Page 74 of Between Regrets and Promises (Between Us Trilogy #2)

Definitely! Wouldn’t miss it for the world.

Maddie

Awesome. Wanna invite everyone for me too?

She has a way of making me laugh.

Sophie

You mean invite Liam?

Maddie

Thank you! He needs to see how flexible I am and how many different positions I can put my body in, if you know what I mean.

Sophie

You are so relentless. Which I find admirable.

Maddie

He’ll crack eventually. It’s only a matter of time. Guaranteed!

I snort. She’s had a thing for him since the first time she met him and refuses to give it up.

Maybe eventually she will break through Liam’s thick shell, but I’m not so sure.

He’s not the kind of guy who settles down with anyone, and if he hurt Maddie, I’d chop off his balls, then Lennon would feed them to him.

Hunter considers Maddie and me his sisters, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d kick his ass on principle alone.

Sophie

I’ll invite everyone. I’m sure they’ll come.

Maddie

Thank you! I love you! Gotta go back to class.

Sophie

Mmhmm. Love you too.

I crank the car and drive home thinking about Maddie and how I hope she stays safe.

I don’t want her to go through what I have, and I’ll do everything in my power to protect her from all the crazy assholes out in the world.

Rushing into a relationship with anyone isn’t worth it, and although she has a thing for Liam, I’m not sure that’s ever going to happen.

She’s beautiful, sassy, and sometimes a little na?ve, which makes me worry about her that much more.

Soon, I’m pulling into the driveway, feeling relieved to be home.

Before getting out, I look around, making sure nothing seems out of place or suspicious.

Grabbing my purse, I hurry inside and quickly lock the door behind me.

That’s when I realize this is the kind of thing Mary wanted me to write down—when I’m anxious.

Once I’m in my room, I grab a notebook I’ve used for work stuff and go to an empty page and jot down what I felt and the thoughts that surfaced.

Then I put how the anxiety had me rushing inside and double-checking locks.

The paranoia reminds me that I need to take some slow, deep breaths and try to relax before I irrationalize the situation and have a full-on anxiety attack.

Once I’m done writing, I place my notebook and pen on my nightstand since I’m sure there will be more times I’ll need it.

Then I sit on my bed and go to my happy place, deep breaths in, slow breaths out.

After a few moments, some of the anxiety melts away, and I’m content enough to stop for the time being.

I remember I promised to give Lennon an update about therapy, so I quickly send her a text letting her know things went well. Then a text from Mason comes through.

Mason

Whatcha want for dinner?

He’s been a lifesaver in more ways than one, and I don’t know how I’ll ever be able to repay him for everything he’s done for me.

Sophie

I don’t care. What do you want?

Mason

I asked you first!

I wonder if this is what real couples do, go back and forth about what’s for dinner. I realize I’m smiling, and it feels good, but Mason seems to do that to me. Always has.

Sophie

Pasta?

Mason

No, I’m not in the mood for that.

Sophie

Pizza then.

Mason

That’s too greasy.

I groan and roll my eyes at his pickiness.

Sophie

So tell me what you don’t want and then I’ll decide!

Mason

Just choose something else.

There’s one food he’ll always agree to eat. With a lifted eyebrow and a smirk on my lips, I send him a text.

Sophie

Tacos?

Mason

Yeah, that sounds good!

I head to the living room and sit on the couch with a book but end up falling asleep.

The sound of Mason walking through the door wakes me.

He has bags of food in his hands and a smile on his face.

I can’t stop staring at him in his dark blue button-up shirt and black slacks.

He doesn’t always dress up for work, but when he does, it’s hard to keep my eyes off him.

“I hope you’re hungry. It was buy one, get one free tonight, so I loaded us up,” he says as he sits down next to me, placing the bags of food on the coffee table.

His hand brushes against my leg and goose bumps trail across my skin.

My heart says yes, but my head says no. Every day is a battle because I don’t want to rush and ruin our relationship before it has a chance to start.

“I’m starving.”

He unloads street tacos along with chips and salsa.

The faint smell of his cologne grabs my attention as he heads to the kitchen.

He returns with two plates, and we make small talk about our days while we eat.

If I don’t think about what we’ve been through or our pasts, it’s easy to fall right back into where we were before the Dalton shit happened.

“Mmm, tacos were a good choice.” Mason smiles, leaning into me.

I can’t help but notice the way his eyes shine when he looks at me. The electricity that streams between us is undeniable, even after everything.

“I thought so.” I smirk, knowing he can’t deny tacos. “How was work?”

“Good. I think people are realizing I’m not just there because of who my dad is, which should’ve happened a long fucking time ago, but you know how it goes.

People know I’m a Holt and see the similarities between my father and me, and they jump to conclusions.

I should find out about the promotion next week. ”

“Glad everything seems to be working out,” I say around a mouthful, knowing how much this means to him and how hard he’s worked over the years for his big break. “You deserve it,” I tell him sincerely.

“If I don’t get it, I swear I might lose my mind,” he admits, and I love that he’s able to be vulnerable with me, considering he doesn’t talk about work very much.

“You know you’re a shoo-in. You know that for a fact, so I wouldn’t worry about it. What should happen will happen.”

“You’re so damn smart.”

I shrug and laugh. “Nah, I have a therapist who gives me catch phrases like that.”

“How’d it go today?” When my eyes meet his, I can tell he genuinely wants to know.

“It went well. We talked a lot about my anxiety since the first incident, and she had me visualize that night and how facing that fear will release the out of control feeling. It sounds odd, but in a way, it felt like it was a good start to my treatment. She also told me to write in a journal when I’m anxious, so basically, I’ll be writing in it all day long,” I chuckle nervously.

“I started today when I got home. It’s gonna take months to process what’s happened, but it will get a little easier each day as long as I work on it.

I don’t think I’ll ever forget the incidents, but hopefully, I’ll be able to live with it without the memories barging into my thoughts. ”

Mason wraps his arm around my shoulders, and while I want to lean into him and stay there forever, I don’t. I linger, then go back to my tacos.

After we finish eating, I help Mason clean up our mess. After we put the leftover tacos in the fridge, we both sit back down on the couch and get lost in Netflix.

“Want to watch Lucifer or piss off Liam and watch his show?” He flashes me a shit-eating grin, which causes me to laugh.

Liam’s been working a shit ton, so I haven’t seen him as much lately, and the last episode left us on a cliffhanger, so I’m contemplating it.

Mason glances at me, and I smirk. “We promised Liam we wouldn’t watch it without him.”

I bite down on my lower lip and shrug. “I won’t tell if you don’t.”

“Deal. Let’s Netflix cheat on his ass.”

For the next few hours, I get lost in the town’s bad boy and small Southern town drama, and it’s everything I love getting lost in. Eventually, I yawn a few times, and Mason notices.

“Tired?” he asks, yawning too. “Damn, I caught it.” He chuckles, yawning again.

I nod. “Yeah, but I don’t know why, considering I didn’t do much today except go to therapy. Apparently, being in my head is exhausting,” I joke.

He gives me a look. “Let’s go to bed,” he tells me, grabbing the remote and turning off the TV.

I glare at him.

Mason snickers. “Hey, if I don’t turn it off, you know we’ll watch the next one and then the next one, and then we’ll be on the next season. Netflix makes it too easy.”

I giggle because we’ve done it so many times. It’s hard to break away from him when we’re hanging out. I never want our time to end. Mason stands and stretches and holds his hand out. I grab it, and he helps me up.

Neither of us moves to walk away, and I notice the way he searches my face. “You sure you’re okay, Soph?”

“I will be.”

Mason brings his thumb to the corner of my lips. “Got a little sour cream here.”

“Oh.” I chuckle, embarrassed. It’s probably been on my face this whole time. “Thanks.”

His deep brown eyes I’ve gazed into dozens of times look at me with so much love, it’s hard to break away.

Then he tucks loose strands of hair behind my ear, and my eyes flutter closed when he cups my cheek.

Softly, his lips press against mine, and for a moment, I lose myself in his taste, in his touch, in him.

I feel as if I’m falling as his tongue twists with mine, and he releases a groan, sinking deeper against me.

His other hand slides down my body until it grips my hip, pulling me against him.

Moaning, I wrap my arms around his waist, clinging to the feeling that surfaces at this moment.

Kissing Mason is a dream, a fantasy come to life, but then reality smacks me in the face.

Although I want to get lost in him and forget about everything, that sneaky bitch anxiety comes barreling in, and I remember it’s too soon.

“I can’t do this,” I whisper-pant, pushing against his chest. We both lost control. The moment I see his sad expression, guilt pours over me, and I frown. “I’m so sorry, Mason. I just?—”

“I know.” He cuts me off. “You’re not ready. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have…” He swallows and brushes a hand through his hair.

I nod, taking a step back. “Good night, Mason.”

He sucks in his lower lip. “Good night, sweet Sophie.” He winks before turning around and heading upstairs.

I walk to my room and lean against the door. My heart gallops in my chest, and I close my eyes, trying to hold back the tears. Mason deserves to have more than a sliver of me, and right now, my heart is still too shattered to give him anything.