Mason had always done his best to make his hulking form unintimidating when he was at the shelter. But nothing about him was small. From his broad shoulders to his muscled arms. And now, I would see all of him.

A shiver trilled through me, making my nerves seem to dance under my skin. I couldn’t resist trailing my lips up his neck and breathing him in.

“You keep doing that, and I could drop you.”

I laughed against his skin. “You’re the one who said you were up for a challenge.”

“You would find it funny that you have the power to drive me crazy. Have from the moment I saw you.”

I leaned back a bit so I could take in his face as he climbed the last of the stairs. “Really?”

I’d felt the buzz of chemistry the moment we met. I’d instinctively clenched and flexed my fingers after our hands had grasped in a shake. It had been a red light of warning for me. A sign to stay far away. But Mason had seemed wholly unaffected.

He came to a stop in the middle of the bedroom, slowly lowering me to my feet. “I was supposed to volunteer at a few different organizations around town. But as soon as I met you, I asked Cain if I could dedicate my time to Hope House. I needed to know you. I can’t explain it, but there was this…”

“Pull,” I finished for him.

“Exactly.”

“It’s what made me stay far away.”

Mason framed my face with his hands. “I’ll do everything in my power not to hurt you. And if I do, I’ll give everything I have to fix it.” He pressed his lips to one side of my face, then the other, before finally settling on my lips.

Three little words were on the tip of my tongue. I bit them back, but all I wanted was to let them loose. “I trust you,” I whispered. Those weren’t the words I wanted to give him, but they were still a gift.

Mason’s hands left my face to trail down my body and tug my sundress up and over my head. He sucked in a sharp breath. His fingers traced my nipple through the lace of my bra. “So damn beautiful.”

My nipples puckered, drawing some invisible cord in me a little tighter. “Mason,” I breathed.

“Hmm?”

I couldn’t find words. All I knew was that I needed him. My hands went to the buttons on his shirt, fumbling in my haste.

The corner of his mouth kicked up. “In a hurry?”