Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13

TRAVIS

The moment Becca was out of earshot, the questions began flying. Travis knew it was coming. It was what he would have done if the shoe was on the other foot – and they pulled no punches, so neither did he.

“How did you meet?”

“At a game.”

“If you were on the ice and playing – then how did you meet my sister?”

“I thought she was gorgeous, okay?” Travis blurted out, not liking the way Jason was glaring at him and implying that he wasn’t doing his job or participating in the game. He took his position seriously and had a duty to uphold to his team – to say that he was slacking off was like a slap in the face. “We were warming up, and I spotted her right away in the crowd. Becca’s gorgeous and was wearing a T-shirt I recognized from my childhood. I commented, we began talking, and it went from there.”

“It was one of those dumb My Little Pony shirts, wasn’t it?” Matthew chuckled knowingly making Luke look at him in surprise as if he forgot that show was his sister’s favorite one.

“Transformers…” Travis corrected and saw all three men roll their eyes, replying in un ison.

“Oh geez…”

“Have you slept with her?” Matthew asked coolly before continuing. “You’re not sleeping with her under this roof, or you’ll never play hockey again.”

“Two rooms. Two beds. And it’s healthier that way,” Luke said simply, surprising him – and the two younger brothers bumped knuckles, chuckling.

“He could take the barn,” Jason said in a flat voice, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at Travis. “Or you could sleep in your truck, get a hotel in Tyler and leave my sister here, or find a nice stall that’s been cleaned already. In fact, honestly, leave Becca here, and I’ll even throw in a horse blanket and a pillow.”

So, it was going to be like that, huh? Travis thought silently to himself, trying not to lose his temper. This man thought he was in control, and he could see why Becca balked if Jason was as pushy with her as he was with Travis now.

“Do you plan on running her off again?” he asked simply and saw Jason’s expression darken as his eyes narrowed – especially when the other two brothers started chortling in delight beside him.

“Oh hooo! The gloves are coming off, in real life, right here in the den!” Matthew uttered with glee, rubbing his hands together, anticipating a fight. Luke was grinning wildly, looking between the two men, as Jason simply put his cup of iced tea down and got to his feet – and Travis did the same, staring down the man.

“Fine, Golden Boy – bring it.”

“I am – since you are thinking the worst of me. I respect your sister.”

“You have a reputation.”

“I used to, yes. Then I turned my life around – and you didn’t answer my question.”

“Becca needs to be home with her family.”

“I agree. Everyone needs family around them and a support network. ”

“You’re darn right, and you should… wait, what?” Jason balked, looking at him in shock. “You agree?”

“Uh, well, I didn’t expect that,” Matthew muttered quietly to Luke, who responded quickly – sounding stunned.

“Neither did I.”

“Becca wants to be her own person, to be in control of something,” Travis elaborated, defending Becca before this man so she didn’t have to. He also wanted a chance to show what he was made of and earn their respect. If her oldest brother thought he was going to be a pushover, then Jason was completely wrong.

“We all pitch in to keep this place running, and she’ll have plenty of control doing chores if…” Jason began, and Travis cut him off.

“Becca also doesn’t want to see her oldest brother ,who she loves and respects, having a heart attack from the stress because he won’t let four other adults help him with the farm.”

“He’s got a point, Jason,” Luke volunteered in a quiet voice.

“I agree,” Matthew spoke up as well, causing Jason to look at them instead of glaring at Travis.

“You two don’t need to take his side – and no one has complained before.”

“I’m just saying that if you give a little, you’ll get so much more in return. Did you know Becca would like to run a bed and breakfast out this way?” Travis blurted out, hoping he wasn’t ruining her secret or betraying her trust. “She’s incredibly smart and business savvy – if you’d let her handle some of the workload, it would make her feel valued and important.”

“All of us,” Luke muttered under his breath, looking away as Matthew sat there unmoving, almost like a statue and looking at the floor.

“You think that too?” Jason asked bluntly, staring at his brothers in disbelief.

“It would give you a secondary income and diversify,” Travis volunteered openly. He had his funds tied up in several different places, diff erent portfolios, because if something happened and he couldn’t skate? He wanted to ensure that he would never have to work again.

“You need to advertise,” Matthew interrupted.

“There’s not enough money to pay for…” Jason snarled at him, obviously feeling threatened.

“Then give up the ledgers and let me look at them,” Luke said solemnly, seeing Jason’s head whip around again in complete shock.

Travis sucked in his breath painfully. This was not what he intended when the discussion had started to turn. The conversation was going downhill fast, and he didn’t really want to be responsible for destroying a family that had some underlying bitterness and unresolved issues.

“Look, I’m not here to start World War Three with Becca’s family – she loves you, and I just want to see her happy. Let’s just have a nice dinner and talk like a couple of guys.”

“We are talking.”

“Jason, let her have an enjoyable weekend at home with her family – and then give her a chance to show you all her thoughts regarding the farm in a few weeks.”

“Why?” Jason said skeptically, looking at him. Luke and Matthew’s eyes swung toward him as well putting him on the spot again. “Why would you want Becca to find her footing here if she lives two hours away and closer to DFW? Why support her in this manner?”

Travis drew in a deep breath, not backing down as he met Jason’s eyes.

“Because I love her.”

Things finally began to settle down between all of them as they talked about hockey tickets, suggested going horseback riding after dinner and seeing the property. It was obvious the family was proud, wanting to show off what generations of Bairds had built here. It was nice to see where Becca came from and her deep love of this part of the state.

No wonder she’d hung out the window of the car, Travis thought with a smile as he looked at her over his plate sitting at the dinner table later. Becca and her siblings were deep in conversation, laughing and cutting up. She was raised here, knew this part of the world like the back of her hand, and he could see the appeal. It was small and quiet, and you could hear the sounds of crickets chirping, cicadas, and cows calling occasionally interrupted by the sound of a small plane in the distance.

It was peaceful – and her home.

An hour later, Travis was getting an impromptu lesson on how to ride, which made him nervous as could be. The horse was looking at him like he was insane – and frankly, he couldn’t disagree. He still had stitches in his lip and the doctor was making him wait a few more days before removing them. Why on earth would he put himself in a position where he could get thrown and snap his neck?

“Why don’t all of you mount up,” Becca interrupted, laying a hand on his upper arm almost possessively. “Travis can ride with me, and I’ll take Bluebell since she’s the calmest.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Toni volunteered, nodding. “I’ve got Diablo.”

“That’s a great idea,” Travis chuckled nervously, making several of her siblings laugh in awareness. “I don’t think I need to be near anything named Diablo. Bluebell is more my style – for sure!”

“I’ll take Tracker,” Matthew called out – disappearing quickly into the barn as Toni jogged after him, smiling.

“Do you mind if I take Nacho out?” Luke asked, smiling widely and looking excited. Jason’s concerned look made him curious about what prompted such concern.

“Go ahead,” Jason agreed. “But, with one condition.”

“Sure. ”

“Take it slow. If you get nervous – dismount immediately. That stallion is meaner than a firecracker.”

“Will do,” Luke agreed easily. “Are you taking Petunia?”

“Sure.”

“Maybe we should take Petunia,” Travis suggested quickly. “Bluebell was the horse earlier when you took off with Toni, right? That’s a big horse. Petunia sounds like she’d be much tamer.”

… Only to hear Jason laugh.

“Petunia will only let me ride her – and the name is misleading. Don’t get close at all when we are riding. She’s a mean little thing. Saddle up, Becca, and let’s head out while there is still daylight.”

Becca took his hand, leading him toward the barn where they were each putting saddles on their horses. Luke, the youngest, was in a stall with a huge brown horse that was rolling its eyes and bucking slightly.

“That’s Nacho?” Travis gaped, stunned. “How do you come up with the names?”

“Sometimes they are jokes and other times, it’s because we simply don’t know what to call them. ‘Nacho’ came about because Jason caught Luke trying to put a saddle on his back – and yanked him out of the stall so fast, saying, ‘Today’s not your day to die,’ and it sounded like ‘Nacho’ because he had a wad of dip in his mouth at the time,” Becca explained as they walked toward another stall.

“And Bluebell?”

“For the ice cream company. Daddy had made ice cream sundaes that afternoon to celebrate the new horse – oh, and she’s a sweetie.”

“And Petunia? Which one is Petunia?”

At that moment, they heard a clatter in the distance, much further in the barn, quickly followed by Jason’s exclamation of “Whoaaa!” A horse whinnied, stomped, and there was another loud noise.

“What is that?”

“Petunia,” Becca muttered grimly. “We’ve always had to keep that horse away from the others because she’s half wild. Only Jason can get clos e enough to feed her or ride her. She snaps or bucks at the rest of us. Matthew? That horse still hasn’t calmed down yet?”

“Nope. Wilder than ever…”

“I say we sell the beast,” Luke muttered. “Petunia bit me on the shoulder three months ago while I was just walking past the stall. I still believe she’d make a superior type of glue – stubborn and won’t let go.”

“Luke!” Toni hissed in disbelief. “Don’t say stuff like that…”

“Well? It left a huge bruise, and I nearly…”

A moment later, Jason trotted past them slowly on the biggest black horse that Travis had ever seen in person with this smart-aleck grin across his face.

“We’re not getting rid of my horse,” Jason announced. “Now, mount up. My sweet Petunia has some nervous energy to burn off.”

“Petunia, huh?” Travis chuckled as a slow smile touched his face. The man reminded him of Theo – brave, not scared of anything or anyone, almost to the point of foolishness. He would never back down from a challenge, and when he conquered it – everyone would know.

Yeah, maybe they weren’t so different from each other after all.

Becca was climbing into the saddle beside him, making Travis swallow as he stared at her swinging a leg over. She was graceful and beautiful, especially as she turned and extended her hand to him, smiling.

“Put your foot in the stirrup and slide your leg over,” she invited, smiling proudly at him. “Trust me – you’ll love this.”

I already do, he thought silently, mounting the horse behind her. He slipped an arm around her waist, treasuring the feel of her so close to him. They just seemed to fit, and he would trust her with his life, his heart, and his soul.

Yeah, he was falling hard for this woman, and it was more than he could hav e ever imagined. Hockey was his life, his everything, but Becca was quickly stealing the show. Seeing her here was like seeing a different facet of a diamond, just as beautiful as the others and utterly breathtaking in its own way.

“Are you ready?” she chuckled softly, looking over her shoulder at him as Toni rode past them with Matthew at her side, the two grinning and sharing a knowing look. Yeah, her family knew he was truly interested, and he really wasn’t bothering to hide his feelings in the slightest.

This weekend was for his Becca.

“I’m ready, sweetheart,” he said simply, carefully leaning forward to gently kiss her cheek. “Show me your world – and when we get home, I’d like to show you more of mine.”

“You’re on,” she murmured tenderly, craning her neck to drop a soft kiss on his sore nose. “Let me know if this is too jarring or hurts your little nose.”

“My little nose?” He chuckled softly, nearly blurting out the words straining to get free from his soul at her tender laugh and the light in her eyes as she smiled at him. No, when he finally told her, it would be when he could hold her close, kiss her, and show her how he felt.

Maybe I should take this as a lesson. If she can plan and put her dreams together, then perhaps I should do the same, he mused silently as the horse started to walk out of the stall, swaying gently.

Emerging from the barn, Travis saw the sunset in the distance and the four other horses and swallowed as a sense of home crept into his soul. There was such a wild peace and sense of belonging out here. He could see the outbuildings, the barns, and the animals in the distance as the grass swayed in the golden rays of the setting sun. His eyes scanned the horizon before resting on Becca’s profile, seeing more than he ever imagined for the very first time.

Travis saw a future with her – and it was breathtaking.