Curious to hear what Jude had said, Mason asked nonchalantly, “What happened? When?” and popped another piece of fruit into his mouth.
Doug gave him the side-eye. “You know, you’re giving me the same runaround Jude did, which tells me nothing.”
“What exactly did he say?”
Doug’s lips thinned. “That he had no idea what happened. Which, as we know from Jude, is an impossibility. Jude doesn’t forget anything.”
“He does if he’s drunk,” Mason mumbled.
“What?” Doug pounced.
Mason contemplated Jude’s strong profile, noting the slump of his shoulders. This had to be a hard time for Jude. Sympathy welled inside him; he didn’t want to kick the man when he was down.
“Nothing. Jude had too much to drink, and I brought him back to his room and made sure he went to bed.”
All true.
“And that’s it? Nothing happened between you two?”
“Why’re you so interested in my sex life?” Irritated, he poured himself another glass of champagne.
“Not yours, idiot. Jude’s. That guy never allows himself to have a moment of fun. Even his twitches have twitches. He doesn’t exactly talk about sex. In case you haven’t noticed, he’s…uptight. I can’t even imagine him having sex, he’s so closed off.”
Oh, trust me, he’s had sex. He knows his way around a dick.
He shifted in his seat, the soreness in his ass testimony to that fact. “He’s not so uptight. And I wasn’t aware you shared sex stories, especially since you met the beautiful Ilana—ow.” Mason rubbed his arm. “What did you punch me for?”
“Because. Don’t talk about Ilana and sex. It’s disrespectful.”
“And so are you, trying to figure out Jude’s sex life,” he shot back, defensive of Jude for some bizarre reason. “If you don’t want anyone thinking of you and Ilana doing the deed, don’t try and ferret out intel on Jude.”
He glared at Doug, who grew red, then dropped his gaze. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
They sat quietly for a while.
“Have you thought any more about me coming to work for you?”
“Do you want to wait until Ilana and I come home from our honeymoon?”
“Of course he doesn’t.”
At the sound of their mother’s voice, Doug’s lips twitched and Mason rolled his eyes.
“Hi, Mom.”
“I’m so happy to see my two boys together. And could Ilana be more beautiful?” She sighed. “I can’t wait for the grandchildren.”
Time for Doug to roll his eyes. “Mom. Really? Already?”
Their mother continued on as if Doug hadn’t spoken. “Eight years you’ve both waited. Now Mason, on the other hand…”
He recognized that gleam in her eye. He was blessed with parents who had no issues with his sexuality, but that meant his mother was constantly throwing eligible men and women in his path. He almost rued the day he came out to them as bisexual.
“Mom.” He sent her a warning look that she, as usual, ignored.
“You’re thirty and have no job and no place to live. Time to settle down and be an adult, Mason. Your father and I aren’t going to have you living in the apartment with usad infinitum.”
Damn. Hehadbeen away a long time. He didn’t remember his mother being so forthright. And she was correct. Everyone he knew had either settled down with families, significant others, or was firmly entrenched in a career. His main accomplishments in life so far were making the perfect mojito, keeping a personal calendar, and achieving an even tan. Time to put that master’s degree to work.
