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“Mmm,” Silas agreed and retrieved their drinks. “So, Mason, you’ve gotten yourself a good man.” His gaze flicked to my hand on Mason’s leg.
“Yes,” Mason didn’t hesitate to agree.
Warmth flooded my cheeks. Had he just claimed ownership of me?
As Troy had stated,Yes, please and thank you.
Chapter13
Mason
Jasper seemed pleased by my simple reply, his fingers squeezing my leg.
I set aside the martini that smelled much too strong for my liking and slid my palm beneath his so our fingers could tangle. I’d been hesitant to reveal too many cards in front of strangers, mainly my need for Jasper, but with how Silas and Troy clung to each other, I didn’t fear judgment.
Talk about a power couple. They were intimidating as fuck and yet sweet as maple syrup together.
Oh, to have that kind of love.
“And what do you do for work, Mason?” Silas asked before sipping his drink.
My heart stuttered, and I swallowed down rising panic that attempted to fracture my false front. People like Silas and Troy, the upper crust so to speak, would certainly be snobbish enough to consider how I supported Marin a disgrace. “I…um, I’m between jobs right now.”
Not exactly a lie since I didn’t see myself going back to Elite unless Jasper dumped me sometime soon.
“What sort of skills do you have? Degrees?”
Straightening my shoulders, I fixed my mask firmly in place. “I managed to get two years of schooling in—I was going for business, but then I had to move out of my parents’ home and couldn’t afford to pay for everything on my own. After that, I worked wherever I found a place in need. Ten years ago, I landed a job with Carter Communications in the sales department. It was steady, decent pay, and I enjoyed utilizing some of what I’d learned in college.”
“Carter went under in December of last year,” Silas said.
“Yes.” I left it at that, not about to explain how my friend Kellen had introduced me to Micah shortly afterward.
“I tried to buy them out before they folded.” Silas’s lips thinned as he shook his head.
Jasper had told me that Silas acquired flagging businesses, utilized the team he personally trained that helped build them back up, then he sold them for profit. I’d expected him to be rich, but Silas was…much wealthier than anyone I’d met. Joseph Delaney included.
“I offered them way more than they were worth,” Silas continued, “but the owner’s goddamn stubbornness… I’m sorry you lost your job, Mason. So what have you been doing since then?”
“A little of this and that.” I shrugged, hating how I lied and my stomach clenched because of it. “My savings has been seeing me through.”
“We always have job openings, and in fact, we’re in the process of putting a second team together. Pop online later and see if anything feels like a good fit for you. Even if it’s something lower down on the pay scale or not exactly your wheelhouse, get your foot in the door. I’m all about tutoring hard workers in how I conduct business and watching them rise in the ranks.”
Silas Barlowe didn’t even know me but trusted me because of the man I sat beside.
Gratitude welled up inside me, and I struggled to fight off tears. The last thing I wanted was for the powerful, ridiculously masculine man to see me as delicate pansy like my dad had been and I tried not to be.
“I will. Thank you.” I barely held myself together emotionally, but at least my voice didn’t waver.
Jasper squeezed my hand and turned the topic elsewhere, taking the spotlight off me.
Hedidknow my mind. Had to with how in tune he seemed with my feelings.
We spent the next two hours with Silas and his lover, and while I felt a little out of my element, I’d been in the presence of all sorts of people in my time with Elite. Having the Joseph situation settled somewhat in my brain for the moment, I was able to focus on playing my part. I donned the persona I’d learned to wear thanks to my mom, hiding most of the real me in my back pocket. That was the Mason Elite clients had known: a somewhat polished middle-aged man with enough confidence and knowledge to put people at ease and carry on a conversation.
Silas and Troy seemed to like me well enough—not that they tore their eyes off one another often or for very long. Their love, the connection they shared, made me desire the same with an intense ache.
Jasper and I had a foundation to build upon, our mutual desire for unbeatable. We just needed more. Dates. Hours of pillow talk. Time spent learning one another’s bodies. All of which I hoped for and feared not being able to have.
