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CHAPTER EIGHT

If there was something I wouldn't forget anytime soon about the death of Connor Welsh, it was the face of the man that had pointed a gun at me with a sinister smile on his face that showed he would enjoy every bit the of rush that came from killing me. A look that had me jolting awake, screaming like a banshee every morning since the incident.

After my discovery the previous day, Jake, Aaron, and I had run straight to the hospital morgue, sneaked in, and discovered that the dead body of the third man that had tried to kill me was, in fact, someone else’s and not Kaleb's. How he had managed that was beyond any of us.

The next step would have been to run and tell the cops, but there was no way we could tell them without revealing how we had made our discovery, so we concluded. Since Kaleb still didn't know we knew he was alive, we would wait for him to stalk me again, and when he did, we would be prepared.

I closed the book I was pretending to read at our spot with the hopes that Kaleb would come looking for me there again, but it had been hours, and he was still nowhere to be found.

Picking up my bag, I stood up and started to walk away when I was stopped by someone. "Mason…" I whispered.

He looked everywhere but at me, his hands shoved deep in his pockets with a blank expression on his face. "Can we… can we talk?" he bit out.

"Of course," I said immediately, grateful that he was finally speaking to me. We both walked toward the nearest log of wood and sat down. "I'm sorry," I said, breaking the tense and awkward silence.

"Why?" he turned toward me, finally staring me in the eyes.

"For getting your brother killed."

The silence resumed, lasting for close to a minute before he spoke again. "My brother wasn't always crippled, you know. When we were eight, a set of gunmen came into our house looking for our parents, and when they didn't find them, they tried to kill me. Connor, he… he ran in front of me, and they got him instead. Thankfully, the shots had alerted the neighbors, and they had called the cops who came just in time, but my brother could never walk again,” he released a bitter laugh. "You would think that would get my parents to stay home and protect us, but they simply kept Connor hidden while they continued with their political aspirations."

"I'm sorry, Mason," a sob caught in my throat.

"The worst and most painful part is that those same men had been the one to kill him, and I think Connor knew that too. They've been after my family for years because of something my parents got involved with, something they wouldn't even tell me about,” he kicked a rock off in a rage.

"Mason…" I reached out a hand to pat him but quickly pulled it back when I remembered that I had a hand in his brother's death. "Mason, I'm sorry."

He pushed back his hair roughly as his beautiful blue eyes watched me with naked pain and regret. "No, I should be the one that's sorry. I'm sorry, Kat. For not telling you about my incredible twin brother, for hiding him away from the world like my parents did…" Tears fell from his eyes as he spoke, and it made my heart hurt for him. "I'm sorry for not being there when you needed me the most, and I'm so sorry for making you feel like any of this was your fault when it wasn't. I'm sorry for being a coward Kat. Forgive me, please?"

I nodded my head frantically, my own eyes shimmering with unshed tears as I tried to stay strong for him. "Of course, I forgive you, Mason. You did nothing wrong. I should have been there for you, but I was too much of a coward. I was worried about what you'd think of me, I was worried that you didn't want me anymore or worse that you hated me and couldn't stand the sight of me.”

"Never, never Kat. I would never feel that way about you, and I will never stop wanting you either."

"I know that now," I agreed, finally coming to my senses and feeling my broken heart being mended almost immediately.

He lifted his hands to place them gently on my cheeks as he gazed lovingly into my eyes, the hurt in his eyes now cleared by the love we felt for each other. "You are my everything Katrina Dawson, and I am irrevocably in love with you," he whispered to me.

Pulling his head to mine, I kissed him with vigor, pouring my heart and soul into the kiss so he would know how much I loved him. "You have my body, heart, and soul, Mason Welsh, and I am never going to stop loving you," I whispered back.

He stood up and held his hand out, which I took before getting picked up and twirled around in his arms. Giggling loudly, I held on to the love of my life before planting several kisses on his face that made him laugh, his eyes sparkling with delight.

"Well, it's about time," Aaron said, standing a few feet from us beside Jake, who whistled loudly, causing us all to laugh.

"I love you, Katrina Dawson," Mason said with a wide grin, placing me on my feet while still holding onto my waist.

"I love you, Mason Welsh."

His head lowered, his lips closing against mine, causing my body to light up in a way it hadn't in a long time, and everything was right in the world again.