He slid a hand to the nape of her neck, drawing her closer as he gazed into her eyes, and said, “You are my foreseeable future, Remi. I can work from anywhere, and drive into the city when need be. The last thing I want to do is to walk away from what we have.”
Happy tears burned her eyes as he pressed his lips to hers in a sweet kiss.
“You mentioned going away after filming ends. Do you still want to do that?”
“Yes, definitely.”
“Good. I’m on board with the idea, and I’m talking with my men about ways to make it happen where you won’t feel so oppressed but will ensure your safety.” He looked at the lists in the notebooks and said, “The other day you asked me if I was fulfilled. I thought I was, but at the time I didn’t realize some things were missing. You and this project are two of them. I am one hundred percent behind us and this project. The idea of giving kids something I never had makes me as happy as knowing we’re doing it together.” He brushed his thumb over her neck and said, “You know how you’re working on boundaries?”
“Yes.”
“I am, too. You were right when you said I was a workaholic. I’m thinking about ways to strike a balance there, too, once the stalker is behind bars. And that new direction, my sweet Remington Aldridge, is because of you.”
Grinning, she grabbed the front of his T-shirt and tugged him in for another kiss, which was interrupted by a phone call.
Mason groaned as he pulled out his phone. “It’s Porter. He has to drop something off. I asked him to call on his way here. I’ll take it outside.” He headed for the front door as he answered. “Hey, Porter. How far away are you?”
Remi got started making calls, the first of which was to Naomi. She caught her up to speed on their ideas, handled a few other lingering business issues, and then she called Shea.
“This is the best news I’ve heard all month,” Shea said. She was one of the most successful PR reps in the industry, and she’d been repping Remi for years. “How long have I been asking you to find something you were passionate about besides acting?”
“A long time, but nothing fit. This feels right. Can you help?”
Remi pictured her blond friend leaning back in her chair, kicking her high heels up onto her desk, her keen eyes narrowed in a let’s do this expression.
“Absolutely! I’ll put together a list of companies you’ve worked with and see who I think we can talk to about donations for birthday boxes and duffel bags, and support in general, because these things take funds. Did you talk to Aida yet?” Aida Strong was Remi’s attorney.
“No, but I will after I call Parker.”
“Which reminds me, I need to take a trip out to the Cape to see her! Her little girl is so freaking cute, she almost makes me want one.” Parker’s daughter, Miriam, had her daddy’s dark hair and her mommy’s blue eyes.
“Your baby will be born with a to-do list,” Remi teased.
“Nothing wrong with starting them young. Listen, babe, I’ve got to go, but before I do, is there something I should know about you and Mason Swift?”
“Yes, but nobody can know,” Remi confessed.
“Hey, who do you think stopped the tabloids from rolling out a story about the photographs and threatening texts? I pulled a Ray Donovan and paid them off, thank you very much. I’ve got your back.”
They talked for a few more minutes, and then Remi called Parker.
“Remi! It’s been too long. How are you?”
Remi could hear the happiness in her voice. They hadn’t seen each other since early spring, when Remi had gone to Cape Cod for a week to destress. “Hi. I’m well, but my schedule has been crazy. Sorry I haven’t called in a while. How’s Miriam?”
“Only the most amazing child on the planet, of course. She’s walking!” Parker gushed. “She has Grayson wrapped around her little finger, though. You should see them together. It’s mama porn for sure! But more importantly, did they ever catch the guy who broke into your house?”
“No. I’m in Harmony Pointe, New York, filming, and we think he might be here, but we don’t know for sure. He sent me threatening texts with pictures from the set. They’re following all leads, of course, but they said he could have gotten the picture off social media, and maybe he’s not here. I’ve got an army of guys watching me.” And I’m falling for one of them.
“Oh, Remi. I’m so sorry. I don’t miss that attention at all,” Parker said. She hadn’t taken on an acting job since getting pregnant with Miriam. “The third-best thing I ever did was take a step back from Hollywood.”
“I’m guessing the first was marrying Grayson and the second was having Miriam?” She knew the answer. Parker was so in love with her handsome artist husband and her adorable daughter, just being around them had always made Remi want to fall in love.
“Of course. What about you? Has Aiden given you the key to your chastity belt yet?” Parker teased.
Remi trusted Parker not to expose her secret, and she wanted to be honest with her. “There is someone special in my life, and his name is Mason, but we have to keep it quiet until the stalker is caught, so please don’t mention his name anywhere that could carry it in the wind. You’ll like him, Parker. He’s smart and loving, and he’s got the biggest heart.”
“I’m so happy for you. Does he get along with Aiden?”
“Yes, but Aiden is out of the country, and he doesn’t know we’re together. I’ll tell him when he returns.”
“Good plan. Otherwise he’ll hijack a plane to come make your official relationship rules. He’s never really had to do that before. That should be interesting. When are you coming to the Cape? I missed seeing you this summer.”
The idea of going to the Cape with Mason brought a smile. “I’m not sure, because Mason and I are embarking on an exciting new project, which is why I’m calling, actually.”
Parker had also been brought up in the foster-care system, which had been the impetus for the Collins Children’s Foundation. As Remi filled her in on their project, Parker told her about a company that did something similar to what Remi was suggesting, but they didn’t have birthday bashes. That alone made Remi more determined to host the parties. Parker gave her the lowdown on how CCF worked and the hoops Remi could expect to jump through if she and Mason opened a nonprofit.
“Why don’t you run it through CCF?” Parker suggested. “We have relationships with the offices that oversee foster care in every state. Why reinvent the wheel?”
“That’s so nice of you, but Mason and I really want to be hands-on. He grew up in the system, and this is really a passion project for both of us.”
“I didn’t mean that I would take your idea and run with it. I meant that you and Mason could remain in control of developing and running the program to whatever extent you’d like. But doing it through CCF will allow you to avoid jumping through all those time-consuming hoops. You’d have full control, and we’d just help guide you when you need it.”
Remi was beside herself. “You wouldn’t mind? That’s so generous. I’ll have to talk to Mason, but that sounds smart to me.”
“Of course I don’t mind. I’ll support this endeavor any way that I can, and I’m happy to speak with Mason and answer any questions he has. I’m so glad you’re doing this. The foundation changed my life, and the lives of so many children. Anything you can do to help foster kids is a good thing.”
They talked for a long time, and after they ended the call, Remi was so excited, she wanted to tell Mason. She went to the front window and saw him talking with Porter in the driveway. Her stomach growled and she realized it was already almost one o’clock. She couldn’t believe Mason’s internal clock hadn’t sent him searching for food. The man fueled his body like the well-honed machine it was.
She went into the kitchen and made a salad for herself with sliced hard-boiled eggs, peppers, and mushrooms. Then she made a sandwich for Mason and one for Porter in case he hadn’t eaten. She took a picture of the food and sent it in a group
text to the girls with the caption Feeding my man.
As she carried the plates of sandwiches outside, it struck her that what she was doing felt very domestic and natural, which was weird, because she’d never been domestic before.
The men were no longer out front, though Porter’s truck was still there. She walked back inside and called Mason’s name in case she’d missed them. Answered with silence, she went back outside and around to the courtyard. They weren’t there, either. Her pulse quickened as horrible thoughts whipped through her mind. What if the stalker got them? Ohgodohgodohgod. Mason would never leave her alone like this.
“Mason?” came out as a choked whisper as she hurried around to the back, scanning the yard, which was also empty. She dropped the plates on the patio table, her heart racing as she cried out, “Mason!”
Mason bolted out of the trees at the edge of the yard with Porter at his heels. “Remi!”
The air rushed from her lungs as Mason gathered her in his arms.
“What happened?” His gaze darted to the yard as Porter yelled “Clear” and ran toward the front of the house.
“I got scared,” she panted out. “I didn’t see you and I thought . . .” Tears filled her eyes as her panic flooded out. “I thought I lost you.”
He held her tight, her cheek pressed against his hammering heart. He lifted her face, wiping her tears with the pads of his thumbs. “You’ll never lose me, especially not to some dirtbag.”
“I didn’t realize I was still so scared about the stalker. I’m sorry, but as silly as I feel for worrying over nothing, it wasn’t nothing. This is real, Mason. He could hurt either of us.”
“Listen to me. I’m here, you’re safe, and nobody’s going to take me down. This is a stressful time, and I know you have things to keep you sidetracked, but it’s perfectly normal for the fear to swallow you up sometimes. Don’t ever apologize for that. That’s why I’m here. And I don’t mean as your bodyguard—I mean as your man.”
Relief and renewed panic gripped her at the ferocity of her emotions. She stepped back and pressed her hand over her heart. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“It never will.”
“You can’t know that.” She inhaled deeply and blew it out slowly, trying to regain control of her rampant heart. “You came running so fast.”
“Three seconds flat, that was my promise to you.” He shot a look toward the front of the house and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “We need to get you a better text notification sound on your phone.”
“Why?”
“Because I texted you to let you know Porter and I had to take care of something out here.”
She pulled out her phone and saw Mason’s text, along with texts from Piper and Bridgette. “Now I feel really stupid. I had notifications off while I was making calls.”
Porter came around the house and yelled, “All clear, boss. Want me to check the house?”
“No, we’re cool,” Mason said. “Remi just got scared when she couldn’t find us. Even a brave front has to crack sometime.”
“Don’t I know it.” Porter put his hands on his hips, smiling as he said, “I’m glad everything’s okay. I needed to get my heart rate up anyway. Thanks for that.”
A nervous giggle tumbled out. “I’m sorry, Porter. I made you guys sandwiches. Does that help make up for it?”
“Sandwiches and a heart attack, the perfect lunch. Thanks, Princess.” Mason put a hand on her back and said, “I told Porter about us, but I’m pretty sure we can trust him.”
Porter winked.
The guys sat down to eat, and as Remi went inside, she turned on her notifications and read Mason’s text first. Porter and I have to take care of something in the woods out back. Text if you need me. She warmed all over, and just as quickly that uneasy feeling took over. Mason was right: She had been putting up a brave front. She couldn’t believe she’d ever suggested that they use her for bait. This was no joking matter, and it turned out that when it came to Mason’s safety, her brave face wasn’t nearly brave enough.
She opened and read Piper’s text, closing the door firmly behind her and leaning against it. When I feed a man, I’m usually naked. She chuckled at Piper’s text, wondering if Piper was all talk, like guys who pretend to play the field. Then she read Bridgette’s message. Now I’m hungry. For FOOD, not what Piper’s insinuating!
She was glad for their levity.
A text from Mason rolled in. Sure you’re okay? The sandwiches are almost as delicious as you are.
She thumbed out, I’m okay. Sorry for overreacting. His response came fast. You didn’t overreact, you reacted, and that’s good. She typed Thank you, added a kissing emoji, and sent it off. She pushed from the door, feeling calmer.
When she’d first moved into the fortress, she’d barely noticed the rooms and floors, much less the beautiful home in which she was living. Now, as she stood in the entryway, instead of seeing sterile white marble floors and big, lonely rooms, she saw Mason chasing her up the stairs from the gym, catching her, and tickling her ribs as he had the other evening after they worked out, and she saw him picking her up and laying her on the couch as he came down over her, kissing her breathless.
She went into the dining room to eat her salad, recalling his laughter from when they’d come downstairs for a midnight snack last night. After weeks of living there, the fortress finally felt less like a prison and more like a home.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
MASON WAS IN and out of the house throughout the afternoon, dealing with the investigation as Remi worked on gathering information and reaching out to influential people. He popped into the dining room for kisses, which she loved, or to work on his computer, which also included kisses. Remi had called Parker back several times during the course of the afternoon to ask more questions and to ensure she was going about things properly when dealing with her contacts. Things were moving right along, and although this was just the beginning, the project already felt real. She updated Aiden via email on the latest events in her life, leaving out her relationship with Mason. When Aiden said he was proud of her for putting herself out there in such a meaningful way, it made the project even more special.
Late in the afternoon, Mason came into the room, and she tilted her face up for a kiss. She could get used to this. Work a little, kiss a little . . .
“Hey, beautiful. I’ve got news.”
“Is the news that they caught the guy, so we can be a couple in public?”
“I wish. This is a long shot, but my guy who’s watching your LA house saw a drone flying around and tracked it down to a techy college kid who lives about a mile from your property. He’s not the stalker, but he’s got footage from all his flights and they’re obtaining the footage from the night of the break-in.”
“Seriously? We might catch the guy?”
“Like I said, it’s a long shot, but we’re checking into it. And if he’s not on that footage, they’ll check out the footage for the few weeks prior. If we get lucky, he’ll have caught something—the guy, a car parked too long nearby, or something else.”
“That’s great news.”
“We hope so. I also put a few calls in to my military buddies who are now out of the service. It looks like we’ll have all sorts of volunteers to help with the project when we’re ready. And I contacted my supplier for the bags, and they suggested different bags for younger children and teenagers, which makes sense. They’re sending a few samples.”
“That’s great! I’ve made headway, too. I found out there are eighty-one foster kids in Harmony Pointe and another sixty-three in Sweetwater. I think we should do birthday boxes for all of them. I also talked to Mia Stone, from JRB Designs. I was shocked she got back to me right away, but that woman has more energy than the Energizer Bunny. She’s going to present the idea to Josh and Riley Braden. She said it’s right up their alley, and she can’t imagine that they’d turn down a chance to help kids by donating pajamas for the duffel bags
. She hoped to get back to me within a week. And Willow called. She said the distributor she uses for her boxes is sending over a few samples for us to look at.”
“That’s incredible news.”
“I know, and there’s more. I found out that it can take anywhere from a few months to a year to set up a nonprofit, and then there’s apparently a lot of red tape to get approved by the offices that govern the foster-care programs.”
He winced. “That’s a long time. I was kind of hoping we could get started sooner.”
“Exactly. I know Bodhi offered to let us work through Hearts for Heroes, which is really generous, but they don’t have the contacts and approvals for the right departments, so we’d be starting fresh with that part. CCF has worked through all of that already. They have contacts and approvals in every state for their programs. Parker offered to let us run the program through the foundation if we want to. It would still be ours to develop and run, but it would be under the CCF umbrella. Unless you’d rather work with Bodhi or open a foundation?”
“Are you kidding? CCF sounds like the way to go. The less red tape the better. Then we can focus on what really matters—getting things ready for the kids.”
She popped to her feet and hugged him. “Are you as excited as I am?”
“Hell yes, and we make a damn good team, Princess.”
“We do. Too bad we can’t find some way to lure out the creepy guy without using me as bait.”
He chuckled. “We’ll find him without putting you at risk, but I do have a surprise for you.”
“I love surprises.”
“And dogs, apparently.” He took her hand, leading her toward the living room.
“I think I am probably one of the few who prefers dogs to puppies.”
“Why haven’t you ever gotten one?”
She shrugged. “When I was younger Aiden had enough on his plate. He didn’t need to worry about a pet, and then my schedule just sort of took over—” Remi stopped cold at the sight of an enormous tree filling the bay window in the living room. It had to be at least seven feet tall. “Mason? Is it Christmas in September? Is this what you and Porter were up to?”
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