The Mason List (41 page)

Chapter 45

When
I was twenty-five…

“I still
can’t believe you’re actually at Sprayberry,” I teased Sadie as we sat on my
bed in the farmhouse.  She had come all the way to Arlis for the biggest day of
my life. 

“You and
me both.  It’s like stepping in a John Wayne time warp.”

I reached
over, wrapping my arms around her little body.  “Thank you.”

“Sweetie,
I don’t know if I can stomach anymore of this from you.  I’m afraid you’ll
break out in some outlandish Glee song.”

“Really,
Sadie?”

“Yes,
really.  It’s ok though.  I would rather see you bouncing off the walls, with
that ridiculous smile on your face than lying in a puddle of vomit.  And I have
seen both.”

“You are
a real bitch sometimes,” I laughed.

“I
know.”  She smiled with her sparkly lips.  “But sweetie, I am glad that you are
happy.  And I am glad it finally worked out for him too.  Speaking of our
favorite cowboy.”  She pointed at the bedroom window.

I jumped
off my bed and pulled the glass up to see his sweet face.  “Hey.”

“Hey.” 
He leaned his head in enough to kiss me.  I would never get tired of this.  Our
mouths automatically responded in that familiar push-pull of our lips and
tongues.  His hands ran through my hair and over my neck.

“
Hello.
 
You have an audience, who really doesn’t want to see the Jess and Alex sex
tape.”

I pulled
away, trying to catch my breath.  His blue eyes were dark on the edges as he
gave me an ornery smile, never looking at her.  “Ten minutes Sadie and then
she’s all yours.”

“You
better make it nine because it’s almost midnight.  You know it’s considered
horrific luck to see the bride on the wedding day.”

I crawled
through the window.  Jess grabbed my hand, pulling me out of view.  He kissed
me again as his body pushed me against the side of the house.  His lips were
urgent and desperate, making me gasp for air.  He pulled away and kissed me on
the nose.   

I was
breathing hard as I smiled at him.  “So why did you come over?”

“Maybe I
wanted to sneak in your window one last time.” He winked and then leaned in,
kissing me slowly as his hands slipped under my shirt.

After I
had agreed to marry him, Jess loaded up my bags and drove them right back to
the farmhouse.  He didn’t give a damn what the town gossips said about me
living at Frank’s with him.  It was my father’s opinion that had plagued on his
conscious.  Henry Tanner was important to him.  So I had lived the last few
months in my old bedroom as we planned a wedding for the first warm day in
March.   

“Jess, we
better um, stop.”

“I know. 
Fifteen more hours,” he whispered.

“Fifteen
more hours,” I whispered back. 

“Fifteen
more hours and you’re mine.”

“I’m
already yours, Jess.”

“I know,
but tomorrow you’ll promise to be mine forever,” he whispered.

“Until
you have no hair and no teeth.”

“Me?” he
grinned.  “What ‘bout you?”

“I’ll
stay the same.”

Jess ran
his fingers through my hair.  “You do know that I’d love you even if it was
gone.”

“Me too,”
I whispered, looking deeply into his blue eyes. “I’ll love you forever, no
matter what.”    

“Yeah?”

I nodded,
making our noses rub back and forth against each other.  Sometimes when I
looked at him, my feelings caused a literal pain in my chest.  I loved him that
much.  I loved him so completely that it lacked comprehension.  As we stood
under moonlight, I felt that stab right behind my rib cage.

“Alex,
get back in here,” Sadie hissed out the window.  “It’s eleven fifty nine.”

“Bye,
Jess.”  I kissed him one last time before he let me go.  I crawled back in the
house, feeling happier than I ever thought possible.

Chapter 46

When
I was twenty–five…

I
followed Jess down the fancy hallway of the hotel in Dallas.  Everything was
dipped in high end, designer couture.  Sadie would just faint in excitement if
she saw the place.  He unlocked the door and then scooped me up, not in the
traditional walk over the threshold, but a slung over the shoulder run with my
head dangling upside down.  I screamed as he dropped me down on the bed.

“You
better not mess all of this up.  Sadie forced me to sit for two hours to look
this way.  It’s not happening again.”

“You plan
on marrin’ me more than one time?”  He winked then turned to the straight-faced
bell hop with our bags.  Reaching for his tip, the man in the black suit kept a
crisp, thin line across his lips.  I wondered how obnoxious Jess and I would
need to get before a grin cracked on that guy’s face.  He turned to leave
without a word. 

I fell
backward on the soft bed; it cradled my tired body like a cloud.  The high
thread count massaged my shoulders and every breath I pulled into my lungs even
smelled expensive.  The joys of being a Mason, I guess. 

Holding
out my hand, I saw the flat, wide band with a dusting of specs imbedded like
bits of snow.  The ring wasn’t Texas-debutant-sized with a loathsome giant
stone; my perfect present from Jess was simple and plain with just a spray of
tiny diamonds.  I smiled, remembering the wedding and moment he had placed it
on my finger.  I had looked deeply into those blue eyes and promised never to
take it off. 

The
ceremony had been everything the residents of Arlis waited sixteen years to see
at Sprayberry.  Maybe not the elaborate gala dreamed up in the minds of the
society women, but a simple wedding with sparkling touches added by Mrs.
Mason.  I mean Eva Lynn.  She insisted I call her by her given name since I was
now a Mason myself.

Mrs.
Jessup Mason.  Alexandra Mason.  Alex Mason. 
 

The words
felt strange on my tongue.  It would take time; something Jess and I seemed to
have an abundance of these days.  The warmth spread through my limbs as I
thought of many happy, endless moments of just being in his presence.  I loved
being close and together without the iron claw of the past holding me back.  I
loved telling him exactly how I felt without my conscious hammering away.  Our
invisible rope grew stronger and tighter every day.  I felt complete and whole,
knowing Jess and I had an infinite forever. 

I turned
to look out the picturesque suite window overlooking the Dallas skyline.  The
building had a beautiful view of the city.  Tomorrow, Jess and I would board a
plane to Paris for our honeymoon.  I picked the one place I wanted him to see. 
The giddy bubbles of anticipation rose up through my stomach.  I would get to
see Paris once again, but this time Jess would experience it too.  Our trip
served another purpose; tie up the loose ends with my apartment and the life I
had left there. 

I never
felt like I’d given up a single thing by staying at Sprayberry.  I had made the
right decision; the feeling had grown stronger every day.  Once we returned
from the trip, I planned to concentrate on what to do with my new life in
Arlis, which seemed to be the million-dollar question.  The school offered me
an art instructor position two days a week this fall.  In Dallas, I found a
gallery curator opening but I would need to live part-time in the city. 

“You
hungry?” Jess asked as he pulled off his suit jacket.  “You didn’t eat much at
the party.  Caroline packed up some cake.” 

I grinned
at him, shaking my head. 

He pulled
out a container and shoved a few bits of Italian crème cake in his mouth. 
Caroline packed that for him, not me.  I watched his tongue lick a few crumbs
from his pink lips.  Leaving the white shirt untucked from the black jeans, he
fell into the fancy chair next to the bed.  I felt a catch in my chest just
watching him.  He was mine forever. 

Jess
moved his hand to the front pocket of his jeans then pulled away.  I knew he
was itching to check his phone. “Go ahead and call.”

“Nah. 
I've got to just trust 'em.  I know Skeeter and Bobby can do it.  It’s just
hard to leave.”

“I know,
Jess.  Try to remember a plan’s in place for every kind of emergency.  And it's
just ten days.  Then you can go back to exhausting yourself as their dictator.”

“Yes
ma’am, Mrs. Mason.”  He gave me a sly grin from his chair, waiting for the
crimson to appear on my cheeks.  Jess moved from the chair and crawled on top
of me.   “No more hours,” he whispered.

Jess
kissed me hard on the mouth as I tasted the sweetness from the cake.  His hands
slide across the silky fabric of my dress, over my waist, and cupped my right
breast.

I had
fought every single person on my dress; basic, plain, and simple with no train
or jewels, and no lace or tulle; and absolutely under no circumstances, a damn
can can.  Eva Lynn and I never quite came to terms on her idea of a bride. 
During one of our trips to an elaborate dress store in Dallas, I gave an evil,
sarcastic laugh and suggested cutoffs with a white tank top since we couldn’t
agree on the style of dress.  I thought I might need a bottle of good old
fashion smelling salts when she collapsed in the chair.  That little comment
won me this satin, slip dress.

Jess
rolled over on his side, pulling my body tight against him.  His fingers
trailed down my back and cupped the silk clinging to my rear.  Heat flushed on
my neck as I read his thoughts. “Are you wearin' panties under this?”

“Sadie
could see the lines.”  I looked back into his blue eyes, knowing I was right. 
I think this dress was the winner, just not in the way Eva Lynn had in mind.

“So that
sweet ass of yours felt like this all night and I didn’t know it?”  His fingers
traced deep over each butt cheek.  My heart beat fast in my chest as I nodded
yes to the question.  The plain silk dress was definitely worth every fight. 
His hand continued around and around, dipping lower down each thigh.  I kissed
him, matching the movements of my tongue to the pace of his hand.  He pulled
back; his eyes almost a solid, dark blue.  Rolling away, Jess set up.  He took
a deep breath, his shoulders moving with the motion.

“I need
to give you somethin' now, or it won’t be until tomorrow at this rate.”

My skin
felt chilly without the heat of his body pressing into me. “We said no
presents, remember?” 

“It's not
exactly a present.” Reaching in the side pocket of his suitcase, Jess pulled
out a packet and handed it to me.  I looked at the manila envelope, feeling a
surge of confusion.  I’d told him that I would sign any agreement he wanted to
protect his family and his money.  Jess refused to even have the conversation
with me.  Our wedding night was an interesting time to bring it up, but if he
wanted something in writing then I would agree to it.

“I told
you I would sign anything you wanted.”  I smiled, trying to speed this up. 
Quicker the ink dried, the faster we could get back to the silk dress and how
much I wanted to feel his naked skin.

“Al, I’ve
given it a lot of thought.  So don't think I'm throwin’ this at you lightly. 
Open it.”

My
fingers opened the top and pulled out something familiar, something very
wrong.  “Damn it, Jess.  What are you doing?”

“Look at
all the pages.  It’s not what you think.”

“I said
destroy that stupid list.  Now you’re giving it back to me as my wedding
gift?”  My fingers dug into the familiar paper as the anger festered.  “What
kind of twisted shit are you trying to do?” 

“I know
this is painful for you.  I know you’ve worked hard at lettin’ it go.  Maybe
you did it for me.  And I’m grateful.  But this was always bigger than me. 
That’s why I didn’t rip it up.  If you wanted it gone, you would have done it
yourself.  Look at the other pages.”

My
fingers flipped through the stack.  They appeared to be a contract and bank
papers drawn up for Alexandra Mason under something called, The Mason List.  “I
don’t understand.”

“I had my
lawyer set it up but I couldn’t give it to you until we were married.  I
thought ‘bout tellin’ you but I wanted it to be a surprise.  Just think ‘bout
it, Al.  I’ve got the money in there and some investments.  It should be
self-sufficient once it gets goin’.  So make it happen.”

“Make
what happen?”

“The
Mason List.  It doesn’t have to be a bad thing.  You can make it good.”

“I told
you that I had wanted to pay your family back but I realized it wouldn’t make
this better.  So I don’t understand what you are suggesting here.”

“You’re
gonna pay it back, just not the way you thought you would.  I want you to go
find her, Al.  The girl like you.  Help her out when she has no one else.  Make
her
hate
the Masons as much as you did.” A smile smirked on his lips.
“Make her angry.  Make her want somethin’ better.  And then, you’ve paid it
forward, which is a hell of a lot better than givin’ some rich family a check.”

I skimmed
over the papers feeling a pain in my gut.  I remembered Sadie’s words. 
Only
you know what resolution will give you a sense of absolution; a sense of
peace. 
I had made the right decision that gave the absolute resolution.  I
let it go so I could marry Jess today.  He was happy.  I was happy.  Since the
moment I gave Jess the paper, I’d felt a sense of freedom.  I slipped the pages
back into the envelope and looked into his sweet face.  Good intentions, not
malice, came from him tonight.  I knew deep in my heart, Jess never would hurt
me on purpose.  I wanted the happiness to continue, so I kept the peace; a
fight for another day.

“I will
think about it.”  Leaning forward, I kissed his lips. 

“You
promise?”

“Yes, I
promise because I love you.”  My fingers slipped inside the collar of his
shirt, feeling his warm skin.  I opened the top button and leaned forward to
kiss his neck.  Pushing the next one free, I undressed the boy who was now my
husband.  The anxiety of his proposition faded away as Jess laid me back
against that soft, expensive bed, letting his fingers run through the long
curls of my hair.

“You’re
still the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.” His breath felt warm on my
neck.  “And this might be the most amazin’ dress ever,” he whispered, running
his hands over the fabric. 

Jess
kissed me, letting his mouth tug on my bottom lip.  My breathing got heavier,
feeling his fingers touch me.  “Keep your eyes open, Al.  I want you to look at
me.”  He smiled one of those sweet grins.  “I never want to stop seein’ you
like this.”

My heart
caught in my chest as I gazed up at Jess.  It still felt unbelievable.  I had
actually married my blue-eyed boy.