I took his hand, and my eyes went wide when he lifted it for a kiss. His cool lips pressed a chaste kiss to the back of my hand, but the friendliness in his eyes overwhelmed me. He wasn't inappropriately friendly. I knew it was from the respect he held for Mason. It took my breath away for a moment.

"I cannot," he murmured as he let go of my hand. "I have not earned the right to use her first name. What is your last name?"

"Strattan."

"Mistress Strattan it is." His smile deepened an inch.

I wanted to groan as I realized that I would be called that from now on. Awkward. And if any of my friends heard him—no. I didn't have any friends. It didn't matter.

The front lobby wasn't big. There was a front desk, an elevator, and a small sitting area. As we went to the elevator and reached the 24th floor, I found myself staring at something I would've seen on a television show. The floor was modern and chic with white couches in front of a fireplace and a red table beside the kitchen. When Mason took my hand and led me to our bedroom, there was a plush white comforter on the bed with gold trim. The far wall was a floor to ceiling window, with a view that overlooked Los Angeles. It was spectacular.

"As promised," Mason drew my attention towards the closet. He toed it open for me. "You won't need clothes. My mom keeps clothes here for everyone. We have a few cousins your size and she loves to dote on them. When they come here, they know they don't have to pack."

"And you?"

He grinned and gestured towards the dresser that was painted white. It matched the comforter. "I keep clothes here, so does Logan. This is the place we use when we come to see her."

"You have cousins?" He'd never told me about them before.

"Yeah." A fond grin appeared. "They're crazy and spoiled, but I think you'd like them."

"From your mother's side?" Obviously.

"She has two brothers and a little sister. They all have kids. Logan and I stay with dad, but we try to see them every now and then. It's been awhile."

"How long?"

"Since the summer. We went on a cruise with our cousins. My mom was in heaven. She loved having us with her side of the family."

"Mason." My chest hurt. The question I was about to ask was one that I'd had for awhile. "Why do you live with your dad? Why is it so important for you to stay?"

He seemed taken aback as he sat on the bed. Then, with a somber expression, he lifted his hand for me. My heart pounded with each step I took until I touched his hand with mine. His fingers were cool at first. He wrapped his hand around mine and warmth from him enveloped me soon after. Then he tugged me between his legs. As he fell down, he lifted me with him to straddle his waist. Then he gazed at me. The somber expression darkened to something else, something that stirred my heart.

He spoke in a soft voice, "Before this year, it was because of football. We stayed with our mom after they got divorced, but the school we were going to didn't have a good football team. Then dad told us about your dad. He wanted us to go to Fallen Crest Academy, but when we actually moved there and toured the school, I knew the team wasn't going to be good enough to get recruits. So we went to Public. They got a new coach, someone I had heard about. It seemed more promising. The team was better. The guys were bigger, tougher. They were more serious about football, so we went there. It was the right move for me. I don't know about Logan. He's not as serious about football as me. I think he just played because I did."

"And now?"

His grin softened as he reached up and traced the side of my face with his finger. He brought it down before he cupped the side of my face. His lips touched my cheek, softly and tenderly. My eyes closed as he moved to my lips. Heat started low within me but rose at a rapid pace. My heart picked up, and I was panting before his lips touched mine fully. Then he opened them, demanding more, commanding more from me, and I answered. My mouth opened. As his tongue swept inside, mine rubbed against his. It was one of my favorite things to do. We were connected, inside and out. Then I wanted more. It was always the same. I'd always want more with him.

As he pulled away, I groaned, but grinned as I heard his soft chuckle. I rested my forehead on his when he panted out, "What do you think?"

I grinned, feeling silly from how happy I was. "Because of me?"

His hand cupped under my head and tilted me back. My eyes opened and widened when I saw the fierceness in his. "I won't get run off from you. I love you, Sam. I said it before and I mean it. I won't let your mom control my life."

When a thread of hostility slipped into his tone, my heart raced. I knew he didn't like my mother, but I was starting to wonder if he hated her.

He continued, "I was okay with her moving in. I had one year left. I didn't figure she could do much damage in that one year."

"What about Logan?" My hands lifted to his shoulders. I took hold there.

He shrugged as he bent and placed a soft kiss on my shoulder. Then he sat further up and slid a hand underneath me. He lifted me even closer so I wrapped my legs around his back. We were fully aligned together. Remove his jeans, mine and he could've slipped inside of me. I felt him harden against me. The feeling of him was intoxicating.

"Before you, I think he would've moved back with our mom. He liked our old school. He liked going to school with our cousins. Two of them, James and Will, are just like Logan. They're the three musketeers."

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