“Jude. Over here.”
What the fuck was he doing here?
Mason waved from a table in the shade, and Jude’s stomach tumbled with a combination of annoyance and dread.
And anticipation. Why couldn’t he forget their night together? Before, on the sidewalk, he’d thought Mason was about to kiss him. And God help him, Jude would’ve been powerless to resist. Somehow, he’d managed to break free of the lust that took over whenever Mason came near him and had averted that disaster.
But ignoring Mason would be rude, so Jude maneuvered his way through the tables and stood over Mason, who’d remained seated.
“What are you doing here?”
Mason glanced at the drink and muffin on the table. “Looks like I’m having an after-work snack. Who’s your friend?”
He set the doggie drink on the ground, and Foxy stuck her face into the cup and licked it up.
When he didn’t reply, Mason said, “She’s adorable. What’s her name?”
For the first time, he smiled. “Don’t be fooled. She’s a tiny terror. Her name is Foxy, and she belongs to my neighbor.”
The dog, hearing her name, lifted her head and barked.
Mason laughed. “Smart cookie. Come here, girl.” He leaned over and patted his knee.
“I wouldn’t do that. She doesn’t like—”
Of course the brat would jump and lick Mason’s hand. He picked her up and put her in his lap. He petted her, and she continued to lick his fingers.
“She usually isn’t friendly to strangers.”
“Well, I was watching you walk her, and it didn’t seem like she likes you all that much either.” Mason snickered.
“I have to go.” He gathered up the leash.
“Oh, stop being such a damn hard-ass. Sit down and have your coffee with me. I didn’t even have a chance to tell you I spoke to Doug and Ilana today.”
Icy shock traveled through him. “You? You spoke to them? I tried calling, but they didn’t answer.”
Mason’s amber eyes softened in sympathy. “Ah, well, they were on their way out when I called, so maybe they were busy?”
“Whatever. You don’t need to make excuses for them.” It hurt to think his sister had spoken to Mason but not him.
“Jude, come on. Sit?”
With a sigh, he lowered himself to the chair, and their legs touched under the tiny wrought-iron table. Ignoring the press of Mason’s knee to his, Jude stuck the straw in his coffee and sipped.
“What did they say? How did Ilana sound?”
“They told me they were having a great time and were going to stay a week or so more in Paris, then rent a car and go to other parts of France, and then maybe drive to Italy.” He gave the dog a bit of his muffin, which of course the greedy beggar scarfed up. “They might extend their trip, but I guess that depends on how I do.”
His eyes popped open wide. “What? Drive to Italy? Extend their trip?”
Mason drank some of his coffee while Jude waited, on his last nerve at Mason’s nonchalance.
“Yeah. Doug wants to do some cliff diving and maybe rent motorbikes while they’re in Sorrento. It’s a great way to see the countryside.”
“What?” he barked so loudly, the other people stared at them, but he didn’t care. “Motorbikes? Cliff diving? Are you fucking kidding me?”
“Stop being an old fart. Motorbikes are a standard way of driving around Italy. And Ilana said she wasn’t going cliff diving, so keep your pants on.”
