Page 34 of Mason
All the air gusts from my lungs. If there was anyone else who could come—anyone—that would be preferable. But I can’t say that. “Is that really necessary? Tristan is already up Duke’s ass with Lennon staying with us. Derek is in contact with Bear when he needs to be, so I can’t imagine he wouldn’t have an inkling as to how things are going around here. We’re fuckin’ fine. Why send anyone else? Don’t you trust your buddies?” Sweat trickles down my back and my gut twists.Don’t send Hunter. I don’t fucking want him here. Don’t need to deal with the shitstorm it’ll create.
He grunts. “Mm. The hot little blonde, right? Nikki’s daughter.”
It doesn’t surprise me that he’s skipped right over my fucking question about his so-called friends and focused on Lennon, instead. My skin prickles at his salacious tone. “Yeah.” Thank fuck he’s in prison.
“You know I like for my people to be in the know as well—monitor the boys we’ve brought into the house. Make sure everyone’s keeping their noses clean and can handle keeping their mouths shut. It’s time to test them, son.”
Test them. Great. I don’t even want to know what he means by that, and it makes me wonder if they’ve been testing the brotherhood here at Bainbridge Hall all along, or if it’s just this year while their sons are in charge. I would have thought there would be less supervision this year, not more. Then again… there’s really no love lost among us and our fathers. I may have seen the worst of it, but I sure as fuck don’t think Bear has had it easy with the way his father controls him. And Duke? Fuck, I wouldn’t want to be Tristan’s son. He’s a dirty bastard. I let myself feel for Duke for a split second before I realize my father has been talking and I’ve missed whatever he’s said… but it sounds like he’s reaffirming that I understand that I’m caught squarely under his thumb and am expected to do whatever he says. Like fuckin’ usual. “Got it.”
“Say hi to Hunter for me when you see him.”
A sick feeling steals over me, quickly followed by rage. I punch the End Call icon, then jam the phone in my pocket, my chest heaving as I stand. While I was sitting here talking to that asshole, the sun had set, robbing me of daylight. And now, night has fallen and with it, my grip on reality is in the balance. After that phone call, I’m definitely not fucking closing my eyes any time soon. I drop my head back onto my shoulders, stare up at the sky, and roar into the dark.
NINETEEN
LENNON
A shriek escapes me,and my heart wedges in my throat. I’ve never heard a door slam so hard in my entire life. The sound ricochets around the house, like a crack of gunfire. I hurry out into the hallway and peek around the corner just in time to see Mason taking the stairs.
I chew on my lip. I have no clue what to do. Do I follow? No. Despite the orgasm he’d wrenched so skillfully from me last night, I wouldn’t call us friends. Awkward frenemies with some questionable benefits, maybe.
I’m worried, though. He’s hungry—hangry, even—but he’d become increasingly agitated as his phone kept ringing. Whoever was calling destroyed his inner calm, ruined his ability to function coherently. He’d gone from semi-playful and responsive to severely agitated. While he was outside, I’d finished preparing the plate of cheese and crackers for him and had washed some of the grapes. But now… I don’t know what to do.
Maybe he’ll be back down. Without knowing for sure, I make my way back to the kitchen where I encounter Warren standing at the counter, eyeing the food Mason and I had abandoned. I shrug my shoulders, holding my hands up in a classic I-don’t-know gesture. “Mason was getting food, then he got a phone call, and afterward he disappeared upstairs.”
“The door slamming was him?” He snatches a grape from the plate and pops it into his mouth, followed by a piece of the cheddar.
“Oh, yes. Scared the shit out of me.” I press my hand to my chest, realizing my heart is still racing. I gesture to the food between us on the counter. “I think he forgot he was hungry, though I don’t see how. Something must have come up.”
“Sounds about right.” He nudges the plate in my direction. “Eat some of it. You look like you could use it.”
I chew on my lip for a split second before I give him a smile, then stack a piece of cheese on a cracker. “Thanks. So… hanging with the girlfriend tonight?”
“Nah. She has some sorority thing going on. I’m trying to take Bear’s advice.” His cheeks tint pink. “Give her a little space a couple nights a week.”
My brows raise. “Oh. Well, it can’t hurt to try something different.” I pause, wanting to ask a question, but a little nervous to trust anyone yet. My curiosity wins out. “Bear really is kinda like the dad around here, isn’t he?”
Warren huffs out a laugh before he pops another grape into his mouth. “I don’t know if that’s how he wants to be seen, but he sort of falls into it naturally.”
Tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, I let out a sigh, pointing to the cheese, crackers, and grapes. “I’m going to put a bit of this onto another plate and see if Mason is—” I pause, not wanting to sound like—Shit.Like I’m trying to step in where I don’t belong… but I want to. There’s something about him that calls out to me. I wrinkle my nose, suddenly worried about what Warren’s thinking, what he hears from the others in the house… just everything.
“It’s only food, Lennon. Honestly, Mason could use someone checking on him now and then. That guy—” Warren shakes his head, giving me a rueful smile. “I shouldn’t say anything either. Sorry.”
I shrug. “It’s okay. I’d rather find out about him on my own terms, anyway, if that makes sense.”
“Of course. Topic shift, then.” He clears his throat before asking, “So, how are you doing here? Three days of classes down. Is KU everything you dreamed it would be?”
I freeze. “Um.” My brows furrow, and I concentrate on getting out a small plate and filling it. Finally, when I look up, I realize his eyes have been on me this entire time, curious. “Warren, let’s just say that coming to KU was unexpected, and I’m still grappling with both the idea of studying at a big-league university and life here in this house.”
“I don’t know about your classes, but as far as brotherhood stuff goes, I think you’re doing fine. You’re not even truly a grunt, but you’re faring better than Arik and Quincy—those idiots are bumbling at every turn.” He gives me a genuine smile. “But you, I feel like you’re changing things up around here. It’s good for all of us. When you’re around, it forces all of us to be a little bit better than the degenerates that we can so quickly devolve into when a girl isn’t present.”
“Didn’t stop Pierre from showing me his teeny weenie out at the pool, but point taken.” I pick up the plate, winking at Warren as he bursts out laughing.
Yep, I like that guy.
* * *
Upstairs,I knock on Mason’s door, but when I get no response, I let myself into my room. I suppose the worst-case scenario is that I eat the food I brought up for him myself. But with how hungry he seemed earlier, I’d rather he have it. I just need to figure out if he’s in his room and ignoring me or if he’s elsewhere.
