by J. S. Scott
“Really?”
I nodded. “I’ve had a long career, and I’m ready to let it go so I can move on. I’d like to have a piece of cake occasionally without freaking out about fitting into the fashions I have to model. I’ve spent the last seventeen years or so trying to be the woman the fashion industry wanted. I think I’m ready to just be who I am now.”
“That’s fantastic, and funny, too. I just did my last assignment for almost the same reasons,” she confided. “I love designing my bags, and the demand keeps growing. I want to focus completely on my business.”
I grinned at her. “Me, too.”
“So what are you going to do about all the fertility clinic stuff now that you’re seeing Mason?” Brynn asked.
“I have to tell you something,” I said, my tone more serious. “I gave up on the idea of artificial insemination awhile ago. I just didn’t feel like it was the right thing to do for me.”
I continued to explain to Brynn everything I’d told Mason until I’d gotten all of my feelings on the subject out.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked quietly once I’d finished explaining. “I would have understood. I think it’s amazing that you want to adopt from the foster care system.”
“I guess I felt a little silly and selfish. Not to mention the fact that I still hadn’t told Mason, and he was calling me about it every week.”
She shot me a knowing glance. “You didn’t want him to stop calling you,” she guessed.
“As pathetic as it might sound, I didn’t,” I acknowledged ruefully. “I did have a thing for him, Brynn. I just didn’t want to admit it. Not to myself or anybody else.”
“But you know it now. And when you and Mason get married—”
I held up my hand. “Whoa, girl. We’re just barely exclusively dating. No discussions about marriage have happened. At all.”
Brynn frowned. “I’m just saying that you could end up having a child of your own, too.”
“Let’s just see what happens, okay? Hell, I’m not even used to Mason and me being a couple. I really am okay with adopting. I honestly want to do it. But now that I’m not worried about my biological clock ticking louder every day, I can wait.”
I’d already told Mason that I still had an effective IUD, so pregnancy wouldn’t be an issue. We’d gotten so caught up in each other last Saturday night and Sunday, he’d never even asked until we’d parted ways on Sunday night.
“Whatever you decide, you’ll be an amazing mother, Laura,” Brynn said softly. “I don’t think your reasoning was all that selfish. But as your friend, I’ve always wanted to see you get the whole package. A man who loves you, and children you can raise together, whether they’re biological or not.”
I felt like my heart was being squeezed inside my chest. Brynn would probably never know how much her friendship and support meant to me. “Thank you,” I said sincerely.
“I never would have made it through my modeling career without you,” Brynn said in a tearful voice. “It really feels right that we’re completely retiring together. I think we’re both ready to turn the page and start a new chapter in our lives, without the restrictions of modeling hanging over our heads.”
“I think so, too,” I told her, feeling a little teary myself.
Brynn and I had been through everything together, and most likely, we’d saved each other’s lives when we made our pact to turn things around and start worrying about our health.
“So, how about a piece of pie with this coffee?” Brynn said mischievously.
My immediate reaction was ingrained, and I almost said no out of habit.
I hadn’t been starving myself, but I’d been on a strict diet with very few exceptions for years.
It was time to start saying yes once in a while.
“I’m doing the caramel apple pie,” I said with a grin. I’d seen a customer with a piece when I’d entered the restaurant, and I’d nearly salivated over it before I saw Brynn at our table.
“Where’s the damn menu?” Brynn said right before she snatched it from the end of the table and started browsing the desserts enthusiastically.
Oh yeah, it was definitely time for Brynn and me to loosen up about counting every single calorie, and start living our lives.
Laura
At exactly six p.m. the following Sunday, I smiled as I rifled through my purse to grab my ringing cell phone.
I didn’t stop walking. It was a beautiful day in Seattle to be outside. But I did slow down my pace so I could chat.
“You know, you really can stop calling me every Sunday at the same time now that we see each other every single day,” I said with a laugh after I answered the phone.
“Maybe I just called to talk dirty to you,” he answered mischievously.
I rolled my eyes. Like he didn’t already do that every single day? But I guess I was always open to more of it.
“Before you start that, we need to talk about you sending me every single thing I talk about or look at when we’re together,” I admonished. “I’m going to run out of room to put all of your gifts in my condo.”
Every day, it was something different. Today, I’d had three deliveries.
I’d mentioned to Mason that I needed to go look at new refrigerators. A very top-of-the-line fridge had been delivered this morning.
I’d also made the mistake of taking a long glance at a beautiful pair of silver earrings in a store window while I was with Mason. Those had arrived at noon.
Because I obviously hadn’t learned my lesson yet, I’d complained about a silly little glitch with my computer. The new one had come to my door at four p.m.
It had been much of the same almost every day this week.
Honestly, it had to stop. Not that it didn’t almost bring tears to my eyes that Mason listened carefully to every damn thing I said, and wanted to make my life easier, but he already pleased me in so many ways. I didn’t need those gifts.
“It’s not like it’s difficult to order that stuff,” Mason grumbled. “I want you to have what you need.”
I snorted. “I have everything I need. The earrings were a want that I didn’t have to indulge. If I bought every pair of earrings I look at, I’d be filling up a huge jewelry box.”
“I’ll send you a big one tomorrow,” he answered.
“No! Oh, my God, no,” I told him firmly, but I was smiling even broader. He got to me hard because he was so willing to do anything to make me happy. “Mason, all I need is you. I have plenty of money. I can buy everything I want or need except…you.”
God, I was so crazy about this man who was so willing to give me anything I wanted before I even knew that I wanted it. Mason had a huge heart that very few people ever got to see, and I adored him for it. However, he needed to understand that I didn’t want all that stuff. Just having him was more than enough.
“I like taking care of you,” he mumbled.
“And I like that you want to do that, but it’s not necessary. Really. But thank you. The earrings are gorgeous.”
“Are you wearing them?”
“Yes.” I stopped abruptly after I ran up a few stairs. “Do you want to see them?”
“Damn right I do,” he growled as he opened the front door of his home and appeared right in front of me.
I disconnected the call, and dropped my cell into my bag. “Happy birthday,” I said with an enormous grin that I couldn’t seem to wipe off my face when he was around.
I had to wonder if there was ever going to be a day when my heart didn’t do a happy dance every time I saw his handsome face.
Probably…not.
He was dressed casually in a pair of jeans and a gray T-shirt that seemed to lovingly hug the enormous muscles in his biceps and chest.
But the thing that really got my heart racing was the big, happy grin on his face as he put his cell phone into the pocket of his jeans before he reached out and grabbed all the bags in my arms.
I was making him dinner, and I’d picke
d up a cake from a bakery right down the street.
I’d used Uber today since I knew that Mason wanted to take me to the airport in the morning.
“Did you walk?” he asked as he put the bags he’d taken from me on the kitchen counter.
“Only from the bakery. It’s right down the street. Now that I’m doing my last modeling gig, and I plan on enjoying life with a little chocolate, I need to up my exercise whenever I can. And it’s gorgeous outside.”
“I missed you,” he said in a low baritone voice that always made my toes curl.
He slipped his arms around me, and I wrapped mine around his neck as he gave me a soul-stealing kiss that took my breath away.
When he finally lifted his head, I reminded him, “I just saw you last night.”
I’d had to wrap up some work at home today because I was leaving for San Diego in the morning, so I’d returned to my condo last night.
He kissed my forehead. “I can help you out with the whole exercise thing.”
The muscles in my thighs still burning from the night before, I laughed. “You already have. And it’s your birthday, so I’m cooking you dinner. Don’t start getting me distracted.” I teasingly pushed him away so I could start unpacking the stuff to make him lasagna, one of his favorites.
Mason was an insatiable lover, but I sure as hell wasn’t complaining. The man made me feel like a goddess because he couldn’t stop touching me, and I doubted I could ever get enough of him.
Just a kiss, and his seductive, masculine scent was enough to make me want to do him right here in the kitchen.
I knew I couldn’t keep touching him, or his birthday dinner wouldn’t happen until midnight.
He leaned against a counter and watched me. “I wish you would have called me. I could have walked you back here.”
“Mason, it’s a short walk. And it’s daylight. I wasn’t going to have you come pick me up for a five-minute walk.”
“I would have come,” he protested.
I turned to him and put a palm to his scruffy jawline. “I know you would have,” I said with a sigh. “But I’ve been an independent woman my entire life. The thought of calling you to walk with me for five minutes wouldn’t even occur to me. You have to understand that I’m used to being alone.”
I kind of had a love/hate relationship with his protective nature. I loved that he cared enough about me that he didn’t want anything to happen to me. But I hated the fact that he thought I should be protected every minute of the day.
He caught my hand and kissed my palm. “And I need you to understand that you’re not alone anymore, and I can’t stand the thought of anything happening to you,” he answered, his eyes appearing to darken at the idea that somebody might harm a single hair on my head.
Mason was intense when it came to keeping me safe and happy, and I didn’t want to change the way that he cared about me. I loved it. But I wanted to keep reminding him that I was almost thirty-five years old, and I’d managed to take care of myself for this long without much mishap.
“Nothing is going to happen to me,” I reassured him as I stroked my hand over his whiskered jaw.
“It better not, or I’d be fucking useless,” he answered hoarsely. “I need you, Laura.”
I took my hand away, and tenderly kissed his lips before I told him, “I need you, too, Mason.”
That vow was nothing but the truth. In a very short period of time, I’d come to rely on Mason’s affection, and I didn’t want to imagine my life without it.
He was the best part of every day for me.
For a woman who had never really had that kind of devotion, that kind of affection, he was like a balm to my soul.
Not to mention a huge help for my insecurities.
Slowly, Mason was breaking down those negative body images I’d always had. No matter how much I’d tried to rid myself of them entirely, they’d always been there. Now, he’d made me love my body because it fit so well with his, and the pleasure we’d found with each other was nothing less than incredible.
Mason made me feel beautiful and sexy. To him, I was irresistible. And since I was crazy about him, his opinion was the only one that really mattered.
“Laura,” he said in a guttural voice as he looked at me like he wanted to say something.
Instead, he snaked a hand behind my head and kissed me.
I was lost the moment that strong, demanding mouth covered mine.
I clung to him as he ravaged my senses, letting myself become engulfed in the red-hot chemistry that always flowed between the two of us. I speared a hand through his hair, needing to get as close to him as I possibly could.
But it just wasn’t enough.
I wanted to climb inside him and never come out.
We were both panting when he raised his head and started to devour every inch of bare skin he could find. Since I was wearing a sundress with spaghetti straps, it wasn’t all that hard to find a lot of places to put that hot, scorching mouth of his.
I let out a long, needy moan as his hands went to my ass, and he pulled me flush against his groin and ground his hips against mine.
“That’s what you do to me, sweetheart,” he growled. “All I can think about is getting inside you.”
“Mason,” I panted as I yanked on his hair. “Please.”
“Please, what?” he demanded to know.
“Fuck me,” I insisted.
He lifted me up and sat me on the kitchen counter. The second his hands were free, they were tearing at my sundress, and jerking it over my head.
I released a satisfied sigh as his hands cupped my breasts and his mouth covered one of my hard nipples. I put both of my hands in his hair in encouragement.
He licked, sucked, and nipped, moving from one breast to the other, until I was nearly mad with lust.
“What in the fuck am I going to do without you for a week,” he grumbled as his hand slid down my body and into my panties.
Waves of pleasure coursed through my body as he slipped his fingers into my slick pussy.
“Think about this?” I suggested. “Fuck me, Mason.”
“Damn right I’ll be thinking about this,” he said hoarsely as he straightened up and yanked my panties down my ass and legs until they dropped to the floor.
He fumbled briefly with the buttons of his jeans as he added, “Every single night. All I think about is you. This. Us.”
I gasped when he drove himself home, even though I was ready for it.
“Did I hurt you?” he asked, his body suddenly tense.
I wrapped my legs around his waist. “No. Don’t you dare go anywhere,” I said in a threatening voice.
When a man like Mason buried himself to his balls inside me, there was no way I wasn’t going to react. Not because it hurt, but because it hurt so damn good.
It always took an instant for my body to accommodate his because of his size, but after that, it was pure bliss.
I ground against him, and he finally snapped and started to thrust inside me.
Over and over.
Driving me higher and higher.
He kissed me, his tongue working at the same tempo as his cock, and I could feel my climax approaching so quickly that it was almost frightening.
“You feel so damn good, baby,” he said huskily as his lips left mine.
I tilted my head back until it hit the cupboard, and when Mason devoured the sensitive skin of my neck, I reveled in it.
There was something incredibly hot about being completely naked while Mason was fully clothed. His hands stroked over the naked skin of my back, but all I could feel was rough denim and cotton. I wanted to touch him, but I couldn’t get to his skin, so I was completely focused on where our bodies met intimately.
I was half crazed by the time my orgasm started to wash over me.
“Yes. Oh, God, yes,” I screamed. “Mason…”
I came around his cock, and a moment later, he found his own release. “Laura,” he said in a throaty, tortu
red groan.
In that moment, there was only the two of us, caught up in a passion so intense that I felt mindless.
My head dropped to his shoulder as he stayed lodged inside me, his arms tightly around my body.
“One of these days, you’re going to kill me,” he rumbled against my neck.
I smiled against his skin because he didn’t sound the least bit afraid of dying from too many orgasms.
Once I caught my breath, I murmured, “I think dinner is going to be a little late.”
“Don’t care,” he answered as he lifted me, and I slid down his body until I found my feet. “You’re the best damn birthday gift. Ever.”
I grinned at him as he gently picked up my panties and helped me step into them, and then grabbed my sundress and pulled it over my head.
Considering Mason’s appetite, and the fact that I was making his favorite dish, it was probably one of the best compliments I’d ever gotten.
Laura
“So what do you want to know about Perfect Harmony, Mr. Montgomery?” I queried politely as I sipped a glass of white wine.
We’d scheduled our lunch meeting in San Diego at a nice Italian restaurant close to downtown.
Hudson Montgomery was charming as hell, and better-looking in person than in his pictures. But our choice of Italian food just reminded me of Mason, and how much I missed him.
Especially when Hudson had ordered the lasagna.
God, I’m completely pathetic.
I reminded myself that it was only two more days until I’d see Mason again, and tried to focus on the guy across from me who had asked for this appointment.
Hudson Montgomery was breathtakingly attractive, but he did absolutely nothing for me. Logically, I could understand how some women might swoon over him. His dark locks were cut short, and he appeared to be impeccably groomed in a dark suit and tie. His facial bone structure was perfection, and he probably would have had an amazing career in modeling if he wasn’t a billionaire businessman. He was tall and muscular, but not as imposing as Mason.
Aesthetically, he was nearly flawless, and nice eye candy, I supposed. But there was only one man who got a reaction from me, and he was over twelve hundred miles away.