So…
“I believe I told you earlier that I wanted to stay, too.”
His hand rested on her shoulder, his fingers caressing her nape. “I know, but that was…before. I just want you to know it would be okay if you changed your mind.”
Never before had she met a man who was this considerate or one who was so willing to let her call the shots.
And it made her want him all that much more.
“I appreciate that, Mason. I really do.” She paused. “The thing is…I need to go.”
Disappointment washed across his face and his fingers stilled. His hand slowly moved away and he put a little distance between them. “Oh. Um…okay.” He was about to get off the bed when he stopped. “I…I thought you said you wanted to stay?”
Okay, she had meant to be funny but it just turned awkward and the last thing she wanted to do was upset him. With a slow smile, she reached for his hand. “I meant I needed to use the bathroom.” Jumping up to her knees, she leaned in and gave him a searing kiss–her hands gripping his hair. When she pulled back, she smiled. “But it’s cute how you’re so easily freaked out.”
In the blink of an eye he had her on her back, bouncing on the mattress as he hovered over her and she couldn’t help but laugh.
“That wasn’t funny,” he all but growled.
But she could see the twinkle in his eyes.
“I know. It was mean of me, but I couldn’t resist.”
“Oh yeah? Well…prepare for some payback,” he warned and his words only made her tingle in anticipation.
“Bring it.”
As it turned out, Mason’s form of payback was mean in an entirely different way. His body covered hers as he kissed and touched her in a way guaranteed to arouse her. Within minutes she was panting, clawing at him, and begging for more. And just when she was certain they were on the same page, and she was on the verge of what promised to be a life-changing orgasm, he stopped.
Eyes wide, she looked up at him in shock. “What…? Why did you stop?” she cried.
Placing a gentle kiss on her nose, he said, “I remembered how you said you had to go, so…go.” He was smirking by the time he was finished with that one sentence and she knew she’d found a worthy opponent.
With a playful shove, Scarlett pushed him away before straddling him. “Newsflash, Bishop,” she stated, placing both hands on his chest. “I’m not going anywhere.”
His arm banded around her waist as he pulled her down until they were face to face.
“Good. Because I don’t plan on letting you go anytime soon,” he said firmly, right before his lips claimed hers.
Five
One week.
It had been one damn week and Mason was more than frustrated with the turn of events. After the hottest weekend of his life, he had driven Scarlett home and she blew him off ever since. Okay, she didn’t completely blow him off, but the two texts she sent that basically said she was perpetually busy were almost the same thing. And what was worse was that he had pretty much resorted to asking around town for anyone who might know anything about her.
Pathetic.
Honestly, he had no idea what happened.
Okay, there had been an awkward moment on Saturday night with a condom mishap. But Scarlett had pulled up some app on her phone and said there was no chance of her ovulating, then they talked it out until they both calmed down. They didn’t mention it again and they had sex at least two more times after it so he thought things were good.
Now she wasn’t returning his calls or texts–with the exception of those two–and as much as he wanted to say it didn’t bother him, it did.
A lot.
His work was suffering because he couldn’t focus and he was more than a little exhausted because he stayed up most nights obsessing about what he did wrong.
The weekend with her was perfect. For the first time in his life, he felt like he really knew a woman. They had talked for hours–almost until they were both hoarse! They had so much in common and knew so many of the same people that it was bizarre how they hadn’t run into each other before the night of the concert. And when they weren’t talking, they were binge-watching Stranger Things or eating pizza in bed.
And then there was the sex.
Even thinking about it was enough to make him hard and achy. Scarlett Jones was everything he ever dreamed of in a sexual partner and one weekend wasn’t enough.
Hell, he wasn’t sure if any time limit would be enough.
He wanted to talk to her.
He wanted more time with her.
Shit. He just wanted her.
With a heavy sigh, he forced himself to do what he needed to do. Currently, that was to get out of his car and go inside his parents’ house to celebrate his sister Parker’s birthday.
So not what he wanted to be doing right now.
Climbing from his car, he grabbed the gift he’d picked up on the way over and took a moment to shift gears. If he went inside looking and sounding depressed, everyone would notice. And the last thing he wanted to do was have to answer questions about his personal life.
Actually, the last thing he wanted to do was be here, period. But for his sister, he was doing it.
“Mason! There you are!” his mother called out as soon as he walked through the front door. Perfectly coiffed as usual, Georgia Bishop looked like she always did. And for tonight, he would put all negative feelings he had toward her aside.
You’re doing this for Parker. You’re doing this for Parker…
“It’s wonderful to see you!” she went on, looping her arm through his. Instead of walking to the living room where everyone was, she steered him toward his father’s office.
Not a good sign.
When they were alone, she released his arm and Mason braced himself for whatever it was she had to say.
“What’s going on, Mom?” he asked, doing his best to hide his annoyance.
Her frown was mild and gone in the blink of an eye. “We didn’t see you after the show last weekend. I thought you’d come back here for dessert with everyone.”
“Yeah, well, I ran into some friends and decided to go out with them.”
“Who did you go out with?” she asked mildly.
Shrugging, and more than a little uncomfortable, he said, “Just some friends from school.” Looking over his shoulder, he asked, “Is it just us tonight or is the rest of the family coming over?”
“Because more than a few people mentioned seeing you leave with a woman,” Georgia went on, as if he hadn’t attempted to change the subject.
“Mom, there were a ton of people around. I greatly doubt anyone saw that.” He wanted to groan at his own lame excuse. He had all but chased Scarlett at first and then grabbed her hand and practically dragged her to his car. If anything, he was surprised more people hadn’t taken notice of them.
“Was it that Jones girl? The one who works at the…the…garage?” Her entire face screwed up with distaste as she spoke and it filled Mason with rage.
Stiffening his spine, he glared hard. “She works at the garage from time to time, but she’s a social media manager for several businesses in town.”
“Hmm…”
That was it? That was her reaction?
“Mason…”
Here it comes.
“Is she really the type person you want to associate with?” she asked in her usual snobbish, condescending tone. “I mean, she’s a bit beneath us and honestly, I don’t understand why you would want to. There are so many respectable and eligible women in this town who would love to get to know you. Why are you…slumming it with this girl?”
So many thoughts ran through his mind and as much as he didn’t want to make a scene and ruin his sister’s birthday, there was no way he could keep his mouth shut.
He took a step toward his mother and saw the moment she realized she had gone too far. She said his name and he held up a hand to stop her. “I will not justify this to you,” he said firmly,
his whole body tense. “Who I see is no one’s business but my own. And I would think that after the way you pushed me until I was forced to move out, you would have learned something.”
She bristled with indignation. “I did not raise you to speak to me this way. I’m sure your father…”
“Would be on Mason’s side,” his father said from the doorway, a disapproving look on his face. Stepping into the room, he came and stood beside his son. “I thought we discussed this, Georgia.”
For a moment Mason was stunned silent. While he knew his parents had a strong marriage, it was always obvious that his mother called the shots. His father was a leader in the community and a brilliant businessman, but he tended to let his wife rule things at home.
At least…he used to.
“Now, instead of ruining our daughter’s birthday and pushing our son further away, let’s all go inside and celebrate Parker. We have dinner reservations at seven and I’d appreciate it if everyone got along.”
With a regal nod, his mother walked out of the room and Mason let out a long breath. He was about to mutter a curse, but his father’s hand on his shoulder stopped him.
“Thank you,” he said.
“For what?”
“You could have really flown off the handle and you would have been well within your rights. So thank you for being mature and respectful–even when she doesn’t deserve it.”
“She’s going to have to stop this, Dad. I’m serious. I’m not going to allow her to keep trying to run my life or put down the people I see.”
“I know and…I’m sorry. I should have stepped in sooner,” he said quietly.
“You weren’t much better,” Mason said, his own voice low. “You pushed me to be a replica of you.”
Beau Bishop looked up at his son and grinned. “And you pushed back,” he stated. “Otherwise there would be two lawyers in the family now.”
With a quick laugh, Mason nodded. “Yeah, well…I’m glad you knew when to let that go. Mom on the other hand…”
“She’ll get there. Trust me.”
“I hope so, because I don’t want to keep arguing with her. It’s exhausting.”
They walked out to join the rest of the family and it didn’t take long for Mason to relax. His sisters were both highly entertaining and pros at keeping the attention on themselves, so it was easy to get out of his own head for a little while.
After Parker opened her gifts, they drove as a family to the country club for dinner. It was something they had always done and he had to admit that he was having a good time. Maybe this wasn’t such a bad idea–it gave him time away from sitting home alone with his thoughts about where things went wrong with Scarlett.
They were finishing up dessert when he looked up and saw a familiar face.
Courtney.
Without looking too obvious, he excused himself to go use the restroom and walked out to the lobby where he spotted Courtney heading toward the bar. Looking over his shoulder to make sure no one from his family was watching, he followed her. Was she here with someone? Did she work here? He stopped for a moment to get his bearings and saw her sitting at the end of the bar alone. Knowing he didn’t have a lot of time, he walked over and sat beside her.
“Hey, Courtney,” he said with an easy smile.
Her eyes went wide but then she quickly relaxed. “Oh, hey, Mason. How are you?”
Small talk was the last thing he wanted, but he’d do it if it meant maybe getting a little insight into what was going on with Scarlett. “I’m good,” he replied. “Here for dinner with my family for my sister’s birthday. What about you?”
She looked around and sighed. “I um…I’m just here to get a drink.”
“You often come to the country club for that?” He looked around and it was a very subdued, older crowd–not at all the kind of place his generation came for a drink.
With a shrug, she said, “I thought I’d try something new.” Looking down, she studied her hands.
“Look, I need to get back to my table, but…have you talked to Scarlett? I’ve been trying all week to reach her. If I did something wrong…if I did something to upset her…” Pausing, he muttered a curse, hating how desperate he sounded.
For a minute, he thought she wasn’t going to answer, but then she sighed and met his gaze. “Okay,” she began solemnly. “You did not hear this from me, understand?”
He nodded.
“Scarlett is pretty insecure,” she explained. “She comes off as confident and she should be. But in situations with people like you…”
“People like me? What did I do?” He was beyond baffled by that statement.
Rolling her eyes, she continued. “Mason, come on. We all know you’re from one of the wealthiest families in town and Scarlett…well…she had it rough growing up. Her dad did the best he could, but…”
Yeah, this wasn’t news to him, which is what he said to her. “I don’t get what that has to do with the here and now, Courtney.”
Again, he didn’t think she was going to respond, but she shook her head and continued. “Old insecurities are hard to get over. So if you’re into her and you want to get her to open up to you, you’re just gonna have to push past the walls she’s put up. Go to her house and talk to her face-to-face.”
“I’d love to except she had me drop her off at your place,” he explained, his annoyance beyond obvious. “I don’t even know where she lives.” Not only was this conversation frustrating him, but he knew he needed to get back to his table. Standing, he muttered a thank you and turned to walk away.
“Mason,” Courtney called out, and when he turned, she sighed again. “Don’t make me regret this.” She grabbed a cocktail napkin and quickly jotted down Scarlett’s address before handing it to him.
Snatching it from her hands, he smiled broadly. “You won’t.”
Every muscle in her body ached, but it was all worth it.
Standing back, Scarlett looked at her latest creation and beamed with pride. She never knew when inspiration would hit so whenever it did, she always made sure to go with it and put in the time it took to do the job right. Stretching, she smiled. Tomorrow she’d deliver it and she knew all the aches and pains would be worth it.
The knock on the door stopped her as she went to grab a bottle of water. She was sure it was Courtney.
“I knew the country club was going to be a bust,” she murmured with a small laugh. Her friend was desperate for something new to do, but Scarlett had warned her that a bar in the local country club wasn’t going to do it for her.
Pulling the door open, she froze.
Mason.
It took all of three seconds for her to realize what a mess she must look like and panic set in. Spinning on her heel, she walked back into her house and cursed her rotten luck. She had meant to call him back, but…she got busy. Projects like the one she just finished tended to consume her and it wasn’t unusual for her to check out on the rest of the world for a while. Obviously he was tired of waiting for her so…
The sound of the door closing had her turning around and she found him standing in the entryway–unwilling to come in any further until she asked him to.
Damn him and his good manners!
Taking a steadying breath, she faced him. “What are you doing here?”
“I’ve been trying to talk to you all week,” he explained, the look on his face a combination of confusion, annoyance, and curiosity. After seeing what a mess her place looked like, what a mess she looked like, he was probably wishing he’d stayed home waiting for her call.
“Yeah, well…I’ve been a little busy.” She motioned to the mess behind her and forced herself to hold his gaze.
Her house was small–really small–and filled with a wide selection of her projects. It smelled of paint and sawdust and some pieces of furniture were covered in plastic to protect them. It was a far cry from his stylishly-decorated home on the beach. She could only imagine what he was thinking as he drove his expensiv
e car down the winding dirt road into the wooded lot to get to her house.
Stepping into the room, Mason looked around. “Did you…did you make this?”
She nodded and stepped aside when he got close to her newest project.
“Scarlett, this is amazing,” he said with a hint of wonder. “I mean…wow!”
Other than Courtney and a handful of people, she didn’t share her hobby with anyone. It was something she did for herself. Okay, for herself and to help others. But she didn’t want the attention or the praise. She preferred to simply do it and know she’d done a good thing.
“Is this the first one you’ve made?”
And now she was going to have to explain herself and she hated it. But first things first…
“I was just about to get something to drink when you knocked. Can I get you something?”
Shaking his head, Mason continued to walk around and look at her pieces. It was a little unnerving but Scarlett knew she couldn’t avoid the conversation. She grabbed her drink and finished half the bottle before she walked back into the room with him. He looked up at her and all she wanted to do was grab him and kiss him and tell him she’d missed him this week. He probably wouldn’t believe her considering how she’d all but ignored him, but it was still her first instinct.
“Remember I told you I volunteer at the animal shelter?” she began.
He nodded.
“Well, it’s not the one run by the county,” she went on. “Although I do go there from time to time.” Other than a nod, Mason waited for her to continue. “There’s a place just outside of town called Happy Tails. It’s an animal rescue farm.”
“I’ve heard of it,” he said as he tucked his hands into the front pockets of his trousers. It was then she realized he was dressed up and wondered where he was before coming here.
“Anyway, I volunteer there. The owners have a couple of acres and they rescue pets from shelters and care for them and help find them their forever homes. They do it all out of the goodness of their hearts and sometimes it’s not easy for them. So I…” She paused and mentally cringed at her next words. “I build these dog houses and playsets so the dogs have something to call their own. Something that’s not just a sterile kennel or crate.” She shrugged and studied the water in her hands. “Sometimes when a dog gets adopted, they take the little house they’ve claimed as theirs and…I don’t know…it’s like they have a little security to go with them to their new homes.”
In Case You Didn’t Know Page 7