Price of a Kiss (Forbidden Men, #1)(93)

Mrs. Garrison had actually kind of disappointed me. She’d let me go without a fight. Humph. Chicken. I’d been all keyed up to kick some cougar ass, too.

Oh, well, such was life. C'est la vie. Maybe I could beat up the next woman who tried to hurt my man.

I drove home, feeling truly powerful for the first time in too long. As all those women had taken a piece of control away from Mason and made him feel cheap and used, Jeremy had taken away the same thing from me.

Fighting back, standing up for myself, taking control again felt nice. Felt good. Felt like I totally needed to celebrate somehow.

As luck would have it, a familiar Jeep sat parked in my spot when I pulled into the Mercers’ driveway. When I saw the sexy owner of said Jeep sitting on the top step in front of my apartment, waiting for me, I grinned.

Parking my car beside his, I killed the engine and leapt from the driver’s seat, full of smiles.

“Mason,” I squealed as I flew up all fifteen steps. “What’re you doing here?” I crawled right into his lap and wrapped my arms around him. “Oh, my God. You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”

Kissing him before he could answer, I took control of his mouth, much the same way I’d just taken control of Mrs. Garrison. I showed them both who was boss. Oh, yes, I did.

Mason didn’t seem to mind as he kissed me back, thrusting with his tongue just as heartily as I was and entwining it with mine. Then, scooping me up by the butt, he cupped both cheeks and stood.

See, I told you he had some impressive muscles.

Not even breaking the kiss, he swung us toward my front door. “I couldn’t stay away,” he managed to explain breathlessly between kisses. “I couldn’t leave things like they were. Jesus, where the hell have you been?”

“I’ll explain later.”

“Mmph.” He seemed fine with that and kicked the door shut behind us as soon as we gained entrance.

We attacked each other. Right there against the door of my apartment.

I think I needed to release some of the adrenaline still thrumming through my system after my one and only stint of B & E as badly as he needed reassurance that I wasn’t still freaked out over the text I’d read earlier.

“Wow,” I said as soon as my tongue would allow me to speak intelligible words again. “I had no idea breaking the law could make a girl so crazy horny.”

I wilted down the surface of the door until I was sitting on the welcome mat, pleasantly dazed by how amazing the evening had turned out.

Mason slumped down beside me. “Do I even want to know what you mean by that?”

I grinned. And told him everything.

His mouth fell open. “You did what? But, you…she…how could you send him your new identity? Are you insane?”

He sounded a little too much like his landlady, so I scowled. Then I remembered I had sent that email, hadn’t I?

“Oh, that reminds me. I’d better check my inbox of that new account I set up this morning.”

I crawled to my purse I’d dropped beside the welcome mat and dug around inside until I found my cell phone. “I created it under the name Jeremy Walden. Need to check if I have any incoming messages.” As I clicked my way into the inbox, I winked at Mason. “And what do you know, I do.”

I turned the screen to show him the email from Patricia Garrison.

He gaped before sending me a stunned glance. “You faked her out.”

I tossed my hair and preened. “Yep. Now…how would Jeremy respond to this letter?” Tapping my chin, I contemplated. “If you were a psycho stalker ex-boyfriend, what would you say?”

Mason scooted closer to be a part of the planning process. “Thanks?” he suggested.

“Perfect.” I kissed his cheek and got a little distracted, needing to kiss his nose next, then his mouth. Before I totally lost my focus, I pulled back, bit my lip, and started typing.

Thanks. I owe you one.

“There.” I pushed send and looked up. “That sounds like something he’d say. I’ll delete the account later, just to make sure she doesn’t reply.”

Mason appeared overcome. “This was dangerous, Reese. I can’t believe you risked so much just to free me from her.”

“Hey.” Cupping his face in my hands, I admitted, “I would risk it a thousand times over to help you any way I could.”

He pressed his forehead against mine. “I still don’t deserve you.”

“But I’m here anyway,” I teased, tipping my face so that I could flutter my lashes against his cheek in a butterfly kiss. “Whatever will you do with me now?”

Tugging me closer, he settled my body against his and brushed the hair out of my face. “I guess I’ll just have to cherish you with every breath I have.”





CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE




Mason hadn’t shown up on my doorstep with a lot of forethought. He totally forgot to bring a fresh pair of clothes, or his school things, otherwise we could’ve washed each other in the shower—kind of like how we’d squished into my dinky bathroom on both Saturday and Sunday to have way too much fun with the soap—and gone to classes together on Monday morning.

But, I had a feeling there’d only been one thing on his mind when he’d driven over the night before.