by Nikki Rose
“I’m sorry. I can’t. I’ve got other plans tonight.”
“Oh please, Hana. If you had any other plans you wouldn’t be dressed like that,” she motioned toward my painting shirt and I squirmed, realizing I wasn’t wearing nearly enough to be standing in front of her and Jeff.
“I’m sorry. I told her we should call first,” Jeff apologized and looked slightly uncomfortable. I had to think he was at least partially used to the way she was.
“These bowls are getting heavy, I’m just going to...” Before I had a chance to argue any further, she pushed past me and into the living room.
“Cassie, wait—” I hurried after her as she rounded the corner toward the kitchen.
I rounded the corner, my mind racing with ways to try to explain who he was, what he was doing in my house, and why he looked so much like the man on the television but Mason was nowhere to be found.
“Are you expecting someone?” Cassie said as she looked at the table set for two.
“I, um—” I looked around, trying to find any clue as to where Mason had disappeared to.
“Just me,” Mason’s voice from behind us made me jump.
“Hey, there you are,” I looked up at Mason. But he looked so different. He had traded his usual jeans and tee for khaki shorts and a polo shirt. His usually tousled hair was slicked back, and he was wearing glasses which he managed to make look sexy. I stood there gawking up at him in shock.
“Oh, my goodness. You’re the boyfriend,” Cassie exclaimed.
“Craig," Mason introduced himself and took the dishes from Cassie. "And you must be the good friend, Cassie,” he put on his most charming tone as he sat the food on the counter.
“I’m Jeff. I hope you don’t mind us intruding on your night,” Jeff added and offered Mason his hand.
Mason took it and gave a firm shake, “not at all. I hear you two are from out of town so I know you have a short timeframe. It wouldn’t be fair for me to hog Hana.”
“I’m so glad to meet you. Hana said she had a new boyfriend. I just didn’t realize you’d be here. It’s a pleasant surprise.”
“It certainly is,” Mason smiled and wrapped his arm around me, pulling me close to his side. “I’m always happy to meet Hana’s friends.”
Being so close to him felt good, too good. It made me uncomfortable at just how right being in his warm, strong arms felt. My body relaxed into his for a moment before I regained my senses.
“Dinner’s ready. Why don’t we have a seat,” I suggested and slipped out from his arm.
“Sounds good.”
I went to the cabinet and pulled out another two place settings. Once we passed around the food, it didn’t take long for the questions to start.
“So, where did you two meet?” Cassie said just before taking a sip of her wine.
I wasn’t good at coming up with a lie so I looked to Mason for help and he was quick to jump in. “A friend of mine bought a piece of her artwork. It was exquisite and I demanded he introduce me to the genius who created something so incredible.”
“That is so cute.”
“Yeah,” Mason smiled lovingly at me and placed his hand over mine that rested on the table. “I never would have guessed that the artist would be even more beautiful than her artwork.”
Heat rushed into my face. I knew he was just coming up with a good cover story but the idea of a man seeing me the way he described still made me blush. If I was honest with myself, I wished it was true. To have someone like Mason see me like he described, I couldn't imagine. I’d only known Mason for a few days but in that time, he had already shown me just how incredible he was. Not only was he amazing to look at with his rippling muscles and soul-penetrating eyes, he fought to protect people, to do what was right. He was caring and gentle when I got hurt, taking care of my injury before his own.
“You two are absolutely adorable. How long have you been together?”
“Not long but I feel like I’ve known her my whole life,” Mason answered without missing a beat. I smiled, but felt a sudden sadness because the lie he was selling to Cassie and Jeff I wished was the truth.
Mason gazed at me for a long moment before finally clearing his throat and looking to Cassie, “And what about you two?”
“Oh, we met in high school and have been together ever since. We just got married six months ago.”
“Congratulations. That’s so exciting.”
“Thank you. We couldn’t be happier,” Cassie beamed.
“So, what is it that you do for a living, Mason?”
“I’m in consulting.”
“Consulting? What does that even mean?” Jeff asked around a bite of his pasta.
“It means very dull work,” Mason chuckled which made us all do the same.
It was a very good coverup. No one wanted to ask details about something claiming to be dull.
With the lull after the question, I decided to turn the questions around, “and what are you doing now, Jeff?”
“I sell insurance.”
“Jeff is one of the top salesmen in his office. He’s been getting all sorts of bonuses lately and with any luck, we’re hoping a promotion is in the near future,” Cassie bragged, beaming with pride for her new husband.
“That’s wonderful.”
Once everyone was finished with their meal, I stood up to serve dessert. I was just bringing the plates to the table when the questions started back up.
“Do you have family in the area?” Cassie asked Mason and I tensed. I tensed every time they asked a question about him or about our relationship. I wasn’t nearly as comfortable with coming up with a cover story as Mason was, though, I assumed he probably had practice with that.
“Unfortunately, no. My mother lives in North Carolina and my father passed away a couple of years back.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that. What about siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles?” Cassie continued before taking a bite of her cheesecake.
“Geez Cass, are you planning on making him a family tree?” I teased, hoping I was getting my point across without being rude.
“I’m just trying to get to know your new guy,” Cassie said defensively and I instantly regretted my tone. She continued to look at Mason, waiting for an answer.
“I’m an only child of two only children so no,” Mason impressed me with his quick answers and I wondered if there was any truth to his stories.
“That’s sad. Family is so important. Don’t you agree?”
“Absolutely.”
“Do you want a big family?” Cassie’s blunt question made me choke on my wine.
“Hana, are you alright?”
“You okay?” Mason leaned over and patted my back.
“Yeah. I think I just need some water.” I got up and walked to the sink all the while listening to the conversation at the table.
“So, do you?” Cassie was relentless.
“Not too big.”
“What’s not too big?”
“Well, I’ve seen some families with so many kids they don’t even have the time or energy for them. I want to make sure that I have enough time and energy for my wife and my kids, when I have them.”
“Good answer.”
After dessert and coffee, we said goodnight to Cassie and Jeff. While Cassie was a good friend back when I was in school, I was relieved when she left. Her questions made me on edge all night. I just knew that at any moment, Mason and I would be found out but he held it together well and had an answer for every question.
I locked the door and turned to lean against it as I let out a heavy sigh.
“Your friends seemed nice,” Mason walked out of the bedroom and down the hallway into the living room dressed in his normal sleep attire of a pair of pajama bottoms and a white tee.
“That was the most stressful dinner of my life,” I ran my fingers through my hair and took the first deep breath of the night.
“You did well. I don’t think they suspected anything. Come here,�
�� he took my hand and led me to the couch to sit down. “They’re gone. Now, it's time to relax.”
I sat on one end of the couch and he sat on the other but surprised me when he leaned down and scooped up my feet. I tried to pull them back but he gave an insistent tug before resting them in his lap.
“What are you—” he ran his thumb up the arch of my foot, followed by his other thumb right behind it and I couldn’t suppress the slight moan that vibrated in my throat as my head dropped back on the arm of the couch. “You don’t have to do that.”
“You need to relax. It has been a stressful few days for you. It’s the least I can do.”
“You’ve been using that excuse a lot.”
“What excuse?”
“That it's the least you can do. The cooking, doing the dishes, chores around the house...” his large hand wrapped around my foot with a firm pulling motion that seemed to release tension all the way through my body. “Oh wow. Where did you learn to do that?”
“Do what? This?” he rubbed his thumbs over every sore spot in my foot and the tension melted. “Or this?” he asked before wrapping his hands around my foot and gently stretching and twisting.
“All of it,” I practically purred.
“I’m a man of many talents.”
“I’m learning that.” I wasn’t sure if it was the foot massage or the adrenaline crash after Cassie’s dinner interrogation, but I started to feel a drunken haze settle into my mind. “So, were any of your answers true tonight?”
“I really am an only child,” he smiled at me and I couldn’t help but smile back.
“That was it? Everything else was a lie?”
“No, not everything. My mom really does live in North Carolina, dad is really dead, I had an older brother but he died when I was a kid.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that. What happened?” I tried to sit up and pull my feet from his lap but he gave a sharp tug and made me slide down farther.
“Will and I were six years apart. I was only twelve when he enlisted in the Marines right out of high school. I remember watching him leave on deployment dressed in his uniform. I was so proud to have a brother cool enough to be a marine. I wanted to be just like him when I grew up. He celebrated his nineteenth birthday on a marine base overseas. Six months later, he was killed in action—a bombing.
I blinked slowly and shook my head. I couldn’t imagine something so horrible. “I’m so sorry.”
“It was a long time ago.”
I pulled my feet out of his lap and this time he let me. I sat up, scooting onto the cushion next to his, still facing him. “Is that why you got into this work? Because of him?”
“Mostly. I’d always wanted to help people. I went to work at the ATF as a CES...”
“I have no idea what all those letters mean but I’m pretty sure that’s not how the alphabet goes,” I teased, trying to lighten the mood just a bit and he smiled, a real smile and let out a small chuckle.
“The ATF is the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. And, a CES is a special agent within the ATF called a certified explosive specialist.”
“Wow, so you are like, some big shot special agent, huh?”
“Not exactly. I was recruited from there to work for the agency I’m with now so I don’t officially have that title anymore but I do help with explosives when needed.”
“Oh okay. See, when you use actual words, I understand just fine,” I playfully nudged his arm.
He laughed and nudged me back, “you know, of all the houses I could have broken into and all the people I could have held hostage in their own home, I’m kind of glad it was you.”
I scrunched up my face and looked at him, trying not to laugh, “that is probably the weirdest compliment I’ve ever heard.” I finally couldn’t help but laugh.
“I just mean, I’m glad I met you.”
“I’m glad I met you too. You’re nothing like what I thought that first night. What you do, keeping people safe, putting yourself in danger just to protect others, it's pretty incredible. You’re pretty incredible.”
“Thanks, and you’re not so bad yourself,” he teased.
I let out a laugh, “oh yeah. I’m sure I’ve saved lots of people’s lives with my paintings.”
“There is more than one way to save someone. Your paintings have the power to touch people, to lift their moods, to make them feel something.”
I blushed and looked down. A loose strand of hair fell into my face. Before I could reach up to brush the small piece of hair away, Mason gently tucked it behind my ear. His fingers lingered as they brushed along the shell and made me shiver.
Something shifted in the room from the contact. And, when I gazed into his eyes, there was something new there, something smoldering just beneath the surface. My lips went dry and I had to run my tongue along them to wet them again.
Mason’s eyes darted down to my lips and that underlying heat deep in his eyes ignited into a fierce wild fire. He cupped the side of my face, his thumb running over my lower lip and lightly dragging it down but his eyes never left me.
I’d been attracted to Mason physically from the moment I saw him but after getting to know more about him, I was attracted to so much more. He was an incredible man and I didn’t want to fight the desire to be close to him. I wanted to grant myself just that one moment. Even if that was all we had, I wanted it.
Mason took my invitation and leaned in. Just before our lips touched, his phone blared its shrill ringtone.
Mason paused and for a moment I thought he might ignore it but he reluctantly pulled away. “I’m sorry, it could be work.”
“No, it's okay. Really.” I assured him, knowing that his work could be a matter of life or death.
He pulled out his phone, swiped to answer the call and put it to his ear, “Carlile.”
“Hey man, it's Mikey. Were you asleep?” I remained close to Mason on the couch, unsure if I should move or not. I could hear the man’s voice through the phone.
“No, I’m good. What’s going on?”
“I think I found something to do with your case.”
“Really? What?” Mason tilted the phone away from his ear slightly so I could hear too.
“I’ve been working with facial recognition software set with your photo. I ran it through DMV records in the area and crossed that with cars that look similar to the make and model of your car but I wasn’t finding any matches.”
“So, you called to tell me you haven’t found anything?”
“No. I removed the car as one of my parameters and widened my search area by fifty miles and I found a few possibilities. From there I checked with rental companies who rent cars with similar appearance to your make and model, asking if any of the guys on my list had rented a car for the time of the bombing.”
“Please tell me you got a match?”
“I got a match.”
Mason let out a sigh of relief at his words, feeling stress actually leaving his body, his shoulders slumped. “Mikey, you are awesome,” he exclaimed.
“I know,” he chuckled. “I don't trust sending it to your devices. You'll need to meet me somewhere to get the hard files then pass it along to the team.”
"Okay, I'll work out a place to meet and get back to you."
"I'll be waiting for your call."
“Great, thanks again, man.”
“No problem.”
Mason hung up his cell and grinned at me.
“They found him?”
“They found his information. They still have to find him and connect him to the bombing”
“That’s still wonderful news. So, your team can question him and turn him over to the police and you’ll be off the hook?”
“It won’t be quite that simple. They’ll have to find him first then question him but they will also need to find evidence that will convict him otherwise the local police will keep coming after me.”
“But you have a lead. That’s great.” I leaned over
and wrapped my arms around his neck instinctively, in a tight hug. He hugged me back and the feel of his body against mine felt so good. I wanted to stay there forever.
As we parted, we fell into a slightly awkward silence. The moment between us had passed but I wasn’t sure how to act once it was over. I couldn’t take the silence anymore so I cleared my throat and started to rise from the couch. “Well, it's late. I should probably get some sleep.”
“Yeah, we’ve had a busy day,” Mason agreed and rose with me.
“And who knows what might come tomorrow?”
“I’m starting to think a boring day might be welcomed.”
“I second that,” I chuckled.
Mason reached for me and pulled me close to him, tucking that pesky stray hair away from my face again. Cupping my cheek, he gently brought his lips to mine for a sweet, tender kiss. He pulled away too soon and I felt myself almost stumble forward from having been leaning into him. He smiled at me and gave me one last quick kiss on the forehead before whispering against my skin, “goodnight, Hana.”
“Goodnight,” I breathed out the word before walking passed him to my bedroom.
CHAPTER 9
Mason
I walked into the studio where Hana was busy painting. I couldn’t help but grin when she turned around, smiling at me, paint smeared down her cheek.
“Hey,"
"Hey. Feel like going for a ride?"
"Sure. What secret spy mission do we have today?"
"We are going to fly to Europe to stop an international spy ring."
Her jaw dropped and her brow rose. "Seriously?"
I couldn’t even hold a serious face and burst out laughing.
"Nah, we just need to meet Mikey in an old abandoned grocery store loading area using a similar technique like last time.”
“You mean with you peeking out from the trunk?” she chuckled softly.
“Yeah. Do you mind driving me to the meeting? I know you had plans to—”
“It’s no problem at all," she interrupted. "Except Europe did sound nice.”
“Thank you. I’m really going to owe you. And who knows, maybe you can go visit Europe on a nice vacation instead of chasing spies all around. I've only ever been for work."