Chapter 15 Thomas
Thomas
This was going to be a shitshow.
“It’s time. I need to find Axel.”
I opened the file my colleague in Ireland had sent me. “Okay. I have his address and his phone number. Which one do you want?”
Mason ran his fingers through his hair as he paced back and forth. He was weighing the potential outcomes, looking for the least path of resistance. That’s how he was. He limited the conflict in his life to the field, and this was going to take some courage.
“I need to call him. It’s faster. Let’s do it before I lose my nerve.”
Taking out my phone, it occurred to me he might not have an international plan. “Do you want to use my phone, or your own?”
He stopped pacing and looked at me, wide-eyed, waiting for an answer. I could see the panic building in his eyes. “What do you think I should do?”
I had the urge to wrap him up in my arms and settle him down.
At this rate, he’d have ulcers by the time he was thirty.
But holding him wouldn’t be professional, and as much as I wanted to draw a line between my growing feelings about this situation, it was becoming increasingly difficult.
“Using mine gives you anonymity. Yours gives him your contact information.”
His breathing began to even out as he made his decision. “Mine. I don’t want him to have any reason to doubt me.”
I smiled. “Okay. What are you going to say? Maybe we should practice. You tend to blurt it all out when under pressure. But I have to say you left your friends speechless at the wedding, and that’s not a bad thing. They all look at you differently now.”
He stopped and gaped at me, then smiled. “Oh yeah? I guess I did go all alpha pup after you went alpha dog that night. Laying down the law and giving them the eye. It was hot.”
When his cheeks pinked, I rolled my lips in as he registered what he said. Scrubbing his hands over his face, he muttered, “Why do I keep doing that?”
I wanted to laugh, but I loved that he was so open with me. “Doing what?”
Mason dropped his hands and looked at the ceiling. “Blurting out all my thoughts to you. It’s like you’re a human truth serum and make me say things I shouldn’t.”
All I could do was smile because I loved that about him. He didn’t hide anything or sugarcoat excuses. “It’s okay, Mason. I like knowing what you’re thinking.”
He sighed, then lowered his gaze to meet mine. The heat in his eyes as he looked at me was enough to stoke my libido. “Even if it means I’m thinking about you in some kind of unfriendly way? I don’t make you uncomfortable at all?”
Keeping my eyes on his, I shook my head.
“Not uncomfortable ever.” We were so off topic, but it was something we needed to discuss.
“I feel the same way about you, too. I’m protective of you and our connection.
I’ve never had a friend like this, and it’s new for me too.
So stop worrying you’re going to say something to offend me, or make me uncomfortable.
It’s not possible.” I picked up his hand and placed it over my heart.
“You’ve worked your way in here. I should charge you rent. ”
His face lit up. “Really?”
“Really. You should know me well enough to know if I were uncomfortable, I’d tell you. It’s kind of flattering to my ego to know you think I’m hot.”
Mason bit his bottom lip in an attempt to squash his smile. “I didn’t say you were hot, I said your alpha side was.”
I smirked. “Same thing. Now, tell me what you’re going to say. Pretend I’m Axel.”
He exhaled and nodded. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.
” He stood and paced again as he steepled his fingers to his lips.
The T-shirt he was wearing hugged his chest and biceps like it was custom-made for him.
Mason’s physique wasn’t like a typical center.
He was built more like Evan, making me wonder if he’d ever played a different position.
Once again, I found myself thinking about him in a more than friendly way.
And it made me wonder about Hudson, and how he never doubted his attraction to Evan.
He just went with it, and look how that turned out.
Rattling off what he wanted to say, he waited for my approval. “What do you think?”
I allowed myself a moment to look at him in a different light. “I think that’s good. Ready to do it now while you have it on your mind?”
He nodded and took a seat beside me. “Yeah. But what if I wake him?”
I raised a brow. “It’s almost nine. It will be okay.”
Looking around for his phone, he popped up and found it quickly before handing it to me. “Put it in.”
His eyes closed, then he covered his face. I pretended not to pick up on the sexual innuendo. Pulling up the file with Axel’s information, I typed it in, then placed it on the table in front of him. “Okay. You’re all set.”
Mason looked at his phone, then picked it up. His hands were shaking as he looked back up with fear in his eyes. I offered him some privacy. “I can step out of the room if you’d...”
“No way,” he answered before I finished my sentence. He took another deep breath and reached for my hand. “I need my best friend with me, if you don’t mind staying. I may need a second set of ears if I don’t remember a thing.”
I squeezed his hand and fought off the urge to kiss his cheek. I was proud of him for sharing his feelings. “I’ve got your back. No matter what.”
Mason’s eyes trailed down to my mouth before his eyes found mine again. When he was ready, he released my hand and stared at the number. With a shaky hand, he pressed the call button. As soon as the clock started, he pressed the speakerphone.
I was nervous for him. But as one ring stopped and another started, my fear that he wouldn’t answer set in. Right before it went to voicemail, the call connected, and a man with a British accent answered. But he didn’t say hello. He shocked us both.
“Took you long enough, little brother.”