Page 29 of Connected By Love
“Yes!” He drops his crayon on the table from coloring on the kid’s menu and runs after Miles. I grin as Miles sets him on his lap and gives him the sticks. He shows Max a beat, and he does his best to copy it.
“Hey Travis, I thought that was you. How’s the house treating you?” I glance over and see Noah and Emma walking hand in hand to our table.
“Hi Noah…Emma,” I say, smiling at them both. “We haven’t officially met. I’m Travis.” I hold out my hand to Emma, and she places her hand in mine.
“It’s nice to finally meet you, Travis. I’ve heard a lot about you.” Judging by the look she is giving me, I have a feeling the girls have been talking quite a bit. I look back at Noah and answer his question.
“House is great, man. We’re all moved in, and Max is loving it. We couldn’t be happier with it.”
“Good to hear. I’m glad you love it.” He looks at my brothers and grins. “It’s nice to see you guys again. Did you come down for the day?” My brothers were with me when I came down to check out the place, and they met Noah.
“Our little brother is the drummer tonight. We came down to watch him play,” Jake says to him.
“That’s right. Emma told me your brother was in the band. The girls said they were really good. I’m looking forward to hearing them tonight.”
Just then, Maverick and Bella arrive and walk over.
“So this is where the party’s at tonight?” Maverick grins. “Good to see you again, Travis. Thanks for getting us in next week. Bell and I are excited to get our tattoos done.”
“I’m in love with them. I can’t wait.” Bella says excitedly.
“It’s no problem. Someone canceled, and I immediatelythought of you guys. Maverick, Bella, and Emma these are two of my brothers, Jake and Ryder. Miles is over there giving Max a drumming lesson.” I point behind them to the band. They say hi to my brothers before looking over at Max.
“Oh, my God. He’s adorable. He looks just like you,” Emma says.
“I can see why Sophia is obsessed with him,” Bella says, grinning at Max. He’s wearing his ball cap on backward tonight and wanted to wear his jeans and t-shirt like we are wearing. I redid his temporary tattoos today because they were looking pretty faded from the pool. He picked out a couple he wanted along one arm.
“Where is Sophia tonight?” I turn and look at Jake, who asked the question. He glances at me, hiding a smile, but the laughter in his eyes says it all.
“She should be here any minute,” Mav says, looking at his watch.
She’s coming tonight. My heart starts to pick up its pace. We haven’t spoken since my last text the other night. I’m sure I shocked the hell out of her, and I wanted to give her time to think about what I said.
“Why don’t we move these two tables together? There’s an empty one next to us if you guys want to join?” Jake is putting Sophia at our table for a reason. He wants to watch me squirm, and I’m sure he’s dying to meet her after Miles told him what happened Thursday night.
For once, I’m glad he’s interfering. I want her next to me tonight. I plan on making sure I’m the only one she has her eyes on in this bar.
“Let’s do it,” Noah says, helping Ryder and Jake move the tables together.
The girls sit down, and Max comes running over. “Hey, buddy. Did you have fun helping Uncle Miles warm up?”
“Uh-huh, he let me do the cymbal twice!” He glances at the group at our table now.
“Max, these are some of Daddy’s friends. Noah is the one who sold us our house, and this is his wife, Emma. Maverick is Miss Lane’s brother, and this is Bella, his fiance. She and Emma are Miss Lane’s best friends.”
“You’re Miss Lane’s brother?” His eyes go wide as he looks at Maverick. “She’s the best teacher in the whole wide world.”
“I am. I’m glad you like having her as a teacher. She’s told me what a great helper you are in class.” Maverick grins at Max.
“She did? I’m going to be a teacher someday, just like Miss Lane.”
“Oh, my heart.” Emma places her hand on her chest.
“She told me you bring her a flower every Friday. She’s a lucky teacher.” Bella says, smiling at him.
Max nods his head. “We have flower trees in our backyard. Daddy says I can have all the ones on the ground since I’m too little to reach the branches.” He goes over to his chair and starts coloring again. He looks up and grins a few seconds later, his eyes going bright with excitement. “Miss Lane! Did you come to see my uncle play? He’s the best drummer in the whole world.” At his age, I guess everyone is the best in the world.
I look over to where Max is grinning. Green eyes meet mine before glancing back at Max. “I did,” she smiles at him. “I didn’t know you would be here.” Max nods excitedly. “You can sit next to me!” He scoots over one seat next to Emma, putting Sophia between us.
