Page 28 of Obsessed

Grabbing Rain by the elbow, Emma dragged him to the back of the kitchen, where it hadn’t filled up yet. “What do you mean?”

Rain stared at the tile floor. “I’ve never slept with one person for this long. It’s weird.”

“In what way, hun?” Crossing her arms, Emma leaned back against the workstation. “And listen, this stays between you and me. I know Kate means well but this conversation isn’t going to Lucy Loudspeaker.”

A melancholy warmth filled Rain’s chest. Why couldn’t his mother be more like Emma?

“I guess it’s weird because I expected to be bored by now but…I’m not.” Rain couldn’t quite put into words the unusual bond that he and Mason had built but it had been seeping into his pores and changing him, and he wasn’t sure if he liked it.

“That’s a good thing.” She gave him an affirmative nod. “Unless you want to be bored?”

Rain chuckled but it had no mirth.

“It’s more like…whyam I not bored? And why am I not interested in…” he tilted his head at the new server.

“Do you like Mason?” Emma countered so fast that Rain answered immediately.

“Of course. Why would I be-” Catching himself before he completely spilled the beans, he coughed. “Why would I be a one-dick man?” While he trusted her, he wanted to keep some cards close to his chest, especially his living situation.

She studied him in the way Marci often did. “The reason you’re not bored or interested in anyone else isbecauseyou like him, dumbass.”

“Duh. I’ve liked a lot of guys though.” But he knew Mason was different, and he couldn’t explain how.

“Why don’t you see where it goes then?” Emma shrugged back at him. “Is he nice to you?”

Nodding, Rain tried not to smile. “He is.”

“Good.” She nodded again. “But really, Rain. What do you have to lose?”

True, whatdidhe have to lose? Certainly not his heart.

Striding forward on the abandoned road, Rain tried to walk along the dotted center line but the deterioration made it difficult. Still, the buzzing of the drone spurred him on and he took step after step, holding his head high despite the drag of the cloak. Thankfully, the wind was in his favor, keeping his hair flowing back and fluttering the fabric around him; from above he was sure that he looked like a soul reaper or a vampire.

Mason had given him the outfit that morning, requesting another modeling session, and they’d driven an hour north to the middle of nowhere. Surrounded by pastures, Rain had frolicked around while Mason followed, and now they were getting shots with the drone. Everything Rain wore was black, and although the loose shirt and pants provided enough ventilation for the summer heat, he was starting to feel tired and sweaty.

“Done.” The drone zipped away, landing by Mason’s feet as he stepped away from the weeping willow he’d been hiding under. Larger than the one at home, it lorded over the pastures like a deity and Rain headed toward it, shedding the cloak.

Reaching into the cooler he’d lugged along with them, Mason handed Rain a cold water and a portable fan. “Are you hungry.”

“A little, thanks,” Rain couldn’t help but smile, happy that Mason had thought so deeply about his comfort. Chugging most of the water, he let out a pleased sigh, his eyebrows flying up as Mason took the bottle away and replaced it with a sandwich. Spreading out a towel on the grass beneath the tree, he gestured for Rain to sit down, so he did.

As Mason settled beside him, Rain peeled back the paper around his food and his eyes went wide.

“It’s the one you order all the time.” Opening his own sandwich, Mason dug in, flicking through photos on the viewscreen with his free hand, oblivious that his actions were causing a gooey warmth to spread through Rain’s chest.

Taking Emma’s advice, Rain had stepped back from analyzing things, deciding to go with the flow, and that flow seemed to include Mason being so strangely considerate that it made Rain’s head spin. Not only had he noticed Rain’s favorite item on the menu, but he’d also treated him to it, and he’d made sure Rain had been comfortable all afternoon, checking on him, adjusting the cloak, and helping him stay hydrated.

“It’s my favorite.” Settling down next to Mason, Rain bumped his shoulder. “Thanks.”

Rain knew that if he were anyone else, Mason would stiffen up, but he didn’t; instead, his lip lifted the smallest bit and Rain took it for what it was, a smile. He hadn’t seen that since the last modeling session, when he’d left Mason blissed out from a blowjob only to have him wall everyone and everything out hours later. Rain still wondered what had happened but he knew better than to ask.

Staring up at the branches, he watched them gently sway in the breeze, enjoying his lunch. The quiet moments in his life usually had to be stolen, requiring him to plan an escape, but now he had them in abundance. Whenever he and Mason sat together they didn’t have to speak, and Rain took this time to breathe in the silence, feeling it echo in his healing mind.

A viewfinder appeared in front of him and his mouth fell open as he saw himself walking along the broken road, and between the angle and the cloak he appeared to be floating.

“Wow.” Rain wished he had something better to say than that, likehow do you make me feel more beautiful than anyone else ever has?But his lips and tongue couldn’t form those words. Instead, he went with something safe. “It’s so cool that you can fly a drone.”

“I can teach you.” By the slight shock in Mason’s eyes, the sentence must’ve slipped out. He’d been doing that a lot lately and Rain found it amusing until it started happening to him too.

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