Chapter 9
Mason spent the ten days between the wedding and New Year’s Eve working, going to the gym twice—which had left him in worse shape than the hangover from the wedding—and packing up Bud’s things.
He could’ve asked some of his friends to help.
At least one of them would’ve come round, except for Jordan, who was on his honeymoon and enjoying some well-deserved time off and happiness.
Sean, too. Fuck, they’d all been through some shit over the last five years, and the whole time, he thought he was a stable one who was doing great. What a fucking lie.
And it was a lie, he told himself.
So the few tears he’d shed while boxing up clothes and video games and other paraphernalia that Bud had requested, and Mason didn’t care about enough to argue, had been about his own stupidity—which was much easier to see in hindsight.
If he hadn’t been so desperate to avoid being single, he would never have stayed so long.
He’d already taken Bud’s name off the lease.
And while he could afford the place on his own, it seemed rather big.
Once the sofa, the TV, and entertainment unit were gone, it would be even emptier until he bought a new sofa and TV.
He was not going to buy another leather cinema-style sofa with cup holders, though.
That had been Bud’s dream sofa, not his.
That kind of thing wasn’t built for snuggling up, which is what he wanted—for when he had someone to snuggle up with.
The idea of replacing what he was losing wasn’t all that bad.
And he had a few months to decide if he wanted to stay there or if he wanted to move somewhere else.
He was glad that Bud had insisted they keep renting until they married and decided where they were going to live.
That was another sticking point because Mason wanted to remain in San Francisco.
So now he had freedom and some decisions to make. Sean had bought a house on his own, though it had been while the prices had been depressed because of the collapse, but he should be able to do it. His practice was doing well, and he had some savings.
If he added to it over the next few months, it could be a deposit.
He taped up the box that was full of clothes—he’d saved the bedroom for last—and took it downstairs to the entrance. He wanted to make that visit as quick as possible. He didn’t want to look at Bud and think he’d made a mistake by ending it.
Whenever he thought that, he remembered Vlash and the way the elf looked at him.
And more importantly, the way he felt with him.
He hadn’t felt middle-aged and boring and soft, which is what Bud warned him he was becoming.
He’d also gone to the gym twice to jumpstart his New Year’s resolution, which made him feel a little better about himself.
He was looking after his health, not only his looks.
That his father had died of a heart attack at forty-five lurked at the back of his mind.
He put his hands on his hips and stared at the boxes. It really wasn’t much to show for five years together, less if he took out the time Bud had been deployed. Even less if he took out the time they hadn’t lived together.
The photos that he’d put up when they’d moved in, he’d already pulled down.
There was nothing left that indicated Bud had ever lived there.
Mason drew in a breath, held it for a moment, and then exhaled.
The ache was still there, but it wasn’t going to kill him.
And if he never had to have another conversation about whether mythos were people or not, it would be too soon.
He smiled and got ready to go out. Just because he was single didn’t mean he was spending New Year’s Eve on his own.
He’d agreed to meet Sean, Troy, Pete, and Everett in the enclave.
They had discussed a few different venue options, but had decided that was the safest for Troy and indirectly all of them, plus none of them had a problem hanging out in mytho areas.
To be fair, they were sometimes a lot safer than human areas, particularly when holding hands with another man.
He’d never been to the enclave, and while it was full of vampires, he wasn’t too worried. There was a small part of him that was hoping to run into Vlash. Was that the kind of place he hung out?
And if he did see him?
Would they play it cool and pretend they didn’t know each other the way they had the morning after?
That was the smart thing to do.
But it wasn’t what he wanted to do.
Because now it was ten days later, the idea of a repeat didn’t feel as if it might kill him.
Not that he needed a friend-with-benefits…
for a start, they weren’t friends. Though a hookup buddy for a few months before he decided to date did seem appealing.
Perhaps no-strings sex was exactly what he needed.
It had never been his thing in the past. He usually liked getting to know the person and spending time with them, and sex was just a bonus, not the whole point. With Bud, everything was always compressed. They had limited time. It had always been a rollercoaster.
He’d be quite happy with boring and casual, and something which wasn’t going to shatter his heart.
He dressed as if he planned on picking up.
Maybe he would. Maybe there’d be a vampire who took his fancy.
Now they had their looks back, it wouldn’t be like sleeping with a horror movie creature, which, while true, was also an anti-mytho thing to even think.
It was easy enough to find his friends in the enclave. They’d given him the name of the bar, and they’d grabbed a table. He greeted them with a hug each and ordered a beer before claiming his seat.
Sean was telling everyone about the ruin he and Troy were rebuilding. A year ago, this was not where he’d imagined they’d all be.
Jordan was married.
Sean was building a house with an ogre.
Pete had a full beard and was leaning into becoming a bear as he got older.
Everett was in another, not quite a relationship with an older guy. He was the only one doing what Mason expected.
And he was single.
For a few heartbeats, he glanced around the table, wondering where they’d be next year. And then in another ten years. He’d be almost forty-five.
While he wasn’t sure where he wanted to be, at least he knew what he didn’t want, which was something.
“How’s the packing going?” Pete asked.
“It’s done. I finished today.” New Year, new start, and he didn’t want to be dealing with Bud’s shit anymore.
“Well done.” Sean lifted his beer bottle, and Mason tapped it with his.
He finished it and went to get another. As he did, he checked out the other patrons.
It wasn’t a gay bar, but mythos didn’t care about things like that.
He’d done a little bit of reading since the wedding.
Couldn’t help himself. Especially when it came to the pages about elves.
Mytho Servo had quite an extensive website.
Though there’d been no mention of head archers.
He paid for the beer, and as he did, his phone buzzed. He steeled himself to check the message, expecting it to be from Bud confirming when he was going to show up and collect his things. It would be their first face-to-face talk since the break-up.
But he didn’t know the number.
If you’re not busy tonight, I have some mead we can cry over.
Mason’s heartbeat doubled as he read the message. There was no name, but he didn’t need one. He ran his tongue over his lip as he thought about what to say.
His dick was already hard.
He glanced over at the table where his friends sat, then back at the message.
How the fuck had Vlash got his number? This was not his work phone.
And why was Vlash messaging? Aside from the implied sex.
He wasn’t strong enough to say no.
My liver can’t handle more mead. The thought of it turned his stomach. But I can bring some beer.
He hesitated before hitting send. His friends wouldn’t care, but they’d want to know who he was going to see. New Year, new man?
Troy walked past and put his hand on his shoulder. “You look confused.”
“Contemplating what to do.”
Troy glanced at the text message that Mason hadn’t sent. “It looks as though you want to go. So why don’t you?”
Why didn’t he, indeed?
For the first time in five years, he could do what he wanted. He was single. He didn’t need to answer to anyone.
When he turned, Troy had already moved on to the bar to order another drink.
Mason took a swig of beer and made his way back to the table. “I’m going to bail.”
“Ooh, someone has a better offer,” Sean teased.
“What makes you say that?” Mason asked.
“The glint in your eyes. I haven’t seen it for a while, but you’re on the hunt.”
He hadn’t needed to hunt in a while. Not that he was the one doing the hunting. Vlash had put out the lure, and he’d bitten.
He hit send.