“It’s one of the best parts if you know what you’re doing.” He took my glass of champagne and set it down. With his eyes glued to mine, he started unbuttoning his shirt, one glorious button at a time. I watched carefully, nervous at what was to come next.
“Jay, I appreciate everything you’ve done for Mason and me…” I started.
He shushed me and pulled me to my feet.
“I don’t want to talk about Mason right now,” he said, his hand finding my neck. I closed my eyes at the feel of his lips against my neck. He was hard to resist.
“I don’t want to talk about him either. What I’m trying to say is…”
His mouth collided with mine. He backed me up and pushed me down on the bench, climbing on top of me.
I ran my hands down his chest. Jay carefully undressed me, taking his time.
“What were you trying to say?” he asked, his hands taking hold of my thighs. He pulled me closer, staring down at me.
“I don’t want to lead you on,” I said as he freed me from my dress. He let it fall to the floor.
“I think you’re incredible and I want you right now,” he insisted.
I smiled, undoing his belt. Who was I to say whether or not his feelings were genuine?
“Do you want me?” Jay asked, stepping out of his pants.
Staring at his flawless skin and perfectly toned and muscular body, I knew exactly what I wanted at that moment.
I nodded in agreement, enjoying this amazing guy, every part of him.
And he was right, sex with him was impressive.
But even the great sex couldn’t stop me from thinking about Mason.
JULY 19
TH
I CLICKED OFF THE WEBSITE I was on just as Mason came up behind me. He handed over an iced tea with a lemon wedge garnishing the glass.
I gave a small smile and took a sip. The coolness quenched my parched mouth.
We were still at Jay’s and I was trying to avoid him. He was constantly trying to persuade me to stay in Jersey with him.
It wasn’t going to happen.
“What’s so interesting?” Mason asked, eying the computer behind me.
I shrugged.
“Nothing—just celebrity gossip,” I lied. I wasn’t about to tell him that a google search had revealed that Aunt Wanda and Payton had been arrested on their way into Canada. I knew it would do to him what it had done to me—create a hole in the pit of my stomach.
I was sure Aunt Wanda and Payton would rat us out in a heartbeat if it kept them from going down. The fun and games for them was over and I could only imagine what the two of them were thinking right about now.
I appreciated my freedom.
Mason’s expression fell as he’d seen right through my lie. He walked over to the bed and sat.
“I didn’t want to say anything,” I said, taking a seat next to him. Mason groaned, getting up and taking off out the door. I hurried after him. “Mason, I didn’t want to upset you.”
Mason kept right on down the stairs not giving me a chance to explain.
Jay snagged my arm as I rounded the corner trying to catch up to Mason. “Upset who?”
I bit my lip, not wanting anyone but Mason. Now was not the time to play cutesy with Jay. We had a big problem on our hands.
“It’s nothing. I just need to talk to Mason.”
Jay nodded that he understood and kissed my forehead, letting me finish my mad dash out the door to Mason.
“I’m sick of watching him play cute and cuddly with you,” Mason said as I approached him on the patio.
“Me too,” I said in agreement. “That’s not what I came out here to talk to you about though. Mason, I don’t know how to even begin to say this to you.” I took a deep breath.
Mason gave me a confused look. He raised an eyebrow.
“They caught Wanda and Payton,” I said finally. I immediately grabbed him by the arm, waiting for some kind of reaction. “Mason are you okay?”
“What makes you think that I wouldn’t know this by now?” He raked a hand through his hair and shook his head. “I don’t even need to surf the internet to figure that one out.”
“So what do we do now?” I asked.
“Jay said he wanted you to stay here. He can help you. That’s a pretty sweet deal, Kendall,” Mason told me, avoiding my glare.
“No!” I burst into tears at the thought of letting Mason fend for himself.
Mason grabbed my shoulders and stared me down. “What the hell do you mean no?” He seemed angry with me for not wanting to accept Jay’s offer.
“I am not leaving you to figure this out on your own. What are you going to do?” I sobbed harder, sick to my stomach at the thought of Mason being alone.
“Kendall, I care about you. Please stop crying.” He wiped the tears from my face. “I’m an asshole most days, but I want you to get out of this mess. I want you to be happy.” He lifted my chin, forcing me to look at him.
“I care about you more than anything. And there’s nothing I wouldn’t do if it meant you didn’t have to go through this hell anymore. And we both know that’s how it’d be,” he said, kissing me on the cheek.
“I don’t want to lose you. You’re the only person I trust. And you’ve always been there for me,” I sobbed, hardly able to catch a breath as I begged him to not leave me.
“I want you to stay here with Jay. What’s not to like about him?” he asked, trying to be funny. I shook my head refusing to entertain his stupid idea. “Kendall, you like him. It’s obvious.”
“I don’t care.” I pushed Mason away from me. “I like a lot of things. We’ve went through so much together. And I will not let you go down alone.”
“Then you’re more stupid than I thought,” he said. Mason crossed his arms, agitated.
Jay stepped out the kitchen door. He looked at Mason, waiting for him to speak. I looked between the two of them, confused.
“She’s not going to do it,” Mason said finally.
Jay hurried toward me, but I quickly moved away. The realization hit me then—the two of them were in cahoots, trying to force my hand and manipulate me.
“Was this all one big conspiracy?” I looked at Jay. “You were sweeping me off my feet to help Mason with his problem?”
Jay opened his mouth to speak, but I interrupted him. It all made perfect sense now.
“Did you think I was that stupid?”
Jay shook his head. “I really like you, Kendall. This favor was just an added bonus.”
“I don’t like you and I don’t care if I ever see you again. You can take all your money and your help and shove it up your ass,” I said full of venom.
Mason groaned.
“I guess I’m all out of options. I wish you both the best,” Jay said, obviously hurt. “Anything I can help you with that’s on the up and up, let me know.”
He went inside, letting the door slam behind him.
I looked at Mason. He looked away.
I wished he understood that I didn’t want to leave him—he was all I knew.
I sat down on the steps next to Mason. His body was tense. He had his head down and he was twisting his hands in angst.
I bit my tongue, holding off on saying anything until I found the right words.
Mason looked over at me.
“Mason, I love you,” I blurted out. I brought my hands to my mouth, shocked at my own words.
“I love you too, Kendall.”
If you listened closely you could hear the ocean from the patio.
I took Mason’s hand in mine, our fingers interlocking.
“I love you,” I whispered, resting my head on his shoulder.
He let out a soft breath, pulling me close and kissing me on the cheek.