“I will, Mase. And if you need me,” Sawyer said, his voice muffled as he pulled his t-shirt over his head, “call me. I’m not that far away.”
“I asked Zane to set up a laptop in the motorhome in case you need it.”
Turning around, Sawyer studied his brother, then asked, quietly, “What’s really bothering you, Mase?”
“Nothing…I’m wor…forget it…it’s not important.”
Squatting down in front of his brother, Sawyer locked his eyes on Mason’s, and said softly, “Hey, I’ll be fine. I’m not going far, just down the road…”
“Huh, eight hours down the road.”
“True, but I’ll be in the same state…and it’s only about an hour away by air…so I’m not really that far away.”
“I know…I don’t know why I’m panicking now. I really don’t have a problem with you going, but…I don’t know…ever since Mom…”
Grabbing his brother’s hand, Sawyer finished Mason’s thought, “Ever since Mom died, you worry about one of us dying, too, don’t you?”
Rolling his eyes, Mason said, “I know…it’s stupid, isn’t it? The likelihood of it happening is...”
“Nope, don’t tell me,” Sawyer said, “it’s one of those numbers I don’t need cluttering up my head. You know my motto…ignorance is bliss.”
Giving Sawyer a punch on his arm, Mason smirked. “Okay, suffice to say, it won’t ever happen. Is that better?”
“See, that’s what you should be thinking about…you know, the glass half full crap,” Sawyer chuckled, rising. “I promise I’ll call or text once a day, how’s that?”
Nodding, Mason gave a tight smile. “That’s fine. And I’ll try to keep my warnings, cautions and statistics to myself.”
Grinning, Sawyer pocketed his phone and wallet before saying, “Nope, you better send me all of them otherwise Mac will be on my ass when you explode from trying to keep them inside.”
“I will not!” Mason replied indignantly.
“Uh-huh,” Sawyer chuckled. “Hey, it won’t bother me, so just go ahead and get ’em off your chest.”
“Huh! It won’t bother you because you never listen,” huffed Mason.
“See? We understand each other,” Sawyer grinned, giving a last look around his room, making sure he hadn’t left anything. Then, picking up one of his bags, he said, “Make yourself useful and put that bag by the front door. I’m headed down to see Mac.”
After his brother left the room, Mason remained seated, staring at the bag on the floor, envying Sawyer who floated through life without any worries, always viewing it as one big adventure. Even when they were boys, his brother was a thrill seeker—whether it was climbing the tallest tree or white-water rafting?Sawyer lived for the adrenalin high he got from taking risks.
Shaking his head, Mason stood, thinking about his brother’s latest goal, surfing.Well, at least he isn’t freegliding.Just the thought of Sawyer doing that sent a shiver through his body. Picking up the bag, Mason wondered when his brother would outgrow his need to put his life in danger, hoping it would happen sooner than later, before the unthinkable happened.
~/~/~/~/~
Walking quietly down the hall to his brother’s office, Sawyer felt the pull he always had whenever he was close to his twin. He knew he’d miss it when he was in Southern California, the same way he missed it when Mac was away, doing his residency. But he survived and was stronger for it. Pushing open the office door, he found his brother, reading. “Ahh, the life of a doctor…did Quin give you another romance to read?”
Startled, Mac looked up quickly before slamming the book shut and pushing it under a pile of papers on his desk. “Hey, you leaving?”
Oh, that’s interesting!Even though Mac tried to hide it, Sawyer caught his brother’s look of alarm before it disappeared behind a smile. Wondering what triggered it, he strolled over to Mac’s desk, sitting on the corner nearest to the hidden book. “Yeah, all ready to roll…thought I’d say goodbye to my favorite brother.”
“Right,” Mac snorted, moving the papers and book to the other side of his desk.
Raising his eyebrow, Sawyer asked, “Whatcha hiding?”
Ignoring the question, Mac asked, “You sure you have everything you need?”
“Yes, mother.”
“Fuck off, asshole!”
