Chapter 5

Mason

It was Tuesday night, which anywhere else would be a terrible night to go to the club, but in New York, every night was a good night for a party. John and I had decided to go, me mostly because I couldn’t sit in my apartment anymore thinking about what had happened yesterday. Still, out there in the music and lights, I wasn’t feeling it, even though I really wanted to. My mind was somewhere else, and I knew John could tell. We were sitting at the bar sipping whiskey and Cokes like we always did when we started the night. We perused the club, looking for the girls we wanted to zero in on for the night. The place was packed with beautiful women, as always, but none of them were really catching my attention.

“So, I talked to that chick from the lobby of my apartment building again,” John said. “She is totally down for hooking up on Thursday.”

“I still don’t understand why you go back to a chick you’ve already been with.”

“She and I meshed well,” he said. “What’s not to understand? Sometimes I can’t figure out what your aversion to the past is.”

“It brings people down,” I said grumpily.

“Dude, you have been in a funk all night.” He studied me with slightly narrowed eyes, like he was trying to see into my head. “What the hell is up with you?”

“Nothing,” I said, shrugging. “Nothing, I swear. I just get this way after dealing with my family.”

“Right,” he said.

I didn’t want to bring up my ex in front of John, especially when we were supposed to be out at the bar scouting pussy. He didn’t need to hear my woe-is-me stories. Nor did I feel like explaining why this girl had become an ex. To be honest, I didn’t really know myself. My parents had always thought they were better Ava’s, but I had no idea what had really started the feud between our families. My father did screwed-up things all the time, but whatever had happened I couldn’t hold on to the past forever. Still, seeing Ava sent my brain all over the place, and it was seriously messing with my vibe. I was not a pussy, and I was not going to let myself fall to pieces over someone from my past.

“What about her?” I nodded toward a redhead. “You like the fiery ones.”

“That’s Sicily,” John said. “I slept with her three months ago. Batshit crazy is what she is.”

“Ha. Batshit crazy makes the best fuck.”

“That is true, my friend,” he said, clinking my glass. “But is not worth the pain afterward.”

I was trying to act like the big bad playboy I was, but I was struggling to do so. I was feeling something almost like guilt. I had never felt that way before, and now that Ava had fallen back into my life, at least for just a moment, my head was all screwed up. I felt like what I was doing was bad for some reason, which was new to me because I was the guy who was out all the time picking up chicks. Ava needed to get out of my head and soon, or she was going to mess up my game completely.

“That hot blonde looks like she’s making her way over here with her friend,” John whispered. “We’ll play it by their interests.”

“Got it,” I said.

“Hey,” the blonde said to me, biting her lip. “I’m Misty.”

“Hello there, Misty.” I put my drink on the bar. “I’m Mason, and this is John. Would you and your friend like to come dance with us?”

“Absolutely,” she said, glancing over at her friend.

I smiled and stepped down from my barstool, taking her by the hand. We walked out onto the dance floor, and I watched as she started to twist and move her body seductively to the music. I knew I should feel something, anything, about this girl, but there was little to no interest at all. I glanced up at John, who was dancing closely with the other girl, and he gave me a look reminding me to pay attention to the blonde. I stepped forward and pulled her close, and she started to grind against me. Normally that would give me a chub, but I still had nothing. I closed my eyes and listened to the beat of the music, letting it take me away. We danced for several songs with her grinding hard against me and my hands gripping her ass for effect.

She smiled up at me, flirting hard and trying to get me to respond. I looked up at John and remembered what I was there at the bar for, so I leaned down and kissed her neck. She smelled like strong perfume, and the scent almost choked me. I thought about the smell of cherry and vanilla that had been all over Ava, and it sent butterflies into my stomach. When the song ended, I sighed, visions of that kiss with Ava flowing freely through my mind. I wanted to be out with her, dancing with her, feeling her body close to mine. She was so different from the last time I saw her, and the fact that she was even more beautiful than before floored me. I had always measured women, consciously and subconsciously, against Ava, and I had never thought she could get hotter than she was when we were teenagers.

“Do you want to get a drink?” the blonde asked.

“Sure,” I yelled over the music, glad to not be forced to dance anymore.

I turned and nodded my head at John, who was already making out with the blonde’s friend. Misty giggled while watching her friend, and the sound of her voice almost irritated me. I walked over to the bar and sat down, ordering a round of drinks. I needed to drown out my thoughts. I needed to drink Ava right out of my brain so I could focus on more important things, like the hot blonde who wanted my attention desperately. The sound of the music pulsed in my chest as I sat there thinking about everything that had happened at the mattress store. I hadn’t even realized it was Ava until after the kiss, but before that, I had felt compelled to be near her. I had felt like I was being drawn into her, drawn to her, and the fact that I climbed across the bed and kissed her was surprising for even me. I was bold, and I usually took what I wanted, but not in broad daylight while mattress shopping and definitely not in the middle of a crowd of people.

“What do you do, Mason?” Misty said, interrupting my thoughts.

“Oh, I, uh, work for my father’s company,” I said, realizing she was still there. “York Hotels and Resorts.”

“Oh,” she said, looking down at her drink and then back up at me. “Wait, you’re saying you’re the Mason York? The bachelor of New York, the heir to the multibillion-dollar corporation that is York Resorts?”

“Yeah.” I gave a fake chuckle. “That’s me.”

“Wow,” she said, laughing to herself. “That’s hot.”

“What do you do?”

“I’m a student at NYU’s law school,” she said. “I’m in my second year of corporate law.”

“Nice,” I said, half interested.

“Maybe one day I’ll work for you.”

I scoffed. “Wouldn’t that be an interesting interview.”

“I think it would be,” she said, irritation in her voice. “You would be surprised just how not-dumb this blonde really is.”

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean to offend you. My head is somewhere else.”

“I can help you with that,” she said, running her finger up my leg.

“You know,” I said, grabbing her hand, “I appreciate the offer, but I think I’m going to bail.”

I nodded at the bartender, who ran my card quickly and handed me the receipt. I signed it and stuck it in my wallet before grabbing my jacket and walking away. The woman called my name in exasperation, but I didn’t care. I had to get the hell out of there. I felt like I was drowning and not in the way I wanted. Thoughts of Ava were all over my mind, and I couldn’t even focus on the sure thing right in front of me. I walked out of the club and took in a deep breath of cool night air. This was definitely going to be a problem.