Page 84 of Connected By Love
“That’s exactly what I was doing.” Travis appears behind me in an annoyed voice. “You can put her down now, Jake.” Laughing, he sets me down, and Travis immediately brings me to his side.
“Not so fast. I didn’t get my hug.” I’m picked up in another hug, but this time, it’s Miles who has a shit-eating grin on his face. “Hi, beautiful. Did you miss me? It’s not too late to change your mind about which brother you want.”
“What the fuck, Miles?” I laugh at Travis’s heated glare he’s giving him, knowing full well that his brothers are doing this on purpose to get a rise out of him. Miles lets out a laugh before setting me down, and Travis pulls me back to him again. “Are you all done putting your hands all over my girl?” Jake and Miles just grin wider at him.
“Am I allowed to give her a hug, or will I get daggers too?” I turn and see Travis’s sister come up behind me. She’s grinning at me and I immediately see she has the same beautiful smile as Travis. She’s gorgeous with black hair and big blue eyes. She has a dusting of cute freckles on her nose giving her that sweet innocent look.
“You must be Savannah.” I grin at her and pull her in for a hug. She’s a little shorter than me, but not by much.
“My friends call me Savi. God, you’re beautiful. No wonder my brothers are all over here drooling at the mouths.” Jake and Miles laugh, earning another dirty look from Travis.
“I’m stealing you in a bit. We have a lot to talk about.” She winks at me, and I feel Travis’s arm come around me again.
“I’m looking forward to it.” I grin back at her.
“I’m going to introduce her to Dad and then show her thebeach. Max and Ryder are down there for a walk.” Travis leads me over to his parents, and I get another hug from his dad.
His parents remind me a lot like mine, and I can tell that our families will get along great.Trevor is already talking about planning an offshore fishing trip with my dad and Jax. We talk for a few minutes before making our way down to the beach.
Their back deck is huge, with a bar and TV on the wall under the overhang. Next to it is comfortable seating around a firepit. A nice-sized pool sits in the middle, with a hot tub overflowing into it. On the other side, a small blue pool house matches the main house where Ryder must live.
Travis leads me to a flight of stairs that leads to the beach. I immediately kick off my sandals to feel the warm sand beneath my feet. Taking me by the hand, we walk toward the water, where Max and Ryder are already splashing around.
“I learned real quick to put him in his swim trunks before we leave the house. It’s always the first thing he does when he gets here, and I got tired of his clothes getting soaked all the time.” Travis laughs as Ryder carries him on his shoulder through the small waves. Nemo is barking excitedly at the shoreline as he hops around in the shallow water.
“Daddy! Uncle Ryder found a starfish and I got to hold it before we let him go!”
“That’s so cool, buddy.”
“Your brothers are so good with him.” I watch as Ryder throws him in the water before bringing him back on his shoulders.
“They are. I was really lucky to have all their help with Max. I could focus on what I wanted to do and create the life I have now.”
Max comes running up the shore with Nemo running behind. He finds a stick and starts trying to teach him howto play fetch. Nemo is clearly more interested in chewing it than letting it go.
“Hey, Soph. It’s good to see you again.” Ryder walks up to me with a grin on his face. He’s the quietest brother out of the four. Travis told me how his parents died when he was young and how his mom didn’t hesitate to bring her nephew home and raise him like her own. He’s Travis’s brother in every sense of the word.
Even though he’s smiling now, it never reaches his eyes. There’s a sadness that flickers through his light grey eyes, which I’ve noticed when he doesn’t think anyone is watching. Travis mentioned how hard it was for him to get over Eve when she left, but I’m starting to believe he hasn’t gotten over as much as everyone thinks he has.
“It’s good to see you again, too.” Like Travis, his brothers are sex on two legs. I don’t know what Eve was thinking leaving a guy like Ryder, but I hope he can find someone who brings the light back to his eyes.
“You did take the weekend off, right? Mom has a whole beach day planned for tomorrow, and Dad is grilling fish. You bury yourself in that job too much and need to have fun every once in a while.” Travis looks at him with concern etched across his face. I guess I’m not the only one who sees how he tries to hide his unhappiness.
“That’s rich coming from you. Before Sophia, you didn’t know the meaning of fun unless it had to do with Max.”
“I just worry about you. Ever since…”
“Can we not talk about this now,” Ryder says, interrupting Travis. “I did take the weekend off and won’t be working until everyone leaves on Sunday. Let’s get you a drink, Sophia.” He puts his arm around my shoulder, changing the subject, and walks us back to the house. “You’re going to need it with thisnosy family. They will pry out your deepest, darkest secrets if you aren’t careful.”
I hear Travis sigh behind me before he rounds up Max and Nemo.
“He’s just worried about you.” I glance at Ryder, and his jawline is clinched hard as he stares straight ahead.
“I’m good. Sometimes, life doesn’t turn out the way you want it to, but I love my job and have a home to sleep in. What more could I ask for?” He gives me a small sideways smile.
I hesitate about what to say, wondering if I should bring Eve up. He must sense my hesitation because he smirks at me.
“Let me guess. Travis told you about Eve leaving me, and for the past two years, I’ve been a miserable mess throwing myself into my work, and they’re worried about me.”
