Page 51 of Unburied

His eyes dropped to his desk. “Experience.”

She understood that Knox knew a side of Mason she didn’t. He’d seen him as a Marine, as a single man. The Mason she knew was loyal and trustworthy and would do everything in his power to keep her safe and take care of her. “When you were in the service… you trusted him with your life, right?”

Knox’s expression turned wary. “Yeah. Why?”

“You’ve never told me a lot of the stuff that happened over there, and I would never ask. I’m sure you guys dealt with some awful things. But the whole time, Mason had your back. If you trust him with your life, trust him with mine.”

Knox was quiet for a solid minute before he spoke again. “I hate it when you’re right.”

She sputtered with laughter. “You’re such a jerk.”

“Yeah, but I’m your brother,” he returned. “I’m allowed to be protective of you.”

“And I appreciate it,” she said. “Just… let us figure it out. Nothing is guaranteed in life. We could be together for two weeks or the rest of our life. Only time will tell.”

He pulled her into a hug. “I love you, Viv.”

“Love you, too.” Wrapping her arms around his waist, she returned the hug.

Telling him the truth had lifted a huge weight off her chest, and she finally felt like she could breathe. She had no idea what the future would bring for her and Mason, but she was dying to find out.

CHAPTER

TWENTY-EIGHT

Knox didn’t even glance up when Mason entered his office and shut the door behind him. The sooner he put this situation behind him, the better. “I want to talk to you.”

Finally, slowly, Knox’s chin lifted and his dark gaze met Mason’s. There was still a trace of anger there and something that seemed a lot like betrayal.

He glared at Mason. “I should cut you loose.”

Mason kept his gaze impassive. “I understand. Do whatever you think is best.”

Knox’s dark eyes searched Mason’s. “You care about her?”

“Yes.”

Knox raked one hand through his hair and sent another lethal glare Mason’s way. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Mason kept his mouth shut. There was no way he was going to tell Knox that it was her idea to keep things quiet. “I should have said something,” he agreed. “I shouldn’t have kept you in the dark.”

“She told me it was her idea.”

Mason neither confirmed nor denied it, and Knox’s gaze narrowed on him.

“Weeks.” Knox grimaced as he pushed from his chair and moved around to lean against the front of the desk. Mason balanced on the balls of his feet, ready to move. Here he was within swinging distance, and Mason wasn’t particularly looking forward to getting into it with him again. “You’ve been together for weeks, and I had no idea. How could I not have seen it?”

Mason lifted one shoulder at Knox’s rhetorical question.

“My sister, man.” Knox planted his hands on his hips and glared Mason’s way. “Why didn’t she say anything to me?”

Mason didn’t know what to say to that, because he wasn’t sure, either. All he knew was, he actually felt relieved that it was out in the open now. “I think she was afraid of disappointing you,” he said. “God knows she deserves a lot better.”

Knox speared Mason with a dark look. “As long as you know that.”

For what seemed like forever, they stood there staring at each other. Mason had no idea where they stood, either as friends or coworkers, but there were a few things he knew with absolute certainty. Regardless of what happened with Knox, whether he cut Mason from his life or fired him, Mason still would have chosen Vivi. She was more important than all that. He could get another job, but Vivi was one of a kind.

Knox’s chest rose and fell. “I’m still pissed at you.” He tipped his head toward the lobby. “But you've always had my back, and I trust you to take care of her.”