by C. D. Gorri
“You wouldn’t understand, Mason,” she turned her back to him. This was proving more difficult then she’d thought.
The second his large hand covered her almost bare shoulder as he turned her towards him, she felt that familiar sizzle of attraction between them. Nothing had changed. And yet, entire worlds had been created and destroyed in the time she’d been away.
He felt it too. She was sure of it. She sensed it in the way his breathing changed. He dropped his eyelids, but he didn’t release his hold on her.
“I had a right to know.”
“Yes.”
“You gave him my name?”
“Yes.”
“He knows about me already?”
“Yes.”
“Oh God, Abby, why? Why did you leave?”
“I had no choice. Dad made me go.”
“No, that’s not true. Your father said you left on your own, he wasn’t lying Abby I’d have known it.”
“I guess in the end I did. I got on the plane, but not because I wanted to. There are things you don’t know.”
“Then tell me, goddammit! ”
“Mason, I had no choice!”
“There’s always a choice and you left me to go off galivanting around the world like the heiress you thought you were. And what now? Back for more money? Well, I’m not going to give you one penny of that twenty percent I gave to your father when I bought him out. I will fight it, Abby. You might as well accept that right now.”
“What? What are you talking about? What twenty percent?”
“Don’t pretend you don’t know.”
“I don’t know what you are talking about. I got an email a few weeks ago from a lawyer telling me my father died. That was it. I assumed he left me the house and whatever money he had as his only living relative.”
“Your father died in debt. I paid the mortgage on this house and the back taxes. This property is mine.” He looked around the cleaned kitchen and Abby felt sick to her stomach.
“Yours? You mean, he, he lost everything?”
“He lost you. After that he didn’t give a shit about anything else. Abby? Abby!”
She sunk to the floor. What was going on? Her business savvy father had sold the company and then lost his home? How could he have let that happen? And what did she have now? They’d have to leave now, they had no choice. But where? Back to Alaska?
“Abby, take a sip of this.” Mason held a glass of water to her lips and she took a sip. The fire that burned her throat told her it wasn’t water in her cup, but liquor. Whiskey. Good whiskey too. Must be his.
“What is this?”
“It’s mine. I made it. It’s Cinnamon Bite , one of my more popular flavors . I sent your dad a couple of bottles last year. Take another sip.”
She did. It was smooth and spicy with a kick that teased her tongue and throat. Not unlike that first taste of blood when she fed. Damn, she’d need to find a live source soon. She drank again, finishing the glass.
“This is good. Thanks. I tried Bite once, but it was not flavored. I liked it. You did good, Mason.”
He sat down on the floor next to her. His broad back against the cupboards. He held the bottle to his lips and took a long slow pull. She watched his throat work as he swallowed.
He was so good to look at. A small stream of whiskey dribbled out of the corner of his mouth and she wanted to lick it off so damn bad. She had to stop herself from leaning over and doing just that.
“Mason, look, I don’t know anything about any of this. I just assumed I’d have the house and some cash. I never thought he had a piece of your business and I certainly don’t want it-”
“What do you mean you don’t want it? Isn’t that why you’re here?” he looked at her through skeptical eyes and she hated the way it felt. He really thought the worst of her.
“No, it’s not. I just, I wanted to come home. I couldn’t while he was alive. He didn’t want me here. He didn’t want to know anything about Ollie. It was hard being away for so long, you don’t know what I’ve been through, but I never wanted to hurt you. We’ll be out of the house by tomorrow night, okay?”
CHAPTER 7
The roar in Mason’s head grew louder. Between that and the stink of the multiple cleaning detergents she’d been using throughout the house that day, he started to get a headache. A rarity for a Werewolf.
He closed his eyes and took another pull from the bottle of Cinnamon Bite. Did she have the AC on? It had to be a hundred degrees in there. Shit. He rubbed his eyes. Had he heard her correctly? Had Hector known where she’d been holed up the entire time? Had he known about Ollie? That the child was Mason’s son?
No. He couldn’t have. Could he? Doubt crept in as he replayed Hector’s cryptic answers to his questions over the years in his head.
“I can’t tell you where she is because she is not who I thought she was. It is better this way. My family is over, you can have another. It is better to live without the horrible lie between. Mason, son, you won’t have to know, not like I know, the pain of such dark secrets and a child that is a lie.”
He’d put it off as just side effects of all his meds back then, but it hadn’t been. What he couldn’t understand was why the old man had deceived him. An even better question, was how? How had he lied to a Werewolf? It took real skill to do that. Or maybe it’d been as simple as believing his own lies.
Mason rested his head against the cabinet door and realized it hadn’t been all that hard. Hector had told him he “couldn’t” tell Mason where his daughter was, not that he didn’t know her location. And Mason had never asked about a child because he hadn’t even thought of the possibility.
So much time wasted. His heart squeezed in his chest and he let out a raspy breath. He had a son! They had a son! His thoughts were interrupted as he finally heard what Abigail had just said. Something about leaving the house?
Grrr. His Wolf growled in his mind’s eye. He could not let her leave. Mine. Mason stood up quickly dropping the whiskey bottle in the process. The noise it made as it rolled across the floor was loud in the spacious kitchen. Abby looked at him from her position on the floor.
“Okay, look, I am willing to concede that you did not know about the twenty percent. However, I feel it necessary to tell you Lane Liquors Corporation is worth well over one hundred and fifty-million dollars at present. You’d be giving up a lot if you didn’t fight for this.”
“Wow! Seriously?” Abby’s mouth opened and closed several times like a fish out of water. She’d be able to keep Ollie safe, but it wasn’t her money. She had no rights to it or to him.
“Congrats, Mason, but it’s still yours . I have nothing to do with it.”
“Regardless of what I’ve built, I couldn’t have done it without the Vicente name, your name. ”
“So, what? What are you saying?”
“Just this, you are a Vicente, and Ollie is both. He’s half Vicente and half Lane. You grew up in this house, but now I won it. Whatever made you stay away, you’ve come back and now that I know about Ollie, I won’t give him up, Abigail.”
“He’s my son, Mason.”
“He’s our son.”
“It’s complicated.”
“Not really. I won this house, Anny, but it could be ours .”
“Wait, what? What are you saying?”
“We’re going to get married.”
“Excuse me?” Abigail could not have heard him correctly. Maybe there was more to that Bite they’d drunk than she’d thought.
“I said, you’re going to marry me and we’re going to make a home, right here in this house, for our son .”
“Mason, you’re talking crazy.”
“We’re getting married, Abby. Period.”
“Really! Mom? Dad? This is so awesome!” Ollie ran down the stairs with his hair still wet, his clothes on backwards, and a pair of mismatched socks on his feet.
He jumped into Mason’s arms and talked a mile a minute. Clearly, the boy was alr
eady on the bandwagon for the whole marriage thing. If only Abigail could be as sure.
“Um. Ollie, look there is no wedding-”
“Mom, we’re going to be a real family! This is awesome! When? When are we getting married?” His big brown eyes looked into his mothers with so much excitement Abigail could hardly breathe.
“There’s no time like the present, Ollie! Come on, we’re going for a ride,” Mason took the boy’s hand and headed for the living room with his cell phone out.
Twenty-minutes later, Mason had Ollie and Abigail in the backseat of a stretch limo where he’d gone on to spend most of the ride sending emails and talking on the phone. She could have sworn she’d heard him use words like landscaper, painter, playground, and private school brochures.
Ollie giggled and laughed as he played video games right in the back seat of the luxurious car. There were drinks, snacks, movies, and games, and the AC was on full blast. It was like a dream. Abigail hadn’t had that kind of treatment ever. It had been a long time since she’d been in such surroundings.
Her father had been well off, but he was strict with his daughter. Still, she’d always had the best clothes, schools, and never wanted for material things. Ollie had been raised without much, but she’d done her best by him.
The White Hand didn’t have the same obsession with stuff as the rest of the world did. Still, this was very nice. And she was as happy for her son’s present, as much as she was worried about his future. She couldn’t let Mason break her boy’s heart when he discovered they were not what they seemed.
He rattled her form her musings by handing her a legal document that he tore off a mini-fax machine. He told her to sign it in two places. For some bizarre reason, Abigail obeyed. Perhaps it was the hopeful expression on Ollie’s face or the look Mason gave her that said please go ahead, I am begging you to argue.
What could she do? How could she explain that this would never work? She sat on one side of the car wondering how she was going to get out of all this when Mason put away his work and sat next to Ollie.
The two of them took turns playing video games and tossing peanuts at each other. He pointed out various landmarks and things outside to the eager child who was falling more in love with his father every second.
Abigail had knots in her stomach. It had been weeks since she’d had a drink. She needed blood, but she had other problems right then. She shook her head ruefully while the boys ate the entire basketful of snacks and soft drinks. Finally, they cuddled together and put on the latest cartoon movie. One that she was certain hadn’t left theatres yet.
Abigail had never felt so completely left out of her son’s life. She crossed her arms and looked out the window. It was nighttime and she had no idea where they were going. He didn’t even let her pack anything to wear!
“Mason,” she whispered to him, but he ignored her.
“Mason!”
“Shhh,” he eased out from under Ollie’s sleeping head and covered the boy with a blanket before crossing the stretch limo’s aisle to her seat.
“What is it?”
“I can’t marry you.”
“Why?”
“I just can’t! Look, we don’t even know each other anymore. This can’t possibly work. I have to protect Ollie.”
“I would never hurt my son.”
“Okay, I’ll give you that, but I can’t go through with this when I don’t even know how I feel.”
“This stopped being about how you feel the second you gave birth to my son and lied to me.”
“That’s not fair. I didn’t lie.”
“You did, by omission.”
“I had no choice, Mason.”
“There is always a choice, Abby.”
She turned her head so as not to see the fierce emotion that seemed to burn in his eyes. She couldn’t blame him. She’d done something awful. Oh, if only he knew how sorry she was. His hand on her chin, startled her into looking at him again. This time, she could hardly believe what she saw in his face.
“As for it not being fair, Abigail, well, how about we try an experiment, so you can find out just what it is you feel,” his voice was low and deep. Before she knew what was happening, Mason took her in his arms and pressed his full lips to hers.
It was better than she remembered. Abby’s arms wrapped around his hard body instinctively. She opened her mouth for him and tangled her tongue with his. He tasted like the chocolate covered almonds and bosc pears he had just snacked on with Ollie. Oh no, Ollie!
“He’s sleeping,” Mason whispered against her mouth. It was like that when they were younger, and he’d read her mind before she’d known what it was she’d wanted.
She sighed. Mason swallowed the sound with his kiss. He was tender and passionate, yet, underneath it all she could detect a sort of desperation she dared not believe. Could it be he still cared for her? Was there hope for them?
Before she could voice her questions, he moved his clever lips to her cheek, then to her neck and throat. Abby moaned softly and turned her head, catching his mouth once again. She felt his smile as he leaned more heavily on her, letting her feel his weight, and his obvious arousal.
Her body hummed with sensations she had not felt in years. Was he just doing it to prove a point? To make her vulnerable? She couldn’t bear the thought that he was making fun of her. She touched his shoulder and he immediately lifted his head.
“Are you okay?”
Tears crowded Abigail’s eyes as she held his face in her hands. How she loved him! Still to this day.
“Mason, please, I can’t help how I respond to you.”
“Neither can I, Abs-”
“There are things you don’t know-”
“We both have secrets, we’ll share them in time, but right now, all I want to do is kiss you, Abigail.”
She closed her eyes as his lips claimed hers again. Her hands covered is as they roamed over her thin tank top, feeling, kneading, teasing the tight buds of her nipples. Abigail hissed out a breath. So good. She sucked in air, trying not to sob aloud as a wave of pleasure shot through her taut body. It had been ten years since she let a man touch her, kiss her, hold her. She wanted no one else. Only Mason.
“Me too, baby. There’s been no one, but you Abigail. Not in ten years.”
She didn’t even realize she’d spoken aloud. Then again, maybe she didn’t. Their emotional bond seemed as strong as ever. She trembled under him, loving the feel of his weight against her. He sat up and removed his jacket and tie and she missed the feel of him. It was shocking to discover just how much she’d missed him.
“Honestly? You haven’t had another woman in ten years?” She hated the sound of her jealousy in her voice, but she needed to know the truth. Mason was a good looking, rich, and virile man. How had he remained unattached all these years?
“There’s been no one, Abs, I swear it. I have never wanted anyone the way I want you.”
He dipped his head and touched her lips with aching tenderness that brought fresh tears to her eyes. He broke their kiss and wiped the moisture form her face with his long, tanned fingers. She took one hand in hers and looked at the difference between them.
He was all bronzed and beautiful and she was pale as a statue. So many secrets. But I love him. Always.
“I think, it’s fair to say we still have this between us,” Mason looked as tense as she felt, “Why don’t you think about that for the rest of the ride, Abigail. This can be a good thing, if we let it be.”
He went back to his seat opposite her and took out his laptop. How could he work after kissing her like that? Abigail’s body was aflame. She felt hot and uncomfortable. It was frustrated desire, she realized. And he was smirking! The jerk.
If he thought that he was just going to sit over there typing emails to his freaking receptionist while she pined away for him, he clearly didn’t remember that two could play that game. With a wicked gleam in her eyes Abigail sat forward and ran a hand through her inky black hair
, releasing it from its confines.
Mason always did have a thing for her hair. Truth be told, that was why she’d let it grow so long. Not the ideal for a warrior of The White Hand. She felt his eyes flick towards her as she fluffed her hair and pulled it over one shoulder. Next, she did some simple stretches on her seat. A few things she’d learned from her various martial arts training.
She knew exactly what he was looking at when the laptop slipped from his lap the first time. He cleared his throat and turned back to the screen, but not before readjusting himself.
Abigail smirked and slid on over to where Ollie was snoring away happily. She covered him with a light throw blanket and ran her hand through his hair. Maybe she should leave while there was still time . To protect Ollie. Who was she kidding? They were both in love with his father. She kissed his head and offered a silent prayer to whatever deity might be listening. Oh, please don’t let us down.
A half hour later, they arrived at their destination. The limo pulled into the valet service of a huge hotel in Atlantic City. The ocean town was the East coast’s much less ostentatious answer to Las Vegas. Having only been to Vegas once, on assignment from the clan, Abigail preferred the quieter Jersey gambling town. Even if it was kind of seedy.
CHAPTER 8
Mason lifted Oliver in his arms easily and walked directly to a private elevator. Abigail was left to follow. He didn’t speak or even look at her until they entered the penthouse suite.
“Open the door, please,” she did, and he walked inside the large room and took a right turn stopping at what she assumed was a bedroom door, “this one too.”
She complied again, and Mason walked in and deposited Ollie gently on the top of an enormous bed. The bedding had a freshly laundered smell and was a soft green color. He kissed his son’s head and tucked him in as if he’d been born to do just that.
Abigail kissed Oliver next then stepped back into the hall leaving Mason to follow. She walked to the living room area and tried to relax. It was a beautiful suite. Enormous and elegantly decorated.
From what she could see, it was a private two or three-bedroom suite. There were fresh-cut flowers on every table, a huge fruit basket, and a bottle of champagne on ice sat on the round, marble coffee table.