Read Online Misunderstanding Mason by Claire Ashgrove - Free Book Online

his dense but
endearing way, doesn’t have the slightest clue what he’s done.”
    How could he
not know? She’d told him on numerous occasions that she was sick of being
second to his job. That she couldn’t deal with the fact he didn’t have time for
her.
    “Things don’t
change because you buy a new house. I’m willing to bet Mason’s job was every
bit as demanding before you bought that place.” Theresa gave her an encouraging
smile. “And five years of commitment doesn’t just fall apart overnight. If you
were that miserable, you wouldn’t have stayed around as long as you did. Think
back. Something started this. That’s where you begin. Whatever happened—the
answer to fixing it’s there.”
    Kirstin
didn’t have to think—Lisa’s project. That’s where she’d begun to shed the
blinders on her relationship with Mason. Excited about the opportunity to work
together, she’d asked for his help. He’d given it willingly at first, but when
Edge Skateboards became an ulcer, he flat-out abandoned her. That’s when she
started to notice how he was more concerned with work than their relationship.
When they stopped going to bed together. When she became aware of the way Mason
didn’t incorporate her in the things that mattered to him—like hurrying off to
meet his programming buddies and leaving her to entertain herself at launch
parties.
    Their walks
around the lake lost their usual comfort as she realized she’d reached that
point where she wanted children and Mason wouldn’t be able to carve out enough
time in his schedule for fatherhood. When she’d realized their life was
routine, and the schedule worked for him, not her, and he became more and more
motivated by money and materialistic things.
    Like the
Jeep—she’d loved that Jeep. He’d spoiled the gift, though, with his, “Can’t
have my girl driving that bucket of rust around town anymore.”
    She could
count on one hand the number of times she’d driven the Jeep since he’d pointed
out that her Mazda embarrassed him. She’d begun to suspect then that she embarrassed him.
    “Think on it,
Kirstin.” Theresa squeezed her hand again. “You’re right, you two don’t need to
work together tomorrow. Use that time to think. But go into tomorrow night with
fresh eyes. Mason’s complicated. You’re the only person who can know what’s in
his heart. Listen to what it might be trying to say. ”
    Kirstin
sighed. She didn’t have much choice—she’d agreed to attend the launch party.
But she already knew what would happen. Just like every other time, he’d become
the center of attention and forget he left her standing in the corner.

 
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Seven
     
    Kirstin
awakened to the bright tones of Hakuna Matata on her cell phone and groped
across the card table that served as her nightstand. 8:15. Who in their right
mind called her at 8:15 in the morning?
    Squinting at
the LCD, a number she didn’t recognize scrolled across the face. So that
explained the early morning call. Still half asleep, she hit the connect key.
“What?”
    “Kirstin!
Good morning!”
    At Lisa’s
bright peal of greeting, Kirstin held the phone away from her ear and choked
down a groan. She’d forgotten how grating the woman’s voice could be. On
realizing the call related to business, she bolted upright in bed, mortified by
her rude salutation. “I’m sorry, Lisa. I didn’t realize you had my cell phone
number. I wasn’t expecting you to call here.”
    Lisa trilled
a laugh. “You sent it to me, darling.”
    “I did?”
Kirstin blinked.
    “Yes, when
you confirmed you received the file I sent across.”
    Oh. Mason.
Yeah, he would route Lisa to the cell at his first opportunity. He
wouldn’t want to deal with her. Kirstin forcibly chuckled. “Ah, that’s right.
I’ve been busy with the project and forgot I replied.”
    “So how is my
project coming along? You didn’t sound so certain—you must have found a
solution if you’ve been