“I’m too tired to cook, don’t judge me.”

Mason was home early. Home, because that’s what my house was now. For both of us. He was supposed to be at the shop late tonight, which was why I’d ordered a medium veggie pizza along with a side of ginger noodles and had a six pack of craft beer chilling in the fridge. I was enjoying the food and the beer. In nothing but my robe.

In my defense, the man fought dirty, and even days after agreeing to actually be a happy couple, I needed some time to accept my fate. To decompress. To let myself feel happy to have a man in my life, or maybe it was happiness over getting laid regularly. I wasn’t sure, hence the pizza and ginger noodles.

“Hey, a half naked woman eating two of my favorite foods with a beer in her hand? I’m not judging, just trying to figure out how in the hell I got so lucky.” He walked right past me wearing that flirty smile into my, no our bedroom and straight into the shower. I squeezed my eyes shut, willing myself to focus on Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant on the television and not the image of Mason, naked with water sluicing down his big hard body. I had to focus on the movie, on the beautiful couple falling in love and not on the way my nipples beaded against my silky robe, or the way I throbbed and heated between my thighs.

Dammit, I needed a break. Well my body needed the break, but it was that horny bitch who didn’t care about things like sore muscles and aching parts. She wanted Mason and she was about a half a second away from joining him in the shower. “Not going back there.” I had to say the words out loud just to make sure all of me was listening. But finally, at least three days later though it was probably about ten minutes, Mason emerged from the bedroom freshly showered, smelling clean and masculine. And shirtless. Blessedly shirtless with his tattoos and muscles on display in all their glory. “Because of course he is.”

“You say something, Cupcake?”

“Nope. Aren’t you cold?”

I heard the laugh as he walked into the kitchen and returned with two more bottles, dropping down right beside me on the sofa. “Nah, I’m fine. Is this too much skin on display for you?”

“Damn straight,” I told him honestly, shoving at his side though my hand betrayed me and my fingers lingered, caressing those side muscles that short circuited my brain. “Guess I’ll have to put on Thor or Captain America to distract me from all this.”

He groaned and I grinned. “Anything but that, please.”

I grinned even wider as I tapped the remote and woke up the television, pressing play which brought Julia and Hugh’s love story back to life. “Perfect, then.”

“Damn, I spoke too soon.”

I held my breath waiting for him to complain about the movie choice or the genre in general but Mason, as I was learning, rolled with it. He sat beside me all hot and hard and shirtless, letting his arm brush my leg as he reached for a slice of pizza. And then he just sat there, eating his pizza and drinking his beer with one hand, lightly caressing my thigh with the other. For the whole damn movie, heat spread throughout the rest of my body making it hard to concentrate on the happy couple, awkwardly falling in love. Then his thumb hit mid-thigh, rubbing small circles in that spot where the thigh dipped in just a little, the sensation causing fireworks to go off in my hot spots. “I think I’m gonna head to bed,” I said, standing abruptly.

“Come here,” he said softly, sweetly, grabbing my arm and pulling me down against him. “Stay.”

“Mason,” I whispered, biting back the shivers caused by his fingertips grazing the back of my thighs. “I can barely keep my eyes open.”

“That’s okay. I’ve missed you today, Cupcake.” He pressed his lips to that sweet spot on my forehead. You know the spot, the one that made a girl feel cared for and cherished. Infinitely desired. “I’m happy to be your pillow.”

Mason patted his lap and I frowned. “I’m not gonna blow-,”

He cut me off with two fingers pressed against my lips. “Just lay down, Cupcake before your dirty thoughts get me all hot and bothered.” He winked before turning his attention back to the movie and stared at him for a long minute before shrugging and getting comfortable on his lap. As the most romantic moment of the movie played, I closed my eyes and slowly relaxed as Mason’s strong capable fingers massaged my scalp. Sifted through my hair, wavy from air drying.

“Mmm, that feels good.” I couldn’t remember the last time someone did something like this for me, something just for me. Sure, Vivi and Maddie always made sure to do something for my birthday, but it had been a long time since I had this. Someone just taking care of me.

Probably since Aunt Becca. It definitely wasn’t something any of my past boyfriends had ever done—all five of them. Or maybe I hadn’t let them and now that Mason was in my space, in my home, I couldn’t keep my walls up around the clock.

“Do we have anything sweet to eat? Other than you?”

I smiled as my lids grew heavier and heavier. “Maybe in the fridge.” I made his favorite custard pie with rum and as sleep pulled me under, I was kind of bummed I wouldn’t get to hear his erotic delight as he took the first few bites.

Equally nice was the feel of Mason lifting me in the air and carrying me to bed sometime later. I expected him to go back to the living room, maybe get in some show on sports or tattoos, maybe porn. What I didn’t expect was for him to curl his shirtless body around me, wrapping his big arms around me until I fell asleep.

I woke up in exactly the same spot hours later, feeling refreshed and cherished.

It was damned addicting.