Page 21 of Family Forever
Dylan gripped his beer bottle tighter and raised it to his lips.Well, which is it? Jake or Cole?
Her bright blue-eyed gaze zoned in on him as she separated herself from his brother. “I wish you could have come along, Dylan. It was so much fun. Even Luke got on the inner tube, you would have been so proud of him.”
That was a surprise, his baby brother usually didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. Aric, Braden and Nate sure, Luke however, no way, but Marissa seemed to have a way with getting him to try things.
“I hope not alone.”
A hint of hurt flashed through her eyes. “No, either I, Cole or Aric rode with him.” Her tone was defensive.
For lack of words, Dylan nodded. He hadn’t intended on insinuating she didn’t know how to take care of Luke but that’s the way the words sounded when they came out of his mouth.
Cole and Marissa wished him a good night and disappeared into their rooms.
Dylan grabbed the camera and went into his room where he hooked it up to his computer so he could view the photos again. He started the slideshow, eyeing each and every picture closely. His brothers sure seemed to be having a good time, and Cole was a master with the camera, catching all the happy moments, and the right angles, especially where Marissa was concerned. But when it came to her, Dylan supposed there wasn’t a bad angle except for those with Jake in the picture. Why was he in so many pictures with her?
Luke tugged on his arm. “What are you doing?” his little brother asked as he rubbed his weary eyes.
Dylan had been so engrossed in the pictures he hadn’t heard his little brother get out of bed. “Looking at your boating pictures. Did you see them yet?”
His brother shook his head.
Dylan scooped him up and set him on his lap. Luke leaned back against him and then Dylan started the slideshow over.
When they got to the picture with Luke wrapped in Marissa’s arms, with a big beach towel wrapped around the both of them, Luke pointed at the screen. “I like Marissa. She’s nice and pretty.”
Dylan couldn’t argue with his baby brother, she was beyond pretty. She was beautiful, inside and out. And was one of the best things that had happened to their family in a long time. It broke his heart to know she would be leaving for college soon and poor Luke would miss her terribly. He kissed his brother on the top of his head.
“Looks like you guys had a good time today.”
“We did. Jake even let me drive the boat.”
“That’s great, buddy.”
The last photo flashed across the screen again. It was one of Marissa sitting on the back of the boat. Her thin, yet shapely, legs dangled over the edge but her feet didn’t quite reach the water. The orange swimsuit she wore made her milky white skin look even more pale than normal. Her smile reached her eyes, and her bright blue gaze lit up the sky. Long, silky strands of blonde hair lay over her defined shoulders. Though he didn't like it, he certainly understood why Jake was caught touching her in many of the photos.
Dylan stared at the photo for a moment longer before he disconnected the camera from the computer. “It’s getting late. We better hit the hay, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow.”
Luke smiled. “Yeah, the picnic.”
They climbed into bed but sleep didn’t come easy to Dylan. How could a boy as small as his brother take up so much room on a king-sized bed? He pushed Luke’s feet off his stomach twice before he conceded.
And then, every time he closed his eyes, visions of Marissa in that orange swimsuit invaded his brain. The glow of her milky white skin nearly lit up the room, even through his eyelids. He needed to stop this madness right now. She was the housekeeper/nanny, heading off to college, and only nineteen years old. The devil on his shoulder reminded him that she was an adult, and he was only twenty-four, not much older than her. Truth be told, she was mature and wise beyond her years. Growing up the way she did, without a mother, and with an alcoholic father, probably caused her to grow up faster than your average child. She had to learn quickly to do for herself, forcing her to be the responsible party at a young age.
To the best of his knowledge, her dad hadn’t stopped by or even called her since she’d left his house a couple months ago. The man didn’t even acknowledge her birthday. Dylan’s heart ached on behalf of Marissa. It wasn’t right. She deserved the love of parents. His brothers deserved the love of parents, the very love he had been lucky enough to know. His eyes watered beneath his eyelids.
