LIZZIE:…MASON!
ME: Sheesh, Liz! You realize caps don’t actually make your text any louder, right?
LIZZIE: Well, it got your attention, so I guess it worked!
LIZZIE: How did the signing go?
ME: Great! We’re just wrapping up now.
LIZZIE: What? Awful late, isn’t it? Or am I screwing up the time zone?
ME: Nah, I wanted to stay until I saw everyone to make up for not making it here yesterday.
LIZZIE: Wait. You chose to stay. And interacted with people? Who are you, and what have you done with Mason?
ME: Ha. Ha. Very funny.
LIZZIE: Seriously though…Now that we’ve popped your signing cherry, does that mean you’re ready to do more of these on your own?
ME: Maybe. Possibly? I don’t know yet. We’ll see.
LIZZIE: Go Bug! So…Any cute, corn-fed Ohio cowboys?
ME: I don’t think they have cowboys in Ohio, Liz.
LIZZIE: Sure, they do! Amish ones. Their uniforms are black and white. And they lose soccer games all the time.
ME: …I think you are seriously mixing your metaphors, Pixie Chick.
LIZZIE: DON’T CALL ME PIXIE! You know I hate that nickname!
ME: Well, you should have grown a few more inches. Then you wouldn’t be the size of one.
We continued text squabbling for a while as I packed up the rest of my gear. Lizzie really was the closest thing I’d ever had to a sister. Hicks and Sonny came over to the table as I packed. My steamer trunk was much lighter now, compared to when I’d arrived.
“Mason…” Hicks started. Or was it Sonny? I didn’t know how to tell them apart Even after hours at the store. It was the twin who had his hair pulled back into the perfect ponytail.
“We just wanted to say thank you,” said the other twin. “You really turned this event into something special.”
I saw Lee standing behind his brothers, leaning against the wall. He was watching me intently, and his gaze made my cheeks grow hot. Not embarrassment, exactly, but… it made my heart race and my mouth dry. He was so gorgeous standing there, his arms crossed over his chest, his muscles rippling as he moved.
He had worked all day without complaint, fielding questions and problems like a pro. I’d been listening for his voice over the din of the crowd and had watched in appreciation as he’d managed the number of people in the store at any one time. He’d settled down a few rowdy fans in line by just glaring them into submission. It had been the funniest thing I’d seen in a long time.
“…Mason?” one of the twins said, hesitantly.
I realized I’d been staring at their brother, so I returned my smile back to the twins.
“Sorry, long day. It was my pleasure, seriously,” I said, reaching outto shake their hands. “This is the first one of these that I’ve done, and you guys have made it really special for me, too.”
“You were the one who took the time to talk to each of the fans,” Hicks said. “We heard about the mess-up with your transportation and hotel.” The one twin, Sonny I thought, glanced at the other, and I could have sworn the other glared back. “And we know you didn’t have to stay all day. It really meant a lot to all of the fans that you did. Not many big names would have.”
I smiled and blushed even harder, never having heard myself called a “big name” before, but fortunately Lee saved me from further embarrassment by coming over and shouldering my backpack, then grabbing one of the boxes at my feet.
“Time to transform and roll out, guys,” he said to his brothers.
“We’ll see you at Moms’ later!” They said in unison. Okay, that was creepy. They must have thought so, too, because then they turned and looked at each other and burst out laughing.
The twins said their goodbyes, individually this time, and Lee and I loaded up the rest of my gear. The temperature outside was falling sharply. Seasons in Ohio were so different from Seattle. I mean, we had gray, bright gray, and dark gray, and that was about it. The vibrant green of the yards we’d driven past, not to mention the greenery in the park, had been slightly overwhelming. Beautiful, but overwhelming.
