Chasing Bristol (The Finding Trilogy Book 2) by Shane Morgan Read Free Book Online Page B

when
Mason was sitting at our table at the lounge on Monday night, and again when he
was in your apartment yesterday. I never saw you light up like that when you
were with Tyler.”
    “Stop. It’s nothing like that.” I turned
to the TV, then added, “Besides, I told you, it’s going to be a while before I
dive back into a relationship.”
    Amber chuckled. “Who said anything about
a relationship?”
    I steered my gaze to her. “Well,
whatever it is that you’re insinuating, I’m not looking for it right now.”
    Bobbing her head slowly, she spun and
resumed watching the show, though, the sly grin never left her face.
     

 
     
     

     
    On Sunday afternoon, I stood before the bathroom mirror staring at my reflection longer than usual.
My cheeks were puffy, tired from lack of sleep, and my auburn hair appeared
dull and matted. After Amber left, I’d stayed up for most of the night, almost
giving myself a nervous breakdown as I thought about how close my admirer had
been to me while I was in the shower.
    He could have attacked me. He could’ve…
    Ugh!
    I snapped out of it and put on some
makeup. While brushing out my hair, I heard knocking at the door.
    Setting the brush down, I made my way to
the living room, but then paused in front of the door. I wondered if it was my
secret admirer, if he’d finally become brave and decided to show himself to me.
    Whoever it was knocked again. This time,
a familiar voice followed. “Bristol, it’s Mason.”
    Relieved, I suppressed the fear and
opened the door. “Hey,” I said.
    Mason wasn’t wearing his uniform. He
still looked good in his shirt and jeans, and as laid back as he’d been at the
lounge, but he seemed a bit discouraged about something.
    “First, that note you gave me,” he
began, “the only prints on it were yours.”
    “Okay,” I replied. “Not surprised.”
    “Yeah, and I talked to your ex. He says
he has no idea what’s going on with you and he has an alibi for yesterday. He
was at work all day.”
    “Of course,” I said. “I already knew it
wasn’t him.”
    “Well, uh, I just wanted to update you.”
    Mason was about to leave, then he
paused. Turning back to me, he asked, “How are you?”
    I raised my shoulders in a shrug as I
answered, “I’m…okay. Trying to keep my mind off what happened.”
    He nodded and relaxed his body as he
began observing me.
    “Ahem,” I cleared my throat and shifted
my weight from one leg to the other, suddenly feeling shy.
    He dawdled for a moment before saying,
“Um, I’m not sure how this is going to sound, but do you want to go for a walk?
It’s a nice day and all.”
    A slight, optimistic grin formed on his
mouth. I felt a ticklish sensation throughout my body. I had to look away to
answer. “Sorry, I, um, I can’t.”
    “You sure? It could do you some good,”
he insisted, a low chuckle under his breath.
    Glancing up, I leaned against the door.
“Mason, I can’t.”
    His head turned down, and he lightly
kicked at the hardwood. When he looked up again, he said, “Bristol, the truth
is…I don’t want to go on regretting.”
    I straightened at his words. “Regretting
what?”
    “Not trying,” he replied in a soft tone.
“When I left Rhode Island, I thought about you a lot, and I wanted so badly to
see you again. I never thought I would, and then…” He stopped and caught his
breath. “There you were at the lounge that my friends had dragged me to. I
couldn’t believe my luck.”
    “So you didn’t join the police force to
find me?” I joked. “Amber thought you did.”
    Mason played along. “Actually, that was
one of the reasons.”
    “Oh,” I giggled, it felt so natural with
him. “Are you my admirer after all?”
    Composing himself, he said, “I’m
definitely not the creep who broke into your apartment, but I do admire you.”
    My body tensed. A slow burn grew in my
chest and spread throughout the rest of my body.
    “Actually,” he continued, “seeing you
again was a