The Price of Mason (Forbidden Men 10)

But I wasn’t falling for it this time. If she was going to attack Reese, I was going to be with Reese to help her deal with any problems that might arise.

I bounded up the outside steps that led to her door and knocked before I even thought a plan through. A few seconds later, a hesitant voice called through the closed partition.

“Who is it?”

Oh, right. She totally wasn’t expecting me to just show up at her place on a Saturday night. Feeling chagrined, I answered, “It’s Mason.”

I don’t think she actually believed me. A second later, a crack of light appeared in the window blinds, and I saw two familiar blue eyes peer out.

When I waved, the blinds snapped shut, and I heard about three different locking mechanisms grind open.

The door swung in, revealing a backlit silhouette of my Reese, and then her voice followed. “Mason?”

And holy shit, that’s all it took. After trying to keep my distance for so long, seeing her now was like releasing a pressure cooker too fast. All these emotions poured out of me, and I just needed…her. For my own peace of mind.

God, this girl was important to me. How the hell had she managed to get so important to me?

“Can we talk?” I asked, not planning to say that. “I just… I need to talk…to someone.”

Not just someone; I only needed to talk to her. I didn’t even care what we talked about. I just needed to be here, with her, listening to her voice and her laugh and soaking in all the brightness that she shed just by being her.

“Um…” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, only to find a piece of popcorn stuck in the tresses. When she batted it free, I could only smile, because it was such a Reese thing for her to do. “Okay,” she said as if she wasn’t sure if it was really okay or not, even as she stepped back and opened the door wider. “Come on in.”

She might’ve been physically letting me in, but I could tell in her voice she hadn’t wanted to say yes. Feeling like an idiot for only thinking of myself and what I wanted, I stepped back. Lifting a hand, I said, “If this is a bad time, I can leave.”

She rolled her eyes. “Mason, seriously. Get inside now.”

Okay, this time she didn’t sound quite so reluctant. She grabbed my arm and tugged me into the apartment.

And inside I went.

“Rise and shine, sleeping beauty.”

The greeting woke me completely. For a moment, I couldn’t remember falling asleep, what time or day it was, or even where I was. I could tell I was lying sprawled out on my stomach on a bed, my cheek mashed into a pillow that smelled surprising familiar, but it definitely wasn’t my pillow. Light flooded my closed eyelids, telling me it was daytime, or at least well into the morning.

“What the hell?” I croaked, lifting my face to gaze around the minuscule bedroom I was in. I looked in the direction the voice had come from, only to find Reese standing there, holding two to-go cups of her favorite breakfast drink.

“Reese?” I said, growing more confused than ever.

What in God’s name was going on?

“Morning,” she greeted perkily, taking a sip from one of the cups. “So, I went out and bought us some breakfast. There are doughnuts in the front room.” Then she rolled her eyes. “I know, I know. ‘Reese, you’re so amazing and wonderful. Thanks for thinking of me. You shouldn’t have.’ But, really, it’s no problem. Anything for my buddy. So… De nada.”

I blinked, digesting what she said, though it told me nothing of where I was or how I’d gotten here. Glancing around, however, it didn’t take me long to realize I was in her room, in her bed, and that familiar smell surrounding me… That was her scent. The morning light from the window made me wince, my head pounding from… What the hell? Did I have a hangover?

I hadn’t actually drunk alcohol last night, had I? That made no sense. I rarely drank.

But my mouth was dry and nasty enough to think maybe I had. It would certainly explain the memory loss.

“This is your room,” I finally mumbled, my mind moving slowly as if it were trying to work through spun sugar.

“Yep,” she answered.

I nodded and glanced her way. “What am I doing in your bed?”

“You said the couch was too short.”

I frowned, not remembering that at all. I didn’t remember…