Chapter 26
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Mason stepped into his boxers, a strange feeling welling up in his chest. He swore every day with Vivi was better than the last. He had never felt more comfortable with a woman. The more time he spent with her, the more he wanted to be with her.
From the outer recesses of the house, he thought he heard a strange sound. His ears perked up, and he was instantly on alert. Low voices came from the direction of the living room, and his heart rate kicked up as he followed them.
Vivi was partially obscured by the front door, and he swore he heard her hiss the word no. His blood began to boil in his veins as he strode forward. So help him, if that idiot Tyler was back and giving Vivi trouble, he was going to knock his teeth in.
Vivi stiffened as he curled one arm around her waist and planted himself behind her. “You good, babe?”
Over the top of her head, his gaze landed on Knox’s face. He watched a dozen emotions flicker in Knox’s dark eyes, the initial shock quickly morphing into fury as his face darkened.
Knox lunged forward, and Mason spun Vivi out of the way, already bracing himself for the hit. “You son of a—!”
Mason managed to get one hand up, but Knox’s knuckles landed hard in his ribs, knocking him back.
“Stop!” Vivi pulled at Knox, who only shook her off. She reached for Mason next, her voice frantic and pleading, tinged with anger. “Knock it off!”
He didn’t dare look away from Knox, watching every move as he swung at him again. Mason ducked and weaved, grabbing Vivi with one hand and shoving her away again. It left his side wide open, and he grimaced as Knox’s fist landed in his ribs again.
He threw up both hands but was a fraction of a second late, and Knox landed a hard jab to his chin that snapped his teeth together. He cocked his arm back to return the favor. Just as he did, he felt a whisper of movement behind him as Vivi rushed forward again, reaching for him.
He couldn’t slow his momentum, and his elbow connected with what felt like her face. He snapped toward her, watching in horror as she collapsed backward, her head smacking against the hard floor.
“Viv!” He dropped to a knee next to her, reaching for her as Knox moved to her other side. Already, a bright red hue emanated from her right cheek, and her upper lip appeared puffy and swollen. His stomach twisted into a tight knot at the sight. “Virginia—”
She smacked their hands away as she gingerly sat up and scooted away from them. He reached for her again, but she shrugged out of his grasp and pulled herself unsteadily to her feet. “Get out of my house. Both of you.”
The abrasion on her face was becoming more prominent, looking worse by the second. “Babe—”
“Now!” He swore he saw tears sparkling in her eyes, but he couldn’t tell if she was hurt or furious.
“Okay.” He held his hands up in a placating gesture as he stood, feeling sick to his stomach. “I just want to make sure you’re okay.”
“Then you probably shouldn’t have punched me in the face.”
“I…” His heart clenched, and his hands fell to his sides as she glared at him. He felt helpless, full of remorse and guilt for hurting her, for allowing any of this to happen in the first place.
“You two are acting like idiots.”
Across from him, Knox spoke quietly. “Vivi—”
“Shut up, Knox.” Her lethal glare cut toward her brother. “Right now, I need you to leave. I’ll talk to you later.”
Throwing one last dark look Mason’s way, Knox stepped outside. Mason looked at Vivi, but she just crossed her arms over her chest. “Viv—”
“Get out.”
With a low growl of frustration, he followed Knox outside. The door slammed behind him, and he leaned against it as he called out to her. “Virginia.”
“Go away!”
“Babe, I need my clothes.”
The sound of feet stomping on the floor moved away from the living room, and he sighed as he turned to face Knox, whose dark eyes glittered with malice.
“My sister?” Knox shoved him, and Mason fell back a step, expressionless. He wasn’t going to fight him. If he were in Knox’s position, he’d do the same thing. All he ever wanted was for Vivi to be safe, and he knew Knox felt the same way.
“I trusted you, and you—”
The door opened, and Mason’s jeans came flying at him, followed by one boot, then the other. They hit the sidewalk at his feet, then bounced into the yard. The door slammed again, and he let out a ragged sigh.
Knox scowled at him. “Seriously? You don’t have anything to say for yourself?”
Mason pulled on his pants, then stepped into his boots and shrugged his shirt over his head.
Grabbing his shoulder, Knox spun him around to face him. “Say something!”
“I’m sorry.” Mason met his gaze, still dark with barely restrained fury. “I should have told you.”
“You never should have touched her in the first place,” Knox spat, looking ready to swing at him again.
Mason rocked back on his heels, unable to come up with a good defense. What was he going to tell him? He’d been in the wrong, but he wouldn’t take it back. Whatever he and Vivi had going—hopefully it hadn’t been ruined—was worth Knox’s anger.
“This is…” Knox trailed off, looking ready to tear something apart. “I can’t even wrap my head around it. You’ve been sneaking around for God knows how long and you couldn’t man up enough to tell me?”
He was right, but no amount of apologizing or defending himself would change it now.
Knox glared at him. “So this is the way it’s going to be?”
Mason stayed quiet, and Knox’s gaze took on a calculating gleam that sent his insides tumbling. “Me or her?”
Was he seriously going to make him choose between them? One of his best friends or the woman he... cared for? “Don't do this.”
Knox’s gaze hardened. “Shouldn't be a difficult choice.”
“Knox—”
“Me or her?”
Mason blew out a breath. “Her.”
It would always be her. The single word fell between them like a steel curtain, seeming to freeze time and everything around them.
Knox stared at him for nearly a minute, his expression still furious and conflicted. Finally he spoke. “Good answer.”
Mason watched as Knox spun on a heel and strode toward the driveway. What just happened? “What does that mean?”
Knox didn't turn around, just waved one hand over his head before hopping in the SUV and cranking the engine. Mason stood rooted to the ground long after Knox disappeared down the street. He still didn’t know where they stood, but he guessed it could have been worse.
He threw one last look at Vivi's house, then hopped on his bike. He would give her a little while to cool down, but he and Vivi were far from over. She was upset now, and he would give her the time and space she’d asked for…
Then he was coming for her. Because there was no way he was ever letting her go.
He headed back toward town, disappointment curling in his stomach along with a mixture of guilt and dread.
He cursed himself for the way things had gone.
He knew that she had wanted to tell Knox on her own, but part of him still wished he could go back and tell him.
Then they could've avoided this whole thing.
Vivi seemed furious, but he wasn't sure if she was more mad at him or Knox. He still felt like absolute garbage for putting her in harm’s way, and the need to turn around and go back to her pulled at him.
Knowing Vivi, that would only exacerbate the issue.
If he pushed too hard, she would just push right back out of spite.
He needed some advice. But from who? Knox wasn't exactly inclined to help him at all right now, and asking his brother for dating advice wasn't an option.
He pulled into the parking lot of a drugstore and cut the engine, then dug his phone from his pocket.
He felt terrible for bothering Jaxon right now, especially after everything that happened recently with Adalyn, but maybe he needed a break too.
He hit the number on speed dial and waited for him to answer.
“Hey, man. What's up?”
“Wanna grab a beer?”
On the other end of the line, Jaxon laughed. “It's 3 o'clock in the afternoon.”
Mason grimaced. “Yeah, I need something right now, though.”
“Why don't you come over here?” Jaxon suggested. “Addy is resting, so I’m watching Jaclyn.”
“Nah, I'm sorry,” Mason replied. “I won't bother you.”
“Come on, man. I've got beer in the fridge, and I could use some stimulation other than the Disney Channel.”
“If you’re sure,” Mason relented. “I'll be there in twenty.”
He stowed his phone in the saddle bag, then turned toward Adalyn's house. Jaxon opened the door before Mason had a chance to ring the bell, Jaclyn propped against his chest. Once they were back in the living room, Jaxon set Jaclyn down, then grabbed two beers from the fridge and passed one to Mason. Mason cracked the top and took a long pull, acutely aware of Jaxon’s curious gaze on him.
“You good?”
“I don't know yet,” Mason said. “I think I need some advice.”
“What's going on?”
Mason blew out a deep breath. “I've been seeing this girl.”
“Yeah.” Jaxon grinned. “I got that impression. You've been acting shady the last few weeks.”
Mason scowled at him. “Yeah, well, we've kind of been keeping it a secret.”
Jaxon’s brow furrowed. “Why?”
“She wanted to tell her brother in person.” Jaxon’s brow rose, and Mason sighed. “Yeah, I know. Didn't quite work out the way we'd hoped. He showed up this morning while I was at her house, caught me half-dressed after we got out of the shower.”
Jaxon whistled. “Bet he was pissed.”
Mason let out a mirthless laugh. His ribs and jaw still ached from the force of Knox’s anger. “You have no idea.”
“Can't be that big of a deal, right?” he asked. “Can't you just stay away from him, at least ‘til things chill?”
Mason made a face. Knox hadn't really given him an answer one way or the other whether he was fired or not, and he hated to destroy a friendship, but he would do it for Vivi if he had to. The question was, would she choose him or Con?
Jaxon seemed to read the thoughts ricocheting through Mason's mind, because he held up a hand. “Wait. We're not talking about Vivi, are we?”
Mason contemplated playing stupid for a split second, then discarded the idea. “How did you know?”
“Holy crap.” Jaxon laughed. “It all makes sense now. I knew something was going on with you, I just wasn't sure what it was.”
“Yeah.” Mason heaved a little laugh. “That's what it was. Who it is,” he corrected.
“I was at the Hilton one night working the case for Mrs. Morrison, and I met Vivi at the bar. We hooked up, then went our separate ways. I knew her name, but I assumed she wasn't from the area. Imagine my surprise when I walked into the lobby Monday morning and saw her there behind the desk.”
“Bet that shocked the life out of you.”
“Understatement of the year.” Mason explained what had transpired between him and Knox that day, what Vivi had overheard. “I tried to apologize, but she wanted nothing to do with it.”
“I take it she was more than just a one-night stand?” Jaxon asked.
Mason drained his beer, trying to order his thoughts.
“I knew after the night in a hotel that something was… different with her. But she was so dead set against me after everything that happened. She went on a date with another guy out of spite, and…” He rubbed at the heat of shame rising along the back of his neck.
“I may or may not have been waiting for her at her house when she got home.”
Jaxon’s eyes widened. “Whoa.”
“Yeah, yeah. I know how bad it sounds. Anyway, we talked after that—”
“Hooked up,” Jaxon cut in.
Mason shot him a dirty look. “Maybe,” he admitted. “Anyway, we started seeing each other more and more, but she said she didn't want Knox to find out before she had a chance to tell him. So… yeah.”
Jaxon stared at him for several seconds before reaching into the fridge and grabbing another beer. He passed it Mason’s way. “You’re gonna need this.”