Page 34 of I Heart Mason Cartwright
I sleep relatively well consideringI was in a chair all night. But I definitely wake up feeling sore and cramped everywhere. AshLynn, on the other hand, is completely spread out in the king-size bed, sleep mask over her eyes, ear plugs in, and one of those nasal strips over her nose.
I grab my bag and tiptoe into the bathroom to change. I looked up running routes last night on an app I have, and there’s a three-mile trail just down the way. It loops around close to Willow’s house—not that I expect to see her, but one can only hope. I grab a bottle of water and slip out of the room, stretching in the hall before heading out.
The run to the trail doesn’t take long, and it’s quiet. There aren’t any people out on the streets yet, the sun is barely up. I feel my muscles start to loosen as my body warms. I put my earbuds in and find a playlist to run to. Metal is my favorite on mornings like this when I have a lot of angst and frustration to work through.
I checked and Ashlynn is right, it is a felony to spy on someone for sexual interest or gratification in the state of Washington. If she says she caught me jacking off, I’m screwed. It doesn’t get any more “sexually interested” than that. I’m not entirely sure how she would prove it. But she’s also not someone I’d want to go up against not knowing that. Practicality is not her strong point.
I reach the trails and pick up my pace. My average is a six-minute mile, but I go a little slower since I’m not familiar with this trail and I don’t want to trip on a branch or rock. One song bleeds into another as I find my groove. Sweat dripping from my face and body, my lungs expanding, legs pumping. It’s times like this I wish I had a dog. Maybe it’s time to get one, no reason why I couldn’t bring it to jobsites with me.
P-Tink would love this trail.
Get the dog and its owner out of your mind.
But—
Doesn’t matter. You already perved your way out of a chance with her. She thinks you’re engaged to her sister.
Half sister.
Like it matters.
I slow to a walk to get some water before starting up again. While I enjoy these little talks with myself, I know that I’m right in that I don’t stand a chance with Willow. The sooner I accept that, the better off I will be.
Sprint.
Sprints will clear your head.
I check the app, I have another mile and a half of the trail before turning back.
I sprint the remainder of the way to the end of the trail before pausing to catch my breath. There’s a small clearing at the end, surrounded by trees, with a couple benches for people to rest on. I walk in small circles so I stay moving, get some water, pull my shirt off to wipe the sweat from my face and tuck it into the band of my shorts instead of putting it back on.
I take the route back at an easier pace if for no other reason than to prolong my time out here alone. It’s quiet and relaxing, which makes it easy to think. I’ve yet to come up with a way to get myself out of this mess aside from blackmailing AshLynn back with something. She said that we’d be breaking up soon, so I’m hopeful that by soon she means today.
I’m not at all interested in meeting them for breakfast except that it will be a way to see Willow again.
My god, man. You’ve got it bad for this girl.
I don’t know that I have it bad so much as she intrigues me. I want to know everything there is about her. I want to know her thoughts and dreams, the music she likes, her favorite foods, what makes her happy and more importantly what makes her sad. I want to count the freckles on her face. Hell, I want to count the freckles on her body. I want to know if she sunburns easily, her favorite ice cream flavor, if she likes flowers or chocolate better as an impromptu gift.
Otherwise known as having it bad.
I want to find out if she moans during sex the way she did with the pizza. How she tastes, what gets her off . . .
Slow down, tiger. You’re sporting wood.
Shit, difficult as fuck to jog with a hard-on.
Mom. Taxes. Roadkill.
I think of things to expel any sexual interest coursing through my body.
It works.
I’m a short distance from the beginning of the trail when I hear howling. Followed by something crashing through the brush. I stop and look around, but don’t see anything. Including the dog that flies through the air and hits me at the chest, knocking us both to the ground, before it proceeds to lick my face.
“P-Tink?”
