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Chapter Fifteen

I paid the price for oversleeping. For the next week, it seemed like I was working longer and longer and doing more and more. Kevin had found a million little problems and so before and after his shift, Mason was busy driving nails into fenceposts or applying new coats of paint. In the little bit of time that we were able to steal in the day, we agreed, between kisses, that work sucked.

One night as we all sat around enjoying big plates of spaghetti and meatballs, Mason glanced over at his dad.

"I have a favor to ask."

Kevin looked up. One of his thick eyebrows arched.

"Oh?"

"I was hoping you could take Shel and me shopping tomorrow. We both have the day off."

"Who said I'm giving Shelby a day off?" Addy asked. Mason looked over at her. She smiled.

"Just kidding. She gets a day off."

"Where do you want to go shopping?" Kevin asked.

"Lexington. I want to get something to wear to the club for my birthday."

Kevin cut his meatball in half, carefully took a bite and nodded as he chewed.

"Well, I guess that would be okay."

Mason and I both grinned. Dan slurped up a noodle.

"Can I come?"

"Sure!" Mason said. He had agreed too quickly. I was about ready to give him a look when all of a sudden I felt his bare foot reach out and nudge mine. Then he ran his foot up my bare leg. My fingers tightened around my fork. I fought hard not to blush. Mason took a drink of his soda. I saw his lips smirk around the rim. He thought he was so suave. I'd show him.

I pulled my leg back. Then I pressed my foot gently right into his lap and wiggled my toes.

Soda went everywhere. I'm not even exaggerating. He leaned forward and began to cough. Dan was staring at his plate in disgust. Addy leaned over and started whapping him on the back.

"What happened?"

I slowly (slowly) pulled my leg back. Mason's eyes were watering.

"Swallowed. Wrong pipe," he gasped. He looked at me. His eyes were smoky again. Like that night.

The night in the lake.

"Well, I think I'm full," Kevin announced. He tossed his napkin down. I bounced up.

"I'll take your dishes," I said sweetly. He looked surprised. I felt Mason's eyes drilling into me, but I didn't meet his gaze again.

To do so would have been a dead giveaway.

---------------------------

"I want to go to the toy store! I saw this really cool airplane we can build. It really flies, dad!"

Kevin looked at the both of us. I had a feeling we were both looking a little too eager to be rid of a parental.

"Well..."

"It's cool dad. We'll just going to go to Abercrombie," Mason said. "We can meet you at the food court."

"Daaaaaadddddd."

Dan was tugging on Kevin's arm. He wasn't making much progress. Kevin was solid.

I guess that's where Mason got it.

"Alright, kiddo. Let's go. But I didn't say I'd buy it."

"It's a Wildcats airplane with a huge engine!"

I saw Kevin's face light up. "Really?"

Mason and I watched them walk off. I turned towards Abercrombie.

"Where are you going?"

"Abercrombie?"

Mason smiled. "I hate Abercrombie."

So did I.

"Well why did you tell--"

Mason took my hand and I had no choice but to follow.

He stopped at American Eagle. For as sneaky as he was being, I was surprised that this was the huge secret.

"One quick stop," he said. He wasn't kidding. He was a typical guy. He grabbed a shirt, he grabbed a new pair of jeans and before I knew it he had the bag.

"Outfit bought," he said.

"We came all the way here for that?" I asked. Mason laughed.

"Don't you want something new?"

At first I thought he was having a seizure. His eyes kept flicking to the right. Finally I looked in that direction and realized he was shooting glances at Victoria's Secret. I looked back at him.

This could be trouble.

Luckily for him, I liked trouble.

"As a matter of fact, I do," I said. I walked towards the store. Victoria's Secret was definitely not the type of place I usually made vast amounts of purchases, but Mason looked like a homeless puppy.

I was a sucker for homeless puppies.

It was almost July and the store was packed with scraps of barely there everythings. Even the dresses were barely there. I stopped at a rack and began to flip through it. I could just hear my dad now...

Too short.

Too revealing.

Too suggestive.

Mom usually sided with dad. But mom and dad weren't here. And Kevin was off doing something with planes. I picked out a couple of dresses and turned.

"I've got to try these on," I said.

Mason grinned. "You can model them for me."

Even though the Victoria's Secret in Lexington was large, they still had the crappy clothing booths with the pink pull curtain. The one back home had nice dressing rooms with doors that locked.

Of course, like I said, I hadn't gone there often.

I walked into an open booth and slid the curtain shut. The first dress that I took off the hanger was a red mini-dress. It wasn't my favorite color but I decided to try it anyhow. I stripped down and yanked the thing over my head.

When they said mini-dress, they weren't kidding. I sucked in as much breath as possible to get it over my hips. I stared in the mirror in horror. I looked like a prostitute.

Too short...Too revealing...Too much boob.

"Shel? Can I see?"

"No!" I called out.

I yanked the thing off and tried another. This one was purple lace. With my red hair I looked like a Valentine.

And I could see my underwear right through it.

"Shel?"

I yanked it off. The last one I had picked was black. It came up high around my neck but the back was completely open. The outline of the back was laced in little silver sequins. It was short, but it wasn't see-through and my boobs weren't falling out. It was---

"Shel?"

Mason's face peeked around the curtain. I turned. His face lit up in a smile.

"Wow, I like that."

"Mason, you can't be in here," I whispered. His eyes widened innocently. I knew better than to fall for the angelic look. Slowly he lifted his hand.

A little scrap of string that I guess you could call a pair of panties dangled off his fingers.

"It would look good with this," he said meekly.

I was braless and now he wanted me to try on dental floss. I took it from him and tossed it onto the bench behind me. He wasn't fazed. He stepped all the way into the booth. In moments he was right in front of me. His hands slid along my bare back.

"Everyone's going to be jealous of me," he whispered. It was silly, but I felt a rush of pride. Feminine pride.

I was woman...hear me roar.

"Jealous?" I whispered.

His hands slid under the material. I felt his fingers on the sides of my breasts.

"I'm going to have the most gorgeous date," he said softly. His arms pressed me towards him and his lips pressed against mine hungrily. It had been more than a week since the lake and it was like he had been starving for contact.

Of course truthfully, so had I. I ran my hands along his jaw, reveling in the feel of his stubble. Our mouths opened and there was a moment where our tongues touched just barely. His hands fell from my breasts and disappointment coursed through me...until his hands slid down under the dress in the opposite direction and his hands grabbed my ass.

There was more than enough to go around.

"Mas," I whispered into his mouth. He smothered any other words with his amazing kiss.

He pressed me against the dressing room wall. His fingers slid under my panties. My breath caught in my throat. Suddenly even this teeny tiny dress was too warm. It was like a freakin parka. It was--

"AHEM."

Mason had a hold of my bottom lip, but it came back into my ownership as we looked to our right. The curtain was pulled back and a saleslady was staring at us, hands on hips.

"I think you two need to leave."

I was mortified. I was pressed against the wall with Mason's hands in my panties and---

Mason smiled. It was a calm smile. As if he had only just gotten caught with his hand in the cookie jar rather than in my panties just centimeters from my hoo-ha.

"Can she at least buy the dress?" he asked.

---------------

"I can't believe she let me buy the dress," I said. "I don't even know if I like this dress."

Mason pressed his hand against the small of my back.

"Well, I do."

We were walking along with our packages and we were splitting a strawberry banana smoothie.

"We're just lucky she didn't call our parents," I said quietly.

"She didn't know how old we were. You looked about nineteen in that dress."

I smiled. I couldn't help it. What a compliment!

"I just wish you would have bought those panties too," Mason whispered. He leaned towards me and I was anticipating how the smoothie would taste coming off his lips when I heard an excited laugh. We both turned.

"WE GOT THE PLANE!" Dan yelled happily. Kevin was holding a huge package and smiling almost as much as his little mini-me.

"I got my clothes!" Mason mimicked in faux-excitement.

Kevin's eyes darted to my Victoria's Secret bag. I couldn't help it. I blushed.

"I got a dress," I said meekly.

"There? Your dad lets you shop there?"

I smiled. "My dad's AJ McLean."

It wasn't a line I used often, but I loved when I had the opportunity to toss it out there. Kevin smirked. I was pretty sure his gaze landed on my nose ring.

"Oh yeah. I forgot."

He didn't ask any more questions and Mason and I didn't provide any answers. We ate lunch at the food court and then climbed into the SUV to head home. The SUV was roomier than the truck, but I still had a soft spot for the truck.

The truck was like a partner in crime.

And I had a feeling Mason and I had a lot more crime to commit.