I nodded. “Better late than never.”
He sat back in his seat and looked down at the table for a few moments before glancing back up to meet my gaze.
“I was quiet and kept to myself mostly. What about you?” he countered.
Tony arrived at our table and set bottled waters down, nodding to Mason before walking off.
I watched him retreat then smiled at Mason as I remembered my childhood. “I was a bit of a tomboy growing up. Besides my sister, I didn’t have any other girls to play with in my neighborhood; it was all boys. It wasn’t too bad, though, because I liked getting dirty.”
Mason grinned slyly. “Is that so?”
I laughed and rolled my eyes. “Dirty as in riding bikes through the woods and falling in the dirt, you perv.”
He laughed and I was enamored by his carefree behavior. I wondered how many people got to see that side of him. He wore his mask so well.
“Where exactly are you from?” he asked, just as Tony stopped at our table with two plates and sandwiches piled sky high with fresh bread and meats.
My eyes widened as I looked from the plate to Tony. “There is no way I’m going to eat all of this.” I pointed to the sandwich and laughed.
“Do not worry. We have take-home boxes,” he said with a wink and walked off.
I eyed the sandwich then Mason, who was smiling at me.
“Go on,” he encouraged, nodding toward the sandwich. “Take a bite.”
I grabbed a fourth of the sandwich with both hands and leaned in to do just that. I looked up as I began to chew and couldn’t help my moan. The meats and cheese and whatever condiments Tony used mixed with the fresh-baked bread were amazing. Mason’s gaze was centered on my mouth as he watched me finish the bite.
Self-consciously, I grabbed a napkin and wiped at my lips. “Did I get something on my face?”
He shook his head. “No, I was just admiring your mouth,” he said softly.
I averted my gaze as a blush took over my face. I was amazed that after everything he could still make me blush.
“So, where were we? Ah, yes, where are you from?” Mason asked before starting on his own sandwich.
After taking another bite and wiping my mouth, I answered. “Pensacola, Florida. Have you heard of it?”
He nodded. “What made you want to come all the way to New York and pursue a career in law?”
I shrugged. “NYU is a great school. Plus, Melanie is here.”
“Why criminal law?”
I glanced at his plate and noticed he’d already eaten half of his sandwich. I was the one who was supposed to be asking the questions.
“It’s my turn,” I stated before taking another bite. He smiled. “Why did you decide to teach instead of joining your dad? I’m sure you would be a great lawyer.”
He looked down at his plate with his eyebrows pinched for a moment before picking up his napkin, wiping his mouth, and then staring at me. “I wanted to make my own path, do things the way I wanted to do them. I’d been in John’s shadow for so long it was time I did things on my own. You’ll see when you begin to practice that lawyers have their own way of doing things. Yes, they follow the law to a certain extent, because there isn’t much you can get by without doing it, but there are those who walk a fine line.” He pushed his plate away and rested his forearms on the table as I stared into his eyes, caught on every word he spoke. “I wanted to teach so I knew good lawyers were being put out into the world.”
“So it’s a control thing,” I pointed out, causing his lip to curl up into a grin.
I was learning that he was a man who wanted control in all things in his life, which didn’t surprise me. He was intimidating and had an aura of power around him. If I hadn’t met him the way I had, I would never have had the nerve to talk to him.
“You could say that.”
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. That was what I had wanted, him to be open, to remove his mask for once and let me in. Even if it was only a little, it was a small step.
“This is nice,” I added when I stopped laughing.
“And what’s that?” he asked, leaning toward me a little bit more, his eyes focused on my lips.
“You. Letting go of whatever it is you hold onto so tight. There’s no tension in your expression and I’ve seen you smile more in the past ten minutes than I’ve seen since I first met you. It’s nice. You should do it more often.”
I smiled at him, but his gaze never faltered from my lips.
“You still owe me,” he said, finally looking into my eyes.
I scoffed and looked at him confused. “I owe you for what?”
“You still owe me a drink for spilling alcohol on my suit.”
I laughed and he had a smug look on his face as he pushed his seat back and stood.