Page 20 of Spiritwarrior

Morosely, Jody got in his truck while the others piled into Silas and Matthew’s trucks. He couldn’t blame his brothers. If Sophie believed he was a player, then they could be tarnished by the same brush. While he wasn’t the only Coleman brother who hadn’t waited for his soul mate to appear, Isaac and Ezra were much more circumspect than he had been. They went further afield to do their fooling around.

When they arrived at the housing development, they all continued setting the fence. Jody took over digging the holes while Matthew and Isaac placed them. Silas would mix the concrete, then Ezra and Moses would place the iron posts in place. The work was backbreaking, and they had only made it less than halfway when Silas called them to a stop.

On the drive home, he was tempted to stop at the diner again as he drove past. Wrinkling his nose at his sweat-dampened shirt, Jody decided he was better off not going.

“You going to eat at the house tonight?” Silas asked as he got out of his truck.

Jody slammed his truck door shut. “No, thanks. I’m going to make a sandwich and get to bed early tonight.”

The rest of his brothers made their way to their own homes, all of them walking next to him.

“You’re not going to see Sophie again today?” Jacob asked, following in step with him.

“Nah. Coming on too strong is the worst thing I can do.”

Jacob nodded. “That’s true, but it also gives someone else the opportunity to make their move.”

Jody shot Isaac a warning glance. “As long as Isaac stays here, I’m good.”

“Brother”—Isaac shrugged—“I wouldn’t think of stepping on your toes.”

Jody believed him. While they might tease each other, none of his brothers would ever try to steal his woman.

They reached the part of the property where he had to veer away from his brothers, and he told them good night. Going through the woods, it took him five minutes to reach his trailer. Jacob’s wasn’t far from his, a corpse of trees separating them.

Sighing as he went up the steps, he went inside. He looked around the trailer through different eyes. He had been saving his money. Now that his soul mate was near, it was time to decide if he was going to buy a bigger trailer or build a house, like Matthew had done. He would talk it over with Silas and get his advice for which one would make Sophie happier.

Walking into his bedroom, he removed his sweaty clothes. When he had started digging the holes, he had removed his nice shirt, but his new boots were trashed. Reminding himself to buya new pair, he went into the bathroom to take a hot shower, letting the warm water work the knots out of his shoulders.

Afterward, he dressed in comfortable sweatpants, a T-shirt, and tennis shoes. Then he left the trailer and made his way to his sister’s property. When he knocked on her door, he heard a grumpy voice call out for him to come inside.

Jody opened the door, immediately wishing he had called first. If he had heard the racket taking place in Ginny’s house, he would have stayed home.

Ginny’s husband was rocking his screaming daughter in the crook of his arm while his son was screeching along to a song being played on the television. He immediately started back out of the door.

“Sorry, I’ll come back another time.”

“Don’t even think about it.” Reaper’s gaze pinned him in place.

Before he could take another step backward, Jody felt Reaper thrust the baby into his arms.

“I need a break.” With that, Reaper bent down to lift his son into his arms, giving his rosy cheek a kiss. “You mind Jody until I get back.”

Rocking Leah against his chest, he watched as Reaper set Freddie back down on his feet before going for the door.

“When are you coming back?” Jody asked him helplessly.

“Call me when Ginny gets back.”

After watching the door for several minutes, Jody realized Reaper wasn’t joking when he heard his motorcycle roaring away.

Jody stared down at his nephew, who was staring up at him with innocent eyes. “How long have you made your dad listen to that song?”

Freddie’s rosy cheeks turned redder. “It’s my favorite song. Will you sing with me?”

“No …” Jody shook his head, moving to the couch to sit down. Bouncing the fussy baby on his knee, he looked down in dismay when Leah rewarded him by dribbling spit up on him. Grabbing a baby wipe, he cleaned her up before cleaning his pants.

When he heard the door open, he was relieved to see Ginny coming through the door. His sister started laughing at seeing him sitting there instead of Reaper.

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