a piece of and dipping it into the peanut butter. He stared at me wide eyed “Really? Garlic bread and peanut butter?” he gasped and I nodded “Want to try?” I asked as I shoved another piece in. He pulled a ‘not on your life’ expression and went to get wine from the wine rack “Red?” he asked everybody and everyone returned murmurs of agreement. I scowled; the only disappointment in being pregnant was the lack of alcohol.

  Mason walked to a cupboard and pulled out another bottle, collected the corkscrew and walked back to the table as Courtney and Marcy placed all the dishes on the table and sat. Mason uncorked a bottle and poured it into a huge glass and passed it me. I pulled a face at him “Ha fucking ha” I grumbled and he narrowed his eyes on me “Alcohol free just for you” he scowled and showed me the bottle “Oh thank you” I grinned at Greg and he nodded “Hope its decent” he said with a shrug “Well at least I don’t feel left out” I smiled scooping a huge pile of rice and chilli onto my plate “Hey, we are all going in the hot tub later. It’s gonna be so much fun” Courtney told us “Ooh God, I don’t think I can stand to have Ava half naked and not be able to do anything with you...” He went silent as I squirted curry paste on my meal. I licked my lips in anticipation and shovelled a huge forkful into my drooling mouth as I realised the room had gone quiet. I swallowed my food slowly as I looked up and found Mason’s eyes darting from my mouth to my plate; his mouth wide open “What?” I mumbled around my full mouth “Chilli and curry paste?” he asked completely horrified. I swallowed loudly and nodded slowly, looking at him like a chastised child.

  He started chuckling and then he was barking with laughter “Jesus Christ” he laughed and kissed me hard on the lips “I fucking love you” he grinned and I beamed at him and leaned into his ear “Did you bring any soap?” I whispered with yearning “I heard that!” Courtney growled.

  “Out with it then” Greg said to Mason as we settled back around the roaring fire with our drinks, me settled on Masons lap again. He took my hand “You promise to keep calm Baby?” he asked and I nodded “I’ll try” I promised. “Right, it’s best to start at the beginning. Well you all know what happened th
at night with Dean so I’ll go from there” he took a deep breath “Ava was in a mess so I just concentrated on her the whole time, I had already given instructions to Sam and Mark about what was to happen after so I could get Ava out quickly afterwards. I left Mark to clean up and sort out the gun as Sam drove us home. I had no idea what he was going to do” he looked at me and I nodded for him to carry on “Rebecca had informed me she was pregnant and I honestly thought at the time it was mine so I believed her when she told me. I was confused for a while as we had used condoms but she said we had been high one time and not used one and I didn’t have any reason not to believe her” he glanced at me as he knew this had hurt me and I was absolutely delighted to realise that he had in fact used condoms and it was only me that made him lose control. “A few weeks later I found out about Kade” Mason cringed and looked away from me and I winced at the pain in his voice

  “I was devastated and lost control, drinking and getting high but Rebecca was delighted, thinking I would now go back to her but I refused her, told her I didn’t want her, that I would always want Ava and I could see in her eyes when I rejected her she was angry” he explained and rubbed his face “Anyway back to Mark. We all know he was in love with Rebecca but he was also in a lot of trouble with the police. He had been smuggling cocaine and heroin and his brothel had been raided the week before all this kicked off with Dean. They found underage prostitutes and illegals working there and he was going down big time for it” he sighed and carried on

  “So he recorded Ava shoot Dean and kept the gun and took it to Robert Delaney as leverage for a deal to keep himself out of prison” Masons eyes darkened and I could feel his fist clenching the back of my shirt “Rebecca had gone to Daddy crying telling him I’d fucked her over and didn’t want her or the baby. I have a feeling she had asked Mark to get the dirt on Ava, and Mark would have done anything for her” he sighed heavily and I stroked my thumb over his and smiled softly at him, he leaned his head into me and kissed me gently and then turned back to the others “Delaney came to see me with the phone and the gun and basically he told me to finish things with Ava and marry Rebecca and he would lose all the evidence against Ava” I sighed and frowned “Mason, you do realise that once you have married Rebecca that Delaney could still out me” I said and he nodded “I know but I still can’t take the risk Ava” he sighed

  “Does Delaney know it’s not your baby?” I asked and he shook his head “He wouldn’t believe me if I told him. Rebecca is his princess and he believes every bloody thing she tells him” he stated “Does Rebecca know you know it’s not yours?” he shook his head again “I don’t think so but…” he shrugged “I genuinely thought it was mine but when we went for the first scan they put her dates back and I knew immediately, but at the time I just stewed on it for a while, not sure what to do about it” I exhaled “That’s why you didn’t seem excited when you returned from the scan” I said and he nodded and looked up at me “It’s not the same as seeing our peanuts; the fluttering in your stomach, the clench in your chest, the lump in your throat and the surge of your blood when you see them hopping and kicking about, knowing that we made them” he grinned at me and I smiled happily “She must be really stupid if she thinks you don’t know” I scoffed and he laughed “Well for the moment I’m keeping it to myself” he said “Does she know her father is blackmailing you?” I queried and he snorted “Oh yeah, she knows I wouldn’t be with her otherwise” he laughed bitterly.

  “Oh my god, she still wants to marry you even though she knows you don’t love her?” Courtney asked gobsmacked and he nodded to her “How fucking desperate!” she declared and we all agreed

  “She knows I can’t stand her, never mind love her” he revealed and I shook my head in disgust “She probably doesn’t realise” I said, nobody could be that desperate but Mason laughed “She knows, it pisses her right off that I won’t fuck her” he disclosed and I gasped and stared at him “You haven’t been sleeping with her?” I asked quietly and he shook his head and looked away “Then why the hell have you been making me think you had?” I asked, utterly bewildered. He gazed at me and held my eyes “I assumed If you thought I was, then it would make it easier for you to hate me and it wouldn’t hurt you as much that I was marrying the tramp” he sighed.

  I closed my eyes in dismay “You have gone through all this for me, put up with my screaming and shouting about Rebecca when none of what I thought was true” he shrugged “I love you that much I was prepared to make you hate me to make it easier for you to walk away” he said quietly and I cupped his face “That’s why it broke your heart to find me and Kade together?” I whispered and he looked into his lap and nodded gently “Oh Mason” I sighed. He smiled up at me with so much love in his eyes, so much affection and ardour that I looked away, the guilt from sleeping with Kade was now burning up my inside, squeezing my heart and I was suddenly struggling to breathe “Ava!” Mason demanded “Ava! Listen to me, I don’t blame you for being with Kade; I pushed you to him for god’s sake. I left you Ava and I told you to move on. I believe you when you said it was just sex, I know how much you love me” he said softly and I smiled tentatively and he gripped my chin with his thumb and forefinger, pulling my face to his “But now you’re mine Ava” he instructed, telling me without words that I had to finish it with Kade

  “You do know Rebecca is skimming you don’t you?” I asked him and he frowned “What?” he asked, puzzlement written all over his face “Mason, I told you ages ago. The wages for the bar employees was £126,000 out!” I reminded him. He scowled in confusion as Sam sucked a breath in “I can’t remember you telling me” he sighed “Yeah, I discovered it the day I found the file you had on me. I did tell you” he frowned and pursed his lips “Greg, take a look” Mason ordered and I was once again reminded of Masons authority and ruthlessness.

  Greg simply nodded and refilled all our glasses “Already on it. Right now that’s all out, let’s have fun…Hot tub” he grinned at Courtney and she squealed and jumped up, grabbing my hand “Come on Ava, let’s get those bikinis on” I rolled my eyes “Courtney I can’t wear a bikini, nobody wants to look at my big belly” I grumbled “Don’t you fucking dare go there!!” Mason barked at me and I cringed as he took a step towards me and tilted my head back with his finger “You are fucking beautiful and that belly has my babies in it so that is beautiful too. You are a gorgeous pregnant woman and don’t ever stop believing it” he growled and I nodded quickly and Courtney snorted “Ha!” she poked her tongue out at me.

  Mason slapped my arse “Bikini now” he play snarled and I giggled and shot him a smile over my shoulder as Courtney pulled me up the stairs with a laughing Marcy behind us. I soaked my knickers when I caught Mason’s Sex God smile and I inhaled heavily, this was going to be a fun few days and I resolved to do as Mason asked and forget the Rebecca situation whilst we were here but I knew when I returned home I was going to put a stop to the wedding and free Mason, I wasn’t sure how but I was absolutely determined, that man was mine and I was going make damn sure I got him.

  CHAPTER 14

  We had all been submerged in the warm bubbling water for about an hour, adjusted to the correct safe settings for my pregnancy when Greg came through carrying a tray with a few food items on “Okay, play time boys and girls” he grinned and we all narrowed our eyes on him, highly aware he was up to something. Placing the tray on the edge he climbed back in the tub “Right, it’s a game kind of like truth or dare but it’s called sex or suck” he wiggled his eyebrows and we all groaned “Erm, I don’t think I’m gonna like this game” Marcy mumbled and Greg waved her off “Don’t worry, you don’t have to get down and dirty in front of us all” Sam’s eyebrows raised at Greg “Good, nobody sees my girl” he said bluntly

  “Each person has to ask everybody a question about their sex lives or preferences, each person answers except the person that asked the question” he looked around to see if we were all still with him “you have to answer or you get the for
feit…suck or eat one of these” he grinned cheekily and held up the tray; It held four items, wedges of lemon, raw Brussel sprouts, anchovy paste and a bottle of malt vinegar with a tablespoon beside it

  “Wow” I breathed, grimacing at the items. Mason laughed and pulled me onto his lap so I was straddled him but facing the others with my back to his chest, as his hands settled on my belly “I’ll protect you baby” he grinned and kissed between my bare shoulder blades “God, you look fucking hot in that bikini” he whispered in my ear and I wiggled my bum, cheekily grinding against him. He growled quietly in my ear and snaked his hand under the water to squeeze my thigh

  “Mason’s turned on already” Sam chuckled as he took a slug of wine and I winked at him “Hey, I haven’t had my little warrior for weeks, ease up on me” Mason grumbled and nuzzled into my neck, I sighed happily and wound my arm around the back of his neck and turned my face to his, kissing him softly

  “Okay let’s get started before Mase and Ava decide to entertain us all” Greg smirked “I’ll go first then you all get the idea” he smiled smugly and turned to Courtney “Easy one first, favourite position?” Courtney grinned at him “Do you really need to asked me that?” she gave him a lascivious smile “No, I don’t need to but the others want to know” he replied with a smirk and she huffed “Okay, doggy style” she looked at Marcy who was sat next to her “Missionary” Marcy said “And so is Sam’s” she giggled and we all laughed