Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45614 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 228(@200wpm)___ 182(@250wpm)___ 152(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45614 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 228(@200wpm)___ 182(@250wpm)___ 152(@300wpm)
Mason didn’t argue or tell her no, and for that she was thankful. Leading him onto the dance floor, Mason pulled her against him. There were not many couples on the floor, perhaps five total.
“Do you want to tell me what’s wrong?” Mason asked.
She sighed. “Nothing’s wrong.”
“Don’t lie to me. No one can see you.”
“People are looking, though, right?” she asked.
Mason nodded his head.
She wanted to drop hers against his chest and forget about everything. Instead, she kept the forced smile on her lips and tried to ignore everything else, but it was hard.
Tamsin didn’t know how her sisters-in-law did this as she struggled so much. She wasn’t cut out for this dog-eat-dog world.
“I don’t know how you do this—come to these parties knowing you have enemies here waiting for you to trip up.”
“It’s something my brothers and I have been trained to do,” he said. “Trust me, my father made sure we were strong and could handle anything.”
“Of that, I have no doubt. My brothers are the same. My mom was trying to train me for this, but then everything went wrong and I guess I didn’t get the whole training.” She wanted to burst out laughing and cry at the same time. “Everyone must know the Dentons are a joke.”
“Not a single person does,” Mason said.
“Have you used the truth about us to your advantage?”
“Never.”
This made her pause as she looked at him. “Even after you married me?”
“Tamsin, I get that in your life a lot of people have let you down, they’ve manipulated you and you’ve seen firsthand what it has done to your family. When I found you, I always intended to marry you, and I knew it was going to be a difficult process for us. I wasn’t going to add to that by abusing my position as your husband. Not now, not ever.”
She didn’t know why, but she had an overwhelming urge to kiss him, even with everyone watching. “Thank you,” she said.
“No, thank you, for making me a very happy husband. It is a pleasure being married to you.”
“How can you say that after the last couple of years?” she asked.
“Easily. I don’t imagine for even a second this has been easy for you.” He stroked her back and she felt the comfort of his touch straight to her core.
Seconds passed and then, rather than fight the temptation, she pressed her head against his chest, feeling the beating of his heart, and knowing she wanted to be with him forever.
What the hell is wrong with me?
I don’t know what is going on and it is scaring me.
She pushed those feelings to the back of her mind and focused on what she felt in that moment. In Mason’s arms, she felt complete and total contentment. Even with their enemies looking at them, it didn’t matter. They had each other and they could handle anything.
“I’m sorry to do this, but can I cut in?”
Tamsin opened her eyes. She had closed them as she rested against Mason’s chest. She didn’t need to turn to know it was Paul who had asked for a dance with her.
“Dad, what are you doing?” Mason asked.
“It would be rude of you to deny me the pleasure of this dance with my daughter-in-law.”
Fuck!
Tamsin had just wanted to be close to Mason and not freak out about the prying eyes. In doing so, she had walked right into a trap. Paul had approached without her even realizing it. There was no way out and if she left the dance floor with Mason, it would show their enemies there was a weakness within the Savonas line. She couldn’t do that to Mason. To Paul, yes, without a doubt. Not to Mason. She didn’t want to make his life any more difficult than it already was.
She saw the glare on her husband’s face and knew this was hard for him.
Pulling away from Mason, she kept that fake smile on her lips and turned toward her father-in-law. “Why, yes, that would be lovely.”
Lies poured from her lips. How did people do this every single day?
Paul placed a hand at her waist and another around her back, and he forced them to be close. It took all her willpower not to throw up in her mouth, which she considered a win.
Being near Paul disgusted her, and it hadn’t gotten better as she got older, especially knowing his enjoyment of young girls. It was sick to know that at nearly nineteen years old, she would be considered too old for him. This man was a monster, and the fact they couldn’t kill him or remove him from the equation pissed her off.
Tamsin couldn’t recall ever wanting to kill anyone. There were moments she had thought about it with regard to her father, but that was just the usual parent-child stuff. Maddox being dead hadn’t made her life any easier.