“What are you doing this weekend?” he asked, looking over at me briefly before his eyes returned to the road.
“Not sure.” I shrugged.
“Want to hang with me?” he asked with a crooked smile.
“Perhaps,” I allowed with a small smile.
When we pulled up to my building, there were a few bums loitering around out front. Denver was a pretty safe city, but it happened occasionally.
“I’m walking you in,” he told me in a way that wasn’t to be argued with.
When we pushed into my building without needing to enter the code, I saw his jaw flex.
“The manager is supposed to have it fixed by the morning,” I tried to assure him as he followed me up the short flight of stairs to my place. When we reached my door, his expression became more clouded.
He looked up at the flickering light above my door. “You live here alone?” he demanded, somewhat baffled.
“Yeah. Mason, it’s fine,” I emphasized, putting my key in the lock and pushing my way into my loft as Kodi immediately shoved his nose into my legs, greeting me with enthusiasm. “This guy is the best security,” I assured him as Kodi turned to sit in front of me in a protective stance that surprised me.
“I haven’t ever had a man in here,” I admitted. “He’s just trying to protect me.”
“I’m glad,” Mason responded in a calm, quiet voice as he kneeled to get on Kodi’s level. “Hey, bud,” he greeted in the same soothing tone.
“He’s good, Kod,” I assured my dog in an upbeat voice.
Mason held out a hand, fist closed, for Kodi to sniff, and I wondered how he knew what to do. “My brother’s best friend growing up had mastiffs. Some of them were more territorial than others,” he explained as though reading my mind.
Kodi sniffed him curiously, his countenance mellowing.
Mason kneeled patiently, letting Kodi circle his body before he returned to me, his tongue lolling.
Mason stood slowly as Kodi returned to his bed. “I still don’t like the idea of you here alone,” he surprised me by saying, his eyes scanning my loft.
I put my hands on my hips in frustration. I loved my place and had never felt unsafe. “Mason, no offense, but not everyone can live in a gated community,” I huffed. “This is a perfectly safe neighborhood.”
“Baby, the main entry isn’t locked, there are five drunk men on your corner, and you have a deadbolt that looks like it’s about ten years old on your door,” he argued.
I tried to ignore how him calling me “baby” practically liquefied my insides. “Well, it’s not typical for the main door to be unlocked,” I defended. “I like my place,” I added stubbornly as I let Kodi out, waiting while he took care of business before trotting back inside. I locked the door, watching warily as Mason stepped into my space.
His eyes softened as he reached out to cup my jaw. “It’s not about your home; it’s a great space. But there are bums loitering out front of an unlocked door, and you’re about ten steps away with just a flimsy lock separating you,” he argued. He looked like he was considering something. “Come back to my place,” he shocked me by saying. “Kodi can come too.”
I sucked in a surprised breath. “Mason, I can’t. I have to work tomorrow, and we’ve been on two dates, and…” I trailed off.
“Ellie, don’t get me wrong—I want you in my bed, badly. But tonight is just about making sure you’re safe. If I leave you here, I won’t get a minute of sleep. Christ,” he groaned, seeming stressed by the situation.
I couldn’t fathom why he cared so much; we barely knew each other.
“Mason, you’ve known me less than a week,” I said quietly, confused.
He squeezed his eyes shut before he took a deep breath. “I’m trying to find a way to explain this without scaring the shit out of you.” He sighed.
Well, that wasn’t a good start to any conversation, now was it?
“But I feel very…” He appeared to search for the right words. “…protective of you. I can’t explain it other than to say that I just, well, I like you a lot. And the fact that you plan to sleep here alone when your place isn’t secure and I can do something to change that, I feel a fierce need to do that. Please let me do that.”
His intensity should have scared me. But instead it warmed my heart to see how much he wanted to protect me. I didn’t let myself think about what had happened the last time I’d let myself get close to a man. There was just something about Mason. I wanted so badly to trust him. Despite everything, I found that I was starting to.
“I’ll make you a deal.” I sighed, looking up into his gorgeous eyes. “You can sleep here. Just sleep,” I emphasized. As much as my body warred with my statement, I knew I wasn’t quite ready for that next step. “How about that?” I asked with my head cocked to the side.
“I’ll take it.” He nodded.
Holy crap, he was spending the night! How did I navigate this? I suddenly felt unbearably shy.
“Um, I’ll just go get ready for bed,” I muttered.
“Need any help?” he asked with a wicked grin.
“No!” I laughed, some of my nerves lessening at his teasing.
“Too bad.” He winked. “I’ll just hang here with Kodi while you get ready.”
I nodded, starting up the stairs, intent on getting my rapidly beating heart under control.
“You can do this,” I whispered to my reflection after I’d finished washing my face and brushing my teeth. Despite my past, I wanted desperately to just be a normal girl, excited to spend more time with a devastatingly handsome, thoughtful man.
But I wasn’t normal. The anxiety making my hands shake proved that point.
I forced myself out of the bathroom, standing at the top of the stairs, looking down at the living room below where Mason sat on the couch, stroking Kodi’s ears.
He looked up at me, swallowing hard at the sight of me in my sleep shorts and tank. Then his gaze caught my anxious expression, and the hunger in his eyes turned to concern.
He stood and climbed the stairs but stopped three steps down from me, as though knowing I needed the space as he looked up at me.
“Ellie, the last thing I want to do is make you feel uncomfortable or unsure of me,” he rumbled, searching my eyes. “I know I’m pushing hard and coming on strong. I can’t seem to help myself when it comes to you. But I’ll go if that’s what you want.”
“No.” I shook my head, taking a deep breath. “I want you to stay.” I reached for his hand, pulling him up the remaining steps and into the bedroom. “There’s an extra toothbrush in the bathroom,” I murmured as I moved to my side of the bed, pulling the comforter back.
“Okay. Be right out.” He nodded, his large form making the upstairs space seem so much smaller as he headed into the bathroom.
I took the opportunity to burrow under the covers and was feeling marginally more relaxed when he reappeared moments later.
He lay down on the other side of the bed, on top of the covers, throwing a hand behind his head in the picture of ease.
I lay on my side facing him, my heart hammering. I needed a way to distract myself. “When did you start playing football?” I asked, latching on to the first topic that entered my racing mind.