Louder Than Words (Fall For Me) (15 page)

CHAPTER 43

SUMMER

Yesterday (Tuesday) had been
horrible. First of all, I spent the whole day waiting anxiously for Mason to do
his grand gesture—which never came. That was heartache number one. Number
two was, I searched high and low through practically every store in the mall
looking for hockey gear for poor Danny … and finding nothing. Absolutely
nothing!! His first hockey practice is tomorrow, but neither my mom nor his stupid
dad had time to shop for the stuff Danny needs from his hockey-gear list. And
then
I
turned up yesterday with a big
fat nothing.

So, yeah, when I got to my locker
this morning, I was feeling low as could be. But now here I am: I open my
locker door and … all this hockey stuff falls out. I stare at it with my mouth
hanging open. Then my heart starts pounding. Because I look up and there’s
Mason. The way he’s looking at me, it’s like he’s been standing there staring
at me a long time.

“That’s my hockey gear—from
when I was a kid,” he says softly.

I blink at him. “Yeah,” I choke
out, my heart now in my throat. “I figured that.”

He leans against the locker beside
me and closes his eyes. “So … are we going to do this
?—
give
it a shot? Be a couple?”

My heart pounds.
I can’t believe he’s really asking me this. Him. Magical Mason.

The bell rings and I’m not sure
what to say. I want to jump into his arms and pant yes.
Of
course.
But yesterday—when he broke my heart to pieces by not
contacting me—I decided for the hundredth-thousandth time I should stay
away from him. My heart is too vulnerable and tender when it comes to him. I
mean
,
it shattered simply from him not calling me. I’m
not used to a guy having so much power over me. It’s scary.

“Look, I need to get to class,” I
tell him. “Can we talk later?”

His answer is a slow nod.

Then he says, like it’s a stupid
question, “Whenever you want.”

***

I sit all through class having no
idea what my teacher is saying.
If she’s even talking
English.
I’m in a dreamy daze thinking about Mason and how he stood at
my locker this morning looking at me with his gorgeous hungry eyes.
Hungry for me.
Wanting us to be a couple. The thought gives
me goose bumps and makes me smile. Mason’s hungry for me … just like I’ve
always been hungry for him. The thought washes over me in waves, filling me
with warmth. And filling me with excited certainty.

We’re meant to be together. We are.
Mason’s question from earlier seems like a no-brainer now. Of course I want to
be with Mason. I’ve
always
wanted to be with Mason.

CHAPTER 44

As soon as the bell rings, I rush
to Mason’s locker. But when I get there, there’s a girl at it, obviously
waiting for him. Seeing her, all the air gets knocked out of me.

It’s the gorgeous blond Mason had
been out in the parking lot with the day I’d left Jefferson High
school
. The girl that he’d had wrapped in his arms after
he’d pinned me in the janitor’s closet. Seeing her standing
there—obviously waiting for him—it feels like I’ve been slugged in
the stomach. Hard.
A total sucker punch.
‘Cause I
definitely wasn’t expecting this—him to still have girls waiting around
for him.

Everything inside me winds tight. I
really can’t believe this. Her. Here. After Mason said he wants us to be
together—as an actual “couple.”

But here she is—his biker
chick—in her high boots, and
‘Come
take me—I’m yours’
make-up job. She doesn’t look like someone who’s
been jilted or is just a friend. She looks like someone who’s ready for some
serious mackin’. And she’s impatiently waiting for it.

My heart sinks to the ground. And
breaks.

Wow, he’s still with her? I mean …
wow.
On so many levels.
It’s unbelievable, actually.
(More than just the obvious one—that he
said
he wants to be with me.) But what’s just as incredible
is usually Mason goes through relationships faster than me. In fact, he doesn’t
even
have
relationships. He
just has dates. And you really can’t even call them that. They’re just random
make-out sessions.
With girl after girl after girl.
Totally random.
Except for the girls have to be hot.
And usually blond.

Yet here she is—Blondie—still
in his life three months later. It has to be a first.

Though my heart is totally
shattering, my head tells me to take a deep breath. It says,
either
walk away and
never look back. Or ask this chick what she’s doing here.
I mean, obviously it’s only to see Mason.
’Cause, well, she’s
at his locker.
And she doesn’t go to our school. She either goes to
college or she has a career as a stripper or model or something like
that—something sleazy or sexy. (Not that college is exactly
sexy—but the one she goes to apparently is, like she’s majoring in it
[sexy] or something.) But the thing is, she wouldn’t be here, at our school, if
it wasn’t for Mason, so my head is telling me, find out what she wants. Why
she’s here.

The walking away thing seems
easier. Way easier. But my heart is still holding out for Mason…. Maybe she’s
just here to give him back his things or something breakup-y like that. Though
she doesn’t look like it.
At all.
She looks like she’s
here for a hot date.
With a hot guy.
Mason.

Swallowing down the huge golf-ball
in my throat, I finally trail over to Blondie and choke out, “Mason’s still
seeing you?”

She eyes me up and down, then mutters,
“Good question. He told me we’re over. But he’s said that before—and yes,
he does see other girls. Constantly. Well, other blonds. But he always comes
back to
me
.” Her lips twist into a smug
sneer. “So, yeah, he’s still seeing me—probably.”

I walk away from her without saying
a word. My insides are churning. She seems so confident—though she came
right out and admitted it, Mason said they are over.

It bugs me—why is she so
confident? It’s like she feels she has some strange hold over Mason. It makes
me shudder. I hate that. So much.
A girl with power over
Mason.
No!

Just as the bell rings, I get to my
locker. There’s another surprise in it. This time it’s a book. It’s a signed
copy of, “Broken Alley.”
My favorite novel of all time.
I read to
Mason
while he was sick, years ago. It’s a
first edition, and the book is out of print. It must have cost a fortune.

The world kind of swirls while I
stare at it—this book Mason had groaned about when I first started
reading it to him. But then he’d sat listening to it for hours—hours!
!
—
staring
at me as I read as
though the book took his breath away.

I stare at the book in a confused
daze. Stare and stare.
In wonder.
My
heart pounding.

I glance up, and there is
Mason
again. His eyes still hungry.

Barely able to breathe, I swallow.

My voice hitching, I whisper,
“What’s this for?”

“For being my life.”

Then he walks away.

CHAPTER 45

I blink, watching Mason walk away.
Head for his next class.
But no way.
No freakin’ way!
I chase after him.

I grab his arm and he stops,
frozen.

He eyes my hand on his forearm, but
he doesn’t say anything.
Just stares at it.
Slowly,
his gaze meets mine. He squints. “You’re ready to talk now?”

I stammer out, “Thank you for the
gear for Danny—and for the book. Thank you
so
much.”

He leans against the wall. “That’s
not the talk I want.”

I wonder if he knows his biker
chick is here—at the school. Looking for him. Waiting for him.

I push the thought of her out of my
brain—well, try. She said he told her they are over. If she has some
strange hold over him he’s obviously trying to break it. I definitely want to
help him with that. Definitely. I love Mason. I do. I hate that a girl can
wield power over him. Hate it so much it hurts.

I wet my lip, my heart pounding.
“What exactly do you want?”

He juts his chin. “I want you,
Summer
.”

I make this choking noise, and a
tiny smile lights his eyes.

It’s not that I’m shocked by his
words—well, yes I am actually. But more—it’s just … they came from
Mason.
This boy that has always been larger than life to me.
This boy that I’ve wanted forever … but I thought I could never have. Here he
is—saying he wants me. It’s almost too much for my heart to bear. It’s
going to explode from too much happiness.

Mason watches my eyes a moment.
Then he curls his fingers around mine and says softly, “Come over tonight and
I’ll make you dinner.”

He says it like he’s proposing a
date. (!!!)

I cough out another choking noise.
’Cause Mason on a date???
(Jaw dropping.) But the even
bigger whoa is: Mason … making dinner???
Mason???

I choke out, “Really?”

He seems amused by my skepticism.
But all he does is this adorable little shrug. “Come over and see.”

This warm tingling feeling washes
through my body as I think about it.
Big, tough Mason making
me dinner.

“Okay,” I whisper. “This I want to
see.”

“So you’re agreeing to give us a
chance?” Mason studies me for confirmation, feigning skepticism. When I nod,
the cutest smile creeps on his lips. “This
I
want to see.”

CHAPTER 46

The thought of Mason cooking me
dinner made my stomach tickle. So did his shy smile when he realized I was
going to do it—I was going to give “us” a chance. His happy smile made my
heart pound and practically burst into confetti.

We’re
going to be a couple!!
The wild thought had me seeing stars for the rest of
the day at school.

But the whole thing—us
dating—it was such a huge leap of faith. Handing my heart over to Mason.
Scary, scary, scary.
Especially now that I knew about Miss
Boots, with her short sexy skirt, and
come-and-get-me
smile, and her confident,
Mason-can’t-keep-away-from-me
attitude. Ugh! With that hanging over us we seemed doomed before we even had a
chance to get started.

But he had done all of this
stuff
—the hockey gear, and
the sweet book, and his offer for a date—(did I ever mention Mason
doesn’t date?)—
plus
he was cooking me dinner.
Cooking. Me. Dinner.

His actions were speaking way
louder than words—way, way louder. Saying he wants me. I’m his
life
. (Well, he actually said
that.)

How could I not give us a chance?

I couldn’t.

But like I said (many, many times),
it was scary.

If Mason broke my
heart.
If we broke up.
I would lose him.
Forever. I couldn’t breathe without Mason in my life. So, the whole idea of
putting our friendship on the line like this … yeah, it was scary. Terrifying
in fact. Had me holding my breath.

***

When I gushed to Zoey about my “big
date” tonight she insisted I wear her heart-stomper boots for the occasion.
Insisted
. She said she’d seen Mason
drooling at school that day he saw me in them. “His heart was stomped big
time,” she said.

She and Riley gave me a ride to
Mason’s house for “the date” since I still didn’t have a car.
Of course.

When Riley saw me in the boots he
smiled and shook his head. “Poor Mason,” he muttered with a grin. “The guy’s
heart doesn’t stand a chance.”

He kissed Zoey as he said it,
probably fantasizing her in the boots. He put his hand over his heart, making a
thumping gesture at her. Then he did this little howl (sort of) and attacked
her with more kisses. They were obnoxiously in love. It was … inspiring.

And oh
my gosh
!
Suddenly, I caught myself fantasizing about Mason and me double dating with
them. Eeek!! It made my heart speed up, but it also made me sweaty and unsure.
I mean, I didn’t know if I should dare let myself do that—dream about a
real future with us as a couple. Still, the thought made my stomach tickle …
Mason and me double dating with people. Doing all of that couple-y stuff. Pure
gold!!

Only, of course I couldn’t let
myself forget about Blondie at Mason’s locker this morning, looking
all smug
and sure Mason would come back to her.
“He always comes back to
me
,”
she
had said so confidently.

The thought made me shudder. It
brought me down big time. I never wanted Mason to have to choose between
me or her,
ever, because she was totally, totally his type:
older, wild and gorgeous.

So … did I dare let myself truly
hope Mason and I stood a chance?

***

When I showed up at Mason’s front
door, he eyed me up and down, making this
low, throaty moan.

 
“Thanks for the
boots,” he murmured huskily with his new, shy smile. (I LOVED it—so
much—Mason being shy.
Swoon!!
)

Mason took my hand and led me into
his house. The pure gesture itself made my pulse thump.
Mason’s holding my hand!
It was
so sweet and romantic I felt dizzy.

I cleared my throat, trying to
remind myself I’d been on dates before.
Lots of them.
Tons, in fact.

But none had been like this. Ever.
Because this was Mason.
And he didn’t do dates. So, all of
this—this whole experience … it was magic. And warmed my heart.

He whispered huskily in my ear,
“You look appetizing.”

His warm breath heated my skin and
sent goose bumps skimming down my body.

My heart kicked up to overdrive. I
cleared my throat again.
Oh man, am I
going to pass out?

“Everyone’s gone?” I asked, trying
to be conversational and not—you know, hyperventilate just because he was
holding my hand. But truly, I was seeing stars.

“Yep. My aunt found a place,” he
murmured, sounding pleased. “And Dad’s gone … wherever he goes.”

He didn’t seem too concerned about
it. In fact, not concerned at all.

“You’re my family,” he whispered
softly, kissing the back of my hand, then all of my fingers—each and
every one—sending sparks of electricity through my entire body.

The way he was acting—all eager
and attentive—I was in heaven. Truly. I was hearing angels and everything.
Holy Smokes!! This was the “couple Mason?” Me likey!!

He led me into his cozy, small
kitchen.

His eyes watching mine, I sucked in
my breath drinking in the romantic, candlelit dinner he had waiting for me. My
heart pounded as I took it all in—the scrumptious looking dinner, and
breathtaking scene. It was all so beautiful and thoughtful. So heartwarming I
could have burst into tears. I’m not even kidding.

My eyes welled up as I realized all
the work he must have gone to. The great care he had taken. It made my heart
melt like butter.

I breathed deeply through my parted
lips.
So proud and impressed and … touched beyond words.
At all of this—all of his beautiful, thoughtful,
heart-stopping
work.

My eyes growing wide with
excitement, I whispered in astonishment, “You made chicken crapes. That’s …
it’s my favorite!”

He breathed out a tiny little
laugh. “I know. That’s why I made it.”

“Mason,” I gushed in wonder, “it’s
all so romantic.”

His lips quirked.
“I’m trying.”

He made this glorious move, pulling
out my chair for me. But then he stopped.

“Wait, I forgot something,” he
said.

He ran upstairs, but the instant he
was gone, there was a sharp knocking at his front door. I figured he couldn’t
hear it, so I hurried to answer it—planning to get rid of whoever it was.
Fast. So I could get back to enjoying my most romantic, wonderful date ever.
Alone. Gobbling up all of Mason’s delicious attention, which was even yummier
than his tasty looking dinner.

However, when I opened Mason’s
front door, my heart fell.
Like a brick.
Crash!

There stood Miss Boots—all
ten feet of legs. Practically.

She scowled when she saw me. I
mean, truly didn’t look pleased.
At all.
She narrowed
her eyes, I guess remembering me from Mason’s locker today. “You’re who?”

“Summer,” I stammered, wanting to
slam the door in her face. Make her disappear.
From my date.
And Mason’s life.

She narrowed her eyes at me even
further, until they were hateful tiny slits. “Oh.” She scowled again. “He’s
talked about you.” She shook her head in disgust. “When he’s won a game he
talks about you a
lot
.”

She seemed to be shooting me
daggers with her eyes, going on disgustedly, “You know why he kept dating me?
He said I smell like you—that’s why he likes
me
better than all of his other blonds.”

Now her eyes were shooting me
death-rays. ’Cause it seemed she remembered something else—something even
more bitter
.
If that was possible.
It made her lips twist into a hateful snarl. “Once when he was kissing me wild,
I whispered his name. And then
he
whispered your name.”

I choked on my soda. “My name?
Really, he said
my
name?”

She growled at my happiness.

Just then, Mason came down the
stairs. He saw the girl at his door and went pale.

“
Amber …?
”
He stared at her and blinked. Like he was shocked that she was here—at
his house.
In his life.
Seriously, he looked
completely baffled and confused.

He tilted his head, frowning. Then
his brow rose, “Girls fighting over me?”

I huffed. “Isn’t that normal?”

His voice went soft and husky, “You
fighting over me,
Summer
? No. That’s not normal.”

He dragged his gaze away from me
and narrowed Amber another confused look. “What are you doing here, Amber?”

She gritted her teeth, then let out
a long breath.

When she finally spoke, she sounded
incredulous, like the thought was too impossible to believe. “I’m making sure
you
really
know what you’re
doing. You’re
really
choosing
this—this
high school
girl over
me?”

Mason nodded, like there should be
no question. “Yeah, I really am.”

I blinked.

A river of tingles raced through my
body. I wanted to fling my arms around Mason and scream, “Yes!!”

But I was too stunned.
And amazed.
Amber had seemed so confident at school.

She narrowed her eyes now, glaring
at Mason. Then she opened her mouth, like she was going to spout out angry
scathing words. But no words came out, just an incredulous sound to her intake
of breath. Then she snapped her mouth shut and stomped away, spouting swear words
as she bailed down the porch stairs.

My breath was caught in my throat
as I gazed back at Mason. “You chose me?”

He tilted his head, like I should
know this. “Summer, it’s always been you.”

My heart slammed against my chest.

I had no idea what the future held
for Mason and me—this new “we” or “us.” But I fell into his arms just the
same, so ready to give us a chance.

Mason held me tight. Whispering,
“Finally.”

Then he closed the door and carried
me to his waiting table—and to our very first date, where he fed me
chicken crapes … and promised me he’d do it forever.

Be my date forever.

My boyfriend
forever.

My soul mate
forever.

I guess what he was getting at was
… he was my forever.