MASON (Second Chance Novels Book 2) (21 page)

With an ornery smile, I heave her over my shoulder. "Screw dinner. I want to celebrate."

Sofia laughs and digs her nails into my ass as we go. I love this woman so fucking much, and I'm so goddamn proud to call her my own. I'm going to show her exactly how much.

Two days later, the high of her promotion wanes with the continuing frustrations of the rest of the investigation. The DA takes out more minor players, which only adds to the mayor's arrogance. Bennett is still under the impression that Hanover is doing all this for their collective benefit. Eventually Bennett's arrogance will play to our favor, but for now his upper-level cronies are offering him
more
support, simply to keep attached to his social and political protection. The leaders of many city departments are doing his dirty work, attempting to fuck with both Sofia and myself, simply because they can. They want to push the same buttons we've been pushing on them. Part of me wants to laugh. They think we're intimidated by annoyances and pranks? Even Sofia's rape-threat didn't stop us. Idiots.

The worst of their actions was a rock through my truck's back window. Like I give a fuck about my rusty, piece-of-shit truck. I duct-tape a bold sign across the rest of the cab's rear panes which reads, "Air conditioner broken anyway. Feel free to break a few more."
 

The next day my truck is towed with the same bullshit infractions they used to tow Cam's car those months ago. I sent a package to Tilman with a few extra rocks and a photoshopped gravestone by my truck in the impound lot. I scrawled on the back, "RIP Ford."

Straight from the post office, I went to the used car lot and bought myself a rustier piece-of-shit truck. Fuck with me all you want, assholes. I have time. Playing with these piss-ants is an important part of the program, but Bennett…I want to see Bennett burn. If we can cut off the head of the snake, the rest will shrivel. I have no doubt of that. The other leaders play along with his little power game, but they don't have the same sociopathic tendencies as Mayor John Bennett. They'll retreat to their little dark corners the minute he's out of the picture.
 

Which brings me back to my own psychosis, all revolving around my past. The picture of the mayor is meshing with my vision of the leader from the Intelligence Unit in the Army. They combine in a nagging haze behind every action I take. Honestly, I want this investigation to end for every reason. I need to take Bennett's ass down, release all my tension, get my woman out from under their threats, and exorcise my Army demons once and for all. This will end, and I'll ride off into the fucking sunset like I want to. Unfortunately, I know Sofia is picking up on my constant tension. This entire week has me in knots over the resurgence of my Army issues.

After tonight's shift at Second Chance, I get home and Sofia is awake and wearing one of my t-shirts over her black leggings. She knows how much I fucking love that. I like to see myself wrapped around her in any way. She's not, however, going for sexy tonight.

"Out with it, Mason," she says with determination.

"Out with what?" I ask innocently.

"Don't bullshit me, Pratt," she answers flatly. "I can see all your tension, and there's no way all of that is coming from this investigation."

"Either way, I'm handling it, and I'm using it to keep myself going. I've got this."

"You think I don't fucking know that?" she asks. "But I see this eating you from the inside. It doesn't have to be that way."

I look straight at her. I will not burden her with my shit, and frankly I'm determined to keep the mess in my past. There is one single moment I want to avoid, the worst moment of my life, the moment in which I dropped everything about myself I respect. I'll never be that guy again, and I don't want Sofia to ever know how far I fell.
 

"Conversation over," I say simply and without anger, walking to her and then kissing her with a solid display of love. This kiss also proves the subject has been dropped.
 

"Fine," she says in contained frustration. I know she's not happy about me shutting her out, but she knows I'd never keep something from her unless necessary. I appreciate again that we understand each other so well.
 

"Mason…"

"Hm?"

"
Io sono sempre qui
."
I'm always here.
 

More days of stress and attempted intimidation pass as the DA serves more arrest warrants to the lower-downs, including Penny Garner, the uniform officer who used to run shady errands for Miller. According to Hanover, Miller turned on her the first chance he got. That spineless weasel began throwing names left and right in an attempt to keep himself out of jail. Fucking vermin.
 

The bottom few layers of their little power stack are crumbling quickly. Satisfying as that may be, and as successfully as Sofia is falling into her new role as sergeant, Mayor Bennett remains cushy in his position of leadership. Our coordinated effort with the DA is helping little, especially since we have few chances for communication. Anytime we interact is a chance that our partnership could be discovered.
 

I spend several hours every day following Bennett, but he's keeping himself squeaky clean right now, feeling the pressure. I make my presence known often, watching him and doing my best to fluster him enough to cause a wrong move. Seeing him squirm so subtly is satisfying, but as long as his ass sits in a throne in City Hall, this won't be over.
 

Still, my personal tension is increasing with each day, and my dealings with Bennett are becoming borderline obsessive. Sofia sees it. She stares me down with those thoughtful, keen eyes. She says nothing, but I know she's worried about me. She doesn't need to be. I'll continue to keep a handle on myself for her and for the investigation. As soon as we've completed our task, the lingering anger from my past will drift backward where it belongs. She doesn't need to worry.
 

Tonight after my surveillance, I'm ready to have an evening with Sofia and a beer. I have no shift at Second Chance, which works out well. According to Ledger, Shelby comes around nights I don't work, so at least I can feel good about that. The other part of my evening I'm looking forward to, of course, is Sofia. I'll hear more about her adjusting to her new position and I can focus on clearing my mind. I'm determined once again to conquer this extra tension. Sofia and this investigation deserve to have all of me. I come home to find Sofia on my couch. I'm not sure how to describe the look on her face. Trying to decipher her expression is difficult when I notice the rest of her. She's in a pair of tiny shorts and a halter top. She is so fucking sexy in anything, but damn. Her irresistible little toes are bare and tucked up beside her.

"Sofia," I smile at her, seeing her in all her beautiful power.

"Master Sergeant," she smiles back.
 

I quirk my eyebrow up as I freeze in place. "Is there a point to that?"

She tosses something sharply. With quick reflexes I catch the item and open my hand to see my dog tags resting tarnished in my palm. I look at those two would-be innocent metal fobs. What the hell. I clench my jaw and take an unseen, perfectly-silent breath before I allow my eyes to flick up to her face.
 

"Thanks," I say without emotion as I stuff them into my pocket with determined calm. "I need to go change."

I turn to my room with specific nonchalance even though every inch of me has been set on fire. My phoenix is flying too close. I'll never be the one to crush her into ashes, but I'm furious. I take more time than necessary pulling on a pair of gray cotton shorts. I grip those tags for one more moment before shoving them in the back of my bedside drawer again. I'll have to move them once I have a chance to think again. I should have gotten rid of them when I left the Army, but I couldn't let them go. I wonder if I can now.

Sofia startles me by knocking, already with the door open, and she's leaning in the doorway.

"I'll be just a minute," I say without looking at her as I walk away from her toward the bathroom. All I need is another moment to collect myself. I had no idea one glance at my dog tags would affect me this heavily. Even though I already have, I take a shower anyway. I'm not sure if those six minutes are an excuse to avoid Sofia or a means to think for a moment, but I need every second of it. When I'm dried off I return to my room and open that same drawer.

When I finally come out of the bedroom, in those same gray cotton shorts, Sofia is facing me, leaning her perfect ass against the back of our investigation chair. She's got her arms crossed and she's regarding me with intelligent eyes. She says nothing, but I have no problem breaking this ice.

"Why did you go looking for these?" I say, holding the tags up with the chain gripped in a tangle.
 

"I wanted to see you with them," she says. "I learn more watching than I ever did asking."

"Too far," I mutter as I turn around and walk to my room again.
 

"I never pegged you to be such a pansy-ass about this," she goads me loudly as I walk away.
 

"Too fucking far," I call bitterly over my shoulder, walking away still.
 

"Maybe it's too much for you to handle?"

God damn it.
This is not what I was looking for coming home today. I'm striding toward my dresser now, my focus crumbling as I go. I jerk to a halt, and then right my course to her. Within a few more seconds I'm in her face, shoving the dog tags up by her cheek.
 

"You have no fucking clue how much I can handle, Sofia. Drop this."

"Do you honestly believe I don't know?" she asks more quietly. "You think I don't know your strength? That the badass you come off as is
nothing
compared to the man you are? All people see is a guy with muscle and fight skills. Peoples' perceptions of you, even in the Army I bet, can't compare with the reality. What makes you think I don't understand that?"

I'm shaking now. I'm holding myself together, but only just. I will continue to hold on, but she makes the task infinitely more difficult. She's a pain in my ass.
 

"What the fuck makes you think I want to deal with this right now?"

"Because you never will otherwise," she says with a degree of attitude.
 

I grit my teeth and get closer in her face. We have a silent pissing match for who knows how long, and then she proves she's not going to let this go, no matter what I do. She doesn't back down; she fucking leans closer.
 

"Let me in, Mase." She says this as a command, not as a typically-annoying female emotional plea.
 

"Later, Sofe."

"Damn it, Mason," she gets loud.

"Well what the hell, Sofia? You're suddenly compelled to dredge up my past and I'm expected to roll over, belly exposed, and let you dig through every ugly piece of my life? And here I was thinking we'd have some fucking pizza."

I return my dog tags again to my drawer, and sit on my bed beside them, staring at their resting spot. How much can three ounces of metal represent? I swear, each molecule holds a memory, most of which I'd like to forget. I loved…I
lived
…my service to my country, but when my rank was stripped from me and my career unjustly tarnished, even my good memories became stained.
 

Fuck Sofia and her good intentions. That part of my life needs to stay shoved in the back of this drawer along with my title as Master Sergeant Mason Pratt. These days, I'm stuck with plain old Mason and I've gotten used to that.

I feel the bed compress beside me and Sofia is sitting there, appraising me again. I don't want her to figure any of this out, but obviously she already has. This is the first time she's ever pissed me off. "Let this drop."

"For now. So how about some fucking pizza."

"I'll get the beer," I say flatly.
 

Sofia looks directly at me. I can't help but meet her eyes, and I fume at the concern I find in them. I walk away from her in anger and order our favorite from a local shop she told me about. Leave it to a feisty Italian to introduce me to the best pizza I've ever had.
 

Leave it to a feisty Italian to fuck with my entire mind in a matter of twenty-two minutes. She doesn't come out of my bedroom which means she's as smart as I thought. She keeps her distance for forty-seven minutes, which is exactly how long before the doorbell rings. Pizza this good takes a long time, as does resolving the tornado of anger and memories spinning through my head. Thanks to the space she offered me, I've calmed.

Sofia walks out of my room and I glance at her as she walks to the fridge for two beers. I pay for the pizza and we settle on my piece of shit couch. The silence between us isn't awkward, really, but I don't want to spend my evening so distant…not when she is right beside me. Truthfully, I love her for wanting to push me forward, but I can't go through this, not even with Sofia.

I pull a slice from the box and hand it to her on a plate. The steam rises with a spicy aroma and I see her smile as she breathes in deeply. "God I love this," she says simply.
 

I plate a slice for myself with an appreciative "mm-hmm" and nearly burn my mouth on my first bite. A drink of my beer cools my mouth and perfectly complements the flavor.
 

"I love you," she says very plainly. "You know that, right?"

"Yeah, I know that."

"Don't walk away from me like that again," she says without anger. "You're better than that."

She's not mad that I treated her that way. She's only upset that I would let go of my character to do so. I smirk. Only Sofia. If I ever could rely on someone to deal with the shit in life, it's her. The problem is that I have no intention of dealing…only of keeping all my problems in the past where they belong.

"I won't do it again," I say as I look at her.

She nods and takes another bite of her pizza. I can't help but notice all over again how beautiful she is. Her sexy legs are bare beside me and I rest my entire hand on her thigh. I see her smile from the corner of my eye, so I grip gently. Her head rests on my arm so I massage her toned muscle.