Page 56 of Mason

“Viktor told them I hadn’t asked you yet, that I was planning to, so that bought us some time.”

“What makes them think I’ll say yes?” she asked. “We’ve only known each other a couple of months. It takes longer than that to decide if you want to tie yourself to someone for life.”

Mason grinned. “Let me tell you the story of how my mama and papa met. Papa was assigned to the military base in St. Petersburg. He saw my mama in the market, and he knew he was going to marry her and told her so that day. Mama laughed at him, telling him he was crazy. A week later, he was told he was reassigned. He married Mama the same day.”

“In a week of meeting her?” Jo’s eyes went wide with shock.

“Da.” Mason heard his own natural accent start to thicken as he talked of his parents. “They knew they loved each other, and that was the most important thing. It wasn’t how long they’d known each other, but the feelings inside. Those feelings wouldn’t go away in a day or a year or fifty years. That was what was important. Love is love and should be celebrated and expressed, not worried over and feared.”

“Mason, that’s…”

He shushed her. “It is the way the Kincaid men are. We don’t doubt ourselves. We see what we want, and we go for it in everything, including love. I was giving you time, Josephine, not because I don’t love you or because I don’t believe we’ll be happy fifty years from now, but because I didn’t want to rush you. I want you to know you’ll be happy with me fifty years from now.”

“I…”

This time she was cut off by the door opening and another man walking in. He was about Viktor’s age and in a much nicer suit than the detectives. Their attorney, maybe?

“Mason, Josephine. I’m Brad Landon. Nikoli said you were both in need of representation? Forgive me for not knowing the details. I rushed over here as soon as I got the text.”

Mason thanked him and filled him in on everything that was going on, from the moment the cops appeared at the apartment, their plan of action, and now the complete turnaround they’d done.

“It’s not unusual,” Brad said when Mason had finished. “You two do look like good suspects, given the money was in your account first, Mason, and then it was transferred to Josephine’s.”

“Just Jo, please.”

“Jo.” Brad smiled warmly. “Now, the fact that you brought this to their attention does help your case. Let me go speak with the detectives, and I’ll see what I can do. You two sit tight, but rest assured, I will not be allowing either of you to answer questions until we meet at my office and go over everything. Let’s see if we can’t get you two out of here.”

“He seems…” Mason broke off, staring at the door Brad had just exited.

“Nice?” Jo offered. “But is nice good or bad? Shouldn’t attorneys be like sharks?”

“He’s a friend of Viktor’s and KSI’s attorney. Trust me, he’s a shark where it counts.”

Jo gave him a hesitant smile. “Okay.”

“Don’t worry, Josephine. Nothing is going to happen. I won’t let it.”

Mason hoped he could keep that promise, but given Harper’s insistence on blaming them, he was starting to have his doubts.

It still took their attorney another two hours to get them out, but he was true to his word. They didn’t answer a single question. Mason was beat, and he knew Jo was too. He stopped at a gas station and headed toward Dimitri’s. His brother had given him the use of his house for Jo’s birthday since he and Becca were out of town on one of Dimitri’s book signings. Mason shook his head. No one would have ever thought Dimitri would be a romance writer, but hey, he was good at it, so Mason didn’t rib him. Much.

“Where are we going?” Jo asked, her voice heavy with sleep.

“Somewhere.”

“Mason, we both have class tomorrow.”

“Nope, we’re skipping.”

“People are going to be talking…”

“Let them.” His voice was a little harsher than he planned, but it had been a hell of a day. “It’s your birthday, and we’re going to celebrate.”

“I thought you said our reservations were…”

“Canceled, yup. We didn’t make them.”

“Mason, you know I hate surprises.”

---