Only the Truth Pt. 02

This time around I was an adult, my thoughts not quite so innocent, and I'd found my eyes lingering a little too long on places they never even used to visit. It shocked me and had me questioning everything I'd come to think of as normal up to that point.

A group of us had headed up to the lake to celebrate Australia Day during the hottest part of summer. There were ten of us there in total--Claire, Andy, Mason, and a half dozen of their friends. I'd only gone with them as a tagalong, but they were the kind of people who went out of their way to make sure I felt included, and I always had fun even though none of them were technically my friends.

After we unpacked, Andy got started barbecuing lunch on the deck while Claire disappeared inside to organize plates and cutlery. The others cranked up the music and hung out with Andy in the sunshine, opening the first of many rounds of beers while they caught up on one another's lives. The vibe was relaxed, the conversations fun and full of laughter.

I remember standing at the edge of the deck staring out at the lake, the sun glinting off the water beckoning me. The heat of the afternoon combined with the long drive had me imagining sinking into the cool water, and before I knew it, I turned to Mason to suggest we race each other to the pontoon.

I'd always loved challenging him to anything physical, and it was the easiest way to get some one-on-one time with him before he got pulled into all the shenanigans later with the others.

Never one to back down from some healthy competition--even though he always ended up winning due to his obvious physical advantages--he sprinted barefoot down to the shore with me like we'd done so many times before.

The moment my feet met warm sand, I stopped and stripped down to my bikini to get a head start, but he peeled off his t-shirt at the same time and that plan fizzled to nothing... along with all my working brain cells.

Tanned skin. Muscles. Hard, flat abdomen. Bathed in the early-afternoon sunlight, he looked like someone who'd been blessed by the gods, and the sight of him left me speechless.

A feeling of longing rolled through me in a slow, hot wave, and my sundress dropped from my slackened fingers. This was what desire felt like. I wanted to touch him, feel the warmth of his skin, trace the line of dark hair that disappeared into his board shorts. The man turned me on without even trying, and he had no idea.

While I stood there stunned, Mason flashed me a grin and ran into the lake.

It took me a minute to snap out of my daze. With a laughing protest and a body zinging with too many sensations to name, I charged after him.

By the time I got to the water's edge, he'd already made it to mid-thigh and launched himself into a series of smooth, graceful strokes that took him farther and farther away from me.

Too stubborn to admit defeat, I tried my best to narrow his lead, but he was just too far away, and I ended up winded and nursing a mass of screaming muscle in my calf.

Whenever I thought back to that day, the detail that stood out to me the most was that I didn't need to call out for help. He turned at the exact moment I sank under, like he knew something was up and wanted to assure himself I was okay.

Just as the last of my strength disappeared, and I'd worked myself into full panic mode, Mason was right there with me. He gripped me under the arms while my lungs burned and my calf cramped, and he dragged me to the surface, pulling me against him to keep me steady. Safe.

I'd never had a cramp cause me so much pain, either before that day or after. My lower leg hardened like concrete, and I clung to Mason as if his nearness could somehow make it go away.

We were at a level in the water where my feet no longer touched the bottom, but he didn't have that problem. He rested one arm beneath me and slid the other around my back, all the while murmuring soothing words in my ear that I couldn't recall now if I tried.

The pain went on and on with no sign of easing, and I worked hard not to cry, but the tears rolled down my cheeks anyway. As Mason walked me back to shore, I had to bite into my lip to stifle a sob. "Take my mind off it," I pleaded, my voice sounding thick and wet.

He stopped then. While we were still up to our waists in the water, he leaned back far enough to look me in the eyes, the blue of his irises impossibly bright in the afternoon sun. Beads of water dripped from his gleaming dark hair and spiky lashes. Dampness highlighted the stubble on his jaw. We were pressed so close together, I could brush my mouth across his and get away with calling it an accident--and the temptation almost got the better of me, even while I was in pain.

His lips tilted on one side as I took in his features, like my interest amused or pleased him. He swept my hair from my cheek and curved his hand around the back of my neck, clasping me there so I was hyper aware of his touch.

I held my breath and waited, the pain in my leg secondary now to the curiosity he'd roused in me. "Sadie..." He swallowed and sent my mouth a fleeting look before meeting my eyes again. Tension built between us, and my heart thudded faster. "There's something I need to--"

"Hey, what's going on out there?! Are you two okay?"

Claire's voice travelled across the water, loud and clear in the otherwise still afternoon.

Adding another voice to such a private moment killed the intensity in an instant, and a different kind of panic raced through me then. I need... I need to--what? What had he been about to say before Claire interrupted?

"Tell me," I pleaded, framing Mason's face with my hands to keep his eyes on me instead of my sister. "What is it?"

"Not now," he said softly.

His grip on me loosened, and I wanted to beg him not to let me go. He was warm and wet, and I hadn't been able to savor the feeling of his body pressed to mine nearly long enough. But when he directed his gaze somewhere over my shoulder and sighed, I knew we were done. "All good, Claire! Sadie got a leg cramp but she's fine now."

One of the guys called out, "If I get a cramp will you cuddle me like that?!"

Laughter drifted from the deck and Mason sent me a reluctant smile. A look of resignation came over him, and just like that the intimate moment between us ended. His arm stayed around me as he helped me back to shore, but as soon as we reached the damp sand, he passed me off to Claire and never showed that side of himself to me again.

Until tonight.

Funny how some moments became so much clearer with hindsight. If only I'd known my sister's career as a cock-blocker had started years ago.

I fastened the last button on my pajama top and made my way over to the bedroom window, peeking through the gap in the curtains to the street a floor below.

At this late hour, it was quiet out. A couple of cars were parked at the curb, and the road was still wet from a shower earlier in the night. Only the streetlights shone in the darkness now, and all my neighbors appeared to have gone to bed.

I wondered if Mason was still awake, and if he'd spent much time thinking about me.

My phone hadn't made a sound since I'd come home. No calls or texts from him or Claire. Not even Andy, who I thought may have tried to check up on me at some point. The lack of contact should have made me happy since they'd given me what I'd asked for, but the alone time had begun to unnerve me.

The rumble of an approaching engine caught my attention. With my heart in my throat, I watched as Mason pulled up out front. My stomach dipped with excitement, and for a moment a streak of pure happiness overwhelmed my lingering anger.

I pulled in a breath and gave my outfit the once-over. Pink flannel PJs and stripy bed socks. Not exactly sexy or alluring, but at this point I probably shouldn't be trying too hard to impress him anyway.

When I looked outside again, he'd already stepped from his car and closed the door. Bathed in the yellow glow of the streetlight, he wore the jeans and charcoal t-shirt he'd had on earlier, but this time around he looked a little rough around the edges.

As my eyes passed over him, he glanced up to the spot where he knew my room was located, saw me, and flashed me a smile that brightened the gloom.

A jolt of awareness hit me, and I dropped the curtain like it had burned me. Without stopping to think about it, I bolted from the room and raced down the stairs, my heartbeat keeping time with my steps the whole way down.

As soon as I hit the tiled entryway, I stopped and drew a breath to calm the craziness inside me. My eyes closed, and I took my time blowing the air out, reminding myself it was just Mason.

We'd known each other too long for me to start acting weird around him now.

The knock on the door came sooner than I expected. I jumped at the sound, wondering why I felt so on edge when I'd never had this problem with him before. Maybe it was the way we'd left things earlier... or the thought of what might happen if I let him in while there was no one else home.

Either way, I wouldn't find out unless I faced him.

He knocked again and called out, "Sadie, open up. I know you're home."

Just the sound of his deep voice sent my excitement skyrocketing. "No thank you," I replied, not wanting to make this too easy for him.

A noise suspiciously like laughter travelled through the door. "Sadie."

"Mason."

He didn't even try to hide his amusement this time around. I heard him snort.

Despite wanting to stand my ground and show him he didn't have a pushover on his hands--he so did--a smile tugged at the corner of my mouth. If I spent any longer talking to him, there'd be no more holding out. I'd already become a permanent lost cause where he was concerned.

"This is just a courtesy knock," he said. "I know where you guys keep the spare key."

"Well, this is just courtesy politeness. If you don't go away, I'm calling the cops."

A thump against the door had me stepping closer. Not a fist this time. Probably his forehead. I stood directly on the other side, my heart hammering against my ribs as I waited for him to speak. "Even when it feels like everything's turning to shit," he said, "you can still make me laugh. I love that about you."

The mention of love had unexpected tears flooding my eyes. While I pulled myself together, I turned my back on the door and stared at the hall table. My mother's treasured photos took pride of place there, a collection of mismatched frames displaying all her favorite places and people. Mason featured in a couple of them.

In one of the pictures, he was sitting with Claire in a red kayak at Lake Helen. The two of them had been teasing each other mercilessly, and he'd finally put an end to it by slicing his hand through the water to drench her. Her blonde hair was plastered to her cheeks, and she'd been caught mid-laugh, the joy on her face bringing a smile to my own even now.

Another captured Mason standing between Claire and me beneath a bunch of helium balloons, his arms stretched across both our shoulders. We were dressed in our best, smiling for the camera at my twenty-first birthday party five months ago. Right after the flash went off, he let go of her to hook his arm around my neck and drag me in close.

I remember my palm flattening against his abdomen to steady myself while he pressed the warmest, softest kiss on my temple. The sensation of his body taut beneath my fingers made my cheeks glow and my stomach flutter like mad. When he picked up on my reaction, Mason pulled me in for a proper hug and let out the most delicious laugh beside my ear.

Another thump yanked me from the memory. "Sweetheart, we need to talk."

When he spoke to me that way, his voice all deep and rough and filled with a thousand unspoken words, I had no chance of holding out on him. With a fortifying breath, I opened the door and found him standing there, his eyes tired, his dark hair rumpled. As soon as I saw him, my pulse jumped, and the attraction I felt toward him hit me like a physical blow.

He took a long moment to survey me, his gaze sweeping from my head to my toes and back again. He let out a huff of amusement, and his mouth quirked on one side. "Well, aren't you fucking adorable."

I tried so hard to stop myself from reacting, I did, but I'd waited so long for him to look at me this way I couldn't stop a small smile from forming. "I rock the flannel."

His eyes filled with humor then he glanced past me into the house. "Are you going to let me in?"

There may have been a double meaning to his words, I couldn't tell for sure, but instead of wasting time analyzing it, I took a step back in silent invitation.

Mason maintained eye contact with me on his way through, his chest brushing mine with more pressure than necessary given he had plenty of space. Since I wasn't wearing a bra to provide the extra barrier of protection that I needed for a  situation like this, his closeness sent a shudder through me.

The hint of a smile I saw on his face as he passed by suggested he appreciated my reaction.

I held back the urge to roll my eyes and closed the door behind him. When I turned to him again, I found him checking out the same photo I'd been looking at right before he came inside. "That was a great night," he said.

"It was." I glanced at my wrist, still adorned with the silver filigree bracelet he'd given me for my birthday. I remembered tearing the gift box open right in front of him and fastening it in place while he watched, the expression on his face tender and oddly intimate.

It had seemed unusual at the time, but now...

Whenever I thought about all the years we'd lost, my stomach sank.

Who knew where we'd be now if our attraction had been allowed to follow its natural course. We could have been living together and making long-term plans, maybe travelling the world and seeing places neither of us had explored before.

"Why did you do what Claire asked and stay away from me?"

My sister only had to click her fingers to have complete control over my love life. Not an easy thing to accept when I'd always been so sure she wanted the best for me.

Mason rubbed the back of his neck and gave me a long look. As soon as he realized I wouldn't back down until he gave me an answer, he sighed and dropped his arm. "When I told her how I felt about you, she freaked out, and I figured I'd just hold off for a while. You had no idea what was going on, so it didn't seem like such a big deal to wait. If you could have seen her then--"

I let out an exasperated breath and glanced away to gather my composure. "That's the thing, Mason," I said, looking back at him, "I did see her. She's my sister, remember?"

He gazed at me steadily. "You know what I mean. She'd been living away from home for three years by that point. You only saw what she wanted you to see."

God. It was like hearing the same crappy song on repeat. "Only because she, you--everyone--insists on treating me like I'm fragile and need protection. You even did it tonight when I tried to take it further. You're a guy. The main thing you think about is sex. I know you only held back for my benefit, but what about what I want? Why doesn't anyone care what I want?"

It took a few beats for my words to sink in. When they did, Mason sighed. I expected him to deny my claims or at least try to justify his behavior, but he didn't say a word, and his calm acceptance had all the fight leaving me.

He moved over to the staircase, took a seat on the third step, and looked up at me. "I've been so focused on the way Claire treats you, I've ignored the fact I'm doing the same thing. In a different way, but still the same shitty thing."

I wandered over to him, wishing for about the hundredth time that we could press rewind and go back to his room where none of this had existed. "I know you're trying to protect me, look out for me--whatever. I appreciate the sentiment, but if we're going to be together, I need to know I deserve you. You keep shielding me from everything and treating me like I'm too simple-minded to know what's best for me, I'm only going to end up feeling like I'm not good enough for you."

He shook his head and let out a laughing breath, but there was no humor in the sound. "You never need to worry about not being good enough for me--and as far as the rest of it goes, that's not how I see you, but I get it." He locked eyes with me. "I hear you."

The heaviness in the air seemed to ease, and the anxious feeling in my stomach went along with it. "Thank you."

My life may have been linked with Mason's all these years, but we'd never related to each other in this way before, and I had to keep reminding myself it would take some time for both of us to adjust. I loved seeing the way he navigated roadblocks, though, as if he knew what he wanted and wouldn't let anything stop him.

The corner of his mouth twitched as he reached for me, and he pulled me between his thighs. With my butt resting on his knee, I slid my arm around his shoulders, happy we had a better understanding of each other. I just wished I could say the same thing about Claire. My big sister remained a mystery to me no matter how much I tried to decode her behavior.

"Does she have a thing for you?" I asked, the idea popping into my head for the first time. "Is that why she doesn't want you to be with me?" I'd never picked up on any vibes that suggested they were more than friends, but it was possible I'd been paying too much attention to Mason and not enough to Claire.

His gaze dropped to my lips before rising to my eyes again. "Tell me you don't really believe that."

My fingers had been gripping the back of his shirt while I waited for him to answer. I took my time unclenching them and smoothed the material with my palm. "I don't. It's just... no other explanation fits."

His thumb stroked the inner curve of my knee. "There's a reason," he said. "Two, I guess. I'll leave it up to her to tell you."

I frowned, more curious than ever now. "Did you always know?"

He shook his head. "I had no idea. She told me tonight after you took off."

So, not only had she shut me out but her best friend, too. I'd always been under the impression no subjects were off limits between the two of them. "What was she like when you left?"

"Upset. Wiped out. If you're thinking about calling her I wouldn't." The corner of his mouth lifted. "Not that I'm trying to tell you what to do."

With a small smile, I rubbed my thumb over his jaw, noting the huskiness in his voice, the tiredness in his eyes. He should have gone to bed after speaking with Claire, but he'd come to see me. I wondered if he felt the same pull to be together that I did, and how he could have ignored it for so long.

"Why did you decide to make a move on me tonight?" I asked. "After all this time, did you plan it, or was it just a spur of the moment thing?"

Mason's hand curled around my knee, his warmth seeping through my pajama pants. "The temptation's been there for a while," he said. "I nearly told you up at the lake a few summers ago. Remember when you got a cramp in the water and turned all cute and clingy?"

The first time he'd ever looked at me in a way that made me feel like a woman, when my stomach fluttered and my nerves buzzed with the excitement of being near him. "You mean when you got all serious and weird and wouldn't finish your sentence?"

He squeezed my knee in acknowledgement, and the ghost of a smile appeared.

Affection rushed through me, and I leaned into him, tucking my face against his neck much like I had that day, only this time I pressed my lips there and kissed the spot where his pulse beat strong and steady. Too much time had passed, too many hours carelessly wasted. I wouldn't let another moment go by without showing him how much he meant to me. "Will you stay here tonight?"