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“Can I talk now?” He asked, his feet shuffling closer. I nodded but didn’t look up at him. “I left, Lauren, because I was falling in love with you, and I knew”—he paused, his voice breaking—“I knew that I couldn’t deal with it.” He stepped closer. My lips parted, and I looked up at him, trying to hide my surprise. His eyes scanned my face. “I didn’t want to hurt you. I was not in a good place, and I—I’m not a good person sometimes, Lauren.” His brow furrowed, and his lips pressed thinly. “I make bad choices that hurt people.” He chewed his lip, his eyes locked on mine. “I didn’t realize what an idiot I was for leaving, until now.” He leaned in close. The touch of his breath caressed my face. I was panicking. “I’m in love with you, Lauren,” he whispered.
I bit my lip, fighting hard against the tears. “I’m sorry, Mason, but you can’t come walking back into my life and think that I will choose you.” I choked back the tears. Why was this happening to me? “That’s not how I work.”
“I know.” His voice was nearly inaudible, eyes filled with sorrow. “It’s selfish of me to tell you this. But then you knew that about me, right? Mason the selfish and reckless rich kid who never thinks before he speaks.” His fingers grazed lightly along my jawline. “Just like how I left because I was in love with you.”
My eyes widened my head shaking as I backed away. “I—I can’t do this, Mason,” I scoffed, then turned and walked away from him. “You can’t do this to me. I love Nick.”
“Lauren,” he said, following me out the door, grabbing my arm.
“No.” I spun around, slapping his hand way. “You can’t do this to me again, Mason,” I cried, shoving him, then walked quickly to my car. “Just stay away from me.”
I cried the entire ride home and for a little while longer as I sat in the car. I needed to be alone, to think. If I went inside now, my mother would be asking me all kinds of questions that I had no answers to. When I next looked up at the house, the lights were out. My mother must have gone to bed while I sat here. Then I noticed headlights racing down the road, and decided to pull out. I couldn’t go to sleep, not now. I needed to blow off some steam. I needed someone to talk to about how I was feeling. Maybe Jennifer would listen and give me some advice.
The rage inside of me was almost unbearable. The nerve he had t
o just pour his heart out to me like that, after all this time. Well, it was too late. He had his chance. He ruined his chance. I screamed as I drove down the road faster than I should have been. When I pulled up to the plaza where Shattered was, I got out, slamming my car door. My hand furiously ran through my hair. People walked by gawking. I must have looked crazy pacing around, talking to myself. About how I loved Nick. I was in love with him. He treated me good. He told me how he felt, and he loved me back. Mason was not going to ruin that. I kicked my tire, cursing.
“Are you al l right?” a guy asked as he got out of his car. “Yes,” I sobbed. His eyes widened, and he slowly backed away. “Shit!” I gasped. I had to get under control. I couldn’t let my emotions get the best of me. I wouldn’t go to that dark place. Not again. I locked the doors and started towards the bar. I should have called Mike or Jennifer to keep me company and maybe lend an ear, but to be honest, I just needed to let loose around people who didn’t know me. The bouncer recognized me as I approached him which was unfortunate but he wouldn’t be inside to see what I was doing or report it to anyone.
“ How are things?” He asked, gently touching my shoulder. “I’ve been better.” I laughed, wiping my damp cheeks. “You might want to check out a mirror.” He winked. I nodded and walked through the door he held open for me. I
made my way to the bathroom, ripping a piece of paper towel from the dispenser and dabbing at my cheeks.
“Don’t think about him.” I said to myself.
“No man is worth your tears sister.” Some woman said walking out of the stall, with a guy I might add. He smirked at me winking and puckering his lips at me but she pulled him along. I waited a moment before exiting the bathroom. I walked up to the bar and ordered a few drinks.
“Hey,” I said to the bartender as I stood leaning on the wood.
“What’s your poison tonight, sweetheart?” she asked, cocking her head.
“I think I need a few shots of tequila and a martini to chase.”
“Someone means business tonight.” She smirked. I think she was flirting, but I couldn’t be too sure.
“Yeah, there are a few things I need to forget,” I replied with a wag of my brow. I shook the salt onto my hand, downed the shot and sucked on the lemon wedge, and then did it again.
“That bad, huh?” she said after I downed the second shot and ordered two more. I nodded and sipped the martini. After the third shot I felt the burn hit my cheek. “Whoa!” I hooted sucking in a breath to ease the burn. It was working fast. I handed her my car keys. “I’ll keep these safe.” She screwed her lips.
“Thanks.” I took the last shot, sucked in a breath as the burn trickled its way down my throat. The guy standing next to me asked if he could buy me a drink, and I shrugged. I finished the martini by the time the bartender handed me the free drink.
“You should slow down, sister. I wouldn’t want to be cleaning up your mess in the bathroom in an hour.” She laughed.
“I’m good!” I cheered.
The bar door opened, letting in a cold breeze. I shivered and made my to the dance floor. The bouncer stopped me, reminding me no glasses allowed on the dance floor. I pouted, then gulped my drink and put it down on the table next to me flashing him an annoyed smile. The girls sitting there looked up at me, glowering.
“What?” I snapped. They rolled their eyes and looked away. I mumbled as I walked away, “That’s what I thought.” It’s true what they say about alcohol; it can make you brave when you really don’t need to be.
On the dance floor the music soothed me. I swayed back and forth; eyes closed, head back, and I let it take me to a place away from here. The heat intensified as the alcohol took over my system. When I opened my eyes, everything was blurred. I leaned against the wall holding myself up. This was the most I had had to drink—ever. An old song started playing over the system that I had not heard in years, and my body slowly got into the flow. I danced alone for the first few seconds of the song, and as I turned to face the crowd, I saw a familiar face. At first I blinked, thinking I was seeing things, but as he danced his way towards me, I realized it was real.
How did he know where to find me? I stared in disbelief.
“Nope not real.” I turned twirled around. Within seconds he was next to me, his hands immediately wrapping around my waist. The beat of the song was like having sex on the dance floor, and it demanded bodies to bump and grind, causing plenty of sweat. I felt his hand dragging up my thighs as our bodies ground. I felt his breath on the back of my neck and I turned to face him. Our noses touched as his lips brushed over mine. My lips parted, releasing a shallow gasp as I felt my arousal heighten. Mason’s hands caressed the bare skin of my back. My head fell back, and his lips and tongue traced along my collarbone to my chin. “Oh—God, why do you do this to me?” I whined, thankful he couldn’t hear me. He brushed the hair from my face as I flung my head forward to look at him. His lips grazed along my jawline to my ear. He sang the lyrics of the song, which described explicitly what he wanted to do to me. I gasped, feeling his words penetrate my core. “No.”
His teeth grazed down along my jaw. His hands slid in my hair as he pressed his lips hard on mine. I jerked back staring into his blue eyes. He held my stare, panting, his fingers still tangled in my hair. Then he kissed me hard, and I lost control.
“Mason,” I panted every time his teeth gently bit my shoulder. Then I felt my back hit the wall, and he pressed his body hard against mine. His hand ran hard over my chest. I looked at the sea of swarming faces around us and began to panic.
