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  I walked right up to him so that I was only inches from his body and looked up into his mysterious gray eyes. “I thought we had some unfinished business to attend to.” He leaned down and lightly swept his lips over mine. The warm, silkiness of his flesh on mine accompanied by the cool metal piercing set my body on fire. Mason slipped his hands under my arms, and in one swift motion, he lifted me up, turned us around, and sat me on top of the bar. Instinctually, I opened my legs so that he fit between them.

  The next kiss was not quite as sweet as the first, and the one after that was nearly obscene. His lips and tongue expertly teased and tortured my mouth, my face, my ears, and my neck while his large, strong hands caressed me from my head down my back to my hips. When he paused briefly with his mouth on my shoulder, I took advantage of his lull and repaid each of his tormenting kisses with one of my own. My inner thighs throbbed while the rest of my body buzzed with desire. His hands found their way back in my long, straight hair. He was massaging my scalp when suddenly he grabbed two handfuls of my hair and yanked my head back, offering up my entire neck to him. A raspy growl emerged from my throat and I felt my panties moisten. I locked my legs around Mason’s waist and pulled him as close to me as physically possible. He tugged on my hair again, harder the second time, and again, I couldn’t help but groan at the overwhelming jolt of pleasure that shot through me. I arched my back with my legs still wrapped around Mason and he lowered me back onto the bar. I was so caught up in the moment that I didn’t even stop to realize that we were in the middle of a public place, and even if I had noticed at that point, I’m not even sure I would’ve cared. The night had been such a mixture of emotions with meeting Mason and dealing with Ash, but while laying on my back on top of that bar, the only thing that mattered was Mason, me, and the fact that we both had way too many damn clothes on.

  “Oh my God, Scarlett. You are the sexiest fucking thing I have ever laid eyes on,” he said as he gazed down at me. I smiled at his gratifying words and lifted my right hand to his cheek. “You’re not so bad yourself, Mason Templeton.” He turned his face so that he could kiss my palm.

  “I need some fresh air. You’ve got me so worked up, Angel, that I almost forgot that we weren’t alone here,” Mason said as he looked around the bar to the handful of people who were pretending to be busy and not watching our steamy, bar-top make-out session. I blushed thinking about the guttural sounds that I had made just minutes earlier.

  “Good idea, let’s get out of here,” I replied. Mason lifted me up back into a sitting position and pulled me in for one more kiss. I could feel his hard cock pressed against my lower abdomen and I wanted so bad to reach down and rub my hand up and down it, but I controlled myself. I wasn’t quite sure what it was that Mason evoked in me, but I yearned for both his touch and to touch him like I didn’t think was possible. It was like my body was hungry for his, starving actually. Finally, I understood the draw toward the bad-boy image that so many girls and women could not resist. If I was Mason’s angel, he was my perfect devil.

  “Wanna grab a bite to eat?” he asked as he lifted me off of the bar and down to my feet. Oh, there was something I wanted to put in my mouth, but it wasn’t food. On cue, my stomach growled loudly. “Well, I guess that’s all the answer I need.” He joked and kissed my forehead.

  “Not really what I had in mind, but I guess that my stomach has different ideas.” I admitted.

  He grabbed my hand and laced our fingers together as we headed toward the door. “You’ve had a busy night, Angel. I need to feed you and get you home so you can rest. It’s nearly 3:00 in the morning. We can pick up where we left off another night in a place with a little more privacy.”

  Mason led me across the parking lot to his car, a new, black Infiniti G37. The car was gorgeous, but I was actually quite surprised he didn’t drive a motorcycle, which would’ve completed the image perfectly. When I told him just that, he jokingly apologized for disappointing me in not being the “full package.” I sighed over-dramatically and teased him, “I guess you’ll do for tonight, but you’re going to need to step up your bad-assness if you expect me to go out with you again.” Playing along, he assured me he was going to buy a motorcycle the very next day.

  We continued our playful banter over pancakes and orange juice at a local IHOP. I quickly discovered that Mason was a child trapped in a twenty-three year old’s body. We joked, teased, and clowned around throughout the entire meal. I had never had so much fun just eating with anyone except Evie. I wasn’t embarrassed to say or do anything around him, and I could tell he felt the same way about me. And even though we refrained from touching and kissing each other too much while in the restaurant, the physical ache I felt for his touch never subsided.

  When we reached my place, Mason insisted on walking me all the way to my door. I wasn’t surprised to find that Evie hadn’t made it home. I was happy for her, knowing that it had been so long since she had been with a guy. I actually was a little worried for Max, the poor guy probably didn’t know what had hit him once she got him alone.

  Mason followed me into the living room area of the suite. “This is really nice for a dorm. It’s a lot bigger than I thought it would be,” he said while looking around the place.

  “Yeah, Evie’s parents paid a pretty penny for us to have the apartment-style student housing. Usually freshman don’t get these, but her mom is on some president’s council here or something, so she pulled some strings for us,” I explained. “That’s Evie’s room over there and this one is mine,” I continued as I pointed to each of our doors. “We each have our own bathroom and then, obviously we have our common area and kitchenette here. And that completes the tour.” I said in my best fake, over-the-top HGTV realtor voice.

  Laughing, he grabbed my hips and pulled me close to him. He looked down at me, his gray eyes twinkling, and he pressed his forehead against mine. “I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am that you walked in my bar tonight, angel. You’re like a breath of fresh air that blew into my life.”

  I swatted at his shoulder. “Oh stop, you don’t have to say all that. I had an awesome time tonight. It was a night full of new experiences for me, definitely a night I won’t soon forget.” I rubbed my nose against his in an Eskimo kiss.

  “When can I see you again?” he asked. The question completely caught me off-guard. I honestly thought this was going to be a one-time kind of thing. I guess my face showed my confusion because he frowned and questioned, “You do want to see me again, don’t you?”

  I quickly nodded my head yes. “I didn’t think you would want to . . . I just assumed this was, ya know, a one-time thing. I’m really not sure how these things work.” Suddenly I felt extremely immature and naïve and it embarrassed me. I looked away from Mason’s face so that he couldn’t see me blush, but he wouldn’t allow me to escape my mortification that easy.

  “Scarlett, look at me. Don’t be ridiculous,” he scolded me and pulled my face back to his. His eyes were warm and sincere. “You told me that you didn’t want to constantly think about or be reminded of the things you have or haven’t done, so don’t dwell on it or beat yourself up over it. Like you said earlier tonight, just go with what feels right. You’re going to make mistakes and bad decisions, just make sure you learn from them or otherwise the pain, stress, and heartache you endure from them was all for nothing. Okay?” His thumb was stroking my cheek and I closed my eyes and nodded. Understanding exactly what I wanted and not disappointing, Mason covered my mouth with his in a long, sensual kiss.

  After several more kisses, an exchange of phone numbers, and plans for him to pick me up the following Friday for dinner before going to the warehouse, Mason left. Tired couldn’t even begin to explain how my brain and body felt. I took the quickest shower of my life, threw on a camisole and panties, and collapsed on my bed in a pleasure-induced coma.

  The alarm clock read twelve o’clock sharp when my phone vibrating on my desk woke me up. For several minutes I just laid in my bed
and stared at the ceiling, remembering the previous night and early morning hours. At just the thought of Mason, a wide smile spread across my face. His gorgeous face, his ripped body, the beautiful tattoos and piercings, his full lips . . . I brought my hand to my swollen mouth thinking about how it had explored not only his mouth, but all over his body. My upper thighs clenched as the visual ran through my mind.

  The phone vibrated again jolting me from my daydream. Begrudgingly, I crawled out of bed and crossed the short distance to my desk. I grabbed the phone and read my missed messages.

  Rat (5:44 A.M.) Had a great time tonight, Angel. Sweet Dreams

  Ash (8:35 A.M.) Just making sure u made it home safe

  Ash (10:07 A.M.) Let me know u r ok

  Ash (10:52 A.M.) Scarlett, I’m getting worried. I knew I shouldn’t have left you there

  Evie (10:55 A.M.) Scarlett, where are you? Ash is freaking out. I’m headed home now

  Dylan (11:10 A.M.) Morning, don’t forget I’m picking you up early today- 5:00. Can’t wait to see you all dressed up. See ya soon

  Ash (11:17 A.M.) I’m coming looking for you

  Okay, first thing first. I needed to change Mason’s name in my phone. I wasn’t having a conversation when I had to look at the name Rat on my screen. I also noted his disregard to follow the proverbial three day rule, or whatever the hell it was where you had to wait a set period of time to contact someone so you didn’t look too interested or some stupid shit. I never quite understood the idea behind this, I mean if two people really liked each other and had a good time on a date, why would they torture themselves in not seeing or talking to each other for several days just so they didn’t appear to be what they actually were—interested in each other. SMH.

  A sound out in the main living area startled me, so before I had time to mentally address the other messages and let know Ash that I was fine and that he could call off the search-and-rescue mission, I went to investigate. I opened the door and marched out still just in my tank top and panties only to see Evie and Ash sitting at the small table, drinking coffee. I froze.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked Ash once the shock wore off.

  “I was worried sick, Scarlett,” he explained as he stood up and walked over to me. “When you didn’t answer my texts all morning, I just got really concerned that something had happened. So I called Evie, but she wasn’t here so she didn’t know where you were. So we agreed to meet here to see if you were just passed out, like you were, or if we needed to try and find you.” When Ash reached me, he pulled me into a tight hug. “I was so worried, butterfly,” he mumbled into my neck. His arms that held me snug around the waist, relaxed when he finally accepted that I was okay, and they brushed across my bare ass cheek. A jolt of energy surged through my body the second his skin touched mine and his body tightened in response as well. My head snapped back and our eyes locked. We had already determined the attraction between us was undeniable, but to save my sanity I had to be strong enough to resist it. To resist him.

  As he moved toward me, I took a step back, moving away from him. Ash stopped and cocked his head, obviously surprised by my action. He took another step in my direction, but I put my arm out to stop his chest and shook my head. “I can’t,” I whispered. “I’m sorry.” My eyes pleaded with his to not push the issue. I was surprised that I had mustered up the strength to tell him “no” one time, I wasn’t sure I would be able to do it again.

  Ash seemed to understand what I was asking and he nodded his head. He reached his hand out to my face and brushed his thumb lightly over my cheek. “I’m glad you’re home safe, butterfly. I’ll see you tonight.” And with that he said goodbye to Evie, grabbed his coffee, and left.

  As soon as the door closed, Evie jumped out of her chair and grabbed a pint of ice cream from the freezer with two spoons. “My bed. 5 minutes. Brush your teeth, pee, and whatever else.

  Ten minutes later, I had responded to Mason and Dylan’s texts, freshened up, and sat fully clothed on Evie’s bed with a spoon of frozen vanilla heaven dancing on my tongue. She decided that she would go first on rehashing her night with Max since it was far less drama-filled and would take much less time discussing. Her story was pretty cut and dry. They went back to his place, did the nasty (which she claimed was “the best ever”), and he cuddled her and whispered sweet nothings in her ear until she fell asleep. They were awoken by Ash’s multiple calls and texts so their time together was cut short, but they had plans to see each other again later that day. She was completely smitten with him, and I was so happy that she had found someone she seemed to really like. I felt bad that I was the reason she was forced to leave Max, but she assured me that it wasn’t any big deal. She said she wouldn’t have wanted to miss the scene that had just occurred between me and Ash for anything.

  “Which leads us to what’s going on in your head and heart, Sammy girl,” Evie said.

  I raised my eyebrow at her, “Sammy girl?” I asked, moaning in delight while I took another bite of ice cream. I had never eaten ice cream as breakfast before and I needed to do it more often. What an incredible way to start your day!

  Evie’s voice brought me back to reality out of my sweet, creamy daydream. “Yeah, since you are letting other people call you nicknames these days, I thought that you were going soft on the issue.” I threw one of her numerous bed pillows at her head. “But don’t try to change the subject, I know what you are doing.”

  “What do you want to know?” I asked her.

  “Everything!” she squealed. “Ash, Rat, Dylan . . . tell me what’s going on with all of them!”

  “Oh-kay,” I agreed, eager to talk to her about all of the craziness swarming around in my head. “Let’s start with the easy one. Dylan. On paper, he’s my perfect guy. He’s drop dead gorgeous; not only is he smart, but he’s goal-driven and ambitious. He comes from what seems to be a normal family; he texts or calls me every day; and we never struggle for conversation—we get along great.” I stopped for another bite of ice cream. The freshman fifteen was starting to make a lot more sense.

  “Why do I feel a ‘but’ coming up?” Evie asked.

  “There’s a ‘but’ with all of them. If there wasn’t, we wouldn’t need to have this conversation, I’d still be laying in his bed,” I explained. “Whichever bed his is.”

  “Good point.”

  I continued on about Dylan, “So here’s the big ‘but’ . . . we have been seeing each other for over two months and all he will do is kiss me. I mean, he did more with me physically, like feeling me up and stuff, the first night we met before he knew about me being a big V. Since then, it’s like we have a PG relationship and it’s just weird. Not to mention, he can’t really think that I believe he’s gone this long without getting some from someone.”

  “You don’t know that!” Evie argued.

  “I only see him one day a week, Evie! He has never even once asked me to do something on a day other than Saturday. Either he’s gay or he’s fucking someone else! But the topper of all of these ‘buts’ is that I really don’t care that much. It’s not that when he touches or kisses me that it doesn’t feel good, because it does and my body responds accordingly. I mean . . . look at him. You’d have to be dead to not find the guy hot as hell. But it is not even close to the way I feel when Mason or Ash touches me, it’s not even in the same universe.” I sighed in frustration. “All that being said, it is Saturday and I’m going on a date with him tonight. I at least want to give something with him a real chance. I’m going to try really hard to focus on Dylan tonight and not think about the other two, and we’ll see how it goes. Unfortunately, he’s the one that I’m the least into, he is the one that’s probably the best for me and will be the one least likely to break my heart.”

  “That’s usually how it is, Scarlett. Welcome to the world of dating.” Evie gave me an understanding smile. “So where are y’all going tonight?” She asked changing the subject, and thankfully so because I needed to get going.
r />   “I’m not sure, he wouldn’t tell me. But it’s somewhere fancy so I need to leave here in a bit to go buy a dress and shoes, if you want to come with. I’m actually pretty excited. It is my first dress-up date!” I squealed. “We can talk about the other two and last night while we shop.”

  “Yay! I’m so excited for you!” Evie screeched with me. “I’ll help you get ready before I go meet Max. I won’t be going to Jacob’s tonight. Are you cool with that?” She asked me.

  “Of course I am. Evie, you have to live your life. You can’t always be worried about me, I’m figuring this out . . . kind of.” We both burst out laughing at the uncertainty of my last two words. “Plus, we aren’t going either. Dylan is going to bring me back here since he said it will be pretty late.” Damn, that reminded me that I had told Ash earlier that I would see him later that night, but I wouldn’t. Then I realized that it would be the first Saturday night in over two months that I wouldn’t be sleeping in Ash’s bed, and a wave of disappointment washed over me. Not only would I miss the few hours that we normally hang out together, but also the night of the week that I slept the best.

  As we headed out the door to her car, Evie said, “Scarlett, we haven’t even been here three months and you are already juggling three incredibly hot guys! I’m not sure if I should bow at your feet or stock up on tissues for future breakdowns or both?” She chuckled. “Better yet, I’m . . .”

  “What did you just say?” I thought I had misheard her.