Return to Her (2 page)

And he was sitting across from
her.

“
I’m so sorry, Cassie.
He’s an asshole.”

She averted her gaze, shocked that the
first thought she had after Dave leaving was how much she’d miss
her time with Mason. “Yeah, he is that.”

Mason rose and crossed the gap,
kneeling before her. Cassie’s heart sped a little faster as she
looked into his deep chocolate gaze. The frown contorting his brow
showed deep concern, more concern than her ex-boyfriend had shown
earlier that day.

“
You deserve
better.”

Cassie smiled, wondering if he really
meant it. For all his womanizing and smooth charm, she knew there
was a good man deep inside him. She’d sensed it from the moment
she’d met him. He talked a good game, but the man had a heart.
Mason was a hero, a soldier who ran into danger to protect his
country, but there was more to him than just that.

Early on in her relationship with
Dave, she’d assumed Mason was all pretty and no soul. When her
women’s group had decided to volunteer at a local soup kitchen,
she’d been surprised to see Mason there. She’d joked, asking him
what he’d done to deserve community service, and had apparently
wounded him. The look he gave her had spoken volumes. Later that
day, she’d learned from the chaplain who ran the kitchen that Mason
volunteered twice a month, every month for the past
year.

At that moment, she’d realized that
she’d assumed the worst and she’d felt terrible. There was another
man hidden inside the Mason everyone else saw, one she saw glimpses
of here and there that made her heart beat faster and her body
stand up and take notice.

“
Hindsight is
twenty–twenty,” she said, smiling.

When he took her hand in his, she
could feel a spark of electricity between them. She looked up and
he caught her gaze. “I don’t think you should be alone tonight,” he
said, his voice low and steady.

A soft sigh left her lips.
“It’s Saturday night. I’m sure you’ve got plans with the ladies.
I’ll be fine.”
With the ladies
came out a little more sarcastically than she’d
anticipated.

Mason shook his head. “No. You’re more
important than all that. Tonight you need a friend.”

More important?
Her?
Cassie swallowed the lump in her
throat. Which Mason was she seeing right now? The Casanova or the
other, hidden one?
The Casanova? No, he
doesn’t see me like that.
Why couldn’t she
be
that
girl? “A
friend would be great.”

For the first time all night, tears
threatened. Not because of Dave, but how considerate Mason was
being. A friend. He was only being a friend.

Mason grinned, and it did wicked
things to her body. “How about we make some popcorn, find a funny
movie to make you laugh, and sit here until you’re ready for bed?
I’ll sleep on the couch and in the morning, I’ll make some
breakfast.”

That sounded amazing. “If you’re
sure.”

“
I’m sure,” he grinned and
leaned in to hug her.

Cassie was shocked by the embrace, but
quickly took advantage of it. She wrapped her arms around his neck,
inhaling a little of his scent. His heat invaded her body and his
muscular arms felt so good. Her knight in shining armor had
arrived, even if she hadn’t really needed him. His caring still
meant the world.

She leaned back and handed him the
remote. “You check Netflix while I go make that
popcorn.”

Chapter Two

The following morning, Cassie sleepily
wandered toward the smell of fresh brewed coffee, rubbing her sleep
filled eyes. As she started to see more clearly, she stopped at the
edges of her kitchen and saw a shirtless Mason standing over her
stove. He was in his boxer-briefs and dog tags, which left nothing
to the imagination. Nothing. And, my God, the man was chiseled out
of marble.

Her gaze followed a tattoo curving up
one large bicep and onto his shoulder. Another piece of impressive
ink graced his muscular back, and crept to the other side, out of
her line of sight. His skin was dark and tanned from hours of being
in the sun, even his dark hair was a touch lighter at the tips, she
noted. When he turned to get something out of the fridge, she saw a
light smattering of hair over his chest, arrowing down to the
waistband of his boxer-briefs and disappearing.

Cassie’s nipples tightened as she
watched him move about her kitchen. Wetness pooled between her legs
and a telltale throb started there as well. Her mouth salivated
over more than the delicious smelling food.

Mason looked over his shoulder, his
lips widening into a smile. “Good morning, Sleepy Head. How did you
sleep?”

Cassie scuffed into the kitchen in her
slippers and robe, suddenly feeling very plain compared to his
gorgeous face and body. “I slept better than I expected.” She went
to the coffee maker and poured herself a cup, watching him flip
over a couple of pieces of French toast. “I didn’t know you were
such a good cook.”

“
One learns a thing or
two, especially working at the kitchen. I make a mean pot of stew
now.”

She smiled a little at the
reminder of how wonderful he could be. But then her brain reminded
her that the Casanova had probably perfected his breakfast culinary
skills to cook for all those women he took home.
Stop being so negative when he’s being so
nice!

Cassie finished adding sugar and cream
to her coffee then, took a sip, eyeing him over the rim. He had
been incredibly nice. He’d come to check on her when there had been
no reason he had to. And then he’d sat with her all night, watching
silly movies to make her laugh when he could’ve been out carousing.
Mason had kept his end of the bargain, sleeping on her little
couch, even when she’d offered him the bed instead.

Now he was making her a nice breakfast
in only his boxers, definitely brightening her day.

“
Thank you,” she said
suddenly.

Mason cast a glance her way, a tender
smile on his lips. He lifted the French toast out of the pan and
onto a plate. “You needed a friend. What else was I supposed to
do?”

He walked over to the table and
lowered the plate down before moving her chair out and motioning
for her to sit down. No one had ever fussed over her this much,
except maybe her mother. It felt nice to have someone take care of
her a little.

Cassie moved to the spot and sat.
Mason helped push her seat in. He went back to the stove, loaded
another plate, and brought that and his coffee cup over to the
table and sat down. “Is this enough? You want some eggs? I think I
saw some strawberries in your fridge if you want some.”

“
This is plenty,” Cassie
said. “You’ve already gone above and beyond.”

Mason caught her gaze. “You deserve a
lot more.”

That tell-tale lump came back into her
throat and her chest tightened. The way he looked at her made her
heart beat faster, and suddenly she wanted the Casanova to come
out. She’d never been wooed like that by a man and the desire to be
swept off her feet, to forget the last few months, sounded
wonderful.

Mason looked down at his plate,
breaking the spell she’d started to fall under.

Cassie felt dazed. How could she
expect to jump from one man to the other like that? She’d just been
cheated on and dumped. She had no business drooling over
Mason.

After a cleansing breath, she cut into
the French toast. As soon as it hit her tongue, she knew it was the
best she’d ever had. An unbidden moan came from her, and Mason’s
head whipped up. His brown eyes darkened to almost black as he
stared at her. That look had her twisted and tangled all over
again.

“
Good?”

Cassie swallowed and nodded. “Better
than good.”

A little smile hitched on one side of
his lips. “I’m glad you think so.”

The air was heavy between them. She
struggled to breathe, or to understand what was going on. “Do you
make breakfast for all the women you sleep with?” The question
sprang from her lips without a filter. “I mean, sleepover with?”
She added, trying to quickly dig herself out of the
hole.

Mason looked down at his plate and cut
another piece of toast. When he looked back at her, she saw the
same wounded look she’d seen almost two years ago in that soup
kitchen. “I know what you think of me. Yeah, I like having fun.
What’s so wrong about that?”

“
I don’t understand your
constant need to have a new flavor of the month. But then, what
right do I have to even ask? It’s your life and I shouldn’t judge.
You’ve been a good friend to me and I’ve seen the man hiding
inside, so I know you’ve got a good heart in there.”

Mason leaned back in his chair. “I was
a fat kid.”

Cassie looked up at him and gawked.
“What?”

“
From grade school through
part of high school, I was the fat kid who got bullied all the
time. Sometime in the middle of tenth grade, I got my growth spurt
and grew to a little over six feet. All a sudden, I wasn’t fat, and
the bullies left me alone. Then the girls took notice. Girls who
had laughed at me and taunted me suddenly wanted to go out with
me.”

Hearing his story made everything make
a little more sense. “So you went out with them as, what,
retribution?”

Mason’s hand froze midair as he lifted
another piece to his mouth. He lowered it as a frown crossed his
brow. “I hadn’t thought of it that way, but I suppose you’re right.
I dated them and quickly broke things off, moving on to the next
girl. I guess it started a habit I never broke.”

“
I’d think by now you’ve
exacted enough revenge.”

Mason stared at her a moment, his face
devoid of emotion. “Maybe I have. Maybe it’s time to settle down
into something a little more long-term, like you suggest. Find a
girl who I can talk to, who isn’t boring. Someone who will love me
as much as I love them.”

Cassie both loved and hated that idea.
She loved it because she’d want to be that girl. She hated it
because she more than likely wouldn’t be. And then she’d turn into
a jealous harpy the moment she laid eyes on the poor wretch who
landed her man. “I think it would be good for you. If you found the
right girl.”

Mason smiled wickedly and then started
eating.

Cassie joined him, enjoying the
breakfast he’d made. She watched him as she ate, wishing her Sunday
mornings could always be spent sitting across the table from him,
eating breakfast after a wild night of pleasure.

For months, she’d thought
that sensual side of him was bad, but now she knew both halves
would make him a friend
and
a lover. The good soul she saw inside wasn’t
enough. After so many weeks of seeking out the hidden Mason, she
realized she wanted all of him, Casanova included.

Do I want him? Or am I
just overly needy because I’ve just been dumped?

The thought gave her pause.

She needed to get her head out of the
clouds, see him for the friend he was trying to be, and leave the
desire behind. No matter how difficult it was.

Chapter Three

Three months
later…

“
I can’t believe Mason is
really leaving for a year! Why in the heck did he volunteer to
go?”

Cassie half-listened to her co-worker,
Ashley, ask the question, but she was struggling to take her gaze
off Mason enough to answer. Standing at the end of the hastily
arranged group of tables, he was talking to a group their friends
and saying his goodbyes, oblivious to her stolen glances. Cassie
wanted to be at his side, but she was trying to keep a little
distance. She didn’t want to monopolize his last couple of days
with whomever he wanted to spend them with, which is why she’d
invited Ashley and her boyfriend, Spence, to give her someone else
to talk to.

Mason wasn’t hers, no matter how badly
she wanted him to be. The past few months had been hell, so close
to the man she wanted, but he’d kept Casanova at bay. And she
feared she’d chase him away if she opened up and told him what she
really felt. Having him as her friend was better than not having
him at all—even if it was killing her.

Her stare drifted over him. Tonight he
wore casual clothes—a t-shirt and a great pair of hip-hugging
jeans, both tight enough to show off some of his hard-packed
muscles. They weren’t as sexy as the BDUs she often saw him in, but
then, she’d take him in a sack if she could have him all to
herself.

He had become her best friend since
that night on her couch. Now he was about to leave her because he
had a job to do. Logically, she understood. Her heart—well that was
another matter. In the last three months her feelings had grown and
she was struggling to hold the truth back.

“
He was going one way or
another. If he volunteered, it gave him a few options he could
control,” Cassie said absently while watching him.

“
Ah,” Ashley responded.
“Still stinks he has to go for so long.”