Page 65 of Every Breath

“Well, we’re going to talk about it. Look, I just want you to know that no matter what, you come first in my life.”

Ben looked disbelieving. “It’s the truth, son.”

“You better not hurt Miss Brandi. She’s my best friend’s mom.”

Mason was taken aback. “Ben, why would you think I would hurt her?”

“Because you do it to all your girlfriends. Mom says so. If you hurt Miss Brandi then DJ will stop being my friend. I don’t ever want to see you again if that happens. I love you, Dad, but I don’t want to lose my friend.”

Mason tried to push back the wave of anger he felt toward Karen. She had to stop poisoning Ben’s mind this way.

“Now you’re mad at me, aren’t you?” Ben asked.

“No. I’m not mad, just a little disappointed that you would think that I would hurt Miss Brandi. I care about her very much. Sometimes, your mother says things about me that may have been true in the past, but they aren’t anymore.”

“Are you mad at Mom?”

“I’m not mad at anyone. I just want you to know that no matter what is said, I love you and I would never do anything to hurt Miss Brandi. She’s very important to me.”

“More important than me?”

“No one is more important than you, but you know, champ, a person can love more than one person at a time.”

“I know. I love you and Mom. What if you and Miss Brandi stop liking each other; does that mean I would have to stop liking DJ?”

“No, I’m sure that won’t be the case.”

“Really?”

“Let’s not worry about the what-ifs, Ben.” He ruffled the boy’s hair with affection. “I take it that you don’t mind Miss Brandi and me dating as long as I don’t hurt her?”

Ben paused to think. “Well, I hope you two get married and then me and DJ could be brothers.” Ben gave him a big grin.

That’s what Mason was counting on, but he knew it wasn’t a good idea to get Ben’s hopes up just yet. “What do you think of Miss Brandi? Forget about DJ for a moment.”

“Well, she’s nice and pretty. I like her.” Ben seemed to give this a lot of thought. “Maybe she’s what you need.”

“Oh?” Mason lifted a brow.

“Yeah. I worry about you all alone in this house. You need a woman to take care of you. If you had a woman, she’d cook for you and rub your feet and all that other junk.”

Mason laughed. “If only things were that simple.”

“Of course they are. I saw it on TV.”

“I see. Well, I’m glad I have your seal of approval. Your mom won’t be here for a few hours, so how about we go get some ice cream?”

“Sure!”

“Okay, get your jacket, and we’ll go.”

Mason was relieved that Ben was willing to accept Brandi, but it still bothered him that Karen was still sounding off against him. He didn’t know what it would take to stop it, but he had to figure out something because it was affecting Ben.

The trip to the local Dairy Queen was uneventful, but on the way back, as the car coasted down a hill, Mason tapped on the brakes only to discover that they weren’t working.

He didn’t want to worry Ben so he tried to stay calm as he continued to tap the brakes without result. His anxiety increased. As he rolled through a stop sign and saw another car coming straight at him, it finally dawned on him that someone had tampered with the brakes.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

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