Page 86 of Fallen Hearts

Mason winced.

“Spill it, Sergeant.” That was my new favorite nickname for him.

“Bachelor pact rules. There are four of them.”

“And?” I waited, eating wings and really wishing I could order a glass of water. Which, of course, I couldn’t. Might have to go to the ladies’ room and use the sink.

“We’re not supposed to talk about it with females.”

“Is that so?”

“Yep. But I’ll make an exception.”

The butterflies in my stomach at Mason’s words needed to be drowned with some tequila. He was talking about rules for not marrying women, after all. Ridiculous.

“Lucky me.”

When he finished chewing, Mason wiped his mouth, making me very aware of his lips. And where I wanted those lips. Swallowing hard, I focused on the conversation at hand.

“First, there’s never stay the night. Too intimate.”

“Um…” I hated to be Captain Obvious, but… “We broke that rule.”

“True. But it was mostly made for Parker. He’s the softie that gets attached too quickly.”

Fantastic. So it didn’t actually mean anything that we’d broken the rule. This conversation was doing a real number on any lingering happiness that Mason hadn’t sold the inn.

“And then the one we made for Beck. Never date the neighbor.”

Despite myself, I laughed. “You literally made a rule just for Beck and Mae?”

“Yep. Because we all know, without a doubt, if Mae was ever into Beck, it’d be all over.”

“Why haven’t I met this paragon of womanhood?”

“She’s in Paris, studying under some famous pastry chef. But word on the street is that she’s coming back soon.”

“Can’t wait to meet her,” I said, meaning it. Beck taking any woman seriously was definitely noteworthy. I wondered what Mae was like.

“And then,” Mason continued, “there are the obvious rules. Never fall in love. And never say ‘I do.’”

Never fall in love.

“Wow,” I said, trying to be nonchalant about it. “Those are some rules.”

“Like I said, just college guys being idiots.”

“So you don’t take it seriously? The rules and the pact?”

“Eh. I don’t live and die by it, like Cole. But I get the point of them and mostly agree the pact was a good idea.”

Don’t latch onto one word. Do. Not. Do. It.

“Mostly?”

I did it.

“Sure, mostly.”

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