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Run. He doesn’t need a burden.
He kept his hand on the back of her head as she slowly rose. She winced at the new aches and pains lighting up her body. The room spun, and her stomach tipped. Please don’t throw up. Her eyes darted to the floor between her thighs before she breathed a sigh of relief. At least I didn’t wet myself this time.
“That’s it, baby. Now, follow my finger.” He walked her through some hand-eye coordination exercises before a smile returned to his face.
“I’m sorry for ruining the party,” she said, looking at the wooden floor.
His brows drew together as if confused. “You didn’t. Everyone is down there eating dessert or tossing a volleyball around.”
Aspen poked her worried face through the door, her eyes scanning Pippa before she offered a relieved smile. “Are you okay?”
Mason’s large palm pressed against Pippa’s back, rubbing in slow circles. Emotion clogged Pippa’s throat. These two amazing people didn’t need this. Pippa nodded, forcing a smile. “Of course, sweetheart. I’m sorry I scared you. You did perfect getting help.”
Aspen shrugged. “It’s not your fault your brain short-circuits.”
The little girl’s words hit her full force. Pippa struggled to take a shaky breath. No, it wasn’t her fault. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t her burden. One that she swore she’d never make anyone else take on again. She wouldn’t ruin another life like she had her father’s.
What was she doing here with Mason, playing house? I won’t do this to him. Her heart thrummed, raw and aching from her decision.
Mason didn’t deserve someone who would only cause him more responsibility.
“I’d like to go home,” Pippa said, evenly.
“You sure you don’t want to take the guest room and rest a while?” Mason offered.
She swallowed the burning emotion that launched up the back of her throat. “No, thank you. I just want my own bed.” Where I can fall apart in private.
“Whatever you need.” His gentle voice promised, tearing the hole in her heart even bigger.
Mason kept his hand on her lower back as she climbed down the ladder to get Lady. She said her goodbyes and apologized as tears burned the back of her eyes. She forced her smile even bigger.
The car ride was quiet with just Mason and her inside the cab. Aspen had stayed with her uncle at the party.
At the bookstore, Mason slipped out of the truck and opened her door, then carefully guided her up the steps. Her body ached, her muscles screaming at her to stop moving. Mason’s hand on her lower back never wavered.
Finally, at the top, she plucked her keys from her purse to unlock the door but her hand was trembling so badly, she dropped them. “Sorry.”
“No need to apologize.” He bent down to grab them before sliding them into the lock and opening the door for her.
Lady went inside, Pippa following. She turned to close the door, but Mason’s huge frame took up the space. His eyes locked on to her as if she were under a microscope.
“Thank you.” She grabbed on to the handle for support as her knees wobbled.
He reached out, taking her face in his rough hands. The man was a contradiction of gentle and rough. A hard shell and a soft heart. It just made this moment that much harder.
“You’re shaking.”
She closed her eyes, summoning her last vestiges of strength as she straightened her spine. “I just need sleep. I’ll be fine.”
He waited a beat, his observant gaze not wavering from hers. “Need me to tuck you in?”
A desperate, raw sound escaped her. She dipped her head and forced a laugh to cover her moment of weakness. “I’m fine. I promise. I’m a big girl, remember?”
His thumb traced her jaw. “You keep saying that word, ‘fine,’ and as a father to a teenage daughter, I know that word means anything but fine.”
Why did he have to be that observant? She leaned in, kissing his lips one last time both to distract him and to savor this last taste of what it felt to be cared for by a man like Mason Wright. If things were different . . .
It didn’t matter, because they weren’t.
