Page 25 of I Need You Tonight
In the background, a ballad played, the lyrics speaking about taking things slow and how it would be worth it in the end. The song was beautiful and I loved the melody, but it was nothing like the song Mason had played for me earlier. Even without the lyrics, that song had touched me deep in my soul.
Mason moved back a step. “Do you need any help?”
My body already missed his closeness. “Sure. You want to chop the carrots? Then I can cook them.”
“Chopping carrots happens to be my specialty.”
I laughed. “I thought drumming was your specialty.”
“No, that’s just my day job. By night I’m a super carrot cutter.” He winked at me.
“Ooh, does the job come with a cool superhero cape?”
“Normally, yes. But I had to leave it at the dry cleaner after my last carrot-chopping mission. You would’ve liked it. It’s red.”
“So, like Superman’s cape?” I tossed over my shoulder as I walked to the fridge and removed the two-pound bag of carrots.
“Much cooler than Superman’s cape.”
I giggled again. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d laughed so much in one day. “Now I’m really sorry I missed out on that.” I set the carrots on the counter next to him and fished through the utility drawer for the vegetable peeler. “Do you want a glass of wine?”
“Sounds good.”
Mason peeled the carrots while we joked around and he told me about the guys in the band. The last time I’d felt this comfortable around a man was…well, a long time ago. Maybe knowing that what we had between us wasn’t going anywhere in the end made it easier. There were no expectations. We were two people who had become friends.
After dinner we washed the dishes, I popped popcorn in the hot-air popper, and we retired to the couch to watch another movie.
“I think I’m in love with you,” Mason said, removing a DVD case from my collection. He held it up for me to see:Die Hard 2.
I laughed. “Glad to see you appreciate me for myDie Hardmovies.”
“I might have to kiss you due to your brilliant collection.” A smirk appeared on his face. Stupid, panty-dropping, sexy smirk. “Except we already agreed, no more kisses.”
“I don’t think one more would really hurt.” The words slipped from my mouth before I could stop them—before I was even aware I’d been thinking them deep down. “I mean, it’s really just once. Nothing more than that.” Nothing that would signify what we had between us was anything beyond friendship.
He didn’t say anything, but the smirk remained in place. He put the disc into the machine and joined me on the couch. He then removed the bowl of popcorn from my lap and set it on the coffee table. Before I could say anything, his lips were against mine.
There was nothing tender about the kiss. It was a kiss heavy with promises: promises to melt me to the core if we didn’t stop soon, promises to leave me wanting if we did stop. If I was to rate it on a scale from one to ten, it was a definite twelve.
My tongue glided against his, and once again I felt the electrifying hum that I’d experienced when we’d kissed at Blooming Love and then again after going to the ice cream shop. It also caused the ache between my legs to become more demanding.
How was I planning to survive once he left for L.A.? No other man would ever come close to being as great a kisser as he was. He had spoiled me for all other guys—nobody else would ever stand a chance.
Somewhere in the back of my head, a rational, slightly irritating voice reminded me of the list of traits I was looking for in the perfect man. Mason might be perfect when it came to the kissing (which wasn’t even on my list—silly me!), but he didn’t have the traits that counted the most.
Just try telling that to my body.
It took a few moments to realize the previews were over. Mason moved away, grabbed the remote control, and started the movie. And instantly my body and lips wanted more of him.
It was official. I was going to need some sort of substitute while I recovered from my newfound Mason addiction—only I didn’t think there was a gum or patch that could help in a situation like this.
