Chapter 39
And get frozen balls? No, thank you. I tried once. Never again
Mason and I stood side by side, staring at his living room for a full minute. “Mind sharing what we’re looking at?”
He pressed his fists to his hips in a resolute manner. “Our future camping spot.”
“Huh, we’re in December. Can’t it wait until next summer?”
“Nope. We’re doing it, Shepard. You and me, sleeping under the stars, roasting marshmallows on the bonfire, cuddling in sleeping bags, you know the drill.”
“Mase, how do you plan to sleep under the stars if we’re setting camp in your living room?”
“Technicality. It’s all pretend, love. Play along here.”
“I’m shutting up now. Please explain.”
“We’ll move the furniture against the wall over there and set up three tents. Two in the living room and one where the kitchen table is. We’ll also have inflatable mattresses for those not sleeping in tents.”
“Tell me, who gets a tent? How do we decide?”
“Couples, baby. You and me, Rutherford and Amber, Jules and Shawn. Bailey, Craig, Cassidy, and Donovan get the mattresses.”
“Wait, you invited all my friends?”
“Yeah.” Doubt filled his gaze. “Is that okay?”
“Okay? It’s more than okay, Mase. I’m happy you’ve included them. What’s my job?”
“I got a bunch of battery-operated candles we’ll set around the place.
Amber is in charge of the s’mores, sausages, and everything we’ll roast on the fire pit outside for a late-night snack.
Plus, she’s bringing a star projector. Some sort of nightlight she swears by.
My roommates are taking care of the music and the booze.
Jules and Shawn will get the pizza. Donovan and Cassie will buy everything we need for breakfast tomorrow, and you and I are baking cupcakes.
We need to grab fries. I already called George, and we’ll have an order ready to be picked up at six, and soda, juice, and other drinks so we can make cocktails. ”
“Wow, you thought of everything. This is so exciting. We could have done winter camping, you know? It’s been snowing all morning, and it’s beautiful outside.”
“And get frozen balls? No, thank you. I tried once with Chase. Never again. That time, we even built an igloo in his backyard. It was a disaster. I prefer you warm and cozy anyway.”
“So chivalrous.”
He shrugged. “I’m doing my best. Since it’s been snowing outside, it will feel like the real deal. We’ll just eat by the patio door and pretend we’re outside. Do you trust me?”
“Always.”
An hour later, we were standing next to each other in the kitchen, a mixing bowl on the countertop in front of us, and a chaos of flour, cocoa powder, milk, butter, eggs, and baking powder spread on every surface.
Mason’s black shirt was now sprinkled with white powder and chocolate batter, and I was pretty sure there were clumps in my hair.
“You’re telling me you can make chicken broth from scratch, but you can’t make cupcake batter without turning your kitchen into a war zone?” I blinked, scanning our surroundings. “This is a disaster.”
He smiled like a mischievous child. “Not my fault. The mixer got carried away. You’re lucky I was stronger, won against it, and put an end to it. Otherwise, the walls too would have been painted in chocolate batter right now.”
I pressed my palm to my forehead. “All the time Paige spent at your place, baking, and you never caught a trick or two?”
“Nope. I was too busy sampling the product.”
“Jesus, Mase. I’m not even sure we have enough left to fill a twelve-cup cupcake pan. What a waste. We’ll have to do another batch. I thought you volunteered to bake cupcakes because you knew how to make them.”
“Again, this is my first time.” He licked the side of my cheek, and I giggled, unable to resist him when he was being all playful and cute. “From the taste of it, we succeeded because they’re delicious.”
“They’re not even baked yet. You can’t be sure.”
“I’m a confident man, Shepard. I tasted the product, and I liked it. What else do you need?”
I rose to my tiptoes and licked the length of his neck, capturing every drop of the chocolate delicacy with my tongue. “You’re right. It tastes amazing.”
“See?” Gone was his playful tone. His voice had turned husky, sending shivers through me. “I knew I was right.”
Before I knew it, we were both panting, kissing and undressing in the middle of the kitchen.
“What are we doing?” I asked, breathless. “This is not how baking should be done.” My thoughts began to muddle, sensations taking over, my body now in control. “We’d fail the food handling, sanitation, and safety regulations tests.”
“I don’t care. This is how you and I bake cupcakes, love. This is way more fun.” He leaned forward, tasting my skin from my jaw to the curves of my breasts peeking from the outline of my black bra. “Any objection?”
“No. Never.” A shiver skated down the length of my spine. “Please don’t stop. Never stop.” My words sounded more like moans than actual sentences. “And I think we should settle this in the shower. Your roommates could walk in on us at any time.”
Mason plunged his hand into the mixing bowl, coating his fingers with batter before spreading it all over my chest, neck, and shoulders, a satisfied expression curving his lips, and lust shining in his eyes.
Before I could ask what he was doing, he added, “Making sure I don’t run out of ways of licking you until we reach the shower, Shepard. ”
Oh God, this boy. “And how do you plan on doing that?”
He grabbed my ass and lifted me up until my legs circled his waist. Tilting his head, he traced the column of my neck with his tongue. “Yummy.”
Deciding to play his own game, I coated my fingers in the batter too and covered his face and torso, before attacking him with my tongue.
“Fuck, I think we should bathe in that, instead. It’s way too filthy to be put into a pan. There will be no cupcakes tonight, baby. I’m keeping it all to ourselves.”
“What will we have for dessert, then?”
“After I’m done with you, you won’t need sugar.” He winked and ran upstairs, never releasing his grip on me.
I twirled and fisted my hand, placing it below Mason’s mouth as if it were a microphone, once we'd finished cleaning up the kitchen after our impromptu shower. Mason was wearing dark jeans, sitting low on his hips and showcasing his long, muscular legs and his sculpted butt, and a white long-sleeved cotton shirt with a surfboard logo stamped on the front. My damp hair was tied in a knot at the top of my head, but I could feel water droplets sliding down the back of my neck, soaking the neckline of my oversized pearl-gray sweater. I’d paired it with skinny black jeans, keeping my face bare except for a coat of mascara and some lip gloss.
“You gotta sing along, Mase. Come on. Remember what Paige used to say.”
“What?”
“We cannot ruin a good song.”
“Okay then. Remember, you asked for it.” He sang at the top of his lungs, not a care in the world he was off-key, and his rhythm was completely off.
We both burst into a fit of laughter.
Swaying his hips, he took my hand in his and twirled me around. “I’m happy, Shepard.” He held me at the waist, keeping me close as he ground against me before stepping back and twirling me again.
“I am too.” For once, I felt completely and utterly at peace. The dark clouds shadowing our lives had parted. “Thanks for never giving up on me.”
“Say it, Shepard. Be honest.”
I moved closer, rising to my tiptoes, kissing him. “You were right. All along, I should have listened to you. I’m also glad we waited, and we both are fully invested in this. Did you—”
A loud voice resonated from the front of the house.
“Do you think our friends are here already?”
He checked the time on the oven’s digital clock. “They’re not supposed to arrive for another twenty minutes or so. I gave them strict instructions.”
“Oh, you had planned to get me naked, then?”
“Yep. Always on the agenda, Shepard. What can I say? I just can’t get enough of you.”
“That’s so sweet.”
The voice kept screaming, louder and louder.
“It sounds like someone is upset,” Mason said. “Stay here. I’ll go check.”
“You think I’m not curious? I’m coming with you.”
We rushed to the front door.
“You fucker, I know you did this.” The voice boomed louder when Mason opened the door.
He turned to face me and frowned before I could see what the commotion was about. “It’s a guy from the team. I think he’s wasted. Don’t get involved.”
“If your whore and her stupid friends had minded their own business, Pierce, things wouldn’t be such a mess right now, and I wouldn’t have been humiliated in front of everyone. And my old man wouldn’t be disowning me.”
Mason stepped outside, and I followed him.
“Who are you calling a whore?” he asked.
“Your girl, man. She’s a fucking cunt. You two make such a great pair.” He snorted. “Yeah, a match made in heaven. You think you’re the football king with your oh, so virtuous no drink no junk food policies, and she’s just a stuck-up nosy bitch who can’t keep her stupid mouth shut.”
Mason jumped onto the pathway, skipping the steps leading to the front porch.
“Nichols, I am giving you two seconds to reword your accusation, and I’m only being nice because we play for the same team.
If you have something to tell me, now is the time.
Otherwise, get the hell away from my house.
No matter what, don’t disrespect Mel ever again.
I’m warning you for the first and last time. ”
“I’ll call her your whore as many times as I see fit. You should put a leash on her before she causes more trouble. Or maybe a muzzle. Yeah, that would do the trick. That’s what that bitch deserves. If I were you—”
Mason’s fist connected with the side of Evan Nichols’s jaw before he had time to finish his rant. It was a Nathan Bellevue déjà-vu all over again.
Blood oozed from the corner of Nichols’s mouth.
“I’ll get a washcloth and some ice,” I said, unable to tear my gaze away from the two guys, panting, fists clenched and ready to punch.