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August
One
Croftcanorganizestealingmy girl while he's sleeping, but the dumbass didn't remember he doesn't have a car here.
"Where to?" I bite out, pissed that he punched me. There’s no way I’m punching a guy that literally just got out of a coma—no matter how much I might want to.
"My place." He hits a few buttons on the dashboard connecting his phone to my car’s navigation system before inputting his address into the GPS on his phone. Once the map pulls up on the dash, he presses his lips together and shakes his head in annoyance before his face settles into a scowl as he glares out the front windshield. We drive to his place in silence. The tension in the air between us is thick with malice.
I'm so fucking furious right now I could murder him. The only reason he's not dead is that it would hurt Gianna, and I bet he knows it. I showed him my cards that night he showed up at my house. When I didn't punch him, he knew it was because of her. He thinks Gianna is my weakness, which couldn't be further from the truth. Mason is only seeing what I want him to see. I grew up mastering the skill of deception, and allowing people to only see what I want to show them. Wearing a mask is second nature to me.
I'm supposed to be cocky, arrogant, and self-serving. Isn't that what all rich boys are? Automatically, I'm entitled because I inherited my wealth. I have no idea what hard work is because I've had everything given to me.
That's what people don't understand, wearing a mask is hard. Fitting into someone else's mold for your life and how you should walk, talk, and dress is tough. It takes talent to learn how to see through the masks people wear. Someone is always trying to use you for money, social status, and even marriage.
Patience is key in this life. You must be able to wait out your opponent, make them think they have you figured out, and then strike. He can think Gianna is my weakness all he wants, because at the end of the day, she is my strength. She has tested my limits, pushed me to fight for what I want, and I'm done playing the part. I will embrace who I've always been and fuck what anyone else thinks.
Once I pull up to his condo, I realize it’s not far from my own. I'm a little surprised that he can afford the area.
As we walk up the steps, I ask him the question that's been burning in my mind since he said Ethan asked him to set me up. "Why did you help Ethan?"
"Isn't that obvious?" Mason all but spits out. I shrug as we continue walking. I have an idea, but I want to hear his reasoning.
"EthanfuckingGrand asks me to do something he can do himself. Being your best friend, he has more access to your life than I do. I was curious. Not to mention it involved Gigi and she’s important to me. He didn't just ask me to place the camera at your door. He asked me to place a tracker on Gigi's car. I wanted to help him. I wanted him to use me so that I could figure out what he was up to and why Gigi was involved."
I’d assumed he would want to help Ethan if it in any way benefited him in winning Gianna back, but I wasn’t expecting the rest of the bullshit he just spewed. My fists clench at his admission, and I pull him back by his shoulder, giving him a murderous glare. "You fucking put a tracker on her car that he has access to?"
He pulls out of my grip. “Yes, I did, but that’s why we’re here. I rigged it so that I could track him through the device.”
I take a deep breath to try and calm my nerves, reminding myself to have patience. As he opens the door, I notice the entire condo is empty. When he starts down the hall, I call out, “Mason, what the fuck is this? Why does it look like no one lives here?”
I’m standing frozen in the front entry as he storms through the space, clearly on a mission.
“I just moved in, asshole, and I’ve been a little tied up.”
I can’t help but smirk even though I know it’s sick. Following him down the hall, I find him in his office. “You weren’t too busy to set up an office?”
His office, unlike the rest of his place, is completely set up. It looks like some high-tech security office that an undercover agent would have. "This was all I managed before my stint in the hospital, yes, and I'm glad I had my priorities straight."
The office is very impressive. It's not your typical bookshelves lined with books you've never read, with leather couches and cigar boxes. Those are the offices I grew up frequenting. No, this office is a black cave with multiple computer screens and gadgets that I wouldn't be able to begin to tell you what they were. I researched his dad’s IT company when I discovered who he was. The company started small, helping businesses set up firewalls and web filtering solutions to keep employees off websites they shouldn’t be tapping into at work. Over the years, he added employee monitoring software to his portfolio, and now his recent acquisition of the security company Reds hired makes sense. Mason joined his father’s company six months ago, and he is clearly a hacker. If you offer security solutions, you need to ensure they can’t be hacked. I will say I underestimated his tech skills. Feeling a little intimidated, I decide to strike.
"You know that tracker is how he was able to find her right? He tracked her to work and got her alone when he knew neither one of us would be with her."
When I meet his gaze, I can tell he's furious. He keeps rubbing it in my face how all of this is my fault, and I'm the one who put Gigi in danger, but he's the dumbass who put a fucking tracker on her car and led Ethan straight to her.
He clicks his tongue, "Yeah, I didn't plan on being laid up."
"That's precisely my point. You have no idea what you’re dealing with.”
"You know what, August, if she was with me, she wouldn't even be in danger. I have the means to provide for her, protect her and keep her safe."
His comment doesn't even phase me. I expected that lame-ass reply from him because he doesn't get it, not yet, but he will.
"This, coming from the guy that just had his car pulled out of the river because someone sabotaged his breaks, and then spent the past week in a coma. You still don't know if the accident is related to my involvement with Gianna or not. It could have been a business rival or client contract that came after your dad and got the wrong guy. At the end of the day, your company is expanding, your wealth is growing, and that means the number of people who want to come after you is multiplying. This attack was just the first of many, trust me."
He shakes his head and puts his tongue in his cheek while typing away on his computer. "If you have so much more experience on the matter, please enlighten me on how this happened and why you weren't prepared."
I'm about done playing this song and dance with him. Walking over to his desk, I slam my hands down and lean into his face.
