4. Chapter 3
~ Mason ~
She asked for help, I should have said no. But you know, all that hindsight crap. It might have been better for me anyway.
Oh well.
I said yes, I’d help.
And here I was, begging any friend I had to come check out the diner so she could have a possible staff.
I didn’t know this woman, but sure I was willing to help out.
Who was I, and what happened to Mason?
“Thank you.”
I looked up from the piece of wood I was carrying in and lifted a brow at her in question. Over the last few days, I had done quite a number of things, so I wasn’t exactly sure what she was saying thank you for now.
“For?”
“Doing all of this to help me. You didn’t have to. Especially as I’m a stranger.”
I sat the wood down and then crossed my arms to look at her, because she wasn’t wrong, she was a stranger.
But over the last few days, I’ve gotten to know her. Even more, beyond the work given that she’s been staying with me. That was totally by accident, and I was just trying to be nice. Again, this wasn’t my normal, but I didn’t have the heart to be a jerk to her either.
Her place wasn’t ready for her to move into, so she needed a place to rest her head. I offered up my room while I took the couch. She fought me on it but finally agreed.
Did I mention I was pretty stubborn if I didn’t get my own way?
Which is why I often did.
But the flip side to that is that I was stuck with a gorgeous woman in my house. And that gorgeous woman was doing all kinds of things to me that I hadn’t felt in a long while.
In fact, if I was being honest, another thing I didn’t want to do but it seemed I was going to be doing was that even all the ladies I had been with didn’t make me feel what I was feeling now. Personally, that was dangerous to my sanity.
“Well, roomie,” I teased her, making her smile, “I don’t think you're a stranger much these days, right? I mean, you did see me almost naked.”
Her blush at the memory was the dang cutest thing ever and I found it was probably one of my favorite past times with her. Though I'm sure there were plenty of other past times I’d love.
“You are not going to let me live that down, are you?” I shook my head at her question. “Anyway,” she said, giving me a pointed look, “I wanted to thank you for all your help with the diner. I have a full staff, customers, and you’ve been gracious with your time in helping me fix it up.”
“I like to think that plenty of people would help you out. Especially up here. We believe in helping hands.”
“You would think that, but trust me, I know plenty of people and plenty of towns that aren’t like that.”
Once more, that look crossed her face; the look that told me there was something in her past she wasn’t going to share, something big that happened.
I didn’t blame her. I hadn't shared a lot of my own past, other than the picture on the wall was of my late wife.
But I hadn't gone into all the details, and she didn’t push for more either.
“I guess that’s true. There are all kinds of dicks around the world, and that’s not any different for any small towns or mountain towns.”
She laughed at that and I smiled as well, enjoying her laugh just as much as her personality.
It was kind of sad because after my wife passed, I never thought I'd want to make a woman smile outside of sex, but that was not the case with this woman.
And she was all woman; there was no two ways around that.
Sadly, I wasn't the only one who noticed. My dick did too. But so did a few other single men around these parts
And if I was going for all our honesty today, I didn't like that one bit, but I wasn't quite sure I was up for changing the dynamics yet.
~ Patty ~
I wasn't sure what I expected when I moved up here besides having to run ragged getting the diner set up and making my new place mine.
But Mason Jones was the last thing I thought would happen. And after my past, he was actually pretty refreshing.
But I couldn't think of him like that. I didn't have the story, but it was evident that he still loved his late wife and I would not come between a man and his ghost. There were just some things that I wouldn't do.
Not that there was anything happening between us.
But after seeing him come out of the shower with nothing but a hand towel covering his very well endowed dick, I couldn't lie and see I hadn't fantasized.
Or that maybe I hadn't gotten myself off once or twice, in his bed, at the very memory of that.
Maybe one day we will talk, but currently, I'm fine just being friends and getting his amazing help because I have no idea where I'd be if he didn't help.
And not just him, but all his friends. Though I could do without being asked out time and time again. As if I had the time for that right now. Or really the drive. At least not with them.
No, my damn desire seems to be with a man that I swear doesn't see me that way but that I feel like I could fall for. And that's really dangerous. In fact, that's downright scary because I'm pretty sure that won't happen. But hell if I can seem to push the thoughts aside.
“You okay?”
I snapped my head up as the very man I was thinking about appeared at my side, hammer on one hand. I frowned as I looked at it then at him.
“Yeah, just lost in my life thoughts. What are you doing with the hammer?”
“There are some loose beams over by the grill, so I thought I get to work on them. You seemed kind of bummed if the look on your face is any indication.”
“Oh,” I said, not sure what to say to that because honestly, I sure didn't want to get into it. “It's really nothing.”
“Yeah, that face says it wasn't anything but I'm not going to push it. Anyway, if you need anything, let me know.”
I watched him head to the back of the back of the dinner, my eyes trailing over his back and his ass, admiring that just as much as every other part of him and I sighed.
This was stupid in so many ways, and no matter what, I just didn’t know how to stop it.
With a mental shake to clear my head, I turned back to my own problems that I needed to get fixed before I could talk about opening.
Three hours later, I rubbed my eyes as I looked at my computer, trying to finalize some of my menu.
I was grateful that my two chefs had years in the service and knew how to make everything I was asking for, but with the rising costs of food and labor, I needed to make sure I could cover it while still turning a profit while keeping things cheap enough to not price too high.
Of course, that was proving harder than what I wanted given the location. Because food deliveries were not cheap.
“You okay?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose before looking up at the man standing in my doorway.
“Not unless you can tell me how to get food delivered here for cheaper in your bag of tricks.”
He laughed at that.
“I don’t have a friend that can help you there, exactly. But I do know someone who can help you.”
“Of course you do,” I told him, shaking my head, not all surprised about that. I crossed my arms and rested them on my desk. “Well?”
“You got some tight clothes to go dancing in?”
“What?”
“We’re going to the bar. They’re open now, and you need a rest. So, let’s go.”
I narrowed my eyes at Mason for a moment, wondering what he had planned that I didn't know.