Page 35 of Christmas With The Broken Mountain Man
We return to the gym together, but Mason isn't where I left him. I scan the room, spotting him in deep conversation with Tom near the punch table. The serious set of his jaw sends a chill down my spine.
"Everything okay?" I ask as I approach.
Both men turn, Mason's expression immediately softening when he sees me. "Everything's fine," he says, a bit too quickly. "Tom was just updating me on... community matters."
I'm not fooled. "Is it Greg? Or his associate?"
The men exchange a look, and my stomach drops. "What happened?"
Tom clears his throat. "Nothing concrete. Just being cautious. The man who was asking questions about you checked out of his motel this afternoon."
"That's good, right?" I look between them. "If he's gone?—"
"Or it means Greg's coming himself," Mason finishes, voice tight. "Tom spotted a black Escalade at a gas station in Carson City this morning. Two hours away."
Fear coils in my stomach, cold and familiar. "You think he's coming here? Tonight?"
"We don't know that," Tom says calmly. "But I've doubled security at the entrances, just in case."
I wrap my arms around myself, suddenly feeling exposed despite the crowded room. "Maybe we should leave."
"If that's what you want," Mason says immediately, though I can tell he's reluctant to cut the evening short. "But Tom has officers everywhere, and the entire town is here. You couldn't be safer."
He's right, logically. But fear isn't logical.
"One more hour," I compromise. "Then home."
Mason nods, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "One hour. And I'm not letting you out of my sight."
We turn to head back toward the dance floor when a woman's voice cuts through the crowd. "Mason Walsh! Are you seriously going to avoid me all night?"
Mason freezes beside me, his posture suddenly tense. I look up to see a petite brunette weaving through the crowd toward us, determination written across her pretty features.
"Kelsie," he mutters under his breath, but there's a complicated mix of affection and exasperation in his tone.
His sister. The woman who started all this by signing him up for Sealed, Signed, Delivered.
She reaches us, crossing her arms over her festive red sweater dress. "Unbelievable. It takes your fiancée to get you toa social function, and you still can't be bothered to say hello to your only sister?"
"I've been busy," Mason says stiffly.
"Too busy to return my calls for a week?" She raises an eyebrow, then turns to me with a warm smile. "You must be Destiny. I'm Kelsie, the meddling sister responsible for your current situation."
I can't help but smile back. There's something immediately likable about her directness. "It's nice to finally meet you."
"Likewise. Though I was starting to think my brother was keeping you hidden on purpose." She shoots Mason a pointed look.
"Can we not do this here?" Mason glances around, clearly uncomfortable with the attention they're drawing.
"Where would you prefer? Since you've been dodging me since the moment you got my email about the matchmaking service." Kelsie's tone softens, a hint of hurt breaking through her confident exterior. "I know you were angry, Mason, but I didn't think you'd freeze me out completely."
Something in her words seems to deflate Mason's irritation. His shoulders drop slightly. "I wasn't freezing you out. I just needed some time."
"A simple 'thank you for finding me the love of my life' would suffice," Kelsie says with a teasing smile, though I can see real vulnerability behind it.
Mason sighs, but his arm tightens around me. "You couldn't have known it would work out this way."
"No, but I knew you were drowning in that cabin alone. And look at you now." She gestures between us. "The whole town's talking about how Mason Walsh is walking around looking like he's been hit by a happiness truck."
