21. Seth
TWENTY-ONE
Seth
I rub my forehead. “You want him to do what?”
I’m standing in the last cabin that needs to be fixed up, and Abi has ideas about Levi’s TikTok channel. I’m dressed like my brothers, but they have no idea that my t-shirt and jeans cost more than their whole wardrobes combined.
Abi rolls her eyes and says the same words again, but slower. “I want him to take off his shirt and pour water on his head so I can film it. His fans are asking for it. It’s the latest thirst trap thing.”
Mark sniggers. “Do you really think we can get him to do that?”
Abi nods. “I do. Look. In like fifteen minutes, he’s coming over here to redo the countertop, right? Jack the heat up, and then a couple of you take your shirts off, and he’ll follow suit.”
I narrow my eyes at her. “Are you sure you’re just not trying to get us to each have our own thirst trap accounts?”
She rolls her eyes. “Managing one is enough, thank you very much. I don’t need more than that.”
Mark crosses his arms and glowers at her. “How do we know you won’t put us on his channel?”
She shrugs, but I don’t miss the smirk.
“And how do we explain your presence here? It’s supposed to be us four working on the kitchen today.”
“I’m getting footage of the renovations for our normal channels. I’ll be back in an hour. He should be good and sweaty by then. Go turn up the heat and hide his water bottle when he gets here. I’ll bring the water when I get back.”
She disappears out the door. Mark, Ethan, and I stare at each other. “That’s never gonna work,” Ethan says.
“You’d be surprised. Abi has managed to get him to do all sorts of things that he has no idea about. The other day, she asked him if he could break a watermelon open with his hands, and when he asked her why, she told him it was because she heard it’s impossible, and she dared him to try. Apparently that video got like a million views in a couple of days.”
I don’t really use TikTok, so I don’t get it, but if it’s working, I’m not one to tell her to quit.
“A watermelon? Is that supposed to be some sort of euphemism or something?” Ethan asks, grabbing a hammer.
“Beats me. I’m getting too old to understand all this, but Abi’s great at it.” I pick at the caulking that was left over from the last countertop.
“How does he not realize she’s filming?” Ethan hammers in a few stray nails so that when Levi shows up, he can install the countertop.
“Because Abi’s always got her phone out. I think he assumes she’s getting other stuff.”
I glance out the window. “He’s on his way. I’m turning on the heat. It’s already warm outside, so I hope this works.”
“And that we don’t die of heatstroke before she gets back.” Mark gets a little cranky when he’s hot.
Levi’s truck pulls up, and we all go help him unload. This is the last cabin that needs to be fixed up before the guests arrive for our influencer Hideaway. We’ve had to move guests around all summer to make it work. No one complained too much. Especially because most of them got moved into the cabins already fixed up. Levi is planning on finishing up the kitchen and the bathroom today. We agreed to help since he’s getting behind on his normal work around the farm. Like the stupid kayaks.
I pick up the box containing the bidet. “A/C is busted. Just FYI.”
Levi grunts but doesn’t say anything. He carries in the new countertop while the other guys grab the tools. Deka, Bisbee, and Gilbert come into the house and immediately go back out again. It’s too warm for them as well.
Sweat starts to form when I enter the kitchen. Not only will this be difficult, but the room will smell rank once all four of us start working. Abi better hope she gets her shot because I’m not working all day like this.
Levi gives us all jobs. Mine is sanding down the table. Once we start, I drop my own bomb. Mostly to take our minds off the heat but also because I need advice.
“I kissed Mae last night.”
Everyone stops what they’re doing, and the bandsaw winds down.
“About time,” Mark mutters.
Levi glares at me. “Are you crazy? You know what Keith is threatening. How could you do that?”
Mark punches Levi in the arm. “Because love is more important than some stupid land.”
“This land employs all of us. It’s our home, so forgive me if I’m not jumping for joy that Seth is screwing with that.” Levi glowers at me one more time before he goes back to the counter.
I wipe my damp forehead. “The problem is, she put the brakes on things again, but I’m tired of being beholden to that old fool. I was kind of hoping you all might have some advice or ideas.”
“Listen to Mae,” Levi says. “She’s got her priorities right.”
“You should totally marry her while you’re in Vegas,” Mark says.
“Keith will have an aneurism if Seth and Mae come back with rings. We can kiss the place goodbye if he does that.” Ethan stands next to Levi and crosses his arms. I thought he was on my side but apparently not. “We’re looking at the problem wrong. You should be worried about how to handle Keith, not Mae. I have a couple of buddies in the mafia, and I can help you bury the body. No one will know. Mae inherits the land. Problem solved.”
“Then he needs to marry her,” Mark interjects.
We work in silence for a few minutes until Levi puts down his hammer. “It’s sweltering in here. Maybe I should fix the A/C first.”
Mark stops him. “The part for the compressor isn’t here yet. We gotta go get it this afternoon.”
“Maybe one of you can go grab a fan or something.” He glances around. “And where the hell is my water bottle?”
“This shouldn’t take that long with all of us working. Let’s get it done, and then we’ll all go jump in the river,” I say. That water will feel great after this sauna.
He frowns but turns back to his counter. Mark catches my eye and winks.
“Killing Keith is not an option. Just want to put that out there so no one thinks it is,” I say.
“Does this mean you’re staying in Whisper Springs?” Mark’s voice is hopeful, but I’m not sure how to answer him. A few weeks ago, my answer would’ve been no, but now, I’m not so sure.
“Maybe. We need to get through the next few months before I make a decision.” That seems to placate him. At least he doesn’t ask any more questions.
“You gonna try to kiss her again?” Ethan asks.
“Hell yeah. But I can be sneaky about it.” I can’t get the memory of those lips on mine out of my head. We’ll definitely be doing more of that.
“How will that go when she’s putting the brakes on?”
“I’m going to attempt to woo her. This afternoon she’s getting flowers. I’m having the chocolates she loved in New York shipped in, and signed copies of her favorite books are on the way. The problem is, Mae isn’t like other women I’ve dated. I have no idea if this will work or not.”
“It’ll work. You’re good,” Ethan muses. “I know where to go if I need advice on how to land a wife.”
Levi throws his hammer down again. “If you really want to pursue Mae and not ruin everything, it’s time to get Dad involved. You need to tell him everything.” He wipes sweat off his face. “This is impossible. I’m getting some fans.”
“We’re not telling Dad yet,” I say.
He just shrugs.
But before he can escape, Abi barrels into the room. “Heard your A/C is out. I brought ice water.” She sets two capped jugs on the table and hauls out a stack of red Solo cups from a bag.
She wiggles her eyebrows at me and Ethan. I shake my head. No way am I risking getting filmed, but Ethan’s already grabbed the hem of his shirt. “Are you nuts?” I mutter. “She’ll film you.”
He shrugs. “I don’t mind.”
He whips off his shirt—he has way more tattoos than I realized—fills a cup with water, and pours it over his head. “That feels better,” he says.
Levi stares at him for a minute, and before I know it, his shirt is coming off. Abi’s got her camera already running. I’d bet money that she got Ethan as well. Instead of grabbing a cup though, Levi goes for the entire jug. Abi’s grin gets wider as he pours the whole thing over his head.
He shakes his hair out and grumbles. “We’ll finish this cabin tomorrow. The A/C gets done first.” He stalks through the room and out the front door.
“That was the money shot,” Abi mutters. “I bet it does better than the watermelon.”
Levi is gonna kill her when he finds all of this out.
And I won’t blame him a bit.