Where Would I Be Without You - By CJ Hawk Page 0,32

inside.

"Well, then maybe later, you and I should do a little getting to know each other better. Honey, I do country. This is Colorado; you can be a cowboy one minute, and city boy the next. I'm a little bit of everything. Just you wait and see." Then he dropped a soft quick kiss on my lips, and when he pulled back, he put his lips to my ears and whispered against them. "I can't wait to get to know you better later."

Ok. Here is where my whohaw just gave the rebel middle finger to my parental you are thirty and grown up inner child voice. One look, one kiss, one whisper and I was in a tailspin of fantasy and could easily have skipped out on my own work birthday celebration if Marion wasn't standing there looking in awe at the two of us. Then she said something that struck a romance chord with me. "You two remind me of Carl and myself when we first met. Mason, I can't wait for you to meet Carl."

Then Mason said something that shocked both Marion and myself. "We've already met. His company has done business with Montahue properties. Just ask him. He'll tell you. So yes, I look forward to the four of us going out for a dinner or drinks."

Right after that comment, we stepped inside the loud ruckus of a dimly lit bar to several coworkers shouting. "Happy Birthday Amber!" I moved about the bar talking with coworkers with Mason by my side, while Wally Woo and Marion caught up. She used to work with him on the actual production line when they were in their early twenties.

Two hours later, as Marion made her escape to go celebrate with Carl; I whispered into Mason's ear. "Anytime you are ready to leave. I'd rather be alone with you."

I did not have to say another word. I was quickly whisked out of there with very brief goodbyes as coworkers still noshed on the questionable buffet bar and kicked back two for one beers. As soon as we got out into the parking lot, Mason walked me over to my car, leaned his body into mine, pulled my head up to his with his hands and dropped a tongue twisting kiss that left me with only one sound to escape me. A very loud and discernible 'ah', which caused a bit of laughter out of Mason.

"What?" I teased.

"You. That 'ah' sound after we kiss. It's so adorable. You're so adorable. How did I get so lucky with you?" His statement was so romantic that I had to remember I was being swooned by a man who might be wearing a mask. He might not be all that I am making him up to be. He could have a dark hidden past that I had not revealed yet.

"Mason?" I knew what I was about to ask. It was actually very mature of me even though my whohaw was tugging at my jeans insistently begging me, screaming at me 'no, don't bother with that, just kiss him again', while I said what I said next. "Can we talk?"

He took a second as he eyes stared at me seriously. Almost afraid of what I wanted to talk about. Then he piped up. "Sure. What about?"

"Us. You. I need you to tell me things about you, so I don't listen to this internal voice that you are too good to be true." My voice was pleading with him, as he confidently answered me.

"Well then. It is I, who thinks that you are too good to be true, but sure. Let's head to my place, I'll cook us up a decent dinner, and you can ask me anything you want." He followed that up with a kiss that left me struggling with my inner fun girl as I drove my car all the way back to his apartment. It wasn't until I was parked, and he was walking me up to his building, hand in hand, that I realized that I had to go with my gut on this one. He is a good guy.

Chapter Eight

Well, he is not a good guy; he's a great one. As I sat at his kitchen counter on a barstool, I watched him chop up a salad for us, while he had two chicken breast cooking on the stove in some sauce that smelled to die for.

"You know." I started to tease. "Doing dishes for a woman is one thing, but