Hayes.
This man.
Of course, Travis would leave his jersey for me to wear in his dominant, manly way.
I padded barefoot from the bedroom, heading for the smells and sounds that beckoned me like a siren on a shore. Travis was standing at the stove, shirtless, wearing a pair of low-slung jeans that showed off the delicious muscles of his massive body as he flipped pancakes. The hand towel slung over his shoulder further pushed that vibe of domestication through the air.
His hair was damp from a shower, curling slightly at the ends above the tattoo that ran up the back of his neck.
Damn, my body tightened from simply ogling him in the warm morning sunrise.
“Good morning, Shade,” He said without looking back at me. “Coffee’s on the counter. Thought you might need it after last night.”
I arched a brow. “You mean after you two kept me up all night long with that terribly slow, and boring sex?”
He glared over his shoulder at me and then his lips curved, “Kept you calling out our names and begging for more until three o'clock this morning.”
I poured a cup of coffee, trying to hide the way my cheeks heated. “Where’s Eli?”
“Getting the kids.”
I froze, coffee halfway to my mouth. “He’s what?”
Travis glanced at me, plating the last pancake from the built-in griddle taking up half of the massive industrial-size range, his eyes warm and steady. “We figured they’d like to see where their mom was hiding out. And maybe eat a pancake or two with us.”
Seconds later, the sound of a truck pulling up the long gravel driveway reached us, and my chest felt too tight to breathe.
“Your pants are on the back of the chair,” Travis winked, and nodded to the door. “Go welcome your babies into my home.”
I stepped onto the porch, moving on autopilot with my pants firmly in place, thank God, as Eli came around the side of the porch. Emmie was on his shoulders, and Toby clung to his hand, chatting a million miles an hour about how tall Eli’s truck was. The three of them looked like they’d been making that walk up the path every day of their lives, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
Like just maybe, it was something that could actually be mine.
I couldn’t move.
I couldn’t breathe.
If I did, I felt like it would all disappear like a mirage in a desert, too damn good to be true.
“Mama!” Toby cheered, jumping up the steps and flinging himself into my arms. “Sunshine says we’re having pancakes for breakfast! Grandma was going to make us eat oatmeal again,” He grimaced and stuck his tongue out, “Pancakes are so much better!”
I chuckled, kissing his cheek as Eli winked at me, sliding Emmie off his shoulders. “They sure do smell good too,” I kissed Emmie’s forehead, pushing her hair out of her face. “Let’s go in where it’s warm.”
The kids raced through the front door, cheering about syrup and how awesome Travis’s home was. Eli wrapped his hands around my waist and pulled me into his chest as he laid a kiss on my neck. “As good as you look in a Net Crasher’s jersey, I’ll make sure it’s mine next time.”
I leaned into him, welcoming his warmth and fresh scent of his aftershave as we watched the kids jump up onto the stools at the counter. “I’ll wear your things anytime.”
“Mmh,” He growled as we walked in the front door. “I think I like it better when you wear nothing at all.”
“Fiend.” I hissed and then shook off the cold as he closed the door behind us and kicked off his boots.
Joining the kids at the island, Emmie immediately hassled Travis, who had put a shirt on, for the biggest pancake on the platter while Toby tried to negotiate with him for chocolate chips.
And the big, burly man handled them like he had been doing it for years. Eli joined, moving around the kitchen with easy confidence, pouring juice, handing plates to Travis to fill, and even catching Emmie as she almost toppled off her stool in excitement.
Something somewhere in my chest started to take root. Something soft, something warm.
For the first time in a long time, I didn’t feel like I was just surviving.
