Page 13 of Sensual Nights

"I know." She took two steps. "Oh, I should have knocked. I'm sorry, Mason."

He felt his face heat, but he shook his head. "It's no bother. Please come in."

Margo carried a package with her, and she handed it to him with a smile on her face. "This is from Jace and I. Happy housewarming."

"Oh." He had a lump in his throat at all the kindness surrounding him today. "Thank you."

Margo shrugged. "Open it."

Jace stepped from the bathroom and came to stand next to his wife. They watched as he opened his gift. Pulling the lid off the box, he saw that inside lay a metal and wood decoration. It was rustic, manly, and it matched the fireplace mantle perfectly. Margo pointed to the wall next to the fireplace. "I thought it would look nice on that wall."

"How did you know about that wall?"

She shrugged and glanced at Carley. "I know things."

He caught the two women grinning at each other and knew Carley had a hand in picking this out. His stomach twirled as emotions flooded him. He'd run from his past to find a group of people who were so good and kind that he didn't even think he belonged with them. How lucky he was.

Carley chuckled. "Come and eat before everything cools down."

9

They all sat at the table. Carley sat to Mason's right, her sister on the other side of her. Jace at the other end of the table and Quinn and Marco across the table. They talked about life at the restaurant, which all but she and Quinn had part of. She didn't feel left out at all.

Jace looked at her. "Carley, have you seen that man around anymore?"

Mason froze with a fork of lasagna on the way to his mouth. He set his fork down and turned to her. "What man?"

She swallowed and set her fork on her plate. "When I left the office yesterday, a man was watching me. He stepped out from behind the building next to the office and stared as I pulled out of my parking space. When I drove down the road, he stepped into the road and watched me leave." She took a deep breath. "I was creeped out when I left the Sandbar yesterday afternoon and asked Jace to walk me to my car."

She felt like she'd done something wrong. Mason sat staring at her. "What did he look like?"

She shrugged. "He was kind of scrawny. He wore an older faded blue T-shirt. His jeans had holes in them. His hair was unkempt."

Mason looked at Quinn. "I saw a man who fits that description running from here yesterday."

Quinn's eyebrows shot up. "Was that the same man you saw the day Carley showed you this place?"

Mason shook his head. "No. That man was better groomed and a bit stockier."

Quinn and Mason stared at each other for a few moments. Jace then chimed in. "All of this in a matter of three or four days?"

Mason nodded.

Her stomach twisted. What was going on here? Two men? She finally found her voice. "One of them left a note on my windshield at the Sandbar the other night. It said I had something that belonged to him."

Mason turned his head to her. "Why didn't you say something?"

"I didn't think it was a big deal. I thought it was a prank."

His eyes returned to hers. "Do you have something someone thinks is theirs?"

"I picked up an old medallion or something in your bedroom closet the day I showed this place to you. I dropped it in my purse meaning to give it to Quinn in case one of his guys lost it. I forgot about it."

Mason looked across the table to Jace. He nodded. "I can look back on the security cameras to see who put the note on your windshield. Can you remember the day?"

She felt all eyes on her and she wanted to fall through the floor. She felt like a little girl who'd done something wrong. "It was the night before last."

Margo reached over and placed her hand on top of Carley's. Her sister squeezed her hand. "Oh, honey. You should have said something."

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