Page 1 of Sweetheart

Chapter One

Mason

Mason Benard checked his backpack, ensuring he had the essentials for a long hike before hefting the weight over one shoulder. The small rundown cabin he was fixing up didn’t show a lot of progress, but Mason was happy with what he’d accomplished so far. He should really be spending his day off working on the floors or sanding the kitchen cabinets, but he was too unsettled to stay indoors.

Spring had finally arrived. After a long and stressful winter, Mason was ready to be outside and back into a routine.

Stepping into the early morning sun, Mason lifted his face while breathing deeply. He loved the little piece of heaven that he’d found for himself. No more city traffic, horns honking, or people yelling. No more family coming into his apartment whenever they wanted, no matter how often Mason asked them not to. No more having to be at his father’s beck and call when his father decided another monster needed to be tracked. Mason had finally put his foot down, joining his cousin and twin brother and leaving the family business behind him.

Getting a job with the State Park Service had been easy enough. His twin was an expert at forging documents and Mason instantly had the requirements to become a park ranger. When he was told that there was an abandoned ranger station on the edge of park land close to where the forest butted up against private land, Mason had been thrilled.

A cabin out in the middle of nowhere. Perfect.

In the few short months that he’d been living at the cabin, Mason had started to make it his own. A home that he wouldn’t be yanked away from at his father’s wishes. He was a thirty-two-year-old man, and it was time for Mason to live the kind of life he wanted.

Not that Mason knew what to do with himself yet.

Making the rounds of the state park, where he answered questions and gave directions to tourists, wasn’t exactly the challenge Mason was looking for. He had his cabin remodel to keep him busy outside of work and there was a decent club where he could pick up men. Mason was pleased that his choice in male bed partners was not limited for settling down in such a small town. He had a lot of time to make up. His father hadn’t given him or his brother freedom to experiment while growing up or in their late teens or twenties. Mason spent the first month in town fucking as many men or being fucked by them as he could.

Mason always brought the men to his cabin and seeing their faces when they were presented with the rundown cabin was almost comical. Not all men made it inside but the ones who did deserved a piece of Mason’s ass.

No one had stuck around afterwards.

Not that Mason minded. He enjoyed getting dicked. Just because he was missing a connection with any of his choices didn’t mean he was making a mistake.

Mason knew better than anyone that finding a real connection with someone only led to heartache. If his father hadn’t chased away Mason’s boyfriends, then his old job would have. Not like he could explain to a lover that he had to skip outon a date or leave the bed in the middle of the night because his father ‘found’ another monster.

Yeah, he was better off finding men at clubs and getting his.

Except the loneliness wouldn’t go away. He’d tried to at least get to know a few of the men and date. He’d even set up a profile on a gay dating app at the insistence of his twin. Mason had only found one man that he even bothered to chat with.

Stone had been sweet, funny, and a welcome distraction from the major life changes Mason had been making.

The only problem had been that while Stone was always up for chatting through the app, he’d refused to meet Mason in person.

At first Mason had been amused. Stone was obviously shy. Sort of naïve. The pictures though. Fuck! Mason had stared at the pictures that Stone sent to him. Never of his face. But that chest…those thighs. Sadly, Mason hadn’t gotten any dick pictures although he’d been hoping, and now he’d not get anything ever again.

After too much whiskey, a voicemail from his father, and feeling sorry for himself, Mason had sent a message that he’d regretted the next morning. It had been too late. Stone was gone. He must have deleted the app, because Mason had even made a fake profile, trying to find the guy again. No luck.

Shaking his head, Mason pushed all thoughts of Stone.

Nothing he could do about it. He’d fucked up and the sweetest, most attractive—as far as he could tell—man that Mason had ever talked to was gone. Poof.

Stepping off the front deck, Mason set out for his hike. He wanted to get to know the area around his cabin better. There were no designated hiking trails but Mason was an experienced outdoorsman so he knew he would be fine. He also wanted to check out the private land that butted up against his.

Mason’s boss had specifically ordered him to stay away from the private land.

Like that would even be possible. It just showed that his boss knew nothing about Mason.

The trees seemed to welcome him, the canopy of leaves above his head keeping the early morning sun hidden. It was a little chilly, but Mason had dressed in layers for that reason.

The sounds of animals waking up caught his attention.

He passed a tree with a small family of squirrels squeaking at one another.

“Good morning,” he greeted his little furry friends.

A rabbit darted out in front of him before hopping up onto a downed trunk.

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