by Jodi Payne
He felt pretty spoiled too. “Thanks for looking in on her. I just wasn’t sure. I know exactly two kids and they both live here.” He grinned, feeling a little sheepish. “I have a lot to learn. About a lot of things. Like, everything.”
“Well sure. This is like a hospital or an airport. It’s a whole weird little town. Hell, Miss Rachel lives one way, the folks live the other. We got ten cowboys here. There’s a ton to learn. Enjoy it.”
“Yeah, Jonas is the one that got away. All the way to Austin. Crazy bastard.” Lisa winked at him, then ducked under the water.
“I’m trying to.” He sipped his coffee. “It’s been a whole day. So far so good.” Really good. He shifted to the edge of the pool when Lisa came up for a sip of her soda. “He called me every day after he came home for Noah. Every day.”
“He’s never once brought anyone home to meet the kids. Losing Deb damn near took him to his knees, but he stood back up. I can’t wait for you to meet Rory and Bullet.”
He knew how much Matthew loved Deb. It was in his eyes every time her name came up. “Rory and Bullet…” Tyler didn’t know those names. They could be people, or they could be dogs. God, he was an idiot.
“Matthew’s first boyfriend and his husband. Bullet’s a commercial artist in Houston. They have a beautiful baby boy. Uh… Justice? I think his name is Justice…”
The ex was married. Excellent. “Oh yeah? Are they local?”
“Outside Houston. Not too far. Y’all should run to Galveston and everybody do the beach.” Suddenly her face lit up again. “Mija! Good morning!”
Emma looked surprisingly young, worried. “Where’s Daddy? Can I call him?”
“Of course. Are you okay? Come sit, we can call him on my phone.” He held a hand out to her. “Did you see he left a note on the counter for you?”
“Uh-huh. He’s bringing breakfast.” She pulled a little chair over and sat right next to him, eyelids going heavy again. “Oh, I do like the sunshine.”
“You are your daddy’s girl.” Lisa laughed softly, shaking her head.
“Have you done, like, all the morning stuff? Brushed your teeth and…things?” And things. He rolled his eyes and pulled out his phone.
“I just read my note and came out. I’ll go pee and brush my teeth when I put on my swimming suit.”
“Okay. That sounds good.” He dialed Matthew and put it on speaker. He didn’t know what was up, but it didn’t matter. She looked worried and she wanted Matt. “I’m calling Daddy now, okay?”
“’Kay.”
“Hey, honey. I’m almost home. Gonna stop at Ground Up for fancy coffees. You want?”
“Daddy! Get me a strawberry coffee? I miss you! Come home.”
He grinned and winked at Lisa. “I miss you too, Daddy! Can I have a caramel macchiato, please?”
Matthew laughed, the sound booming and wonderful. “You can. Tell Lisa that I’m bringing Krissy an iced hazelnut mocha, and that I picked up a case of Diet Dr Pepper for her?”
“I’m right here in the pool, honey. Thank you! Krissy will kiss your toes. She’s off rounding up the guys.”
Tyler chuckled. “I think you’ve covered everyone within earshot now.” This whole exchange was worth getting out of bed early for.
“I’ll be right there. Love y’all. See you in a few.”
“Love you too, Daddy! I’m going to go to the bathroom!”
“Okay, Em!” Matthew chuckled. “Bye, honey. See you in a sec.”
Tyler tucked his phone back in his pocket, grinning. “Well that was fun. Emma, don’t forget your teeth. Oh! And make your bed too, okay?” That was what his mom always said. Make your bed.
“Yes, sir. I’ll put our stuff upstairs.” She stretched and then bounced away, happy again.
“And the world gets to spin again. Yay.” He rolled his jeans up and stuck his feet in the water. “He’s the best Dad ever. Matthew told me he’s a little worried about telling them. You know, about me. He just doesn’t know how they’d take it.”
“Em doesn’t remember her at all. None of it. Sophia remembers enough to worry, but he doesn’t lie to them. He tells them the truth and just lets it be.”
He nodded. “I think that’s great. I just…it’s really important that I figure them out.” This was their home, he really wanted to get along.
“Totally. Matthew loves them to distraction, but they’re easy to love. I just hope you like us—this life. It’s wild and different. There’s never a second something’s not happening.”
There was never a dull moment in the city either. It just wasn’t the same kind of busy. “I’m a New York City bartender, I know wild. Just not this kind of wild.”
“That’s right! Krissy said you were a bartender. Can you make a paloma?”
He nodded. “Yep.” He liked them too.
“Can you make a margarita?”
“With my eyes closed.” In every incarnation that existed.
“Can you tap a keg?”
He laughed. “I sure as hell hope so.”
“Well, damn. You’ll fit right in here!” Lisa grinned at him. “Life of the party. Shit, give Matthew a minute and he’ll have a bar put in out here. The girls beg for virgin pina coladas.”
Oh, he would enjoy that. He could make drinks for the barbecue. It would give him something to do, something familiar.
“Bring it on. I can make a virgin anything.” He looked at her and raised an eyebrow. “Why does that sound wrong?”
One pierced eyebrow lifted. “Better than making anything a virgin…”
He chuckled and stood. “I better go check on Emma. It was great to meet you. I’ll be out for a dip later I’m sure.” A dip and a nap in the sun. Well, in the sun under an umbrella.
“I’ll be in here watching lesser men work for a living.”
“It’s vacation! You let me know when you’re ready for something stronger than Dr Pepper.” He gave her a wave and headed inside. “Emma?” He called making his way through the kitchen to the stairs. “You okay?”
She came be-bopping down the stairs, wearing her swimsuit and a rainbow tutu. “I’m dressed!”
“You look beautiful. Rainbow is my favorite color.” He took his mug to the carafe and poured himself a warm-up.
“Can you do my hair, please, sir?” She held out a brush and a fuzzy blue hair tie.
He put his coffee down and took them from her. “I’m going to tell you a secret. I know nothing about hair. But I am a super-fast learner, and I promise to be very careful. You just have to tell me what you want. Okay?”
“Can you not pull hard, and put it up so it’s not in my face?” God, those eyes were just like Matt’s. Just.
“I will do my best, and you tell me if it’s too hard, okay? You can teach me.” Why did this make him nervous? It was a ponytail, right? How hard could this be? Just don’t hurt the girl. He looked at her hair, which was thick like Matt’s too and shook his head. He was going to make a mess of this.
“Ready?” He started brushing, carefully, gathering her hair into his other hand. “You have very pretty hair, Emma.”
“It’s like Daddy’s, not my momma’s. Did you know about her?”
He started at the bottom, finding it fairly easy to brush.
“I know your Dad loved her, and I know she was pretty because he showed me a picture. Hm. He told me other things. She waited tables in high school…” He kept brushing, letting Emma lead this conversation because he was a little out of his depth.
“She died. She had cancer and went to live with Jesus. Daddy was real sad, but he says that it’s not right, to be sad forever. You have to honor God by having laughs and puppies and love.”
That was beautiful. It sounded just like Matt, but better, because it came from Emma. “Your dad is a really smart guy. And he’s right. Love is the most important thing.” He knew his mom was in Heaven because that was where she wanted to be. He didn’t know about Will. He just knew Will wasn’t in pain anymore. “I lost my
mom too. But I know she’d say the same thing.”
“Oh.” Emma stopped and turned around, pushing right into his arms and hugging him tight. “I’m sorry! Me and Daddy and Sister will love you, and you can play with the puppies all the time.”
Whoa.
Tyler hugged her, but it took everything he had to hold the tears back. Something was definitely wrong with him. He could handle anything right now except people being nice to him. “Thanks.” He cleared his throat and tried that again because he sounded like he’d swallowed a frog. “Thank you, Emma.”
She squeezed him again, then let him go. “Now, fix my hair. Mamaw would say I looked a mess.”
“Yes, ma’am. We can’t have that. Your dad will be home soon.” He took a deep, deep breath and then got back to work. “What are your plans for today?” He changed the subject because he wasn’t planning on losing his marbles in front of an eight-year-old.
“Today is my day to get the eggs. I’m going to swim lots and help Daddy feed cowboys. Daddy loves that, to feed folks.”
“Right, I heard we’re having a cookout. I guess I’ll get to meet everybody. That will be fun.” Using the definition of fun broadly to include worrying about being put on the spot. “I think I’m going to help too.”
“Everyone is nice, but you have to be super-duper nice to Daniel ’cause someone beat him up, and Mr. Allen brought him home. Daddy says to ask before you hug him, ’cause he’s got hurt bones.”
He didn’t randomly hug people the way kids did, but he understood. Matthew had told him about Daniel. “I’ll be careful.” It sounded like, if he needed a quiet moment, he knew who to go sit with. “Little tug.” He wound the hair tie around her hair then twisted and pulled the hair through. It wouldn’t win any glamor prizes, but it would keep the hair out of her eyes.
“Thank you!” She took her hairbrush and ran to the front door. “Daddy! Daddy’s home!”
He caught himself smiling and followed her to the door, waiting for Matthew to get out of the car. “Hey, you. You need a hand?”
“Can you help with the—”
“Oh my God, Sister! It’s a playhouse!” Emma’s squeal pierced his eardrums.
He laughed. “Let me get some shoes.” He jogged back to the bedroom to tug on his sneakers and hurried back out to the truck. “Nice playhouse. Word is you spoil your girls. I don’t see what they mean.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. I bought ice cream.” Butter wouldn’t melt in Matt’s mouth.
“Did you get strawberry coffee?” Matt looked so good. Smiling, happy. He wanted a kiss. “Let’s get it inside before it melts.”
“I did. Two strawberry coffees, a caramel macchiato, an iced hazelnut, and an iced latte with three extra shots.” Matt leaned down and kissed him, just a peck, but the girls were right there. Damn.
“Thank you.” He grinned at Matt, making sure Matt knew that kiss was appreciated. “Girls, there’s groceries to bring inside.”
“Sister, it’s a playhouse,” Emma whispered, and Sophia nodded, so smug.
“Daddy says it’s ours. All ours. We can hang curtains and put bean bags in and have sleepovers.” She grabbed a bag of groceries. “We have to put it under the big tree so there’s shade.”
Emma grabbed two sacks and followed her big sister with huge eyes.
He grabbed the flats of coffee, noting that Krissy was already on her way over. She must have seen Matthew pull in. “Is that everything?”
“I’ve got the big cooler with the cold stuff.” Matthew grabbed a huge Yeti out of the back of the pickup. “Hey, lady.”
“You bought them a playhouse.” Her grin was barely—barely—held at bay.
“Yep.” Matthew didn’t hide his smile.
“I suppose my cowboys are going to have to put the damn thing up.”
“Yep.”
She finally lost it, laughter filling the air. “It looks amazing. We can turn it into storage when the girls outgrow it.”
“That was my thinking. Tax write-off, you know.”
Tyler held out the coffee. “Which one are you?”
“The latte with the most shots.”
He should have known. “Um…probably that one, closest to you on your right?”
“Yep. Looks like.” She pulled it out of the tray and took a long sip. “Oh, that’ll do it. Thanks, Boss. We’ll get over here to deal with the shed—playhouse—in a bit. I know the girls will be anxious to get in it.” She tugged on her cap and headed back toward the barns.
“Was Em good for you?” Matthew asked, hauling the cooler like it weighed nothing.
“She taught me how to put her hair up, and we had a good talk. She’s very kind. She has a big heart.” She made me cry and I adore her.
“She’s a good girl. I think I’ll keep her.” They got inside and started unloading ten thousand tons of hamburger supplies and chips and Velveeta and dips.
“Is this lunch or a party?” He laid things out, organizing them on the counter so they could see what was what.
“Velveeta means queso, Tyler!” Emma bounced next to him.
“Mmm. Cheese.” He grinned at her. “I think Lisa is still in the pool.”
Emma’s eyes lit up. “Can I Daddy?”
“Let me make sure she’s still out there. Hold up.” Matthew stuck his head out of the kitchen door. “Hey, woman! You mind if these hooligans come in with you?”
“Bring it on!” she hollered back.
“Go on.” Matthew came back, chuckling. “Just a lunch. Ten cowboys, Krissy and Lisa, four of us—that’s sixteen. Plus Momma and Daddy and the boys—that’s twenty, assuming Noah’s girlfriend and that little boy that’s attached to Elias aren’t here or there aren’t folks that don’t stop by. I planned for thirty.”
“Yay!” Emma grabbed their strawberry drinks and went running.
Sophia took off upstairs. “Getting my suit!”
Thirty people? What did a party look like? How much did it cost to feed them all? He leaned against Matt’s back. “Lisa said you should set up a bar…since you know a bartender.”
“Do I now?” Matthew bumped their shoulders together. “If you want to, I’ll take you in to buy some supplies later this week. If you don’t, I’ll buy a couple of tubs of margaritas for the freezer and have beer.”
“Could be fun. I’d get to know everybody, right? And it might be nice for people to know I can do something. Other than pretty up your pool I mean.”
“Sounds like fun. We’ll make it happen. Today, we’ll feed hungry cowboys and maybe take a ride and go look at the pond and stuff.”
“Sounds great.” The pond sounded quiet. He might need some quiet after meeting all those people. “I can’t wait to meet everyone. Emma was so sweet. She said I needed to be careful and not hug Daniel too hard—and to ask first. I think we’re going to be good friends, she and I.”
“She wants to take care of the whole world. She’s very concerned about people’s pains.” Matthew chuckled as Sophia ran outside to swim. “And Miss Sophia wants to make things, damn the consequences.”
“The best pieces of you.” He leaned very close and whispered, “I ache in all the right places today.”
Matthew’s eyes lit up, and he grabbed Tyler and kissed him hard enough that his toes curled.
He threw an arm around Matt’s neck and held on, grinning and breathless. “I’m not kidding. I’m looking forward to a soak in that hot tub later. Damn, cowboy.”
“Mmm… I’m ready to enjoy that. No horses for you today, hmm?” Matt’s little wink was adorable.
“No.” He stretched and winced, playing it up. “Not the ride I had in mind.”
“I’ll have to rub you down tonight, honey. I’ll cure what ails you.”
“I’m cured. I’m a true believer. I have subscribed to the Book of Matthew.” He gave Matt’s ass a squeeze. “Are we making burgers out of these now or sticking the meat in the fridge?”
“Let’s let it sit in th
e cooler. It’ll stay a good temp.”
He stuck the ice cream in the freezer and picked up his coffee. “I had forgotten you cleaned out space for me. I should go unpack. Hang my coat up and stay awhile, like my mom used to say.”
“You want a second of company?” Oh, that was interest there.
“Yes.” He reached up and scritched Matthew’s beard. “Maybe two seconds.”
“Maybe four or five.” Matthew danced him down the hall toward the bedroom.
Oh, he loved dancing, and he could follow any lead. “Did you have a good morning with Sophia? She seemed excited.”
“Lovely. She’s a morning girl, and she always has the best debates with me.” Matt hummed and twirled him, rocking him right back into his body.
He laughed through the little twirl and leaned close when he could. “Emma was a little worried, I think. I’m not sure if she forgot I was hanging out with her or just wasn’t quite as ready to be brave and without you as she thought. She did fine, though.”
“She wakes up slow, and she dreams. God, the nightmares. They kill me.”
He stepped through the bedroom door and headed for his suitcase. “Oh that sucks. I had them too as a kid. I still dream a lot.” Not always good dreams, not until very recently.
“I’m not a huge dreamer, but when I do, it’s a doozy.” Matthew closed the door behind them and locked it.
He hid his grin, wondering how much actual unpacking he was going to get done with the door locked. He decided to pretend like that was still the plan just for fun and gave Matt a little show bending over to open his suitcase on the floor. His tease hadn’t accounted for how sore he was, and he couldn’t stop his tell-tale groan as everything below his hips stretched and burned. Man, that felt just right.
“Mmm… Does that feel as good as it sounds?” Matt’s hands landed on his hips, thumbs digging in his lower back.
“Hurts so good. Mmm.” He stretched lower, this time on purpose and let Matt’s fingers go to work. “That feels so good.”