Page 18 of Fun and Games
"We're going to get some drinks at the bar," Connor said.
He and Quinn shared a secretive smile with each other and left the two of us to sit at the table alone. As they walked away, Connor wrapped his arm around her waist and pressed a kiss to the side of her head. She snuggled down into his side. Too cute.
"That was about as subtle as my coworker ditching us when we first met," I said.
"Connor doesn't know the meaning of the word subtle, no matter how many times I've tried to teach him," Mason said. "Thanks for coming, by the way. Really. We're probably going to win because of you."
"Thanks for the invite," I replied. "I wanted a chance to be crowned the winner of trivia night, anyway."
"So, how was your day at work?" Mason asked.
He rested his elbows on the table and leaned in. It wasn't so loud in the bar he had to be that near to hear me. It was intended purely to get close. The motion invited me to imitate him, and I rested my forearms on the table to lean in as well.
"Lots of answering phones and writing emails," I said. "I'm sure it wasn't as interesting as your day."
"There's not much interesting about taking inventory or sorting through paperwork," he said.
"Maybe the both of us need new jobs."
It wasn't exactly a joke on my end. I was already feeling stifled at how long I'd been at my current place. The last month and a half had seemed like an eternity, and my feet were already itching to move on.
"There's no way I'd leave this job for anything else," Mason said. "It's one of the best gigs I've ever had."
"Even better than working in the music industry?" I asked.
Mason paused and looked thoughtful for a moment.
"It's different, that's for sure," he said. "There were a lot of perks to being in artist management."
"Like all of those crazy parties?" I asked.
"That's part of it," Mason said. "Also tagging along with the band when they went to different cities on tour. Like I said before, I got to travel to a lot of places, see new and interesting things. It was really fun."
That sounded just like my dream. Like David's dream.
I swallowed to clear the lump that had formed in my throat.
"How could you give up all of that to manage a bar?" I asked.
Mason's eyes went unfocused as he answered, looking off into the distance.
"Music was never my passion," Mason said. "Not like it was for Connor. I can't sing for shit, and I'm even worse when it comes to playing instruments. But I didn't want Connor to leave me behind. I decided if I couldn't be in a band with him then at least I could help manage his career. Besides, I still have connections. If I ever wanted to, it wouldn't be hard to jump right back in." His expression turned serious. "But I've seen what that kind of lifestyle can do to people. I'm glad Connor got out when he did, even if it wasn't one hundred percent his decision."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
Mason's eyes focused again as he looked to me.
"It's not my story to tell," Mason said. "I'm just glad Connor found another passion in life. I'm glad he gave me the opportunity to continue working with him in some way."
"You and Connor sound like really good friends," I said.
"He's been with me through a lot of tough times." His eyes turned dark, like storm clouds passing through a sunny sky. Then he blinked, and that bright green was back to normal. "We've had our ups and downs, but we always get through it," he continued.
"It sounds wonderful to have a person like that in your life."
I hadn't meant to sound so melancholy. The way Mason talked about Connor reminded me of David.
We had been best friends since childhood. There had been a few years as awkward teenagers when we grew apart, but we managed to find each other again and had been inseparable ever since.
