Thirty-Four and a Half Predicaments
Page 22
I sighed in relief when his arms encircled my back, pulling me close. “No, you were right. I should have told you.” His voice was husky in my ear.
“I handled it so badly. I’m so upset that I hurt you.”
He held me tighter. “Rose, it’s okay. Given the circumstances, I understand.”
I clung to him, thankful that he wasn’t the type of man to hold a grudge.
He pulled back and looked down into my face. “On my walk with Muffy, I decided I should be flattered you were jealous enough to get that upset over it.”
I sighed, feeling foolish about my overreaction. “I figured you knew her through the state police… I just couldn’t let my mind wander to you two bein’ together. So when you said you’d spent time with her socially, my imagination ran wild.” I gave him an apologetic smile. “I know you have a past with other women, but the thought of you with her—”
“And now you can banish the thought because it never happened.”
I wrapped my arms around his neck again, clinging to him. “I had a vision.”
“Of me?”
“As you walked out the door.”
“The way you’re holding on for dear life has me worried.”
“The vision wasn’t bad, but it was the way I felt afterward that had me worried.” I looked up at him. “You were talking to Carter Hale in the courthouse, asking him if he’d help you with something, and he seemed surprised you’d ask him.”
His mouth quirked to the side as he pondered it. “There’s an upcoming case that Hale wants me to be more lenient on with a plea bargain. Maybe that’s it. But I’m more worried about how you felt afterward.”
“I felt sick to my stomach and had a headache, but I’ve started feeling bad with some of my visions lately.”
Worry filled his eyes.
“I feel fine now. It’s probably nothing.”
He started to say something but stopped short when his phone rang. He drew it out and gave me an apologetic grimace before answering. “What do you have, Deputy Miller?”
That got my full attention. I hoped the deputy would have more information about the car that had nearly run me off the road.
“Okay.” Mason sounded disappointed. “Well, let me know if something turns up.” He hung up and looked into my face. “I called Miller while I was on my walk with Muffy to see if they’d found the car that passed you on the highway.”
“I take it they didn’t?”
“No.” Worry wrinkled his forehead.
“Mason, no one’s after me. I’m more worried about you.”
He sighed and wrapped his arms around me. “I’m fine. But I promise to be hyper-vigilant until all of this is sorted out. We have the alarm system I installed here and everyone going in and out of the courthouse goes through security. I think I’m pretty protected.” He leaned down and kissed me, making my toes curl. “But who’s going to protect me from you in our bed? Because right now I intend to take full advantage of the make-up sex clause.”
I gave him a half-hearted grin. “That’s the only good part of fighting.”
Later, as I snuggled against him in the dark, drifting off to sleep, I realized I’d never asked him about Dora.
Maybe it was better that way. I wasn’t sure I could handle another fight right now.
Chapter Seven
Soft gray sunlight filtered through the bedroom curtains when I woke up the next morning. I was surprised Mason was still sleep, but he had gotten up multiple times in the night, so he had to be exhausted. As I snuggled closer to him, the events of the previous day flooded my head, ending with the car that had run me off the road. In the cold light of a new day, I felt certain it hadn’t been an accident. Which meant Mason really was in danger.
Was this what life was like as the significant other of an ADA? Would our lives constantly be threatened? While the thought was sobering, it wasn’t exactly surprising.
The question was, did I want to live my life this way?
I stared at his sleeping face and lightly traced my thumb over the worry lines at the corner of his eye. Mason truly believed in justice. He believed in punishing the perpetrators of violent crimes to the full extent of the law to protect innocent people, but he also advocated for leniency and second chances for those who had made foolish choices. He was a just man who poured himself into his work, always keeping the safety of other citizens in mind. How could I fault him for that? Those very tendencies were part of what made me love him so much. Besides, it wasn’t like my own secret life didn’t come with its parcel of trouble.
My hand slid across his chest, his T-shirt rubbing against my fingertips, before I even thought about what I was doing. Touching Mason had become as natural as breathing.
And that right there was my answer. Not the sex—although I definitely had no complaints there—but the fact that he had become a part of me. I couldn’t bear to think about what my life would be like without him in my bed, in my world, as my confidant and partner. He was devoted and loyal, kind and patient, supportive and encouraging, like no other person had ever been to me. Some days he believed in me more than I did in myself, and I had grown in leaps and bounds since he’d wormed his way into my heart. I was with him until the end, whatever that might be, come what may.
While I’d been musing over him, my hand had found its way under the covers and I discovered that he was already stirred up. After only a few strokes, he released a low groan and rolled toward me, capturing my mouth as he began to fondle my body.
“I handled it so badly. I’m so upset that I hurt you.”
He held me tighter. “Rose, it’s okay. Given the circumstances, I understand.”
I clung to him, thankful that he wasn’t the type of man to hold a grudge.
He pulled back and looked down into my face. “On my walk with Muffy, I decided I should be flattered you were jealous enough to get that upset over it.”
I sighed, feeling foolish about my overreaction. “I figured you knew her through the state police… I just couldn’t let my mind wander to you two bein’ together. So when you said you’d spent time with her socially, my imagination ran wild.” I gave him an apologetic smile. “I know you have a past with other women, but the thought of you with her—”
“And now you can banish the thought because it never happened.”
I wrapped my arms around his neck again, clinging to him. “I had a vision.”
“Of me?”
“As you walked out the door.”
“The way you’re holding on for dear life has me worried.”
“The vision wasn’t bad, but it was the way I felt afterward that had me worried.” I looked up at him. “You were talking to Carter Hale in the courthouse, asking him if he’d help you with something, and he seemed surprised you’d ask him.”
His mouth quirked to the side as he pondered it. “There’s an upcoming case that Hale wants me to be more lenient on with a plea bargain. Maybe that’s it. But I’m more worried about how you felt afterward.”
“I felt sick to my stomach and had a headache, but I’ve started feeling bad with some of my visions lately.”
Worry filled his eyes.
“I feel fine now. It’s probably nothing.”
He started to say something but stopped short when his phone rang. He drew it out and gave me an apologetic grimace before answering. “What do you have, Deputy Miller?”
That got my full attention. I hoped the deputy would have more information about the car that had nearly run me off the road.
“Okay.” Mason sounded disappointed. “Well, let me know if something turns up.” He hung up and looked into my face. “I called Miller while I was on my walk with Muffy to see if they’d found the car that passed you on the highway.”
“I take it they didn’t?”
“No.” Worry wrinkled his forehead.
“Mason, no one’s after me. I’m more worried about you.”
He sighed and wrapped his arms around me. “I’m fine. But I promise to be hyper-vigilant until all of this is sorted out. We have the alarm system I installed here and everyone going in and out of the courthouse goes through security. I think I’m pretty protected.” He leaned down and kissed me, making my toes curl. “But who’s going to protect me from you in our bed? Because right now I intend to take full advantage of the make-up sex clause.”
I gave him a half-hearted grin. “That’s the only good part of fighting.”
Later, as I snuggled against him in the dark, drifting off to sleep, I realized I’d never asked him about Dora.
Maybe it was better that way. I wasn’t sure I could handle another fight right now.
Chapter Seven
Soft gray sunlight filtered through the bedroom curtains when I woke up the next morning. I was surprised Mason was still sleep, but he had gotten up multiple times in the night, so he had to be exhausted. As I snuggled closer to him, the events of the previous day flooded my head, ending with the car that had run me off the road. In the cold light of a new day, I felt certain it hadn’t been an accident. Which meant Mason really was in danger.
Was this what life was like as the significant other of an ADA? Would our lives constantly be threatened? While the thought was sobering, it wasn’t exactly surprising.
The question was, did I want to live my life this way?
I stared at his sleeping face and lightly traced my thumb over the worry lines at the corner of his eye. Mason truly believed in justice. He believed in punishing the perpetrators of violent crimes to the full extent of the law to protect innocent people, but he also advocated for leniency and second chances for those who had made foolish choices. He was a just man who poured himself into his work, always keeping the safety of other citizens in mind. How could I fault him for that? Those very tendencies were part of what made me love him so much. Besides, it wasn’t like my own secret life didn’t come with its parcel of trouble.
My hand slid across his chest, his T-shirt rubbing against my fingertips, before I even thought about what I was doing. Touching Mason had become as natural as breathing.
And that right there was my answer. Not the sex—although I definitely had no complaints there—but the fact that he had become a part of me. I couldn’t bear to think about what my life would be like without him in my bed, in my world, as my confidant and partner. He was devoted and loyal, kind and patient, supportive and encouraging, like no other person had ever been to me. Some days he believed in me more than I did in myself, and I had grown in leaps and bounds since he’d wormed his way into my heart. I was with him until the end, whatever that might be, come what may.
While I’d been musing over him, my hand had found its way under the covers and I discovered that he was already stirred up. After only a few strokes, he released a low groan and rolled toward me, capturing my mouth as he began to fondle my body.
