Page 1 of Take Me
Chapter1
Mason
Ifling open my sister’s front door and catch a fierce blast of estrogen right in the face.
Wait.That’s not estrogen.It’s blueberry coffee cake.
“Hello?”I stomp through the foyer, following voices.All of them female, so I got that part right.“Is everyone dressed?”
“It’s my idiot twin,” I hear Lucy tell someone.“Throw your bras so he’ll find us quicker.”
“Like a bra trail of breadcrumbs?”That sounds like Cassidy, my big brother’s bride-to-be.“I thought Mason had a girlfriend.”
“They’re not exclusive,” says my oversharing sister.“Annabelle doesn’t like labels.”
My gut does an unpleasant roll, but I slap on a smile and head for the dining room.
Erika Gentry looks up first, a fan of blond hair falling over her eyes as she deadpans her reply.“I’ve got a shop rag to toss instead of the bra.”She’s the lead mechanic at my brother’s garage, so it’s probably true.“Looks like red panties, except for the oil stain.”
“Ladies.”I cruise through the room, cataloging faces at the table.Lucy’s parked next to Cassidy, who’s beside Erika.Across from her sits Lucy’s sister-in-law, Samantha.
Sam’s wearing a shirt that saysHaven Creek Farm and Wildlife Rescue,holding hands with her fiancée, Maxine.Max scrolls her phone, forehead scrunched in concentration.Both women look edgy, like someone set down a pint of amber liquid and they’re not sure if it’s beer or?—
“Piss,” Maxine growls, looking up from her phone.“That’s what damaged the whole shipment.”
“Actual urine?”Sam looks concerned.“How does a crate full of wedding stuff get covered in pee?”
Max shrugs.“Apparently they traveled on the same barge as a pair of pileated gibbons headed for the Portland Zoo.”Her brow scrunches some more as she keeps scrolling.“They offered to replace everything, but that’s pointless with the wedding in a week.”
“That’s a pisser.”My jackass quip earns me a jab to the gut from Lucy.Good thing I’ve got abs of steel.Grabbing a fork, I get to work carving a thick hunk of coffee cake.“Is Harper ready to go?”
My twin hands me a plate.“Piano lesson ran late.Peter’s picking her up and grabbing her friends on the way.”
“Cool.”One less stop for me.I’ve got time for a snack before taking my niece and her pals to the soft opening of Cherry Blossom Lake’s cool new kombucha bar.
Snagging a seat next to Maxine and Sam, I give their dilemma my full focus.“Exotic monkeys peed on your wedding decorations?Isn’t that a bad omen?”
Sam sits up straight in her chair.“Pileated gibbons mate for life,” reports our resident wildlife expert.“Maybe it’s agoodomen.”
“Huh.”Gotta admire her attitude.“Maybe I’ll ask a pileated gibbon to pee on me.”
My sister snorts.“You’d deserve it.”
Stabbing a thick bite of coffee cake, I stuff it in my mouth.It’s spongy and sweet and packed with fresh berries, just like our mom used to make.My sister must use the same recipe.
“It’s Mom’s,” Luce says, doing her creepy-ass twin mind reading thing.“Thanks again, by the way.”
“For being so handsome your friends forget all their problems?”I wink at Maxine, who rolls her eyes.“No sweat.”
That gets me an eyeroll from Lucy, too.“For taking Harper to the kombucha place.She’s been talking about it all week.”
“Sure thing.”My fourteen-year-old niece is the coolest damn human I know.“How many friends did she invite again?”
“Three.”Lucy winces.“You sure that’s okay?”
“Of course.”The kid’s growing up, and her super-cool uncle can’t be her whole world forever.I’m okay with being relegated to the bench.Really.
Mostly.“The more, the merrier,” I insist.
