Chapter one
Mason
Wehavetheapprovalof the condo board. Glad they were easy to work with. Need to talk to Eliza about anything she needs from us to wrap up the season. And I hope that frigging spreadsheet saved properly last night.Mason had white noise thrumming through his ear buds as their SUV trundled along the hills of Seattle. They were back in their old stomping grounds, or very near, for the last job of their first season. Pine Point Fixer-Uppers was going to finish out in their own back yard…as far as the viewers were concerned. Anyone from Pine Point would balk at anyone saying Seattle—a big city an hour away—was close to their small town at all.
Still, it was nice to be back somewhere at least passingly familiar. The one thing he wasn’t certain about waswhythey’d decided to end on a fancy condo in Seattle. Mason knew that financial need wasn’t the be-all, end-all for picking the clientsthey worked for, but it was a big factor. There had to be some kind of emotional resonance for the audience, or somehow the new client had gotten in over his head.
A muffled voice cut through Mason’s noise, but all he could clearly make out from the words was his own name. He tapped his phone to turn off the sound, then pulled out his left ear bud and turned toward the back seat. “Sorry, what’s up?”
Robinson leaned forward, the plumber’s skinny frame tucked between Ozzy and Evander’s considerably more muscular bodies on either side. “Sorry, I was making a stupid joke, not trying to bother you. Didn’t think you’d hear.”
Evander shook his head. He was dressed flamboyantly, as per usual, with a blue and purple paisley jumpsuit and a dangly, clip-on chain hanging from one ear. “He’s just requesting you make a note not to put him between us next time we’re driving.”
“Well, if you two could stop pawing each other for ten seconds, I wouldn’t be.” Robinson rolled bright blue eyes. He’d let his hair grow out a little bit, showing more of the sandy brown color now that it was longer than a buzz cut. More than that, though, he wasn’t carrying the same tension Mason had grown used to seeing on him over the years.Falling in love with a guy will do that for you, I guess. The thought left a shallow cut as it passed through Mason’s mind. Robinson had gotten together with a client from North Carolina.
“I will make a note.” Mason smiled. “These two have been acting like horny teenagers the last few days.”
“We’re abstaining.” Ozzy snorted and shook his head. He, unlike his boyfriend, was dressed simply in a sleeveless black top and no jewelry to be seen anywhere. “Evander decided that we shouldn’t fuck for a few days so it’s more intense when we finally break.”
“And none of us needed toknowthat.” Robinson pushed himself back against the seat and pressed a hand against eachof them as if shoving them apart. “Besides, you two are doing a terrible job of abstaining, and I’m caught in the middle of your failure.”
“I will turn this production around if you three can’t stop fighting.” Mason knew it was all light-hearted, even from Robinson. Anyrealcomplaint, he would have brought to Mason in private. This was a chance to throw a few jabs at old friends.
“Come on,” said Evander. “Half the fun of this is trying to rile Ozzy up.”
“Well, Robinson is now spoken for, so maybe hold off for five minutes…” He checked the estimated arrival time on the GPS. “Excuse me, for two minutes until we get out of the car?”
“Well, I suppose I can make it two minutes.” Evander sighed and looked out the window. “Five would have been off the table. I wasted two years not screwing with Ozzy and I have to make up for lost time.”
Mason didn’t say anything else, just took out his other ear bud and packed it away in its case. His mind, however, kept spinning. It wasn’texactlytrue that everyone had found a boyfriend during the filming of the show. He and Bunny hadn’t.
But Bunny was married already.
So Mason was alone. It was easier to handle when everyone else was alone, and he would never begrudge any of them their happiness. He was thrilled to see so many of them in good places, and even more thrilled that they had drifted back together. Those years that Evander had lost weren’t just his. Their friend group had separated, and their VideoHead channel had withered on the vine.
Mason tugged at his shirt and sat up a little straighter once he finished packing everything up. There was at leastonedefinite difference between him and the other guys that probably contributed to his still-single status, after all.
Thankfully, the SUV pulled down into a parking garage, so it was time to stop fretting about his own life and to resume fretting about the job. Mason clicked his messenger bag closed and grabbed the strap, and when they finally came to a stop, he unclipped and bounced out of the front seat.
The other SUV had already arrived, so the first thing he was met with was Aras striding over, phone held to his ear. “Okay, babe, I need to get off the phone. We just pulled in. I will talk to you tonight.” Another second, then he hung up, stuck his phone in his pocket, and crossed his arms. “Would you be shocked if I was annoyed about this job already?”
“I’d be medically concerned if you weren’t annoyed about at least three things, Aras.” Aras had been much more chill since he got together with Quinn, but he was still often…frustrated. Frustrated was a nice way to put it. Bitchy and scary was a more accurate way, though.
“This David guy lives in a high-rise condo in Belltown. What could he possibly need us for?”
“That’s my line.” Ozzy stepped out of the SUV and Robinson scrambled out behind him.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but youallknow that we’ve done this song and dance before, okay?” He fixed his gaze directly on Ozzy. “Youspecificallydid this song and dance, and I don’t think you regret how that job turned out, right?” Mason pushed a smile onto his face and chided himself. He didn’t need to get annoyed with the guys over his own stresses. He needed to radiate calm and assuredness. “Let’s just meet with him and finish out the show strong, okay? If we need a bitch sesh after the day’s done, I’ll spring for drinks from my own pocket.”When in doubt, bribery.
Chapter two
David
Asalwaysseemedtobe the case, David was running very nearly late. Of course, he hadn’t set an alarm, so in his mind, he was doing marvelously well, and hewouldhave been early to the meeting if his espresso machine hadn’t thrown a fit at making so many coffees. He wanted to make a good impression, so he’d bought disposable coffee cups and cardboard sleeves and these weird drink carrier things that took him entirely too long to put together the night before.
When he walked into the ground floor meeting room, he apologized straightaway. “I hope I didn’t keep you all waiting, but I come bearing gifts!” He’d used his back to push open the door, so he turned with a bit more flourish than was necessary, nearly sloshing coffee out onto the table.
His eyes scanned around, landing on each of the people seated at the table. He’d been a fan of their channel back in the day—itwas part of the reason that he bothered to apply at all—and even after the passage of time, he recognized the cast. Bunny, wearing a black, floral-patterned polo shirt. Aras, tall and hawkish. Ozzy, all rich looks and muscles. Evander, tawny skin and a blinding smile. Jake, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt and eyeing the coffee as much as he was eyeing David. Robinson, slender and tucked into himself.
