Chapter 12
TWELVE
Mase
“Faster! Come on, I’ve seen you come quicker than this.”
I don’t dare look at her. Sweat drips from my forehead and down every inch of my body. She hasn’t stopped, even when I told her I needed to, she pushed me to keep going. I wasn’t expecting her to be such a bitch, but I should have. It’s fucking Nina.
“My hour is nearly up.” I look up just as one of the other men walks by the rowers, a smirk plastered across his smug face. I plead with him with my eyes to take me with him.
She crosses her arms over her body. “Shh, save your energy, big boy. Last five minutes.”
I glare up at her, pulling the cord back harshly as I push my legs straight, then back in again. I can tell she is loving this. “If I can’t walk on this leg tomorrow, it’s on you.”
She rolls her eyes. “You could always find a new PT. I know some of the other guys wanted some sessions with me. If you’re not going to take this seriously, I’m sure they’d be more than ready for me.”
Her brows shoot high as if telling me to try her.
Bitch.
“If you think that will make me jealous,” I say through gritted teeth my left thigh on fire, “you’re wrong.”
“Oh, really. Why else are you doing this, if not to stake your claim?”
I pick up the pace as she goads me. “I’m not having the mother of my son dating a meathead.”
“Dating? They asked me to PT them, it’s not a damn marriage proposal, Mason.”
“I’m well aware of their intentions,” I snap.
“And your intentions? Should I be taking this as a date now?”
“No.” I focus on the numbers on the dial in front of me and nothing else. Definitely not her.
“Well then, I see no reason why I can’t PT them, too.”
“You won’t,” I scoff.
“You can’t dictate what I can or can’t do.”
“I can,” I fire back.
“You’re being an ass.”
I continue to row, still not looking up at her.
“You’re being an ass,” she repeats, and I finally shift my gaze.
God, she’s fucking hot when she’s mad. Her cheeks are slightly flushed, and her tits are all out of sorts in her sports bra, but damn does she look like a wet fucking dream.
She continues despite my lack of commitment to the conversation.
“For starters, I don’t even want to train them, so you’ve wasted your time and money going out of your way to make things awkward for us. ”
“I’m not feeling awkward.” My thigh twinges and I falter. Her eyes drop to my leg.
“That’s enough,” she snaps, stepping forward. I frown and keep rowing. “Mason, stop.”
“No.”
“Yes!”
“I’ll stop when I’m ready to stop.”
“Could you be any more stubborn?” she huffs, throwing her hands up and walking away from me.
I side-eye her ass as she snakes through the gym, but the minute she is out of sight I drop the handles and stand to escape to the showers. The crazy bitch has ruined me today.
Nina
I knew he’d be difficult to train, and not because of the way he works out but because of the way he looks when he works out. And the way his mouth moves. It’s not only distracting but frustrating, because Mason Lowell thinks he can have a say in what I do. But he lost that right a long time ago.
“Nina, you’re heading out?” Gemma asks. She is sat at the reception desk, her hair pulled back from her face and sat high on her head.
“Yep, Logan is closing tonight.”
“Oh, I must have got my days…” I wait for her to finish, but she doesn’t. Instead, she nods over my shoulder in warning.
“Hello.”
I flinch then spin, pushing hard on Mason’s shoulder. “Do you know how creepy you are?”
“I only said hello, jeez,” he says nonchalantly, completely carefree and so unlike him.
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Gemma.” I smile over at her then push through the glass double doors, pulling my rucksack on.
“I’m driving you home,” Mason tells me as he steps out behind me. “Do you need to get Ellis?”
“No, Maggie drops him to me, and I’m running back. It’s part of my routine now.”
“Fantastic, my car is over here.” He walks off towards the Bentley and I roll my eyes at his back. “Don’t be all dramatic about it. I’m not going to chase you, Nina. It’s late and I want to see my son.”
“Next time, I’m picking a less assholey baby daddy,” I mummer to myself as I reluctantly follow him towards the Bentley.
“I heard that,” he calls.
I get in the car and settle into the leather, breathing in his scent.
It’s like a Mason sensory overload in here.
It reminds me of his penthouse, his shower, his bedroom, even silly things like his watch, the smells are all memories of times I’ve been somewhere and inhaled him in every sense of the word.
Goose bumps pebble along my arms and I shiver.
“You cold?”
I nod, rolling my lips. Why is everything ten times harder when it’s just the two of us alone? We bounced off each other in the gym. I ripped into him and him me, so why can I barely look at him now?
Mason turns on the heating then pulls out into traffic. “I’d prefer it if you’d use Vinny, you know this.”
“Why are you still pushing the driving thing? You know I like to run.”
“I do.” He pops a brow to make his comment hit a little harder and I snap.
“Can you stop that?” I huff.
“What?” He frowns, gripping the steering wheel tight.
“Every chance you get, you pass comment on how I always run or how you’re not my home anymore.
” I mock his deep voice. “You take a dig at every chance and it’s wearing thin.
Maybe I was wrong, maybe I shouldn’t have left.
But calling each other out over our past every time we see each other isn’t going to fix a thing. You aren’t perfect either, Mason.”
“I’m sorry, did you just say you were wrong?” he admonishes.
I drop my head back to the seat. “That’s all you took from that, huh, that I’m in the wrong.”
“Nina, you do realise if you’d have stayed things would be very different now.”
“Would they though?” I close my eyes, blocking out the parts I can. “When were things ever good?”
“Are you serious?” he asks, and I can tell he is frowning.
When I don’t answer, he begins listing things.
“That first night at Melders” —I pop open my eyes— “I had a great time.” He licks his lips and I clench my thighs at the memory. “That night you danced for me. Paris. Bora Bora. I have a ton of good memories.”
I smile thoughtfully. “Paris was one of the best weekends of my life.”
“Where’s your bangle?” he asks out of the blue as if he’s desperate to know. He flicks his eyes from the road to me.
I eye my lap in an attempt to hide my face. “It’s at the apartment. I don’t wear it anymore.”
He nods his head but doesn’t speak.
“You can have it back—”
“No,” he cuts me off, shaking his head with a frown. “No.”
I watch him for a moment, my mind not quite sound. “I thought you were going to propose.”
He flicks his head towards me. “What?”
“In Paris, on the stage, I thought you were going to propose.” I smile, biting my lip as my cheeks flush.
“You did?” Deep lines mar his forehead as his lip twitches. It’s only slight but I don’t miss it.
“Yep. Then you gave me the bangle back and told me about your mum. It’s an incredible memory. I’ll hold on to it forever. That entire evening was like something out of a dream.”
“What would you have said? If I had proposed,” he asks, eyes back on the road.
I swallow my pride and give him my honesty. Because what the hell. “In the moment… I’d have said yes. Without doubt or thought.” My throat goes tight, and my eyes burn, but I can’t look away from his face.
“You would’ve said yes? In fucking Paris?” His lip tips up on one side, and I can’t help but smile with him. “You told me in Bora Bora that you didn’t want to get married.”
He looks over at me in question.
“I wasn’t lying. You sold my studio.” His face drops.
“I understand why. I’ve had time to deal with it now.
I mean, I forgive you, but I can’t ever forget it.
” I shrug. “I don’t dwell on it, and it was Paris, Mason.
I’d probably have flown to Vegas that night and got hitched if you’d asked me.
” I chuckle, trying to lighten the mood that’s fallen over us.
“You were pregnant in Paris,” he says solemnly, dragging me right back down with him.
I nod, thinking back and wondering how I never noticed. I feel like we missed so many firsts with Ellis. There was no twelve-week scan, no tests, no plans. I stare at the windscreen. “I don’t know how I missed it.”
He nods. “You know, we may be terrible together—apart from when we’re out of the country maybe.” I chuckle at that. “But we sure make fucking cute kids.”
“He’s adorable, right? I feel like I’m biased when I gush about him to people.” I grin.
“Nope, you’re right, he’s going to bring so many angry mothers to our door when he grows up.”
Our door. My heart pounds, begging for the reality of his words.
We pull up outside my apartment building and he parks at the curb, then follows me inside. “Maggie won’t be here yet; she normally gives me a chance to shower after getting back.”
“That’s okay. Do you want me to wait out here?” He thumbs to the small foyer on my floor.
“No, no, come in. I have something for you actually.”
“Yeah?” he asks, sounding surprised.
“You don’t have to have it, but I thought you might like it.” I push open the door and let him in. “I won’t be a sec, wait out here.”
Leaving him in the living area, I go to my room and drop to my knees beside my bed, pulling out the box from under it.
I never thought I’d give these to Mason, but I only really took them for his benefit.
I suppose I always hoped that one day I’d be in a position to share them with him.
I don’t know why I’m giving them to him now, but for some reason I feel like he should have them.
I open the lid and riffle through the things inside, silly things I shouldn’t have kept but couldn’t get rid of either. The bangle being one of those things.
With the folder I was looking for grasped tight in my hand, I walk back out to the lounge. The minute I set eyes on him again, I doubt the entire idea of showing him.