He narrowed his eyes.
But she wasn’t deterred. “Is he a quarterback? Receiver? Does he break his collarbone in a crazy tackle? Or maybe gets a concussion?”
Mason blew out a breath. “Are you trying to end my career?”
She leaned forward and gave him a soft kiss on his cheek. “No, I’m trying to get you to trust me, despite my dark secret of fantasizing about marrying a doctor.” She ran a finger across his collarbone, then over his shoulder. “You know, we’re kind of the same in that way. You have a strange fantasy that if you tell someone your plot, you’re going to jinx your entire career.”
Mason gazed at her for a long moment, debating. If he expected her to give up her fantasy, then maybe he should give up his superstition. “Pilot is the star quarterback for a college team. He breaks his hand, and he’s supposed to sit out for five weeks. Which isn’t a problem since it’s the end of the season with only a bowl game to go. But when the second-string quarterback screws up in the fourth quarter, Pilot pops a couple extra pills and tells the coach to put him in. They win the game, but it’s already too late for Pilot. He’s addicted, and he can’t let anyone find out.” Mason stopped talking.
“Brilliant.” Livvy grinned. “Thank you for telling me.”
Mason felt numb. But maybe Livvy was right. The world hadn’t stopped turning.
When she rose from the couch, he grabbed her hand to stop her. “Wait, where are you going?”
“I need to get some sleep, and so do you,” she said. “Good night, Mason.”
He scrambled to his feet, his heart in his throat. Why was he feeling at such a loss with her saying she had to leave? It was probably midnight, and it was the sensible thing for her to do.
She slipped on her shoes, then picked up her coat and fished out her car keys.
“Will the canyon road be okay?” he asked as he watched her getting ready to leave.
Livvy smiled. “The roads are plowed and sanded. Remember I drove here.”
She walked to the front door, and Mason followed. He opened it for her and looked outside. It wasn’t snowing.
“Let me know when you get home,” he said.
She stepped up to him and tilted her head. “You’re kind of a worrier.”
“Get used to it.” He snaked an arm around her and pulled her close, then lowered his head and kissed her. Her warmth and scent and softness were intoxicating. Livvy was right. She should really go home, because the longer she stayed, the more he didn’t want to let her go.
He released her. “Good night.”
After she left, he stood in the open doorway, watching the road long after her car disappeared into the night.
Eighteen minutes later, she called him. “I’m home.”
“How were the roads?” he asked.
“Fine.”
A heartbeat passed, and Mason thought of all the things he shouldn’t be saying at this stage in their relationship. So he stayed quiet.
“I’ll see you tomorrow?” she said.
“Of course.”
She exhaled, and he imagined her smile. “Bring breakfast,” she said.
“I was planning on it,” he told her, smiling too.
When he hung up, he knew he wouldn’t be sleeping for a while. So he grabbed his notebook and settled on the couch where he’d been sitting with Livvy and divulging his plot only moments earlier. In the orange glow of the fireplace, he began to write.
Hours later, he was awakened with a start. Thank goodness for the rumbling of the snowplow, or else Mason might have slept through the morning.
He sat up and rubbed the soreness in his neck. Apparently he’d written for hours, then fallen asleep on the couch. He glanced at the rough-hewn wood clock above the mantle, it was nearly 10:00 a.m. The library was open, and the muffins were probably gone from the Main Street Café.
Mason grabbed his cell phone. Nothing from Livvy. Huh. Hadn’t she missed him?
He ignored the knot of worry that was beginning to form in his stomach. It was as Livvy had said; he was a worrier. He’d go get whatever was leftover at the café, then show up at the library and see her then. Mason didn’t need to text or call her beforehand.
Forty minutes later, when he walked into the library and saw Livvy talking to another woman at the reference desk, he was relieved that she seemed to be okay. He browsed some of the nearby bookshelves while he waited for the other woman to leave.
He’d found an interesting book to flip through when Livvy suddenly appeared in the aisle.
“You’re late,” Livvy said, her brown eyes warm.
“I wrote most of the night, then slept in.”
Livvy squealed and threw her arms about his neck. Mason almost lost his balance but thankfully didn’t bump the bookshelf behind him. He chuckled and wrapped an arm about her waist, pulling her close.
“I told you that sharing your plot wouldn’t ruin anything,” she said.
Mason touched his forehead to hers. “And you were right.”
She smiled and closed her eyes, so he kissed her.
It seemed they were kissing again in the library aisle.
She drew away much too soon. “There are a bunch of people here since it’s not snowing.”
Mason released her and stepped back. “Better hide this in your desk then.” He held up the bakery sack.
“Thank you.” She peeked in the sack. “Banana nut?”
“It was all they had left. Do you like that kind?”
“I like pretty much any type of food,” Livvy said, then leaned into him, wrapping her arms about his waist.
He held her close and breathed her in.
They didn’t say anything for a few moments, and Mason found that nothing needed to be said. Just holding her was enough for now.
When Livvy returned to the reference desk, Mason made his way to his usual table. Two teenagers occupied his spot. They must be homeschooled; otherwise he couldn’t figure out why they were there this time in the morning.
He could do this though... write in a different spot... Walking among the tables, desks, and shelves, he found a desk that faced a huge mural painting of a woman reading books to a circle of children sitting in the grass.
A memory flashed through his mind of his mom reading stories to him at night. He hadn’t thought of that in a long time, and now it made him wonder if the early reading she did had somehow influenced his desire to write stories now.
He sat down and flipped through his notebook. His skin still buzzed from being with Livvy, and he decided it was time for Pilot to meet the woman who would be integral to his healing. A woman who would pick him up when he fell.
“I haven’t told Mason about Thanksgiving with Slade’s family,” Livvy said into the phone.
Felicity sighed. “You might need a new strategy. I didn’t think that things would be moving this fast with Mason.”
“Me either.” Livvy pulled the blanket on her bed over her. It was snowing outside again, and tomorrow was Thanksgiving. She and Mason had spent time together every night for the past week... and Livvy knew her heart was now involved.
She’d managed to put off seeing Slade, although she hadn’t yet backed out on Thanksgiving with his family. Which she’d decided to do, but she still hadn’t brought herself to cancel.
“I think you need to tell Slade before dinner with his family, because what if he does something like propose?” Felicity said.
Livvy scoffed. “He wouldn’t do that... I mean, there’s only been that one kiss.” A kiss she could barely remember, since everything Mason had been consuming her thoughts. “I’ll cancel on dinner, say I’m going to my family’s after all. Then things can just sort of die between Slade and me.”
Felicity’s silence told Livvy that her friend didn’t agree.
“That’s not fair to Mason,” Felicity said at last.
“I know.” Livvy did know. And she wasn’t trying to dangle both men... she was just dreading telling Slade that she’d been s
eeing Mason. Everything was great with Mason, except for the fact that he’d be returning to San Diego. Possibly before Christmas. Mason had written 200 pages of his book, and since his books were around 300 to 350 pages, it was like a giant ticking clock counting down.
“Tell Slade tonight,” Felicity pressed.
Livvy moaned. “It would be so much easier to lie, but I owe him the truth. I don’t want him hearing about Mason from someone else. We haven’t been outed yet, but once I’m free of Slade, things with Mason could get more public.”
“I could be your Cyrano de Bergerac,” Felicity offered.
“That’s why I love you, Felicity,” Livvy said. “You’re willing to dwell in the trenches with me.” She glanced at the time on her phone. 7:00 p.m. Slade was on call tonight, but if he wasn’t at the hospital, then he should be able to talk on the phone. Or in person. She sighed. “Okay, I’m leaving the house now and going over to Slade’s place. Weirdly, Mason got invited to do something with Dawson Harris, and even more weirdly, Mason accepted. So... I can confess my horribleness to Slade, then wallow in guilt the rest of the night alone. Wish me luck.”
Felicity gave a short laugh. “Good luck,” she said with confidence that Livvy didn’t feel. “And you can always come over to my place after for chocolate.”
“Thanks,” Livvy said, then hung up. She could do this... she had to do this. Mason was busy, and Slade was on call, probably sitting at his condo, waiting to be called into hero status again.
She left her bedroom and found her coat and boots. The snow was coming down pretty good now. Mallory had already left for the long weekend to be with her family, and Livvy would have Thanksgiving dinner with Felicity. Mason had insisted on sticking to his writing and frozen pizza. Maybe Livvy would surprise him with dessert.
She opened the garage and started up her car, then she drove slowly through the neighborhoods of Pine Valley. The snowplows weren’t out yet since the snow was so new, and she guessed service would be slow anyway with the holiday.
Slade lived in a newer condominium community. He’d never talked about his plans to buy a house, but Livvy had never asked him either. She’d only been to his place once, and it was obvious the last thing on his mind was decorating. He had nice furniture, but nothing on the walls.
Livvy parked and climbed out of her car. The cars in the parking lot were already piled with a couple inches of freshly fallen snow. Livvy hoped this would be a quick exchange—or breakup—so she could make it back home before the town was buried.
When she reached Slade’s door, she was surprised to see so many lights on. Voices were coming from the other side of the door—multiple voices—did he have people over? She couldn’t appear on his doorstep when he had company and break up with him. Stepping away, she was about to turn and leave when the door opened.
Two men came out, laughing about something.
Livvy glanced back, then wished she hadn’t. One of them was Slade.
Okay, so maybe his company was leaving and they could talk.
“Liv?” Slade said. “Hey, I didn’t know you were coming over.”
“Uh, yeah,” Livvy said. “I thought I’d stop by since I was . . .” Her voice trailed off. “Is this your brother?”
Slade grinned. The man next to him looked a lot like Slade, but older, with a bit of a paunch belly and a much thinner hairline.
“Mike’s in town for Thanksgiving and stopped over to watch the game, but his wife keeps texting him,” Slade said.
Mike laughed. “You know wives.” He elbowed his brother.
“Mike, this is Olivia Harmon,” Slade continued. “Liv, this is Mike.”
“Hi.” Livvy felt like she had a rock in her throat, but she stepped forward and shook Mike’s hand.
His hand was hot and clammy, and her hand was, well, cold.
“Great to meet you, Olivia,” Mike said. His teeth were as white and straight as Slade’s. “I’ve been wondering if my little brother was making up stories of his mystery girlfriend. Now I know you’re real.”
He and Slade laughed, and Livvy joined in, although her laugh burned her chest. How could she have thought showing up at Slade’s unannounced would be a good idea?
“Well, see you tomorrow, Olivia,” Mike continued. He leaned toward Slade and said in a stage whisper. “Mom’s going to love her.”
Slade actually blushed.
Livvy had never seem him blush or act self-conscious about anything. She’d also never seen him around his family. She wanted to run back to her car and drive home. Breaking up over texting was totally normal now, right?
“Hey, are you coming back in?” a woman said from the doorway. “It’s freezing out here.” The tall, willowy woman had sleek brown hair that hung almost to her waist. Since she also looked quite a bit like Slade, she could only be his sister, Jessica. Her green eyes widened as her gaze met Livvy’s.
“Oh, hi there.” Her smile was wide and full of anticipation. “You’re Liv?”
She nodded because her throat was suddenly dry.
“Yeah, we’re coming in,” Slade said. He placed a hand on her back, and she had no choice but to walk into his apartment.
“Nice to meet you at last. I’m Jessica,” Jessica said. “We were all about to wring Slade’s neck for not bringing you to our family dinners.”
Livvy smiled despite the sick feeling growing in her stomach. Apparently everyone in Slade’s family knew about her.
She moved past the entryway and into the living room where a football game was on, and the coffee table was littered with drinks and bowls of chips. Two other people were there, and Livvy recognized one of them.
“Hi, Sarah,” Livvy said, and before she could ask what her connection was to Slade’s family, Jessica answered her question.
“Oh, of course you know Sarah Lynne,” Jessica said. “Sarah and I go way back. High school if you can believe it. Our boys are the same age, too.”
Sarah smiled at Jessica. “And both boys are a load of trouble.”
Jessica laughed. “True.”
Livvy could definitely see the two women as friends. They had similar, graceful looks, and both had friendly personalities.
Slade draped an arm over her shoulder.
Livvy tried not to stiffen, but it was impossible to tamp down the embarrassed heat rising in her neck, because Sarah was looking directly at Livvy—with a knowing look in her eyes. Sarah had been a witness to Livvy and Mason’s breakfasts at the café. Since that first breakfast Livvy had been to with Mason, they’d met there two other times. They’d never shown any affection in public, but Livvy knew that Sarah wasn’t dense.
“Liv, I’d like you to meet Ben,” Slade said, “who’s married to my sister.”
“Hi,” Livvy said to the dark-haired man who had just risen from the couch. He stepped forward and shook her hand.
“Now it’s a real party,” Jessica said, all smiles. Another set of perfectly straight white teeth. “And Slade says more people are coming.”
Livvy didn’t know if she could handle any more people. Slade’s family was plenty. Please don’t be his parents, she silently begged. How would it be to meet his parents tonight, only to have Slade show up for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow and announce their breakup? It was hard enough meeting his brother and sister.
Livvy wished that Sarah was a closer friend, then maybe she could pull Sarah aside and explain a couple of things. Instead she’d have to deal with knowing Sarah was probably judging her pretty harshly right now, and rightfully so.
“Are you hungry?” Slade asked. “We have pizza and salad in the kitchen.”
“Not really—” Livvy started to say when Jessica clasped her arm.
“I’ll show you,” Jessica said. “Then we can have some girl time. I can’t tell you how hard it is to get Slade to eat anything but rabbit food. He’s such a health nut. But he says you like pizza.”
Livvy breathed. “I do.”
Jessica laughed. “What a relief. My
brother’s girlfriend is normal.”
Livvy laughed too, but it was forced. Before she knew it, she was being tugged into the kitchen by Jessica.
Sarah joined them too. “Oh, good, a break from the men chest-pounding about their high school football days.”
“Nothing is so important as high school football,” Jessica said with a smirk.
Sarah laughed and shook her head. Livvy smiled, but it felt like she was moving mountains to do so. Normally the pizza would look delicious, but Livvy knew she couldn’t eat a thing.
“So what kind of pizza do you want?” Jessica picked up a plate as if she was about to dish it up for Livvy. “Are you a pepperoni gal, or do you like the gourmet?”
“I’m not that hungry,” Livvy said. “I’ll just have a drink for now.”
“All right,” Jessica said, waving the plate. “If you’re sure... ?”
Livvy nodded and poured a drink of soda and took a sip, as if to prove her point. “So where are you from?” she asked Jessica.
As Jessica talked, Livvy wondered how long she could make small talk before coming up with some excuse to leave. She could always use the weather, but everyone here probably had a car and would have to drive as well. And she didn’t want to corner Slade into being gallant and saying he could take her home in his Land Rover later.
Livvy nodded at whatever Jessica was saying about her two kids. Apparently she had a daughter and a son.
“They’ve probably worn out Grandma and Grandpa by now,” Jessica said. “I should text my mom.”
Good. Livvy could use Jessica’s momentum to leave to leave herself.
“Oh,” Jessica said in the next moment. “They’re watching Moana together. Adorable.”
Sarah said something about how her son was obsessed with Moana too, when the doorbell rang. Livvy’s stomach tightened as she heard new voices coming from the other room. Male voices.
And then everything around her stilled as she felt the blood drain from her face.
Mason was here. She also picked out Dawson’s voice, which was loud and clear as he introduced Mason to Ben.
Until We Kissed (Pine Valley Book 6) Page 11