Page 88 of Connected By Love
Sophia
I walkinto the kitchen and grin when I see the two of them with their heads together. “And what are you two up to?” Max giggles and breaks away from their whispered conversation they were having before I walked in.
“We were just thinking about how we need to take our girl on a picnic today.” Travis winks at Max. He’s practically bouncing from excitement.
“A picnic sounds like fun. Do you want me to make something real quick to take?” I head over to the fridge, and I’m captured from behind as strong arms wrap around me.
“It’s all taken care of. I just need your beautiful self to get ready, and then we can leave.” He buries his face in my neck, and I reach up to run my fingers through his silky dark hair. His low growl into my hair has me smiling. “Go now, wildcat, before I change my mind and ruin all these plans I’ve made.” He lets me go and swats me on the butt as I laugh and run off to get ready.
I quickly change out of my shorts and tee, opting for a cute sundress. Travis hasn’t seen this one, and I want to surprisehim. It’s the perfect shade of green to match my eyes. It’s fitted on top but flows around my legs, hitting mid-thigh. The back is cut out, allowing my tattoo to show. I wear my hair up in a cute, messy bun so it can be completely seen.
Glancing in the mirror, I apply mascara and lipgloss before putting on a pair of sandals.
Travis looks up when I enter, and my skin flushes as his eyes rake over me. He’s wearing a grey Henley shirt with the three buttons open, giving me a delicious view of his artwork underneath. The shirt hugs his muscles with every movement as my gaze dips lower to his dark jeans. He starts to strain against his jeans, and I glance back up into his heated grey eyes—eyes that are letting me know that if we were alone right now, our picnic would probably be delayed.
“You look beautiful,” he says, coming up to me and grazing my neck with his hand before moving to my shoulder. He moves behind me, and I shiver as his fingers lightly trace the tattoo on my back. “So fucking beautiful,” he whispers before placing a light kiss on my skin where he marked me.
“Dad, we have to go! Remember the picnic and the plan?” I feel Travis chuckle against my skin.
“To be continued until later,” he whispers in my ear. “Okay, buddy, let’s get this picnic started.”
“Yes!” Max runs to the door to get his shoes on.
“Someone is awfully excited about a picnic,” I raise my eyebrows at Travis, wondering what I’m missing.
“What? He loves picnics. What can I say?” He grins at me before taking my hand and leading us out the door.
We drive through the downtown area, and I wave to my mom and Sage having lunch in front of her smoothie shop. They have the biggest grins on their faces, and I glance at Travis, who’s trying to hide his. Then I see Maverick and Bella, along with Noah and Emma, hanging out in front of hissurf shop, waving at us with the same grins plastered to their faces.
“Why is everyone outside waving at us like we are in a parade?”
“It’s a small town. Everyone knows my black truck with the Inked logo on the side. I guess it’s just good timing that we drove by while they were standing there.” He shrugs his shoulders and tries to hide that grin again that’s wanting to come out. His eyes are lit with excitement, just like Max’s. Who knew picnics were so exciting to them? I’ll have to make sure we do more with Max in the future.
He turns off the main road and heads in the direction of our park.
“Are we going to our spot for the picnic?” I’m surprised he didn’t head to the main park in town or the beach.
“It’s more private, and I thought we could show Max. It has that small grassy area by the water and rocks for him to climb on.”
“He’ll love that. You know how much I love that spot, and to fill it with more memories is a great idea.”
“Oh, I remember how much you love that spot. We’ve made three memories there that I’ll never forget. This one will be a different version with Max but something I think we both will remember forever.”
He winds through the small forest, following the trails to various picnic table areas and bypassing them all until he pulls into a narrow trail leading to our small area by the water. It’s not a designated picnic area, and I love how it’s always secluded.
I gasp as our spot comes into view. A white sheer tent is set up in the grass by the water, filling up the small area. Throw pillows and blankets are inside, with fairy lights hanging fromabove. Even though it’s the afternoon, they still give off a magical feel. Grinning, I look over at Travis.
“How did you do all of this? You’ve been with me the whole morning?”
“I had some help. Might have been why everyone was already in town.” He grins at me, and I throw my arms around him.
“I knew there was something going on. Their grins were too big to just be a passing-by kind of thing,” I laugh. “It’s beautiful. I love it.”
“I wanted to make this picnic special for us. Max helped with the flowers.”
I turn to Max in the backseat, his face beaming with excitement. “Thank you, Max. I love it so much. Let’s go see it close up.” I quickly get out of the truck, and Travis and Max follow me as I take in all the little details.
There’s a picnic basket inside overflowing with food and a chilled bottle of champagne in a bucket. Purple plumeria flowers from Max’s trees are placed around the tent. Their floral scent hits me as I peek my head further inside.
