Page 139 of I Heart Mason Cartwright
He rocks into me as I find my release again, crying out his name. My body tensing, heating, tightening, letting go. He’s not far behind, growling out his own release as he pumps into me.
He rolls off me and pulls me with him. We sit there for a moment, enjoying the afterglow, trying to catch our breath.
“Fuck, I love you, woman. So much.” He kisses the top of my head.
“I love you,” I murmur to his chest, turning to kiss it.
His hold on me tightens. “I want to stay like this all day.”
“Think Zach can handle the party on his own?” I ask.
He scoffs. “Totally. Between him, your dad, and my mom, they’ve got it covered. No problem. We can stay here, and I can ravage your body over and over.” He leans in and fake bites at my neck with a growl, which in turn makes me squeal.
Mason checks his watch. “Seven and a half minutes. That might be a new record.” He puffs out his chest with pride.
I sit up. “Most men don’t brag about their speed with sex, hot stuff.” I pat him on the belly.
“Ah, but most men didn’t get their wife off twice in said time, all with a four-year-old outside, a two-year-old napping, and a party starting in a couple hours. That is immense pressure to perform under. I’m pretty much a fucking god.” He stands to strut around the room, naked. Making me laugh again.
He gets a warm washcloth and brings it back to clean me with.
“Thank you.” I smile.
“It’s the least a god can do for his goddess.” He kisses me hard, then moves to get dressed, whistling as he goes. The tune familiar.
I change my panties, shake out my dress before putting it back on and fix my hair. Mason stops whistling before opening the door.
He turns to me. “Was I just whistling—”
“Yep,” I say.
“Dammit. It’s hard to be a sex god when you start whistling The Wheels on the Bus afterward.”
“I feel your pain.”
He shakes his head at himself and leaves the room. I straighten the bed linens, laughing intermittently, feeling happy and lucky. Really freaking lucky.
Mason and I had a little bit of a rough start, and discovering I was pregnant early on in our relationship didn’t help. We weren’t even married yet. But he took it in stride and made sure both the baby and I knew how wanted and loved we were.
We got married right before I started to show. At the courthouse with just Zach and Caroline, his mom, in attendance as witnesses.
He flipped another house during the pregnancy so he felt more comfortable taking time off after Dash was born. Neither one of us worked for the first six months, which I know is rare and we were lucky to be able to do. Mason took on a couple more projects after that. And slowly transitioned to renovating more commercial properties than residential.
I still don’t really have a job outside the house and raising the kids. I help Mason with the designs on his properties, but that’s about it. Mostly because even this close to forty years old, I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up. And maybe I never will. At the risk of sounding old-fashioned, being a wife and mother fulfills me in a way I’ve never felt before. I’m really content to be at home with my kids. Dash was born about five months after we were married. And our daughter, Zoe, about two years ago.
Don’t get me wrong, we get a lot of help from Zach and Caroline and Abe with the kids. And I have a housekeeper who comes in twice a week. Which takes a lot of pressure off me and I’m grateful for that. I know I can afford a lot more, but I don’t want to live a lavish lifestyle. I enjoy the relative simplicity of what we have now. We live on Mason’s income, and anything I do spend of my money is just from the interest collected. Most of which I put away for the kids’ college, or donate to Zach’s new foundation, Captain Cupcake Cures. Devoted to teaching kids anti-bullying and acceptance, much like his books.
I head into the kitchen to finish the frosting and check the portable monitor screen to make sure Zoe is still sleeping. Then I watch Mason with Zach and Dash running around outside while I frost the cake. They are all goofing off with Dash’s new toy, while P-Tink runs circles around them with the occasional bark. The sun is shining today, and the weather is warm. It’s the perfect day for a birthday party.
Dash looks up and sees me through the window watching them. He waves and then blows me a kiss. Mason, seeing him, does the same. As does Zach, never one to be left out.
It doesn’t get any better than this.
* * *
Mason
I watch as Willow laughs at something her dad says. They’ve come a long way since my first induction to the Brooks family. Though she’s Willow Brooks Cartwright now. I was surprised when he flew out for Dash’s birth, sans Cassandra. But when he came again for Dash’s first Christmas and again for his first birthday, I started to feel more relaxed about it. We see him now about six times a year. Sometimes with Cassandra, but most often not.
