“The spare room it is,” Mason said, surprised by the twinge of disappointment he felt. Still, he was happy he had made her smile at least.
He led her down the corridor to the spare room, which was just across the hallway from his room.
“I know you want your own place,” Mason said as he opened the door and stepped aside to let Amelia in. “But I want you to feel at home, so if you want to change this room in any way, please feel free to go ahead. All I want is for you to be happy.”
“Thank you, Mason,” Amelia said as she walked up to him and kissed him on the cheek. She stepped back and looked up into his eyes. “And not just for this, thank you for everything.”
“You don’t have to thank me for anything, Amelia,” he said as he stepped closer to her. He reached up and gently touched her face. “I want to make you happy.”
He leaned down and gently claimed her lips as his whole body instantly responded to her body pressed against his. His cock grew hard and strained against his trousers. He longed to lift her up, take her to his bed, and get lost deep inside her but he needed her to know, that was not the only reason he wanted her here.
He remembered her words from earlier that day, that he wanted to pay for her apartment, so he can fuck her whenever he wants. He needed to show her, this was not the case.
“Do you know what you do to me?” He breathed against her mouth, as he slowly parted his lips from hers. “You are undoing every inch of me, Amelia.”
He kissed her again but this time it was harder and deeper, as Mason struggled to hold back how he felt.
Amelia wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, and Mason could feel the want inside her. She needed him too.
Suddenly the buzzer from the front door echoed throughout the apartment and Mason groaned as he reluctantly released her from his embrace.
“I should go get that,” he replied as he pressed his forehead down against hers. “Then I will come back and help you unpack.”
He kissed her again before he turned and headed out of the room and down the hallway. He wondered who it could be calling on a Sunday evening. He hurried to the speaker, just as the buzzer sounded again.
“Hello,” Mason said, feeling a little bit annoyed that he and Amelia had been interrupted.
“So, you’re alive then,” Andrew’s voice chirped through the speaker on the wall. “I have been calling you all day. Where the hell have you been?”
“Have you?” Mason asked with surprise. He pulled his phone from his pocket and realised it was flat. “Damn, I wonder what other calls I’ve missed.”
“Well,” Andrew said. “Are you going to buzz me in? I have beers, I figured when you weren’t answering your phone, things didn’t work out with the girl.”
“Actually,” Mason began, trying to let his friend down lightly. The last thing Amelia needed tonight was company, but before he could finish there was a noise through the intercom.
“Never mind,” Andrew said. “I am in, see you in a sec.”
He was gone before Mason could respond. Mason paced up and down at the door, trying to figure out the quickest and easiest way to get rid of his friend.
A couple of minutes later, Andrew banged on the door, and Mason quickly answered before he knocked again.
“Well,” he said as he pushed in past Mason and walked towards the kitchen. “You don’t look too heart broken. I suppose that’s a good thing. I want all the gory details.”
“Actually, Drew,” Mason said hoping honesty was the best policy. “Now is not a great time.”
“Oh,” Andrew said as he set a six pack of beer down on the counter before he pulled out a bottle and twisted off the cap. “You want me to leave so you can cry into your pretty pillow?”
“Actually,” Mason said, but once again he was interrupted.
“Mason,” Amelia called as she made her way down the hallway towards the kitchen completely unaware that they had company. Andrew looked at Mason with a stunned expression on his face. He knew Mason never brought a girl to his home, so this was something he definitely wasn’t expecting. “I just realised…”
Amelia stopped mid-sentence when she walked into the kitchen and saw Andrew standing there.
“Well hello there,” Andrew said with a big smile, looking from Amelia to Mason, then back to Amelia.
“Hello,” Amelia said as her face flushed with embarrassment. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realise Mason had company.”
“Amelia,” Mason said, knowing he had no choice but to introduce them. “This is Andrew Pope. Drew, this is Amelia Wells.”
“Nice to meet you,” Amelia said with a shy smile.
“The pleasure is truly mine,” Andrew replied to Amelia shaking her hand. “And it’s I who should be apologising, I didn’t know Mason had company.”
“Amelia is going to stay here for a while,” Mason quickly explained. “Until she finds a new apartment.”
“I see,” Andrew said and Mason had to laugh at the look of total shock on his best friend’s face. “Well, I am sorry for interrupting your night.”
“We were just going to order some pizza,” Amelia said looking from Andrew to Mason. “Maybe you could join us?”
“I would love to,” Andrew replied without missing a beat, before Mason had a chance to say something different.
“I guess I should call in the order,” Mason sighed giving Andrew an unimpressed look, but Andrew just smiled and shrugged.
“Where are my manners?” Andrew said as Mason went to call for the pizza. He turned and pulled a bottle of beer from the pack and offered it to Amelia.
“Thank you,” Amelia said as she took it from him and twisted open the lid. She brought the bottle to her lips and took a long sip as Mason walked back into the kitchen.
“Mace,” Andrew said with a laugh. “I don’t know where you found this beautiful girl, but you should never let her go. Any girl that drinks from the bottle is okay in my book.”
“I am glad you approve,” Mason said with a laugh as he protectively draped his arm around Amelia’s shoulders.
The three of them spent a couple of hours talking and laughing. Andrew told Amelia lots of stories about Mason growing up, much to Mason’s horror, but it made him happy to see Amelia laugh after the day she just had.
It was a little after ten when Amelia stood up and said she was going to call it a night. Mason walked her down to her room and kissed her goodnight. He wanted to ask her to change her mind and spend the night with him in his bed, but he resisted.
“Sweet dreams,” he whispered as he kissed her on the forehead. “I will speak to you in the morning. You know where I am, should you need me.”
“Goodnight, Mason,” Amelia whispered and she leaned up and softly kissed his lips.
When she shut the door, he walked back down the hallway and back to the living room, where Andrew was waiting for him.
“Okay,” Mason said as he collapsed down on the sofa next to his friend. “Let’s get this over with.”
“No, no,” Andrew laughed as he brought his bottle of beer to his lips. “I think she is really sweet and I understand why you are so crazy about her. And I am very impressed with her ninja skills. I mean, it’s no mean feat getting past the great wall of Mason.”
“And there it is,” Mason sighed.
“No seriously,” Andrew quickly continued. “I am truly happy for you. She is a lovely girl. Nothing like the usual airheads you bang. She is funny and clearly very smart, though what she is doing with a loser like you, is beyond me.”
“Believe me,” Mason sighed. “You are not the only one that feels like this.”
Mason told Andrew all about what had happened between Amelia and her father.
“Shit, Mace,” Andrew said when Mason was finished talking. “That poor girl.”
“Andrew,” Mason sighed. “Part of me wonders if I should I just walk away, and make it easier for her.”
“But you like her too much,” Andrew said.
“I do,” Mason replied honestly. “So much it scares the crap out of me.”
“Then you have to make this right for her,” Andrew told Mason what he really already knew.
“I know I do, Drew,” Mason sighed in frustration. “I just don’t know how.”
Chapter 20
Amelia woke with a start and felt confused by her surroundings. She sat up in the bed and tried to get her bearings in the darkness of the room. Then she remembered where she was and why she was here.
As the memory of her argument with her dad filled her mind, she pushed the bed clothes back and got up from the bed. She walked across the cold, wooden floor to the window and stared out at the street below. She sighed as she closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against the cold glass.
How did I end up in this mess? She thought to herself, miserably. She was completely heartbroken over how she had left things with her dad. She loved him more than anything in this world, but she was hurt by the things he had said, and she regretted some of the things she had said to him, but she was just so angry with him.
She wrapped her arms around herself tightly, but they provided little comfort. She wished her mother was here.
She thought about Mason across the hallway and she wondered if he was asleep. She had to admit, she was surprised when he had suggested she might wish to have her own room. Her instinct was to say no, as she didn’t want to seem ungrateful for his hospitality, but she thought setting some boundaries was not a bad idea. She knew that Mason would have her tied in knots if she wasn’t careful. She needed to take things slowly.
However, right in that moment, she wished she hadn’t agreed to sleep in the spare room. She felt sad and very lonely. She needed to be held. She needed to know she wasn’t alone.
She walked back to the bed, sat down on the end of it, and stared at the door. She sighed deeply, and wondered what to do.
‘You know where I am if you need me.’ Mason’s words played in her head over and over. Amelia knew he had meant them.
She wondered if she could just walk across the hallway and slip into his bed next to him. The thought of his warm body against hers, sent a shiver down Amelia’s spine, and made her whole body tingle with longing. She wanted him, she needed him.
She bit her lip and considered, should she…no, could she do this. Taking a deep breath, she stood up and walked to the door.
Can I really do this? Amelia thought to herself. She stared at the door for what seemed like forever willing herself to open it and walk across the hall to Mason. You can do it; you can do it.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then quietly opened the door before she had a chance to change her mind.
When Amelia reached Mason’s door, she hesitated before she slowly opened it. Stepping inside, her heart was hammering so hard in her chest, she was sure the sound would wake Mason.
Amelia stopped for a moment and watched him sleep. He really was a beautiful man. His naked body was loosely covered with a sheet, but still, Amelia could make out the shape of his manhood. Even flaccid, it was a generous size and made Amelia’s breath catch in her throat. Why did this man affect her so much?
She watched his chest rise and fall slowly as he softly breathed in his sleep. It was almost hypnotic. She wanted to go to him, but she couldn’t. She felt like her feet were cemented to the floor.
Suddenly he moved and Amelia immediately felt like a rabbit caught in headlights. She watched as he rolled onto his side, and release a long, slow breath.
She could feel her heart quicken even more. She longed for him, longed to touch him, but she was so afraid.
Taking a deep breath, she took a step towards the bed, then another and another, each step her heart raced faster.
As she reached the edge of the bed, Mason opened his eyes.
“Amelia,” he said as he instantly sat up and looked at her with concern. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
“Can you just hold me, please?” She whispered in a tiny voice, as tears danced in her eyes. “I need you to hold me.”
Mason didn’t miss a beat. He kneeled up in the bed completely naked and reached out for Amelia. His lips instantly found hers as he took her by the hand and pulled her closer to him, and then down onto the bed.
Once she was lying on the bed, Mason made short work of the baggy t-shirt and panties she had been sleeping in. He wasted no time as he slipped between her legs, their kiss deepening as he pushed her legs further apart.
Amelia gasped and her head seemed to spin as the head of Mason’s now rock hard cock pressed against her slick opening.
He leaned up and reached for the foil packet on his nightstand. He rolled the condom down over his erection, then looked down into Amelia’s eyes as he slowly moved and pushed his cock inside her, filling her completely.
He claimed her mouth again, taking her cries of pleasure as he did so. He wrapped her in his arms and pulled her closer to him, until they were almost one entity.
His movements were slow and tender, his touch filled with so much passion that Amelia was completely lost in him.
Taking hold of her hands, he raised them above her head and pinned them to the bed. He released her mouth and stared down into her eyes. as slowly, his pace began to increase. Amelia wrapped her legs around his hips and rocked her hips up to meet Mason, thrust for thrust.
“You are mine, Amelia,” he growled as he drove into her over and over. “Tell me you understand.”
“I understand,” she gasped as Mason pushed her higher.
“Then say it,” Mason replied. “I want to hear you say it.”
“I…I,” Amelia stammered, and she struggled to focus on anything other than the orgasm building in the pit of her stomach.
“Tell me Amelia,” Mason pushed as he continued to thrust into her. “I want you to say it.”
“I am yours,” Amelia cried out as her orgasm exploded inside her but Mason was far from done. He pushed into her deeper as he pinned her harder to the bed. Amelia could barely breathe much less move. She had barely come down from her first climax when she could feel herself building up once again.
“Look at me Amelia,” Mason demanded as Amelia blinked open her eyes and tried to focus. Her whole body began to tremble as once again she was brought to the edge.
Mason slammed into her once more and cried out her name. It was her undoing; Amelia’s entire body shook as once more her orgasm tore through her body.
Mason collapsed on top of Amelia, as they both gasped for air, each covered in a thin layer of sweat.
Mason lifted his head and smiled, then moved, pulling himself from Amelia, and rolling onto his side to remove the condom.
He turned back to face Amelia then reached over and brushed the hair back from her face but she didn’t look at him. Suddenly she felt self-conscious and emotional. To Amelia’s horror, tears pooled in her eyes and trickled down her face.
“No,” Mason said pulling her to him. “Please don’t cry.”
“I’m sorry,” Amelia said as she quickly brushed the tears from her face. “I am just being stupid.”
“Don’t you ever apologise to me,” Mason said as he kissed the top of her head. “It’s I who should be sorry. When I turned up to find you, I thought about what it meant to me. I never considered what me turning up, meant to you. How it would affect you.”
“This is not your fault,” Amelia sniffed. “Yes my dad has issues with you, but he was never going to like whoever I brought home that wasn’t Jeremy. He thinks I should be with him, but I just don’t feel like that about him. And the truth is, since that night with Chase, my dad has looked at me differently. I know he thinks I need protecting, but he doesn’t get it that I am a grown woman.”
“This is all so new to me,” Mason sighed as he lay back on his pillow and pulled Amelia to him. “I just don’t want to come between you and your family. I promise I will do what it takes to make this right.”
“What about your family?” Am
elia asked and Mason tensed in the bed. Amelia knew she had hit a nerve, but she had gone there, so it was too late to take it back.
“I don’t really have a family,” Mason said, and Amelia could hear the edge in his voice. “I mean I have Andrew and his family. That’s the only family I know.”
“What about your parents?” Amelia asked and regretted her question the minute it was out. She lifted her head and looked at Mason, but he didn’t let his eyes meet hers. “I’m sorry. It’s none of my business.”
“No,” Mason sighed. “If I am asking you to trust me, I need to trust you, too.” He stopped and took a deep steadying breath before he continued.
“My dad was not a very nice man,” Mason began. “He drank every night, and he and my mom fought quite a lot. He would lash out and hit her, but she let him because she thought she was protecting me. Then one day she had enough. I was twelve when she packed her bag and left my dad, but she left me, too. My dad couldn’t handle her leaving so he began to drink more, and inevitably I guess, he began to hit me.”
“Oh Mason,” Amelia said as her heart broke for the man that she has come to care so much about. “I am so sorry.”
He looked at Amelia for the first time, as he reached out and softly touched her face then smiled before he continued.
“One night, a little after my sixteenth birthday,” he sighed. “I was pulled from my bed in the middle of the night, because he was hungry. I had had enough and I stood up to him. He didn’t like that. So he beat me to a bloody pulp. When I woke up in the hospital, Andrew and his mom were beside my bed. I don’t know what would have happened to me if it wasn’t for that family. I found out that my dad had been arrested.”
“What happened to him?” Amelia asked.
“We made a deal,” Mason shrugged. “I would drop the charges if he disappeared and never contacted me again. That was eighteen years ago and I haven’t seen him since.”
“Did you ever see your mom again?” Amelia asked.
“Never,” Mason replied immediately. “Nor would I want to. I mean, I understand her leaving him. She was right to do that, but she left me too and she never looked back.”
All Time Love Page 14