Page 97 of Bruised

I hug him, slinging my arms around his shoulders with a breathless giggle, and in his arms, I feel whole.

32. EPILOGUE

Yesterday, Mason took me on a date. A real one.

First, we went for ice cream downtown, then for dinner at this cozy place by the river. After, he took me to see a movie, though he felt me up the whole time, and we ended up abandoning the movie to have sex in a bathroom stall.

I tell the last part to Oliver with a laugh, trying to gauge how he feels about it. During the week since the cat’s been out of the bag, he still hasn’t been totally clear with his thoughts about Mason and me, but at least he doesn’t seem to hate it as much as I feared. Mostly, he just rolls his eyes, but sometimes he laughs at how ridiculous we’re being.

Mason touches me constantly, coming up and hugging me from behind when I least expect it, and he pulls me in for kisses whenever he gets the chance. Needless to say, I’ve taken to sleeping in Mason’s room, and the first time we had a whole night to ourselves, I almost cried with happiness when he pulled me into his embrace.

This morning, I woke up to breakfast in bed, and Mason hand-fed me pieces of fruit while I sat between his legs. When the food was gone, he hand-fed me something else.

I don’t tell that part to Oliver, though. There’s a limit to what he’ll tolerate, and I try to respect that, though it’s a huge relief to not have to sneak around anymore.

Tonight is our last night with just the three of us. We’re in the kitchen while Oliver cooks us dinner before a movie.

Mason is hugging me from behind and gently swaying us back and forth. I can feel his bulge against my ass, even though we had sex this morning. A lot of things have changed between us, but his libido hasn’t slowed down in the slightest. Neither has mine.

Oliver glances over his shoulder and rolls his eyes at the sight of us. “Now that Mom and Fabio are coming home, maybe you’ll finally get a job.”

“Already got one,” Mason says smugly.

Oliver raises a brow. “You did?”

“Lane got me one.”

Oliver turns to me, and I shrug, a little sheepish.

“At my dad’s construction company,” I explain.

“Really?” Oliver asks. “Just like that?”

“Yeah. Basically, I was like, ‘Dad, I have a boyfriend, and he’s really fit and strong and stuff⁠—’”

“And hot,” Mason interjects with a smirk.

“‘—and he really needs a job,’” I finish, elbowing him in the side.

“That’s it?” Oliver asks.

“Yeah, they really need staff right now,” I say, “and once Dad saw him, he hired him on the spot.”

Mason puffs up his chest and flexes his biceps. “Yeah, once he saw these guns, it was game over.”

Oliver rolls his eyes. “Well, at least you have a job now.”

“And Lane and I will be coworkers,” Mason says, nudging my side and winking.

Oliver groans. “Great. You can’t even watch a movie without feeling each other up; how are you gonna get through a full day’s work without disappearing into the bathrooms for a quickie?”

Mason shrugs. “There’s always lunch break.”

“Sure,” Oliver says, doubtful. “Well, maybe this means you’ll get an apartment soon.”

“Sure will,” Mason says and kisses my cheek. “But why do you care, anyway? You’re moving to Boston.”

Oliver averts his gaze, and he’s quiet for a while before he says, “I’m not.”