Page 28 of Forbidden Cravings

He dropped his hands, and I climbed from him, fixing my bra and pulling my sweatshirt down. He didn’t move, but his eyes never strayed from me. I could see him fighting himself, trying to call the hard boss back to cover his emotion.

“Goodnight, Mason,” I said, picking up my plate and the soda. “I’m sorry.”

I left, unable to look back at him because the silence was a heavy burden, and I didn’t think I could bear seeing how I had broken him without even meaning to.

Chapter Nine

MASON

The soft padding of Casey’s feet faded the further she was from me. Resting my head back, I ran my hands up my face and through my hair. The myriad of thoughts and emotions filling my mind were almost too much. The way she’d felt in my hands and the sensuality of that kiss had left me questioning what this had become. Our flirting had turned, the events of the prior night changing something between us, something in me. The Casey who had needed me last night to hold her hair back, to hold her while she slept, the one I’d watched sleep, worried that the drugs they’d given her would cause a reaction, and the one snuggled up in sweats watching fantasy movies was not any woman I’d ever allowed myself to be with. I took what I needed from women and kept it physical, but Casey made me want more. I wanted to hold her, to be her strength when she was weak, to curl on a couch and rub her feet. To see the vulnerable side of her with her curls slipping free of her ponytail.

I knew the feeling that was sinking into my soul, claiming my heart. It was a sensation I hadn’t allowed myself to embrace since I’d been in my early twenties. I’d made myself hard and untouchable. Casey broke down my resolve, my barriers, and Iwanted her to. I liked the way she made me feel, especially when she wasn’t throwing herself at me. That was the woman who I now desired in a completely different way than the initial craving I’d had for her.

Picking up her blanket, I held it for a moment, smelling the scent of her floral soap on it. I cleaned up and shut everything down before returning to the main floor. One night. That was all I had left with her. I wondered if she could return and never see me again. The thought was wrenching, and I shoved it away, not liking how weak it made me.

“Hey there,” Riley said, coming into my office where I’d plunged into administrative things I had accountants and lawyers for, but that kept my mind from turning to Casey.

I glanced up, giving her a smile. Riley never ceased to make me smile, except for the time she’d shut me out. Her smile was contagious, her sweet personality enough to soften even the hardest of souls. And maybe that was why Greyson Tides had fallen for her. Maybe she’d softened the bastard.

“You look flustered,” she said, sitting on the loveseat on the other side of the room, crossing her feet under her.

“Nah, just tired of staring at this stuff.”

She was perceptive, seeing past my façade. Even when I’d been sheltering her, hiding my secrets, she’d never failed to see when my mood was off, when my gruff disposition was faltering. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. For a moment, she reminded me of our mother. Although she and I had our father’s eyes and hair, Riley had my mother’s soft features and her gentle disposition. Riley had been young when our parents had passed, but I had distinct memories of them, nineteen years of life with them. Their deaths had hit me hard, but I’d already made my name in the underground scene of Treemont, learning to hide my emotions, to remain heartless. Things that had been helpful when life had derailed us, leavingme as Riley’s guardian. A nine-year-old under the care of her teenage brother who hadn’t known what he was doing but had managed.

I’d done everything in my power to protect her, to ensure I didn’t lose her like we’d lost our parents. I’d overprotected her, even as she’d grown older, because that’s all I knew.

“Mace, I know what’s going on.”

I clenched my teeth. “And what’s going on, Ri?”

“Between you and Casey.”

I glared at her, but she didn’t flinch.

“Don’t give me that look. It’s hard not to notice and you better be glad Tyson’s in Armina, or he would have picked up on it already.”

Tyson had texted me earlier, checking in on Casey and letting me know he had things handled with Donelli. I didn’t have the balls to tell him I wasn’t handling things with Casey and that those assholes had almost raped her at the club. It didn’t matter that I’d taken charge and handled it, he’d be on me in seconds for letting her go in the first place. The fight would be a bloody one, but no bloodier than it would be if he found out I’d touched her.

I sat back with a sigh. “It’s that obvious?”

She snickered. “Obvious is an understatement. The heat between you two is intense. Why don’t you give yourself a break, Mace? Casey would be good for you.”

“And how do you know what would be good for me, Ri? A few days in my world and you suddenly know?”

She recoiled like I’d hit her, then recovered. “Don’t give me that macho shit. I know you well enough to know you haven’t let yourself do more than fuck a woman in years. To know you keep a distance.”

“Watch your language.”

Her laugh was louder this time. “Seriously?” She stood and walked to the desk, leaning her hands on it. “I’m your sister, Mason. You may not have brought me into your world, but I know enough from having you and Tyson as my permanent bodyguards to know how you both work. I can cuss like the best of them. And I also know enough about you and Tyson to know that he fucks every woman he can because no woman has come close to cracking that playboy shell he wears. And you, although more discriminating and controlled, indulge only in one-night stands because you don’t let anyone close enough to know what’s underneath that guarded exterior you wear. No one but Casey.”

Crossing my arms, I gritted my teeth, hating how she’d just nailed us both in those few short words.

“I also know you enough to see how she’s cracked that hardened shell you built after our parents died.” I flinched, my eyes creasing. “For once, let your control go and take a chance?—”

“I don’t take chances. That’s why I rule the dynasty I rule.” I stood, towering over her. “That’s why I have the power I have, the money I have. Why people fear me.”

“And why you’re alone.” She gave me a sad smile. “I’m going back to Greyson. When you’re done training me. I won’t be here for you to protect, to depend on you.”

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