Page 69 of Cassie
Something to watch
Mason
He watched as Hoss drew the blonde to his side, cradling her there as if she were precious. This woman, Cassie, had captured the Rebels’ resident artist sure as anything. Hoss had shown him images of sketches he’d done of the woman and while those had been breathtaking, they didn’t do anything to truly convey how beautiful she was.Or how right they look together, he thought, lifting his beer to take a long pull from the bottle.
It had been two weeks of long days and nights since the events in a farmhouse in an isolated Ohio field. Long days of conversation between RWMC and Machos, then Malcontents, and then finally the Jailbreakers, a Florida club he’d long ago tasked with watching over his sister there, Justine. It had taken hours and hours to get to the bottom of what happened, and even now there was no real resolution.
In between Garrett heading into that damned clubhouse, and when the Rebels finally rolled home, two men had somehow slipped the noose. Bedlam still hadn’t turned up, and without being able to put a pin in that detail, every Rebel member remained on high alert. Gunny and Brute spoke to the newer members who hadn’t been through a war before, isolating the men who might not stick and latching onto them, promising to mentor as needed so the RWMC could keep their strength.
Bedlam was a terror all on his own, but somehow Enzo had also skated free, and Myron was still peeling back the layers associated with that particular fuck-up. Hoss and Deke both said it felt like the time years ago when a prisoner had been let loose by a traitor, who’d then tried to drum up discontent by pointing the finger at a brother, all while sitting back and laughing through his beard at the club’s efforts to sort things out. While Enzo was being transported back to the RWMC Columbus clubhouse, the van had stopped at an unneeded gas stop, and the man had simply strolled away. Security footage showed him disappearing into the darkness behind the building, and then moments later, a truck drove away.
After Hoss’ old lady had tased him, Garrett had knocked him fully unconscious with the butt-end of Mason’s pistol before he tied him with the rope that had been used on Hoss’ little girl. Enzo had been hurting from all that, but still walked.
Movement across the room made him look up and Mason smiled as Garrett strolled through the crowd, hand-in-hand with Faith. Those two had been inseparable for days, the weight of their experiences bowing them at times. Hoss said even now she still slept with the door open and a light on. Faith was seeing the same counselor Hoss’ boy had talked to when he’d been traumatized, so there was optimism. Seeing how she looked up at Garrett with stars in her eyes, Mason suspected she’d settle out quicker than the talkin’ doc predicted.My Gar-boy would chew his arm off if he thought it’d make life better for her. The Rebel family had all watched as Garrett nursed a crush through the past few years, Mason and Hoss on the fence whether to encourage it or not.We’re out of it now, he thought, grinning and tipped his beer up for a long swallow.Kids have to make their own way through this part of everything.
Mason felt a dark pulse of energy roll through the room and scanned faces until he locked on the source. Jonny Morgan stood along the wall, scowling darkness on his face as he swung his head to watch Garrett walk past with Faynez, the teen couple so caught up in each other they didn’t even notice him.
That’ll be something to watch. He hated entertaining the thought even for a second, but the look on that man’s face meant trouble was brewing. Judge’s boy had done well living with Captain and DeeDee. He’d been an intensely focused hockey player from the time he stepped foot in their house. The kid had always been volatile, but respectful to and seemed to love his adoptive parents. When the kid had headed to Canada for a couple of years in the junior leagues, Mason had heard rumors of problems with the billet families, but Cap’n had passed it off as teen angst. After he came back to the Fort to play for the local team, Jonny had moved into an apartment on his own, and Mason had heard more than one complaint from DeeDee that she never got to see him. The Shoemaker kids were in and out all the time, so it wasn’t the house that was rejecting him.
Sammy walked up just behind Jonny and studied his best friend for a moment, tracking his gaze to where Sammy’s baby sister stood next to Garrett, head leaned against his arm. He glanced back at Jonny, then unerringly found his father in the crowd and Mason watched as a look passed between them, a promise of watchful care that Mason echoed when he caught Hoss’ eye, too.
He smelled his wife’s light, floral perfume before she got to him and Mason smiled as he lifted his arm in invitation. As he expected, it earned him a teasing slap on the side just before Willa tucked into her place beside him. “Dang it. Why can’t I ever sneak up on you?” He shrugged and lifted his beer, bringing his arm under her chin to do so. With her head lifted at the right angle, he leaned over and brushed his lips across her mouth, grinning wider when her lashes fluttered against her cheeks.
“Hey, babe.” At his soft words, he felt her lips move against his, and knew she was smiling.Best feelin’ in the whole goddamned world.
