AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Miles blinked, then, surprisingly, he laughed.
“I was dead inside,” Travis said, looking at the SUV as it parked. Doors opened and kids tumbled out. It was no surprise that Brooklyn reached Isabel first, throwing her arms around her foster mother with unabashed love while the others gathered around. “You already know that, but I have to say it. You kept me going, kept me on my feet and when it was obvious I was about ready to just ... give up, you sent me here. I don’t know how she managed to forgive me, but ... ” His throat tightened back up.
“She loves you, Travis.” Miles’s voice was raw and thick. “As much as you love her. The two of you ... both of you love so deeply. And that love let you forgive a miserable old bastard like me. Of course she was going to forgive you.”
Travis reached up and gripped Miles’s shoulder. It was thin, so thin and feeling frail, but Miles covered Travis’s hand with his and squeezed.
“Travis!”
Thudding footsteps came rushing his way and they both cleared their throats, tried to pretend they weren’t about to cry as the small girl came rushing eagerly toward them.
“Travis!” Brooklyn flung herself at Travis and he caught her up against him and held on tight. “You’re still here!”
“I am. And I’m not going anywhere, either.”
He held Brooklyn as the rest of the kids streamed up the steps, Aaron and Storm coming to hug him. Jacob offered a tentative smile, which shocked the hell out of Travis.
“We’re making burgers on the grill,” Brooklyn told him, squirming away and clambering out of his arms. “Are you eating dinner with us? And you, Mr. Miles?”
“As long as it’s okay with Ms. Bella,” Travis said, tugging gently on her disheveled blonde hair.
Isabel nodded and gave Miles a questioning look.
The other man accepted but declined to go inside, saying he wanted to enjoy the peace and quiet a bit longer. Travis suspected Miles was too tired to get up just yet.
“I’ll be outside a while,” he told Isabel. “Walk around a little bit ... I need to call my family, talk to them longer.” Rising to kiss her, he murmured, “Come back out when you have a minute. I want to ask you something.”
She nodded, then ducked inside, Mariah perched on her hip.
Mariah babbled and squealed as she waved a pudgy hand at Travis before cuddling close to Isabel.
As the door closed, Travis looked over at Miles.
The older man had his head back, eyes closed. His chest rose and fell in a slow rhythm and Travis suspected he was close to falling asleep.
Pulling his phone from his pocket, he put in a call to Trey.
His twin came on and Travis closed his eyes with a smile, aware, again, of the sensation of a weight he no longer carried.
“Hey, man,” he said.
“Hey, yourself,” Trey said easily. “I guess things are ... resolved, then.”
“More or less. I ... ah ... I got some news.”
Trey snorted. “More news, huh? I’m not sure how much more news I can take from you right now. You going to up and tell me you have a kid or something, too?”
Behind him, he heard Aaron and Brooklyn, their voices carrying through an open window and he wondered how Trey would react if he told his twin he would soon be helping to raisefivekids ...
Five. But he didn’t think his twin was ready for that yet. Hell, he was still adjusting to it.
“Actually, I’m getting married.”
