11. Mason
MASON
“Hello?” Tate yells from somewhere in my place. “Where are you?”
I seriously need to take away her key. I never cared if she showed up unannounced, but with Lizzy now staying with me sometimes, I don’t think she’d appreciate the unexpected company.
“In here.” I make my way down the ladder, placing my paintbrush in the bucket.
Tate comes to a screeching halt in the doorway, and her mouth drops open. “What in the world are you doing?”
I wipe my forehead with the back of my hand. I forgot how much hard work painting is, but it’s instantly rewarding. “What does it look like I’m doing?”
Her gaze moves around the room, soaking in every single inch, even though it’s still a work in progress. “Are you going goth and didn’t tell me?”
“No.”
My sister steps inside the bedroom and twirls in a circle. “But it’s black.”
“It’ll help me sleep better since I work so late.”
Her lips twist like she’s working through something in her mind. “You think?”
“I want it to be like a cave.”
“You’ve got that nailed. It’s giving total cave vibes. What color are the drapes going to be?”
“Black.”
Her gaze finally lands on me. “Will everything be black?”
“I’m going to put a large cream throw rug under the bed, so my feet don’t have to touch the cold-ass hardwood as soon as I climb out of bed.”
“Smart. Smart.”
Tate makes herself at home, sitting on the edge of my bed like she used to do when she was little. “What made you do this?”
“It’s how Lizzy has her bedroom.”
She straightens as a smile spreads across her face. “Are you trying to lure her to your lair?”
“She’s staying with me this weekend.”
“Oh. This makes me so happy. Tell me more.”
I drop down to the floor, needing a break from the up-and-down of the ladder. “Amira is staying with Hunter and Zoey this weekend. And usually, Lizzy shares a bed with Amira, which, as you know, isn’t fun. So, I told her to stay with me.”
One of Tate’s dark eyebrows rises. “In your guest room?”
I shake my head as I pull up my knees, wrapping my arms around the front of my legs to stretch my back. “No. She’ll stay in here with me.”
“Finally, some movement. Where are you two at?”
“First base,” I answer honestly. My sister knows everything about me.
We’ve never kept things from each other.
When I couldn’t go to my parents about something, Tate was my go-to person.
She was older and had more experience, and since she’s a girl, she gave me advice my dumbass friends couldn’t give me.
“I still can’t believe that. You’ve never moved this slowly in your life, and by the way you two were snuggling up on each other after Hunter was shot, I would’ve thought you two were sleeping together.”
“Well, you would’ve been wrong.”
“Clearly,” she mutters, sliding down the side of the bed to sit on the floor in front of me. “You love her, don’t you?”
“I think so.” I wince as I say the words. I’ve never uttered them to another soul besides members of my family. I was never one of those guys who told every girl I was with that I was in love with them.
“That’s huge, baby brother,” she whispers, and she has a genuine smile on her face. “I’m so happy for you.”
“It’s been hard, though. Her ex messed with her head pretty badly, so she thinks she isn’t worthy of me.”
Tate rubs her forehead and groans. “Why are some men such assholes, and why do we find it so easy to believe them?”
“I don’t know, but I wish she didn’t.”
“What’s her issue?”
“She thinks her body isn’t slammin’.”
“Sometimes I swear you were born in the nineties.”
“Dad made me watch some old movies. I like that term.”
“It’s not the worst thing I’ve ever heard. So, you love her body, but she doesn’t.”
“She’s comparing herself to me. I think she thinks I’m too in shape and that she isn’t worthy of me.”
“Well, you need to prove otherwise.”
I slap my forehead dramatically. “Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Jerk,” she mumbles. “Every woman is insecure about her body at some point in her life. We can’t help ourselves with the impossible beauty standards we see in magazines, movies, and social media.
Be encouraging and make sure to let her know that you love every inch of her.
Use words and not just actions. Her ex used his words, but over time, your praise will replace his venom.
She’ll eventually become more comfortable with her body. ”
“I can also start downing donuts like it’s my life’s blood.”
“Would you do that?”
“I’d do anything.”
“Well, I wouldn’t go that far, but don’t sit here and eat chicken and spinach all day like you wouldn’t dare put anything else in your body.”
I wrinkle my nose. “I can’t eat that shit all day, every day. Pizza all the way.”
“I know. I remember. You eat garbage and look like that.” Tate waves her hand in my direction. “It’s maddening. I’d kill to have a man’s metabolism.”
“Speaking of which, where are your man and my nieces?”
“At home. I was in the neighborhood doing some shopping and figured I’d drop by.”
“That’s it?”
Tate nods. “That’s it. Just a big sister checking on her little brother. We never get time to talk alone like we used to, and I figured it was time.”
“You’re a busy mom and business owner.”
“But I’m never too busy for you.”
“Sometimes you are, but don’t feel bad, life goes fast and you have a lot of moving parts.”
Tate gives me a sad smile. “I think about that sometimes.”
“What about it?”
“My mom was around my age when she passed away. I can’t imagine that happening to me and leaving behind my little ones and Wylder.”
“You’re not going anywhere.” I scoot closer to my sister and place my hand on her leg.
“She didn’t think she was either,” Tate whispers, her gaze barely meeting mine. Her eyes are swimming with unshed tears, and nothing I do or say can take away the pain of losing her mom at such a young age.
“Is there something you aren’t telling me?” I ask, even though the very thought makes my stomach twist.
“No. I’m fine. Healthy as can be. Trust me, I go to the doctor too much because I’m paranoid I’ll wind up with the same cancer and leave everyone behind.”
My body deflates as I exhale. “Thank goodness for that.”
“Life’s too short to worry about things like whether my thighs are chunky. I’m sure Lizzy knows it too since she lost both her parents, but that asshole made her forget it.”
“I’ll do my best to make her realize exactly how amazing she is.”
“You’re going to spend the entire weekend together?”
I nod.
“I have faith in you.”
“Well, that makes one of us,” I tell her.
Tate smacks my arm, the sadness and heaviness of a moment ago gone. “I need you to work harder. I always thought our kids would be close in age, but you’re dragging your feet.”
I jerk my head back, staring at my sister. “I’m not ready to be a dad.”
“I know, but the longer you take to settle down, the longer it’ll be for that moment to actually happen.”
“Can you imagine me as a dad?” I ask her, shaking my head. “I’d be awful.”
My sister moves forward, taking my face in her hands. “You’ll be a wonderful father, Mason. You’re just like Dad, and he is the absolute best. You’re kind, caring, attentive, and sweet. You’re the best brother too.”
“You probably say that to Brax too, don’t you?”
Tate smirks. “I’d never do that.”
“Liar.”
“You have Hunter’s blessing too,” she says.
“What? You two have talked about us?”
“When we have downtime in the shop, yeah. He’s all for your relationship. He wants his sister happy, and he sees the joy on her face when you’re around.”
“Huh,” I mutter. “I didn’t think he wanted us together.”
“He does, and he’s hoping she’ll move to Chicago too.”
“Her town is so cute, though. Her house is beautiful. It’s a big ask.”
“When you’re in love, you don’t care where you have to go to be with that person. Your home is with them.”
“What if she wants me to go there?” I ask my sister. One of us has to move and everyone expects it to be her, but she may ask me to be the one to make the sacrifice.
“Then you do it.”
“Really?”
“I’ll miss you, but yes, you go where she is and live the life you were meant to live.”
“I can’t do small towns. It’s worse than the bar gossip. I felt like I was in an aquarium with everyone gawking at us.”
“Do you want the girl or to be alone?”
“I want the girl.”
“Then you go if she won’t.”
“But I have the bar.”
“Zoey can run it alone. Maybe Nino will pitch in. It basically runs itself. Start a new bar, a new life, a new love.”
“I’ll think about it,” I promise her, but I don’t think I’m built for that small-town American life.
Tate glances at her watch. “Shit, I have to go. They’re waiting for the groceries so we can have dessert.”
“Dessert this late?”
“Is it ever too late for dessert?”
“Not really, but I live my life differently from you.”
“Nah,” she says, pushing herself up from the floor. “I like the room, by the way.”
“Thanks, I have tonight and tomorrow to finish before she rolls into town. I’m picking her up from the airport.”
“Keep me posted on how things go.”
“You’ll see her Saturday night at the bachelorette party. Maybe ask her yourself.”
Tate’s smile is immediate. “I already planned on it.”
“Of course you did,” I reply, following her out of my bedroom.
“Give Willow, Hazel, and Maddy a kiss for me, yeah?”
“They’ll be jealous I came to see you without them.”
“How about I take them for a day soon? Maybe to one of the museums or something.”
Tate pops up on her toes and kisses my cheek. “They would love that. The girls are crazy about you. I don’t know why, but they are.”
“I let them have unlimited ice cream.” I’m joking, of course, but it’s not too far off from the truth. The three of them send sad doe eyes my way, and I cave, giving them whatever they want when they want it. I can’t seem to find the word no in my vocabulary when I’m around them.
“That’ll do it,” she laughs, sliding on her boots. “Catch you later.”
“Bye, sis.”
“Bye, baby brother.”
I stand, staring at the door as it closes behind her. This is a hard time of year for her. She’s always so morose around the anniversary of her mother’s death. I can’t imagine the depth of that pain, even though I’ve witnessed it my entire life.
I take a deep breath, tipping my head back to stretch my neck before I stalk back into my bedroom, ready to finish painting.
I snap a few pictures and send them to Lizzy. I’ve accomplished a lot in a short amount of time, but with the clock ticking down to her flight, I don’t have much of an option.
Lizzy: Wow. You’ve done so much.
Me: I want you to enjoy the weekend and not spend time working.
I debated how much to do, but in the end, I decided that doing it all before she got here would be best for both of us.
With the wedding fast approaching and the bachelor and bachelorette parties this weekend, we’ll probably be too busy or too hungover to get much accomplished.
Add in the fact that I’m excited to sleep in a completely dark room, and I figured I might as well knock it out as soon as possible.
Zoey and Hunter aren’t doing the typical parties either.
Instead of a few days before the wedding, they’re having them two weeks before, and there are no strippers for either of them.
The guys are going to one restaurant and the girls to another to enjoy drinks and dinner.
Afterward, we’re going to meet up at a bar.
Old me would’ve protested, but new me is going to use the opportunity to drink the night away with Lizzy.
Lizzy: You’re very thoughtful.
My phone beeps, and I switch out of her text and check my other messages. The group chat between my cousins and me has messages coming in fast and furious, which is normally the case when all seven of us are participating.
Zoey: I talked with Hunter, and we decided to rent two limo buses to take us around on Saturday. No one needs to be a DD. Everyone can party and enjoy themselves.
Nino: You’re my favorite cousin.
Amelia: Awesome!
Brax: You’re a liar, Nino.
Nino: I wouldn’t lie about such a thing.
Tate: You lie about everything.
Lulu: I’m the favorite.
I roll my eyes at the ridiculousness, and obviously, Zoey ignores Nino and most of the comments.
Zoey: Meet outside the bar at 6 on Saturday. Don’t be late.
Me: That last bit is for Nino.
Nino: Amelia’s the one who’s always late.
Amelia: Never.
Tate: Always.
Not a single one of us is known for our punctuality, but we sure as hell know how to have a good time, and this weekend will not be any different.