“You’re wrong,” he replied. “Everybody’s looking for acceptance, and they try to find it by acting perfect.”
I inhaled shakily and glanced at him hesitantly. How did he do that? How could he pack so much truth into so few words and drive them straight into my chest?
“I’ll tell you a secret, though.” He bumped his forehead against mine gently. “I’m too fucking old to even pretend.”
I spluttered a small chuckle and shook my head.
“I’m serious.” He smiled. “I’ll be fifty in three years. Can you believe that?” Then he sighed and scrubbed his hands over his face, sobering. “I’m far from perfect. I have two ex-wives who say I’m impossible to communicate with. I can’t chase you down without straining something. I can quite happily go to bed at nine in the evening—preferably on the couch in front of the news. And I hurt my back last night when I repainted the kitchen.”
The damn butterflies were back.
I slipped my hand into his and threaded our fingers together.
“I think you’re pretty great at communicating.”
He squeezed my hand. “You’re easy to talk to.”
That was it. He’d ripped away the last of my defenses.
It was scary as hell to open up to the possibility of a new future, but…did I have a choice? Mason was irresistible. I’d never felt so incredibly drawn to another person’s heart before.
“This is what I want, Lis.” He held up our hands. “I want you to give us a chance. No pretending, no forced perfection that’ll fade within months. Just us.”
Just us.
I swallowed hard and nodded. “Okay. Just us. And…my legs aren’t always this silky smooth.”
He snorted softly and shook his head. “I love that I never know what you’re gonna say.”
I smiled sheepishly. “I’m just warning you.”
“I don’t need any warnings, Lissa Calvert.” He leaned in and kissed me quickly. Too quickly. “And I cannot tell you how much I don’t care about whether or not your legs are shaved. As far as I’m concerned, you’re just a beautiful face stuck to a pair of perfect tits.”
I choked on a breath, and he laughed—probably at my expression.
“I’m glad I can surprise you too.” He stood up and smirked down at me. “I should’ve mentioned your fantastic ass as well, though. And—okay, never mind. The list goes on, but legs are legs, shaved or not.”
I slapped my hands over my face and giggled.
“Come on,” he chuckled. “Let’s sneak downstairs and act like we haven’t been holed up here the past twenty minutes.”
I waved that off and stood up too. “If Matt’s here, there can be an earthquake without Aurora noticing, and William… Well, you know.”
Mason’s eyes sparked up with amusement. “We’re still related, you know. I don’t know that I’ll always notice when something’s new.”
“In other words, I’ve had plenty of practice,” I teased.
He laughed under his breath. “I’m glad you see it that way.”
Seven
Okay, so we were just going to tick off all the stages where I looked freaking awful, then?
Friday had been a cakewalk compared to Saturday. I’d gotten away with rearranging boxes to make room for the heavy furniture the men hauled inside. On Saturday, no such luck.
I had an easy start when I made breakfast wraps for everyone, but after that, it was all hard work. Brady, Kelly, and Mason carried two king-size beds upstairs, which took a lot of time, and to be honest, it looked like it hurt like a bitch. Both Kelly and Mason appeared to be struggling. It was marginally comforting when it was my turn to wrestle the entertainment center into place in the living room. Well, William did most of the work, but I wasn’t a fucking giant.
By ten o’clock, I was sweating buckets, and I’d shed my hoodie.
I hadn’t seen my nephew in almost four years, and he was due to arrive with his girlfriend in a couple hours. I suppose I was destined to make an unkempt impression.
A cold breeze entered the house from outside, and I looked out to see a truck pulling up.
“It has to be the couches,” I said.
William nodded and peered into the kitchen where Matt was assembling the kitchen table. “Princess, you can handle the chairs, right? I need Matt’s assistance.”
Of course Aurora was in there as well.
Joining William in the doorway, I spotted our daughter wiping down the new cupboards. What a convenient task for her while Matt was in the same room, coincidentally shirtless. He’d shed his tee around the same time Brady had.
“All right, table’s done.” Matt got off the floor and placed a level on the surface to see if it was straight. “Hot damn, I’m awesome at this.”
William smiled stiffly. “Yes, you’re fantastic, son. Let’s go.”
Ohh, now I got it. The ex-husband was painfully aware of Aurora’s gawking, and he was still waiting for her to get over her “puppy crush.”
I patted his arm and stifled my grin.
He narrowed his eyes at me. “She’ll get over it,” he muttered under his breath.
“Of course.” I humored him. Then I left the doorway and hollered up the stairs. “Mason, are we expecting more of your things from Arizona? I couldn’t find any kitchen stuff among the boxes in the garage earlier.”
“Uh, no. I think everything’s arrived.” He came closer and started descending the stairs, while wiping his forehead with the bottom of his T-shirt. He had such a lovely body. “The kitchen wasn’t really my area. Meghan took all that.”
“Ah. So…we should go shopping soon, yes?” I grinned impishly.
He chuckled and reached the last step. “There are websites where you can order fully stocked—” He stopped right there, and he must’ve seen my unamused expression. “That was the wrong response. Of course we’re going shopping.” Much better. He took the last step and peered over me, maybe making sure we were out of sight, and then he
