Chapter Fourteen
“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” Darlene said to Cassidy as she lead-footed her Buick past road signs telling her to go fifteen miles per hour slower. “I can’t believe I’m driving Mason Hannigan’s girlfriend to the airport.”
Cassidy hugged herself in silent joy that felt a lot like nervous excitement that felt a lot like terror. “I keep thinking I shouldn’t be going, that I should be picking up Lex at school or working one of those shifts you covered.”
Darlene made a “get over it” gesture and navigated past a row of orange construction barrels. “Uh, hello? Friends here. Friends drive friends to airports.”
For the hundredth time, Cassidy checked to make sure her suitcase was there. She wasn’t used to going anywhere and there seemed to be a lot of things to keep track of. Thanks to her mom and Maxine’s half-price sale, she wore a pale blue sheath with a billowy see-thru overdress belted at the waist. Her sandals had a kitten heel. The only other heels Cassidy owned, she wore to church.
At first she’d gravitated toward the sophisticated couture dresses, but her mom put a stop to that. “Don’t try to swim with the big fish,” she’d said as though she could read her mind. “They’ve been swimming those waters a lot longer than you have, so don’t even try. The best thing to do is be yourself.”
Darlene punched it when they got to the freeway heading toward Victoria Regional Airport. Her rainbow and unicorn glitter stickers sparkled on the dash. Her favorite nineties band, Smashing Pumpkins, sounded from the tape deck. “So what’s the plan once you get to Dallas? Mason’s putting you in the wives and girlfriends box at the stadium, right? Because I hear you get catering up there.”
“I’m getting in early, so Mason’s sending a car to pick me up at the airport. I’ll meet him at their practice facility. After that, we’ll go to dinner. Sunday’s the game. Then I fly home.”
“Wow,” Darlene said like it was the coolest thing she’d ever heard. “Did you bring your phone? Can you take pictures of his house?”
“I’m not taking pictures,” Cassidy said. “I already feel like a hillbilly tourist.”
But her thoughts kept returning to things her mother had said while they were packing for her trip. You’re going to feel out of place. It’s normal. Not everyone is going to be nice to you. Try not to take what they say personally. Some folks are just mean, is all. But I raised you to be a lady no matter what, Cassidy Dawn, and that’s how I expect you to behave. The only way to hold your own against folks who are full of jealousy and spite is to never stoop to their level.
She shoved those thoughts aside. All that mattered was seeing Mason. Every inch of skin tingled at the prospect of being near him, of feeling the things only he could make her feel, of just smelling him. When he’d taken a quick shower at her house before going back to Dallas, she’d picked up his T-shirt and buried her face in it.
“Did Beth tell you that Parker Nolen came by Artie’s last night looking for you?” Darlene said.
Cassidy looked over at Darlene, hoping she hadn’t heard her right. “What?”
“Beth said he swung by your house, too, but you and Lex weren’t there. Is the man’s phone broken? Why can’t he just call like a normal person?”
Last night they’d eaten at her parents’ house. A send-off dinner, her mom had called it. Maggie and April were there, too. So why was Parker trying to hunt her down? A premonition of fear crept over her.
You’re being silly, she told herself. He probably just wants to talk about the trip to Disney World now that Lexie called and said we’re going.
“I’m sure it’s nothing,” Cassidy said.
“You think? Because Beth said he looked pretty het up for a guy who was tracking you down over nothing.”
Cassidy tried hard to ignore the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. “Do you think he knows where I’m going this weekend? Why would he care? Parker didn’t even start coming around again until…”
“Until Mason showed up, right?” Darlene looked pleased with herself, like she’d figured out something important. “Men are such fetuses. Parker wanted you in high school because you were Mason’s. That’s why he wants you now. But the stakes are higher because Mason’s even more important. So of course Parker’s going nuts trying to get to you before it’s too late.”
Cassidy stared blindly through the windshield. It must be true, she thought. This wasn’t about her and Lexie at all. It was an old rivalry that had started smoldering again. And Darlene had been the one to see through it.
“I don’t know why you waste your time at Artie’s,” Cassidy said. “If anyone knew how smart you were, they’d give you your own talk show.”
Darlene bugged her eyes out at her. “And miss this? No freakin’ way. Besides, when you and Mason get married, I’m totally hitting y’all up for Super Bowl tickets.”
* * * *
Mason saw Cassidy from across the practice facility and all he could think was Baby, you’re here.
She looked so beautiful standing there, natural and unaffected in her gauzy blue dress. He had a sudden savage urge to know what that dress looked like on the floor, to have her warm and naked in his arms. But when he started toward her and she recognized him, the only thing he could see were her eyes, clear and shining as church windows, which made his heart thump even harder.
He wanted so badly for this to work. It had to work. And it was tough because his usual Mr. Proactive Guy self wasn’t going to get the job done. No, this situation required patience, listening, maybe even a little intuition. Because he could tell just by the way she clutched her purse in front of her that the whole Dallas thing was a bit overwhelming. Everything he owned was big, splashy and over-the-top.
This might be his only chance to make her feel at home.
But when she gazed up at him, every part of him came alive, switches and levers and pulleys all cranking at once. Here in the reception area in front of visitors, secretaries and even a few teammates, he gathered her up and kissed her. There was no hesitation in her touch. Her lips were soft and yielding, which made his desire leap like a wall of flame. She was everything he wanted, everything he’d been looking for, and now she was here.
“I want to be alone with you,” he whispered.
She clasped his T-shirt as though the kiss had made her dizzy. “I want to be alone with you, too.”
“I’m just finishing up. Then I thought we’d go grab something to eat before I take you home and…”
“And what?”
“Do unspeakable things to your naked body. But first, I need a shower, so you’ll actually want me to do unspeakable things to your naked body. Be right back.”
He got her settled in a chair in the lobby and then speed-walked toward the locker rooms. Game plan, Hannigan. Actually, two games—the one that mattered, and the one tomorrow night against the Giants. He knew that Coach Lemery frowned on sexy time before a major game, but Mason found that sex sharpened his focus. He planned on having a lot of it, too. In lots of different positions. But he also planned on winning that game.
He stuck his head inside the meeting room to ask Coach Lemery a question about a game play. Jasper was studying the playbook with defensive end Brett Fulbright, who was kind of an asshole.
“I see you managed to get Cassidy to come up for a visit,” Jasper said. “Whaddya do, send her dick pics using someone else’s dick?”
Brett snorted, but Mason told Jasper, “I tried sending yours but couldn’t find it.”
“Hey, Hannigan, that’s your girl out there, right?” Brett asked. “Going for some of that horny farm girl action, eh? Bet that cooch tastes sweeter than canned peaches.”
Mason’s blood pressure shot up a few hundred points. He swung his gaze to Brett.
“Careful there, buddy,” Jasper warned Brett. “You don’t want to piss him off. Not about this one.” He took Mason by the arm and escorted him to the hallway. “Don’t waste your energy. Brett can’t help running his mouth.”
Mason felt his own muscles straining against the skin. “I’d like to run his mouth into the goddamn ground.”
Jasper grinned. “Look at you, all manly and shit. Nah, fuck it. Save it for the game.”
Together, they walked to the locker room, Jasper complaining how the new helmets prevented him from hearing the plays and Mason trying hard to cool down. Goddamn Fulbright. That guy was such a turd. Then Mason reminded himself that Cassidy was here, and if he got his jock in a wad, she’d be the first to know. Chill.
“You haven’t heard a goddamn word I said,” Jasper told him while they were getting dressed after showering. “Might as well be talking to myself.”
Mason splashed a little of his best cologne on the back of his neck. “I heard you. They postponed your sex change surgery and now you’re pissed off about it.”
Jasper flipped him the bird. “So where are you taking Cassidy tonight?”
“Casa de Velas. I think she’ll like it there.”
“Tex-Mex, always a good choice. I see you’re putting some thought into this. For a change.”
Mason adjusted the collar on his shirt. His sister Shari always said he didn’t look like a douche in a white dress shirt. He wore it with jeans and his favorite cowboy boots. But his pulse kept jumping because he was nervous, he couldn’t stop smiling because he was going out with Cassidy, and he still wanted to beat the shit out of Fulbright because that guy had it coming.
“Do I get to say hello to your girl?” Jasper asked. “I ate with her folks, you know. I’m practically family.”
They headed out to the lobby, stopping to ask Coach Lemery that question about the new pass pattern. Mason looked up and saw Brett Fulbright sitting way too close to Cassidy. He was practically on top of her and she was seated in the next chair.
Mason’s hands curled into fists. He was going to kill that fucker.
“Whoa there, big guy,” Jasper said after a quick goodbye to Coach Lemery. “You can’t smash his face in. We need him for the game tomorrow.”
“Fuck that. I’m putting that asshole on injured reserve.” He strode toward them, still too far to hear what Fulbright was telling her but close enough to see him lean in and Cassidy shrink away. She had her body pressed against the back of her chair.
This wasn’t how they were starting their romantic evening together. Not with Fulbright practically salivating down her top.
“That Neanderthal crap never plays well with the ladies,” Jasper warned him. “Think what you’re doing.”
Deep breath, Mason told himself. Focus on Cassidy. Don’t fuck this up. Don’t smash Brett’s face in.
“Hey, baby,” he said to Cassidy. “Ready to go?”
She looked so relieved. Brett raked his gaze over her as she scrambled away, and for just a second Mason locked eyes with the guy and gave him an evil smile.
“You look beautiful,” Jasper told her. He and Cassidy hugged. “So glad you could make it to Dallas.”
He slung one arm over Mason’s shoulder, another arm over hers, and hustled them away.
Once he got them out to the parking lot, Jasper kissed Cassidy goodbye, gave Mason a half-hearted punch to the chest and then ambled back inside.
Mason smiled. As far as friends went, Jasper didn’t suck.
“Sorry about Fulbright,” he said, escorting Cassidy to his car. “The guy has a serious personality disorder.”
She still looked a little rattled. Another woman might have been flattered by Brett’s attentions. But not a true heart like his Cassidy. If she was his. Which he was certainly planning on making her, if he could.
Now he felt nervous again.
He popped open the passenger door on his Porsche Spyder. It was his favorite car, so of course he wanted to impress her with it. Her eyes widened when she saw it.
“This is your car? Wow.”
He did an inner fist pump, closed the door after her and then got in on the other side. They were alone together. Finally.
Mason leaned across the seat, slid his fingers into her thick, warm hair and then brought her lips to his.
The kiss instantly went from sexy to insatiable. It had only been a few days since he’d seen her, but it might as well have been years. His heart began a driving, relentless rhythm. His pants got uncomfortably tight. She smelled delicious, utterly female. Her scent poured into him, filling all the cracks and crevices that had been missing her. He wanted more of it. All of it. She was like a fever he couldn’t get rid of, and when she placed her hand delicately between his legs, he almost jolted right out of his seat.
“In any parking lot but this one,” he said, imagining teammates or fans finding him and Cassidy half naked in the car. That was a good way to get yourself on the front page of the National Enquirer.
Flushed and breathless, Cassidy ran her hands over her dress, putting it right again. She gave him a dazed, apologetic smile.
“Let’s get out of here.” Mason started the engine and put the car in reverse. “I’ve got some things I want to show you.”
It was tough, focusing on the road when the woman he loved sat beside him. Funny how when Anna rode shotgun, the whole dynamic felt off. But Cassidy looked perfect in that seat, and he could tell she really dug the car, which made him feel great. He pointed out places he’d been or wanted to go, what history he could remember about the downtown area, and then purposely took a detour, going extra slow when they passed a beautiful old building set inside rolling parkland. The sign at the gate read Beckwith Academy.
“That’s supposed to be one of the best schools in the country for dyslexic kids,” he said offhand. “One of the guys has three kids, all dyslexic. He says they love it.”
While Cassidy craned her neck to look, Mason gave himself a mental back pat. Agenda? Fuck yeah, he had an agenda. Nobody did footwork like he did footwork. He’d asked damn near everyone he knew if they had a lead on possible schools for Lexie. He hadn’t forgotten the night Cassidy told him that Cuervo just didn’t have the resources to handle kids with learning disabilities. And now, lo and behold, they were in front of Beckwith Academy.
Score one for the Masonator.
“It must cost a fortune,” Cassidy said wistfully. “Lexie’s teachers try their best, but with so many kids in a classroom, it just isn’t possible to give Lexie the extra time she needs.”
He shrugged. “No more expensive than any other private school.”
“Lexie’s failing social studies,” Cassidy admitted. “I haven’t told anybody that.”
“Does she hate studying about pilgrims and the exports of Guatemala? Can’t say as I blame her.”
“No, mostly it’s the reading. It takes her a long time to finish one chapter and by then they’re on to the next.”
He let the bait dangle on the hook a minute longer and then kept driving. A sweet, happy kid like Lexie needed way more than what Cuervo could provide her. Jasper told him how beat down a dyslexic got by a school system that just wasn’t equipped to provide special services. And hell, Mason hadn’t met a problem yet he couldn’t tackle.
The sun had set by the time they pulled up to Casa de Velas. Clear glass lanterns with candles in them hung from the trees and lit a path to the restaurant. When Mason stepped out of the car and handed his keys to the valet, the smell of Mexican food made his mouth water. So did seeing Cassidy in the candlelight.
“What do you think?” he asked her.
“Oh, Mason, it’s beautiful. Like what I always imagined Mexico must look like. Not that I’ve ever been, of course, but I’ve seen photos.” She took his arm and they walked through a garden of palm trees and then past a fountain tiled mosaic-style in glazed terracotta. Having her next to him, Mason couldn’t remember ever feeling such a sense of contentment.
The maître d’ took them to their own private balcony that glowed with candles and a fire burning in a chiminea that resembled a squat, adobe gourd. Spotting the silverware glinting on the table, the fancy linen napkins folded to look like swans, Mason made a mental note to thank Ruth for suggesting the place. Then he took off his jacket because with all that heat, he was already sweating.
Dinner was grade A, which meant he had to take pains not to wolf it. The balcony was private and the waitstaff were instructed to keep it that way, so no one bothered him for autographs.
“First time I went to Mexico was with my family,” he said. “My dad had way too many shots of tequila and my mom came down with that stomach bug gringos get. So guess who got to drive?”
“How old were you?”
“Fourteen. But I’m pretty sure it’s legal over there. How about you? Any family vacation disaster stories?”
A shadow flitted across Cassidy’s face, so quickly that Mason wasn’t sure he’d actually seen it. “Nothing special,” she said. “I’m usually working, so we don’t really go anywhere.”
Yet as the evening wore on, other needs reasserted themselves. He could see it in her eyes, the way she played with her hair, how she ran one finger around the rim of her wine glass. The fact that she was just as ready as he was gave him one hell of a rush.
He paid quickly and they left. On the car ride home, all he could think about was the way she sat with her thighs pressed together, like parting them would lead to all kinds of wickedness. His blood heated at the thought. Now he was driving too fast and there was no guarantee any cops pulling him over were Lone Stars fans.
In his previous fantasies about showing Cassidy the house, he’d taken his time. Given her a tour. Now he sped up the driveway and floored it into the garage. She didn’t even seem to mind. He herded her into the living room, where the pool was, and then closed the huge double doors.
Cassidy stood facing him, eyes luminous, lips slightly parted. He walked toward her and his heart thundered so loudly he could hear the roaring in his ears. She was here. She was his.
Now all he had to do was convince her to stay.