His body tensed with want for her.
Reluctantly, he eased from the bed and the gorgeous submissive who’d be ready for him if he woke her. He preferred to pull her close and open her legs for a good morning kiss that would shock her awake. He sighed at the noise coming from outside the house. Not meant to be this morning. He dragged on pants and trudged to the front door. Through the glass he got a clear view of one of his closest childhood friends and a man he thought he’d never see again.
Mason Davenport stood tall and broad, exactly as he’d last seen him. He was built like a brick house and was the best damn linebacker because of it. It was kind of like looking in a mirror if he’d bulked up and grown out his hair.
Tucker entered his code into the security system that would unlock everything and yanked open the door. “Well, well. Talk about what the cat dragged in.”
Mason grunted. “Yeah, it’s good to see you too. Now let me in before my balls shrivel up and fall off out here. I forgot how damned cold winter is on the lake.”
“You must be busy vacationing somewhere nice and warm.” Tucker backed up and motioned for Mason to enter.
“Vacationing my ass. I wouldn’t know what that was if it reached up and bit me.”
“Surly as ever, I see.” The humor he’d hoped to find in his friend’s eyes simply wasn’t there. Tucker sobered his thoughts for whatever coming storm Mason would deliver. “I’m surprised to see you.”
“Not as surprised as I am to be here.” Mason walked into the kitchen and headed to the coffeemaker like it’d been yesterday since he was last here, not five years ago. He poured two cups, added the perfect amount of sugar to the strong black coffee and handed off a mug to Tucker.
He grabbed the coffee and took a swig, ignoring the slight burn of the hot brew. “I’m having a moment of déjà vu here, Mason. What’s going on?”
“Same old, Tuck. Paranoid as usual.”
He put his mug down on the countertop and faced his friend. “You call it paranoid, I call it instinct, or whatever it takes to be prepared.” He moved a little closer to his friend and lowered his voice. “You should know that I’m not alone this morning so our reunion will have to be short.” He wasn’t sure how he felt about seeing Mason after all these years and Maggie only complicated things. They’d made a pact to never look back and Mason’s return brought a lot of tough memories to the surface he didn’t want to rehash.
“I know. I’ve seen her.”
That little nugget punched Tucker in the gut. “Exactly how long have you been hanging around before you decided to knock on my door?”
“Someone is digging into our past.” Mason ignored Tucker’s question. “Or more specifically someone is looking for the owner of Purgatory.”
That stopped him cold. “Why the hell would someone do that? It’s been years.”
Mason shrugged. “I guess the current news isn’t as salacious these days. Maybe someone is looking for a promotion. Hell, I don’t know.” He threaded his fingers through his hair. “A couple of months ago Gabe contacted me to let me know someone came in asking a lot of questions. I ignored it. Inquiries happen on a semi regular basis.” He put his coffee down on the table. “Then about the time the same woman showed up at the club again, I heard about your Maggie’s return. From everything you’ve told me about her, she’s had a more interesting life than I would have expected.”
“You can leave her out of this. I haven’t told her anything…” He let the sentence hang between them because he knew that if he and Maggie grew closer he would eventually have to tell her everything.
“Yet.”
Tucker didn’t acknowledge him.
“When I got the call you’d rejoined the club I figured it was time to come home and find out what was going on.”
Tucker didn’t like the look in his friend’s eyes. “Give me a break, Mason. I own part of the club so it’s not unreasonable for me to show up every once in a while. Once every few years shouldn’t cause any suspicions.”
His friend shook his head. “We should have dumped the place years ago. It’s never going to be the same. And if the truth comes out, everything we’ve done will be for nothing.”
“That’s a lot of drama you’re slinging around at—” He checked the clock on the wall “—nine in the morning. You could have called, sent an email. I’m not sure you showing up here was a good call. We aren’t kids anymore and maybe no one gives a shit anymore about a dead religious nut or his son.”