Bang (Blast Brothers #2) - Sabrina Stark Page 0,80

to worry. Given our recent hostilities, Mason might even decide to work late, which would leave me stuck driving through a nighttime blizzard.

Or more likely, he'd tell me that I had to wait until the snow cleared – not for my own safety, but for the safety of his vehicle and to prevent Willow from being sad if I wrapped myself around a telephone pole.

But would Mason be sad?

Not hardly.

Other than his concern for his family, he was the coldest person I'd ever met. And yet, I swear, I'd seen glimpses of true warmth under his icy exterior, like there was another version of himself just dying to come out.

Regardless, he was driving me insane, even now.

Unable to resist, I took Arden up on her offer and met her at the mall, where I explained how crazy Mason was making me.

As Willow played in the kiddie area, I even confessed that I'd slept with him over a month ago.

But as it turned out, Arden already knew.

I asked, "But how?" And then I paused. "Oh, my God. Did Mason tell Brody?"

"Are you kidding?" she laughed. "That guy's more tight-lipped than anyone I know – meaning Mason of course." She gave me a sympathetic smile. "No. I figured it out on my own."

"How?" I asked yet again.

"It wasn't that hard," she said. "I'm just embarrassed I didn't see it sooner."

I tried to smile. "Actually, there wasn’t much to see. I mean, it was just the one time."

But already, Arden was shaking her head. "No. I don't think so."

"But it was," I insisted.

"I'm not talking about the sex," she said. "You really like him. And if you don't mind me saying…" She cringed. "…I think you might be in love with him, at least a little."

At one time, it had been more than a little. But now? I was pretty sure I hated him. Or at least, I tried to hate him.

"Oh, please," I said. "What do I look like? A masochist?"

"Not a masochist," she said. "But you always see the good in people. Even me."

"Yeah, but you really are good."

"Not all the time," she said. "I'm stubborn and temperamental and way too likely to fly off the handle. But you? You're the most serene person I've ever met."

I almost laughed in her face. "Not lately."

"Oh, come on."

"I’m serious," I said. "You should've seen me last night. Here Mason comes in to give me a Christmas bonus, and what do I do? I read him the riot act."

Her surprise was obvious. "Really? What'd you say?"

"Nothing that will a make a difference."

"Oh, I don't know," she said. "Ever since you showed up, he has seemed at least a little different."

"But how would you know?" I asked. "You hardly see him."

"But Brody does," she said. "And just the other day, he mentioned something about Mason seeming more human." She gave me a significant look. "Good and bad."

I was intrigued in spite of myself. "How so?"

"Well, for a while there, it sounded like Mason was actually lightening up."

"In what way?"

"According to Brody, Mason was smiling a lot more, and even joking once in a while." She frowned. "But then, when all of us were in Kentucky, he was as miserable as I'd ever seen him."

"Yeah, well…at least Chase was happy."

Arden rolled her eyes. "Chase is always happy – well, as long as he's up to no good."

From watching their cable show, I couldn’t disagree. But Chase wasn't my problem. It was his older brother who was making me nuts. "Back to Mason," I said. "I've got to get him a Christmas present. Any ideas?"

She winced. "A whistle?"

"I’m serious," I said. "I need to find something, and I don't have much time." I snuck a quick glance at Willow, who was still playing with the other kids. "And we're supposed to be getting that blizzard tonight."

"Not tonight," she said. "Later today."

"What?" I shook my head. "I thought it wasn't hitting 'til midnight."

"It was. But the forecast changed." With a look of concern, she said, "Wait a minute, you're not leaving today, are you?"

"Well, that is the plan."

"Oh, crap. Then you'd better leave now. If you hurry, you can probably miss the worst of it. I hear it's supposed to be really bad."

"Yeah, but they always say that." It was true. I'd lived in Michigan my whole life, and one thing I knew from experience – the weather was almost never as bad as the forecast.

Plus, I was from Petoskey, which was three hours north and more prone