“You’re an idiot. I’m saying it because of the way you makemefeel. Don’t you see you’ve spent your whole life on hold for others?” He rested a hand on Jude’s shoulder. Jude grew stiff, but Mason held on to him. “It’s your turn now.”
“I never felt that way until she left.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “I don’t resent her. I made those choices willingly.”
Not in Mason’s eyes, he didn’t, but he wasn’t about to debate that with Jude. “Of course you don’t resent her. Ilana never asked you for anything. You’re an incredibly giving person. So much so, that it’s come at the expense of you having a personal life. But now it’s your story. You get to write the chapters and decide where it goes.”
“I have no clue what I’m doing. Here you are, sitting with me, and I still hold back.”
“Why?” Mason prodded.
Eyes crinkled shut and head bowed, Jude balled his hands into fists. “Because it’s you…us. How can this be happening? You defy the rules, while I follow them. You’re open, happy, positive, while I wait for everything to fall apart and come crashing down on me.” An ugly sound broke free from his lips. “And yet…”
Rapid heartbeats pounded in Mason’s ears. “What?”
“And yet I want you. So damn much. How can this be possible?”
He released his breath in awhoosh.“Anything is possible if you want it bad enough. Especially the impossible.”
Jude lifted his head, the corners of his mouth ticking up in a smile so sweet and filled with promises, it made Mason want to keep it on his lips forever.
“Are you calling the two of us impossible?”
Risking it all, he captured Jude’s face between his hands. “No. Because right now, if you asked me to do anything, I’d say yes. I’m a sure thing when it comes to how much I want you.”
Jude’s cautious expression lightened, and when he placed a kiss in the center of Mason’s palm, it was all Mason could do not to melt from the sheer sensuality. Spellbound, he watched as Jude threaded their fingers together, then stood, pulling him to his feet.
“If you’re willing to take a risk on me, I’m willing to take a chance on you. Let’s try and keep the past where it belongs. You’re not the same person who left, and I’m trying to change. Is that good enough?”
“More than good.” Mason gazed into Jude’s sparkling eyes. “I’m ready to start with a clean slate. And I understand we have to keep it quiet at work. I promise to behave.” He grinned. “But once Doug comes back, I want to work for him. He’s more fun.”
“Yeah? You want fun? I’ll show you fun.” Jude grabbed him around the nape and yanked him close, latching on to the base of his throat and sucking hard. Mason moaned, a thrill shooting through him at the thought of Jude leaving a mark on him.
“Well, since you asked so nicely…” Laughing, Mason pulled him to the bedroom.
* * *
A week later, he and Jude were having a particularly nasty and difficult day at work. A long-standing client had decided to pull a multimillion-dollar account from The Company. That had required several phone calls to Doug, who’d had to cancel the excursion he and Ilana had planned. And that made him unhappy and testy.
Mason tried to calm him down, but Doug wasn’t having it and snapped at him. “You’re a personal secretary. You don’t know shit about accounts. Now let Jude and me talk.”
Hurt and embarrassed, Mason ducked his head and faced away from the computer where they’d been video-chatting. Doug’s words brought him back to his high-school days, when he’d spent so much time listening to teachers comparing him to Doug, and him coming up short.
“That was uncalled for,” Jude said mildly. “Don’t take your pissy attitude out on Mason. He’s helping.”
“It’s fine,” Mason mumbled, staring straight ahead at his tablet, hoping the burning in his eyes would fade.
“No, it’s not fine. You’ve been here almost a month now, and I’m impressed. So much so that I’m thinking of putting you on accounts as a media consultant and looking for a new personal secretary.”
Shocked, Mason stared at Jude who, now that he’d finished addressing him, focused on Doug. “You owe Mason an apology. It’s not his fault you had to cancel your plans. We had a feeling a few months ago that they were going to bail on us, but we put our heads in the sand and hoped for the best. Next time we won’t be caught short. Regardless, it’s not Mason’s fault, and you have no right to talk to him like that.”
“ThisisJude Staubman I’m talking to, right?”
“Very funny.”
“I don’t recall getting a text that hell froze over. From what I’ve seen, there’s a heat wave in the city.”
Mason bit back a smile.
“Don’t be a wise-ass.” Jude’s temper flared. “Mason’s good. Very good. You need to give him a chance to show you.”
