Against the Ropes (12 page)

BOOK: Against the Ropes

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His smile faded as he thought, yet again, about how long it had been since they’d spent any quality time together. They hadn’t made love in over two months. Their respective jobs kept them both so busy; it seemed like there wasn’t time to do anything but work, eat, sleep, and do it all over again the next day.

He’d been at the office until nine the previous night and had come home exhausted. He and Bridget had a stilted conversation in the kitchen about their days for ten minutes over a glass of wine, and then they had gone to bed. Mason was asleep within seconds. It seemed as though if they weren’t arguing, they had trouble talking about anything. There was so much tension and strain in the relationship, he felt like he had to be careful with every word that came out of his mouth. Frankly, sometimes it was just easier to not say anything at all.

Right now they were more roommates than a married couple, and roommates that weren’t getting along very well. There wasn’t the connection that they used to share.

Marveling at how far they had grown apart, he recalled the first months of their marriage when they lived in a small studio apartment. They were happy with macaroni and cheese for dinner, boxes of wine, and each other. He looked around the huge bedroom with its expensive Southwest decor; done in warm browns, rust colors, and deep yellows. The travertine floors gleamed white. It was about the size of the small apartment he grew up in. He was proud of his success and having risen above the poverty that plagued his childhood, but as he stared back at his wife, he felt utter loneliness shudder through him.

Mason loved Bridget now more than the day he married her five years ago, and he couldn’t imagine his life without her in it. His heart literally hurt to think about that scenario. However, he did know that something had to give in the relationship. They had to find some way to reconnect, to become a couple again. Four years ago they had talked about starting a family, and he still wanted that. But for a family to happen there had to be a set of loving parents.

If they kept this up, Mason knew they were destined for a divorce that he didn’t want.

He sighed, running his hand through his hair. Yes, they needed some time to talk, some time to get reacquainted and, dammit, he needed to get his hands on her sweet little body and make love to her.

That was going to happen tonight. Mason had made reservations for a suite at one of the finest hotels in downtown Phoenix, Arizona, and arranged for a four-course meal to be served in the room. There were also five-dozen red roses ordered, a dozen for each year they had been married that were to be placed in the suite. Mason had cleared his calendar from three o’clock on and packed an overnight case for both of them. He had also let his office know that he wouldn’t be working tomorrow. He usually went in or played golf with a client or one or more of the company partners on Saturdays, but tonight was important and he wanted it to carry on until tomorrow.

He’d decided the evening would be a surprise, so he would call Bridget later and have her meet him. She loved surprises, and he hoped this one would really shock the hell out of her, and hopefully jumpstart their marriage as well.

He went to the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee into his travel mug, grabbed his keys, and headed for the garage, his heart feeling lighter in the hope that his plans for the night would be just what his marriage needed. Yes, tonight would be special, because after all, it was Valentine’s Day, and he knew it was Bridget’s favorite holiday.

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