Page 57

“Yep. I know what you’re going to ask. It was outside.” Harley laughed. The sound was different. He couldn’t place how it had changed, but it had. She was still the same Harley he’d come to know, but he couldn’t figure out what was going on.

“Around here on New Year’s Eve, we tend to stay inside. Out of the cold.”

“Oh, I believe it. I’m sure it gets real bad out here, huh? Lots of snow?”

He nodded. “One year, we had a big avalanche right before Christmas. Since then, it hasn’t been that bad, though.”

Harley grabbed his hand as they headed down the steps, toward the truck and even held onto it as she climbed inside. She only released it when he shut the door. They drove to the local country club, and all the way, Mason tried to talk himself off a ledge. Nothing had changed. He was just trying to find some evidence to sabotage this relationship.

When they arrived, he climbed out of the truck, his gaze remaining locked on her while he walked around the front. And then it hit him.

Rebelliousness. That’s what her eyes were showcasing.

Whatever was bothering her, it was affecting her desire to be real with him. Mason pulled open the door and stared hard at her. “Okay, spill.”

“What?”

“Don’t give me that. You and I both know we’ve been off our game lately. You can’t hide it any more than I can.”

She folded her arms, her defiant eyes flashing. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I don’t have time to have this conversation with you.”

Harley smirked. “Good, neither do I. Let’s go dancing. That’s what we’re here to do, after all.” She hopped out of the truck and hurried inside. This was the old Harley. The one that he’d disliked yet been intrigued with at the same time.

He shut the door, knowing full well that he’d come to regret whatever was to happen next. Upon entering the club, he glanced around but couldn’t locate her right away. There were too many couples mingling and dancing.

This had been a mistake. He should never have brought her here. It was just asking for trouble. If she’d been an alcoholic, he wouldn’t have taken her to a bar. Harley was a party girl. He could tell that from the second he laid eyes on her. And bringing her here was like offering her a hit of the stuff she craved.

Mason could hit himself over the head right about now. He needed to find her and get her out of there before something really bad happened tonight.

It was like that feeling he’d had when he arrived at the house. Tonight was going to end badly.

He caught sight of the dress she’d worn and followed her through the crowd. “Harley!” He called, but she didn’t look back. Instead, she headed outside through the back doors.

The second he made it around the corner, she came to a sudden stop and spun around.

He sucked in sharply and took a step back. “Geez. What is going on with you tonight?”

“Why?”

“I’m sorry?” Mason glanced around them. “Were we in some kind of conversation I wasn’t aware of?”

She grabbed the lapels of his suit and pulled him closer. “Why do you like me?”

His nervous laugh sounded more like a dying mouse. “Because.”

“That’s not an answer. Do you like my money? Do you like the fact that I’m related to my uncle? Are you toying with me? Because I need to know.”

He was stunned. There were no two ways about it. These questions had come out of nowhere.

“If you don’t have an answer, then—”

“Will you give me a minute? Sheesh. What’s gotten into you?” Mason pried her hands from his suit and placed them at her sides.

“Why do you like me?” This time, she asked more quietly. “Because I need to know. I need to know that I didn’t make the biggest mistake of my life.”

Mason peered at her. “Why do you think you made a mistake? Did something happen?”