Page 63 of City of Sin (Men of Manhattan 1)

-Mason

P.S. I ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch today. You're rubbing off on me.

I ran my finger across his words. I liked that he never asked. There was no uncertainty on his part. He wanted to see me, so he was going to see me. Every time we talked I liked him more and more. I couldn't deny the fact that I had a huge crush on him. That was the best way to put it, because for some reason it felt like I could never really have him. He was out of my league. But it made me want him even more.

I looked back down at the package. Had he sent me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? Or maybe something for our date? I slowly lifted off the lid and pushed aside the tissue paper.

Oh my God. I picked up the dress and stood up so that I could see the whole thing. It was a deep red, mermaid style dress with a plunging neckline. It was simple but elegant at the same time. So elegant. He hadn't just been thinking about me, he had been buying me the most beautiful dress I had ever seen. It was like something one of the contestants from Miss America would wear. There was something different about the fabric of this dress. I wanted to say it was almost heavy, but that didn't explain it right. It wasn't like other dresses I had. It was well made. The fabric was luxurious. And somehow it looked like it might fit me. Mason was a good guesser.

7 o'clock. I grabbed my phone and looked down at the time. I still had a few hours. But I somehow needed to look worthy of this dress. I laid it down on my bed and ran into the bathroom.

***

I took the last of the hot curlers out of my hair and ran my fingers through the curls to loosen them. My makeup and hair were done. Now I just needed to see if the dress fit me.

I put on my nicest bra and pulled the dress over my head. It was the perfect fit. I never would have chosen something that accented my breasts so much, but it was beautiful. I took a step back from the mirror. It hugged my curves like it was made for my body. I didn't really want anyone to stare at my cleavage all night though. Maybe I had something that would draw attention toward my face. I pulled out my box of earri

ngs and picked up a pair of dangling earrings with diamonds. Patrick had bought them for me a few months before I found out that he was cheating. It was probably because he felt guilty. I hadn't worn them since our breakup. But when I looked at them now, I didn't want to cry. They were the nicest jewelry I had aside from the engagement ring I once wore. And I wanted to look nice for Mason.

Marie was right. Mason was a perfect choice to help me get over Patrick. It was already working. And maybe I was what he needed to. If I wasn't, why would he have bought me this dress? This was too elaborate of a scheme for a one night stand. He liked me. The thought gave me butterflies in my stomach. This was more than a rebound for me. Maybe this was why I had wound up in New York. Mason had said he wanted to be the reason I stayed in the city. And I didn't realize it before, but he already was. I was actually happy. I was happier than I had been in months. I put on the earrings and looked at my reflection in the mirror. It was like they were made for this dress.

I picked up my phone to look at the time. There was a message from Marie: "Kendra and I are dying to know how the sex was. Text me back."

I laughed. "Still don't know that yet," I texted back. But maybe I would soon. I looked at my reflection in the mirror again. Tonight could be the night. If he could resist me in this dress, maybe he was gay or something. The thought made me laugh again. If there was anything I was sure about regarding Mason Caldwell, it was that he was straight. And right now, for some reason, he wanted me.

There were still a few minutes before he was supposed to be here. I grabbed my notebook and flipped to a blank page. It was like I was living in a fairytale. This was how every girl desired to feel at some point in their lives. Something that captured this would make a great advertisement. For what I wasn't sure. But it was a good idea. Hopefully it wouldn't be an idea that just sat there forever without anyone hearing it.

A buzzing noise sounded through my apartment. Mason was downstairs, waiting to come up. But I didn't want him to see my place. It was bad enough that he had seen the inside of the building. I set my notebook down on my nightstand and grabbed my nicest jacket out of the closet.

I locked my door behind me and walked down the stairs as quickly as I could in my heels.

Chapter 36

Mason

I pressed the button again. I should have called her. She was drunk last night. She probably didn't even remember that I told her she had a package.

I leaned against the wall next to the call box. She had wanted me to come up last night. And for some reason I hadn't. I kept telling myself it was because she hadn't begged me yet. But that wasn't it. I wanted her to remember our first time. I wanted her to dream about. I wanted her to crave me as much as I was craving her.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. There was a text from my friend, James: "Please tell me you're coming to this thing. I'm pretty sure Penny and I are the youngest ones here right now."

I was excited to show Bee off. "My date and I will be arriving shortly. We'll help spice things up, don't worry." I pressed send.

"Spice things up? Like the Caldwell Christmas party 2012 spicy? This will be an interesting evening."

I laughed. I had brought a prostitute to my family's annual Christmas party that year. It did not end well. Well, actually, she did give me a happy ending. But my family wasn't happy. "Nope, I have an actual date this time. And I think Penny and her are going to hit it off." If Bee's actually coming. I pressed the button on the call box again.

James' response came right away. "I'm not even sure what you mean by an actual date."

"Don't embarrass me, asshole." I shoved my phone into my pocket as I heard the click of the front door opening. Bee emerged from her apartment building.

I had never seen her look more beautiful. Her cheeks were flushed from the sudden burst of cold. And her lips were the same color as the dress. The dress looked like it was made for her. Her long coat hid her round ass but her tits looked amazing. "Bee." My voice sounded weird. I quickly cleared my throat. "You're breathtaking."

She smiled shyly. "Mason. No one has ever...you didn't need to..." her voice trailed off. "Thank you for the dress. I love it."

I wanted to walk over to her and kiss her. But I had already planned out how this evening was going to go. And it definitely didn't start with a kiss. I wouldn't get her to the gala if I gave in to that urge. We'd end up in her bed in just a few minutes. I wanted to show her everything I had to offer.

"You look beautiful in it. We better go. We're already late."

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