Page 2 of Forever Your Touch

Kade, his oldest brother, would tell him he was growing up. Mason curled his lip at the thought. He loved being carefree and not having responsibilities outside insurance for his truck. He was young and intended to enjoy every moment of it.

The shower helped to clear some of the fuzz left over from last night. Didn’t take long to find clean clothes and head down to the kitchen to get some grub. The mess that greeted him made him change his mind. God only knew what was left in the fridge. Drunken fools ate like nobody’s business.

He hauled ass to his favorite diner, Mae’s Diner. They served breakfast all day, and he was starved.

“Late night, Mason?” Sheryl, his favorite waitress, greeted him. He’d been here enough everyone knew him by name. He loved this old fifties-style diner, from its black and white checkered floors to the light blue upholstered seats. Records hung on the walls, and the staff wore poodle skirts and black strappy flats. The women kept their hair up in ponytails, and the guys—well, they were guys and wore their hair however. He wasn’t going to judge.

“Yeah.” Sheryl looked tired today. She was in her mid to late twenties and supported three kids on her wages. Mason always tipped her well for that reason. “Everything okay?”

She nodded.

“Kids okay?”

She rocked back and forth on her feet, and he got the vibe she didn’t want to talk about it. “What can I get you, darlin’?”

“Pancakes and your breakfast platter. Lots and lots of syrup. And the biggest coffee you have. I’m in caffeine withdrawal.”

He frowned after Sheryl, an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. Something was wrong there, but the shrill ringing of his phone steered him away from that thought.

Keith.

The conversation from last night slammed into him. Babysitting duty. Shit.

He swiped the phone to answer the call. “Hey, man.”

“You sober?”

“Gettin’ there.” Mason waved to a few girls who came in and tossed them an easy smile, but he looked away before they took it as an invitation to join him. “Now, tell me what’s going on with your sister.”

“She met this guy in high school, Ray Daniels. He’s a real douchebag.”

“Are you sure you don’t think that just because he’s dating your sister?” Sheryl dropped off a steaming mug of coffee, and he mouthed her a thank you.

“Fuck, man, I wish it was that. This guy doesn’t treat her right. It’s like nothing’s good enough for him, and he hates spending time with us. He’d rather do anything than come over for Sunday dinner.”

“Doesn’t treat her right, how?” Mason savored the first burst of flavor as the coffee hit his tongue. So good.

“You’ve never met Jo, right?” Keith asked.

“No. I only ever met Amanda. She came to one of our frat parties, and you kicked her out.” Mason smiled at the memory. He’d seriously thought Keith was gonna get his ass beat by a girl.

“She had no business being at a frat party.” Keith still sounded miffed about it. If it had been him, he’d rather have his sister at his party where he could keep an eye on her, as opposed to one he had no control over. He wasn’t about to judge, though. He didn’t have a sister.

“Jo’s the baby of the family. She’s sweet and kind, but more than anything, she’s naïve. This guy has her wrapped around his finger. He talks shit, he puts himself first, and he’s tearing her away from us, Mason. It’s not cool. A man puts his girl first, especially if he loves her.”

Mason saw how his brothers treated their wives. They definitely put the needs of their women ahead of their own. One of the first things his papa taught them all was to treat women with respect, and if you were lucky enough to find the right one, you better damn well show her how special she was.

One of the girls who had come in earlier caught Mason’s eye and smiled at him. He knew her…last week’s party, maybe? He made a habit not to sleep with the same girl more than a few times in case they got ideas. He wasn’t looking for a relationship, just some fun.

He ignored her and went back to his phone call. “Okay, I get it. What exactly do you want me to do?”

“First and foremost, go check on her. She’s enrolled at the same college you are, so it shouldn’t be hard to keep an eye on her. She’s shacked up with Ray off campus, though.”

“You thinking he might hurt her or something?” The thought brought out his protective side. Domestic violence was a topic that hit near and dear to home. His sister-in-law, Sara Jane, had been in an abusive marriage before she married his brother, Viktor. Sara left the bastard when he hit their daughter, Delia. Mason’s lip curled in a snarl thinking about it. He loved that girl like his own and was glad they’d finally been able to scrub the bastard’s last name off her. She was now officially a Kincaid.

“That’s the thing, man, I just don’t know.” Keith let out a growl of frustration. “I know him, have known him since they started dating. He’s always rubbed me the wrong way.”

No one was ever going to be good enough for any of Keith’s sisters. It was a fact. Mason felt the same way about Delia. Just the future thought of some ass trying to get cozy with his niece set his teeth to clenching.

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