26. Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter twenty-six
R yder
I was standing by the grill waiting for it to get hot and talking with Cooper when I saw Brennan and Travis walk out the back door grinning and laughing. It made my heart swell to see him getting to know Travis. I’d thought they would get along. I was glad to see that I was right.
I watched as he talked to Angela, and they laughed.
Then he poured her a glass of what looked like lemonade and poured himself a dark red fruity drink.
He looked up at me over his wine glass and grinned at me.
I winked at him, and Travis saw me. He leaned down and whispered something to Brennan.
Brennan blushed and said something back, and they both laughed.
“Your boy seems to be having a good time,” Coop said.
“He isn’t my boy,” I said, but in my heart, I knew that wasn’t true. He might not ever reach a point where he called me Daddy, but he was my boy in every way that mattered.
“Whatever you say.” Coop rolled his eyes at me but grinned.
“Is the grill ready?” Brennan called over to me. I checked it and then yelled back that it was. “I’ll grab the meat for you then.”
“Thanks, Angel.”
“You are so gone over him, aren’t you?” Lucas asked.
“Oh yeah,” I agreed, not seeing any reason to deny it.
“Well, I think he’s good for you.”
“I agree,” Coop said. “How is going with him working for you?”
“Great. I couldn’t ask for anyone better.
He has all my accounts organized. My invoices are going out weekly, and he loves to research supplies to try to find the cheapest places for me to order stuff.
Plus, I now have a social media presence.
Although he isn’t at all happy with the pictures I take of my work, so he’s threatening to start coming to the job sites and take pictures for me. ”
He came back out and handed me a platter covered in various meats, a pair of tongs, and a spatula. “Anything else you need?”
“Nothing I can think of.” I leaned down and gave him a quick kiss. “Thank you. Angel.”
“How long before we’re ready to eat? So I know when to start setting stuff out.”
I glanced at the pile of food on the plate and said, “Give me about thirty minutes.”
“Sounds good. I’m going to go sit with Travis for a while. If you need anything, let me know.”
He started over to where Travis and Max sat, talking to everyone on his way. I couldn’t hear what he was saying, but I would have bet he was checking on everyone to see if they had everything they needed.
“This meat ain’t gonna grill itself, so either get to it or hand me the tongs,” Lucas said.
“Oh shut up, I’m doing it.”
Brennan
“Daddy, did you talk to Cooper about building the fishpond?”
“I did, baby boy. He’s going to get started on it in a couple of weeks.”
“Thank you, Daddy,” Travis said, snuggling in close to Max.
“So,” Max said, turning to me. “How are you liking working for Ryder?”
“I love it.”
“I love what you’re doing with the Facebook page. I especially like how you have been posting links to articles. Like that one last week on alternative flooring materials. Oh, and the one about the living roofs. That was really cool.”
“We got a lot of questions about that one. Hey, you know what would be good?” I asked Travis. “You should do a guest post on the Facebook page about the tax implications of home improvement.”
“That’s a great idea, and maybe I could pick up some new clients.”
Max chuckled and kissed Travis on the cheek. “You two boys keep talking. I’m going to go check on Ryder.” He stood but then turned a firm glare on Travis. “But don’t spend the whole day talking about work. This is supposed to be fun.”
“We won’t, Daddy. I promise,” Travis said, looking up at Max adoringly.
As soon as Max had walked away, I turned to Travis. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Sure.”
“Does it not bother you to call him Daddy in front of other people?”
“It depends on who the people are. I really only do it around people that won’t be bothered by it.”
“That makes sense.” I nodded.
“Have you ever had a Daddy before?” he asked.
“Oh, Ryder isn’t…I mean…” I sighed and tried to decide what to say. “We’re still figuring things out. I’ve never been in a relationship like this before.”
“Here’s the important thing to remember. It’s just like any other relationship. There’s no set way you have to be. All that matters is what works for you and Ryder, but that said, if you have any questions, you can always call me.”
The timer I’d set on my phone to alert me when the food was almost ready went off. “I need to go set the rest of the food out. We’re almost ready to eat. But thank you, Travis, for answering my questions.”
“Seriously, any time. Now let’s go eat. I’m starving, and as long as it’s just setting everything out, let me come help. I don’t know anything about cooking. I swear the local delivery people know me by name, but I can uncover dishes and put them on the table with the best of them.”
“Everything’s ready, so no cooking required,” I said, laughing.
Ryder
“Those two seem to have hit it off,” Max said, taking a drink of his beer.
“I was hoping they might. Travis is a good guy, and Brennan doesn’t know many people here.”
“What are you two old men talking about over here?” Cooper asked. He opened the grill and poked at one of the steaks.
“Stop it,” I grumbled. “It isn’t ready, and we aren’t old. Although somedays by the end of the workday, I feel like I am. Speaking of work, did you find enough summer help?” I asked him.
“I did. Thank goodness for college kids. Well, most of them anyway,” he said, rolling his eyes and shaking his head.
“What?” Max asked. “Did one of your new hires give you problems?”
“No.” Cooper sighed, shaking his head. “Y’all know Gabriel Johnson?”
“Sure. He owns that big house just outside of town, right? Works in the city. I built a pool house for him a couple years ago. Seemed like a good guy.”
“He’s a good guy. One of my favorite customers, actually. It isn’t him. It’s his nephew. Some young kid that’s staying there. Thinks the sun shines out his ass just because his uncle has money. He’s on my last nerve.”
“Really? Does Gabriel know?”
“Nah, he’s at work all day. But every week when I show up, I barely get started before he’s out parading his basically bare ass around the pool.”
“He’s out there naked?” I asked.
“No, I said basically. He wears these tiny little speedos. I think he thinks I’m straight, and he’s trying to shock me.
At first, I thought he was funny, parading around in his rainbow-colored shorts, painting his nails by the pool.
I kind of got a kick out of him at first, and I sure didn’t mind the eye candy while I worked, but then he opened his mouth.
Good lord, the little shit is so full of himself, it’s ridiculous.
Kid probably has more money than brains. ”
“Are you going to say anything?”
“To Gabriel? No. I’m sure the kid’s just here for the summer break. Although, why a kid his age would want to spend his vacation here instead of on the beach is a mystery to me. Come fall, I’m sure he’ll go back to wherever he came from.”
“Most likely,” I agreed. “I think we’re about ready to eat.”