Page 29 of Fun and Games

Mason snorted an amused sound. I raised an eyebrow at him and took another sip.

"Wait," he said, "You weren't serious about that, were you?"

"Of course," I replied. "You owe me one for saving you at trivia, remember?"

"I thought we were all just joking about that," he said.

"I've never put together IKEA furniture before, so I could use any help I could get."

Mason narrowed his eyes at me, trying to determine if I was pulling his leg.

"It will be fun," I told him.

"You really want me to tag along?" Mason asked.

"You won't be tagging along," I said. "I'm going to put you to work."

"I should never have invited you to trivia," he grumbled. "Why couldn't you be walking dogs again or something? I wouldn't mind helping out with that kind of job. But no, here I am, stuck assembling furniture."

I stood on my tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"I appreciate the help," I told him.

Truthfully, it wasn't only that I wanted to tease him, or make him pay for his dismissive boasting. I liked spending time with Mason. We had both agreed neither of us wanted anything serious to come out of this. But that didn't mean we couldn't still be friends.

Friends who just happened to be sleeping with each other. Friends who just happened to be having some of the hottest sex I'd ever had in my life.

I hadn't expected to pick up a friend with benefits when I'd gone home with Mason that first night, but he had turned out to be a cool guy. I didn't have many friends, and it had been a long time since I'd found myself enjoying another person's company. Why not spend time with Mason? At the very least, it would give me something to tell my sister to keep her from worrying.

Not to mention, the sex was goddamn magical.

I still hadn't called Sheila. I had no doubt she was going to give me the third degree since it had been so long since I'd last spoken to her. She'd probably accuse me of avoiding her, which wasn't exactly a lie.

With Mason, Connor, and Quinn, I could at least tell her I had some semblance of a social life, even if we had only all hung out together that one time.

"How long have your friends been together?" I asked Mason. "Connor and Quinn?"

After a moment of thought he spoke, sounding surprised at himself.

"Almost a year at this point, I guess," he said. "Wow. I knew he had a thing for Quinn, but that's wild."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Connor's never had a relationship last this long," Mason said. "Quinn's awesome and everything, but I'd had my doubts whether they would last."

"What do you think is different this time?" I asked.

Mason cracked a smile.

"She doesn't fall for any of his bullshit, for one," he said. "That guy needs someone to push back against him or else he'll steamroll right over you."

"Is that a rock star thing?" I asked. "Expecting everyone to fall over themselves to please you?"

"Yes," he said. "But it's also a Connor thing," he added. "He's always been able to charm his way into anything. I guess even Quinn wasn't completely immune. Still, I have to wonder how long…"

Mason looked oddly troubled, his eyes going dark with a line between his brow.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked.