Page 45 of Summer Heat
We worked in a companionable silence for a few minutes, and then Hudson said, "When do I get to pick the music?"
"You know the project manager gets to pick," I said, used to this particular complaint from my brothers. We had to come up with a solution a long time ago.
Before Hudson could grumble about my musical choices any further, Kinsley appeared in the doorway. "You already started."
I stretched my neck, working out the kinks. "I put Hudson to work."
Kinsley brightened. "Do you mind if I film the both of you working together? I think viewers will love your banter."
I raised a brow. "You mean they'll enjoy us fighting with each other?"
Kinsley grinned as she set up her phone on the stand that was always present in any space we were working. "It's viewer gold."
I shook my head. "We don't have any viewers yet."
Hudson looked from Kinsley to me. "You started filming already?"
"She insisted." I hadn't put up much of a fight because I enjoyed when she was nearby, and the camera guaranteed that she'd be checking the feed.
"Is anything ready to post yet?" Hudson asked, his voice rising with interest.
"I need to work on editing the film this weekend while Maya's with her dad. I can start posting as soon as it's done. I think we have a week's worth of material already. It really depends on how granular you want to get. Will viewers get bored with five days of tiling?"
"Probably," I grumbled, not happy that the video would be shown soon.
"What changed your mind about filming the renovation?" Hudson asked, his gaze fixed on me.
"Kinsley was convincing." I didn't tell him the truth that I wanted to have an excuse for her living in the house. I was hoping nothing would ever get posted. But now that my brother was involved, that was inevitable.
Hudson nodded his approval. "Well, I'm looking forward to seeing it."
"I can send you the first edited video tonight, if you want," Kinsley offered before she hit Record on her phone. "But right now, smile, because you're on camera."
Would Hudson give me a hard time? Would he openly criticize me on camera? I tried my best to put the camera out of my mind as I grabbed the framing for the shower. Hudson rushed to assist me getting it into place. Once it was secured, we moved onto the next piece.
Once the framing was done, we installed the walls. We'd done this dance so many times that we worked well together.
We'd learned how to install a shower when we were teenagers. Back then, we worked together. But as we got older, we each worked on separate projects. Although I usually still shared mine with Cooper.
I hadn't worked with Hudson in a long time. Usually, I avoided him because he had an opinion about everything.
At some point, Kinsley disappeared, saying something about laundry and editing the video.
Hudson was the first to break the silence. "You're the last single brother."
He probably figured any potential viewers would be asleep watching us work in silence which I didn't mind. I grunted in response. "Do you have a point?"
Hudson stood to his full height and puffed out his chest. "I'll have you know that I've offered successful relationship advice to every one of our brothers, and they're now in serious, long-term relationships.
"You're messing with me, right?" I chuckled.
Hudson nodded. "Each one showed up on my porch looking for good old-fashioned advice."
"What advice could you possibly have to give? It's not like you've been in a relationship for twenty years or something. Why don't they go to Mom or Dad?" They had a relationship we all admired.
Hudson leaned on the wood framing. "I was the first one to fall, and you're going to be the last."
I laughed without any humor. "Sure."
