CHAPTER TWENTY

Mason

I leave Ally sleeping at the cabin this morning. She hardly moves when I get up and place a gentle peck on her forehead. She somehow looks beautiful, even with her messy bun half falling out and her mouth hanging open. I feel a squeezing in my chest as I look at her, this stunning woman who has swept into my life and turned it upside down in the best way possible.

It takes all my effort to get out of bed and leave her this morning, but I have important business to attend to if the surprise that I have planned for her for the Harvest Festival is going to go off without a hitch. It has to go off without a hitch.

Ally has devoted all of her free time to this fundraiser, to the clinic, to me. If there's anything I can do for her in return, it's giving her a show at the Lumberjack Games.

I can hear the muffled shouts and banter between my brothers all the way out in the hallway of my apartment as I make my way up to the top floor of the old three-storey walk-up and pull out my keys to unlock the door. The walls of this building have always been thin, but they seem like paper with my two brothers staying here. I have to remember to apologize to the neighbours once Jett leaves for the ski season. He's been staying in the apartment since he's been on his off-season through the summer, and Hudson has made himself right at home in my room since I'm rarely here anymore. God only knows what these two idiots get up to while I'm at work all day.

They're wrapped up in a very serious video game; a back country skiing game that Jett is dominating. Jett dominates at all things ski-related, including video games. It's in his blood, both on the slopes and not.

I'm greeted at the door by a wet snout and a wagging tail.

"Hey, Rubs." I reach down and pat Ruby, Hudson's rust-coloured golden retriever, as she leans into my legs. She's a sweet girl, and the only girl that Hudson will entrust his heart to at this point. "Don't you have a job, Hudson?" I quip, looking over at them both sitting on the couch, my couch, and noting how Jett's presence does nothing but disrupt our routines.

Hudson is driven and a hard worker. He spends his days as a project manager at a local construction company while working on-call at the fire hall. His theory is that knowing how to build homes helps him understand how they'll burn. It's sound enough logic. Hudson applies himself to both of his jobs with a profound dedication that I admire. We both inherited our work ethic from Dad. But whenever Jett comes around, he pulls my younger brother into his bullshit, and they do nothing but slack off. Which only adds to the list of reasons my brother Jett annoys the living shit out of me. At twenty-nine, you'd think he'd have grown the hell up a little by now.

"Not much happening around town today, with the festival and all. I gave the boys the day off from working on our job site so they could go. You're welcome, by the way." Hudson doesn't look up, and I can see him chewing on his bottom lip, his tell when he's focussing on something. I know that what he's just told me is significant. He's been managing the build of a new hotel going in just outside of town, and it's not a small project.

The conversation distracts him enough that I watch as Jett's skier crosses the finish line and Hudson leans back on the couch and groans. Jett jumps up off the couch, whooping and shouting. Sore winner.

"Don't you get sick of skiing all the time? It's not enough to spend all day every day in the winter competing. You've got to play this dumb game in your off-season, too?"

"Pow is life, brother." Jett flashes me a grin as he throws up a hang loose sign. I roll my eyes so hard they just about fall right out of my face. Ruby jumps up on the couch and nuzzles her face into his hand, demanding that he pet her. At least someone gets along with Jett. Then again, Ruby would get along with a serial killer if they'll pet her.

"Whatever. You're both coming to the festival later, right?" I point a finger at Jett. Hudson will be there, there's no doubt about that, but Jett better at least make an appearance, or there will be hell to pay. The entire purpose of the event is to support the clinic. Our dad's clinic. They never cared much about it, though. Not the way I do.

"Absolutely, my man," Jett exclaims. "I want to be there when Hudson has to bring the fire truck around and rescue you from the top of the pole like a scared little kitty cat."

I ignore the comment even as Jett wanders over to where I'm standing in the kitchen and lands a hard smack right in the middle of my back.

"You're doing the speed climb, eh?" Hudson asks with a skeptical tone. "It's been years, dude. You sure you can make it?"

"Yeah, it's for a good cause. And I want to see Ally's face when she sees what I've been planning this whole time." Hudson is right, though, it has been years since I've done a speed climb. Over a decade, to be exact. I was the best in town as a teen, winning all the local competitions, even going to a few provincial championships. My lean build was not short on muscle, which made it easier for me to haul myself up the ninety-foot poles. I've practiced a couple of times, and it didn't take long for me to find my rhythm again. Not to mention the fact that I've hand-selected my competition, a few of the loggers in town that have never competed but agreed to do it for the cause.

I came back to the apartment to get all my gear, which I've kept shoved away in my storage locker, and to have some peace so I can get in the right mindset to compete. Neither of which is a simple task with these two ding dongs in my space.

"Things are getting pretty serious between you two." Hudson says. It's an innocent observation. Ally and I haven't discussed the new terms of our relationship, but serious is not a word that I would use to describe it—yet. I'm still only her fake boyfriend. If we're going to put ‘actual' boyfriend on the table, well, I don't know where she would even fit into my life. I want her in it, and that's enough for now.

I shrug, all of my uncertain emotions wrapped up in one gesture. "Yeah, I guess so."

"You sure you have enough room on your plate for a relationship?" That's the million-dollar question right there. Hudson has genuine concern on his face. His intentions are always so good. So I refrain from getting snarky in defence. I don't have an answer for him.

"I don't. That's the problem. But neither does she, so we'll figure it out."

"It doesn't matter," Jett pipes up. Here we go. "Mason will shit the bed with Ally, just like all the other girls he's dumped because he's married to that clinic." I grind my teeth together, the muscle in my jaw flinches. This isn't helping with the calm and focused mindset that I need to be in for the race. Jett opens the fridge behind me and grabs a beer. It's not even ten in the morning. Work hard, play hard is Jett's motto. Although I'm not sure he ever works at all. He pops the lid off, not registering the bite in his previous comment. It's just his usual pot-stirring crap.

"Just let me know when it happens so I can be there for Ally to help her pick up the pieces," he says, leaning in next to my face with a shit-eating grin before taking an exaggerated sip of his beer next to my ear. My jaw clenches. Jett is trying to get under my skin, but the thought of him going after Ally makes me want to turn around and scream. Only one word comes to mind—

Mine.

"Fuck off, Jett." I won't let him rile me today. I stuff my rage down before I give myself the opportunity to react because I'm positive if I did, I would punch Jett right in the throat. And I need my hand in one piece for the speed climb.

I walk out of the kitchen and grab the keys to my storage locker from the hook by the door. I can tell by how Jett whines ‘ what? ' behind me that Hudson is staring daggers into him.