Travis (25 page)

♀♂

Travis
was tempted to check himself in the vanity mirror of the truck. For some odd
reason, he thought maybe he’d see someone else peering back at him. Hell, he
was surprised Gage agreed to go anywhere with him considering how out of character
he was acting.

Damn
it. Not a single one of his brothers was around to see it either. And Travis
knew they’d never believe him if he told them.

Despite
the levity of what happened to Gage’s house, Travis couldn’t stop the smile
from creeping up to his lips. For the first time in years – many, many years –
he didn’t feel like taking someone’s head clean off their body.

Didn’t
mean it would last, so he considered warning Gage and Kylie that they better
take advantage of it while they could. Hell, he’d be more than willing to let
them take advantage of him. Right here in the damn truck if they’d like.

Travis
kept his eyes on the road and forced himself not to look over at Gage. The man
looked like hell, and knowing he’d just go stir crazy sitting in that big old
house of his all alone, he had wanted to limit the amount of time that Gage
would have to do so.

A
few minutes later, they were pulling into Moonshiners, and the first thing
Travis noticed was how empty the parking lot was. Not necessarily a bad thing,
but he knew that would change once the volunteer fire department got things
settled. If they were lucky, they’d grab a booth in the back and have a couple
of beers before that happened. It was clear Gage was getting sick of hearing
all the
I’m sorry’s
and
if you need anything let me know’s
although
the people clearly meant well. Probably didn’t make it any easier to have just
watched your house burn to the ground.

As
soon as Travis put the truck in Park, he scrambled out and over to Kylie’s
door. Neither of them had gotten out, so he went to her door and opened it for
her.

Yes,
it should be noted that he could be a gentleman when he wanted to.

“Ummm,
boys…” Kylie drew their attention before they had a chance to travel far on the
wet pavement that glistened from the oil and rain. “I’m not sure I’m dressed
for this.”

Travis
glanced down, noticed she was wearing Gage’s t-shirt, which came almost to her
knees, and totally hid her shorts from view. Sometime in the last few minutes
she’d put her boots on so… Well, the picture she made had Travis wanting to settle
her cute little ass back in the truck and head over to Gage’s farmhouse anyway.
Screw the beer.

Shit.
And she didn’t have on a bra either. That little news flash was like a homing
beacon, drawing his attention to her perky breasts beneath the soft, dark
cotton. And his eyes weren’t the only thing paying attention either.

Kylie
must’ve realized that they were both now staring at her chest because she
cleared her throat to get their attention.

“Would
you rather go back to…?”

Before
Gage could finish the sentence, Kylie smiled as her hands disappeared behind
her back. Seconds later, the t-shirt was pulling tight across her flat belly
and riding at hip level, those tight jean shorts once again visible.

“Ok,
let’s do this.”

Travis
stared at her. He honestly had expected her to ask them to take her home, but
instead, she’d somehow made that shirt look like it was made for her and now
she was heading right for the front doors, finger combing her hair as she went.
Suddenly, Travis was the one wishing they were heading somewhere private rather
than the local bar.

And
he was also making a mental note to request that she go without a bra. Always. Ok,
no, not always. He wasn’t that barbaric. But definitely when he was around.

Gage
fell into step behind Kylie, his shoulders slumped forward as he went and the
sight of him made Travis’ good mood fumble a little. It was clear Gage didn’t want
to be here, but Travis knew it was better than the alternative. Although
watching Kylie’s sweet ass in those jean shorts was giving him some other ideas
on how to get Gage’s mind off of the disaster he’d endured tonight.

Travis
forced himself to follow, and when they stepped inside the dimly lit bar, he
was glad to see the inside resembled the outside. Except for a few guys in the
back shooting pool, a couple of regulars sitting at the bar and a couple of
women sitting in a booth near the front, they were practically alone.

With
his hand on the small of her back, Travis led Kylie toward one of the booths in
the far corner which would offer them a little privacy. As soon as she was
seated, Travis moved in beside her, leaving her very little space between him
and the wall and if he wasn’t mistaken, she was smiling. For some reason, he
couldn’t keep his hands off of her, so he slid one arm around behind her,
propping his elbow above her head, and ensuring he was close enough to feel her
arm against his side.

When
she smiled up at him, he almost forgot where they were. The spell was broken
when the waitress made her way over.

“What’ll
you boys have?” she asked, smiling sweetly at Travis and then over at Gage.

Travis
glanced at Kylie, waiting for her to respond.

“I’ll
take a Corona with lime, thanks.”

Travis
then looked up at Gage.

Gage
didn’t say anything, just tipped his head as though he were agreeing with what
Kylie was ordering.

Travis
then ordered a scotch on the rocks before dismissing the woman without another
glance. It wasn’t like he wasn’t used to the way women flocked to him and his
brothers, or their friends, but it irked the shit out of him right then. Ellie
had ignored Kylie, and he had half a mind to have a chat with her about
respect. Then again, that would require him to initiate conversation, and he
knew how well that would go over. This particular woman would take it as an
invitation.

Not
that he was one to be preaching about respect. He wasn’t known for his glowing
personality in these parts. In fact, most women just looked him over and then
went about their business because they knew Travis wasn’t interested. Not since
he was a teenager, had he indulged in a woman from their home town. After
learning how fast those rumors flew, he’d decided to take his needs elsewhere,
and it’d worked for him for the most part. Unlike his brothers, he didn’t have
scorned women chasing him around like he owed them something.

Or
men, thinking of Ethan.

“When
is the resort supposed to open?” Kylie asked, sounding as though none of the
events of the night had occurred and they were all just old friends here to
talk.

Forgetting
what he’d witnessed between his brother Ethan and the mechanic while they were
in Vegas, Travis turned his attention to her. And then he smiled. There was a
reason he loved this woman. Shit that almost sounded like present tense. What
was worse, realizing it didn’t make Travis’ smile disappear.

“My
goal is early next year,” he said after clearing his throat.
Where the hell
was the waitress?
“At the rate we’re going, I’d say we’re right on the
money. Maybe a little earlier if we’re lucky.”

“Are
your brothers going to –”

“Here
you go, sweetie,” the waitress cooed as she set the beers on the table in front
of Gage and then putting the scotch close enough to Travis that she leaned over
and shoved her tits right in his face. In an extremely catty move, she didn’t
bothering to push Kylie’s beer toward her. “Anything –”

“We’ll
let you know,” Travis barked, cutting her off before she could say “else”. She’d
rudely cut Kylie off midsentence, and it would’ve been one thing if it was an
accident, but Travis could tell by the smirk on her lips that wasn’t the case.

Travis
retrieved Kylie’s beer and handed it to her at the same time she thanked the
waitress politely, a knowing glint in her eyes.

Then,
as though they hadn’t been interrupted, she picked up where she left off. “So,
let’s try this one more time. Are your brothers going to work at the resort
also?”

“That’s
the plan. At least a couple of them anyway. Right now, just Kaleb, Sawyer and
Zane are on board, each of them taking on certain duties.”

The
tension at the table intensified as Kylie seemed to search for something else to
ask. Glancing over at Gage, Travis frowned. The man had his hands wrapped
around his beer bottle, using his thumbnail to pick at one corner of the label.
It was obvious he would rather be anywhere but there.

The
uncomfortable silence was interrupted when the front doors of the bar opened
and the need to find something to talk about drifted right out with some of the
cool air. Sawyer was standing in the door, grinning from ear to ear like he
owned the place. By his stance, it appeared he was waiting for a roaring
welcome. He didn’t appear to be fazed when none came.

It
didn’t take him long to notice the three of them sitting in the back, and from
that moment on, he seemed to be on a mission.

“Ellie,
darlin’ you got an extra beer over there for me?”

Travis
rolled his eyes as his younger brother flirted with the waitress while
sauntering across the room as though all eyes were on him. And they probably
were. Sawyer was an attention whore, always had been, and clearly he was in one
of his moods tonight.

For
the first time in a long time, Travis welcomed Sawyer’s irritatingly cheerful
attitude. Anything if he could get the shadows to disappear from Gage’s eyes.

“What’s
up, bro?” Sawyer asked, sliding into the other side of the booth with Gage as
though he were invited. It didn’t even bother him that Gage had to move over
for him to do so.

Travis
raised an eyebrow.

“Hey,
beautiful,” Sawyer greeted Kylie as though they were long lost lovers. “Glad to
see these boys came to their senses.”

“Why’s
that?” Kylie asked, clearly confused.

“Well,
considering their noses are intact, it’s safe to assume they haven’t beat the
hell outta one another and I’m guessin’ you’re the reason,” Sawyer said with a
huge grin, his straight white teeth gleaming.

The
waitress chose that moment to walk up to the table, another Corona with lime in
her hand and a grin as broad as Texas plastered on her face.

Hmm,
Sawyer and Kylie had something in common. Great.

“Thanks,
baby. Come check on us in a bit, would ya?”

How
Sawyer dismissed her and still sounded as though he were anxious to see her
again was beyond him. Travis never did understand his brother, but the one
thing he knew for a fact, the man was good with the ladies.

“Hey,
bro, sorry to hear about your house,” Sawyer said, filling the silence as he
spoke to Gage.

A
nod was all he got in return.

“Guess
now you’ll be movin’ into your grandma’s place, huh? You line up someone to reno
it for ya yet?”

How
the hell did Sawyer know what was going on with Gage when Travis hadn’t been
able to get a bead on where the man was for the longest time?

“I’m
working on it,” Gage said, his eyes landing on Kylie.

“Ahhh,
that’s right. You’re the little darlin’ who’s supposed to be handlin’ that for
him, aren’t ya?”

Travis
groaned. Sawyer was laying it on thick tonight, his Texas drawl coming out in
spades. And he was flirting like the devil he was.

As
though Sawyer didn’t expect any answers to his questions, he continued to talk
while the three of them sat there staring at him. “So, I’ve been thinkin’ about
names for the club.”

“That
right?” Travis had been on Sawyer for months to come up with a name for the
club that he’d be running at Alluring Indulgence. Up till now, he’d been met
with shrugs and noncommittal comments from both him and Zane where his request
was concerned.

“Yup,”
he said as he tipped his beer to his lips. “What do y’all think about
Debauchery? Or maybe Hedonism?”

Gage
nearly choked on his beer, and Travis groaned out loud, the smile he was trying
to fight winning.

“Are
you serious?” Travis asked.

“No?
Don’t like those? What about Depravity? Or Carnality? How ‘bout Lechery?”

Kylie
joined in the laughter and Travis found he loved the sound. He met Gage’s eyes
from across the table and in that moment, something transpired between them. No
matter what they wanted from one another, it was clear, they wanted her. And
there was no way in hell this was at all casual.

“Have
you been sleeping with a fucking thesaurus?” Travis finally asked, turning his
attention back to his brother.

Sawyer’s
mouth tipped up in a sly grin as he brought the lip of his beer bottle to his
mouth, then winked at Kylie. Travis’ body went rigid, a possessiveness that
he’d never known taking hold of his muscles and not letting go.

“What
about Crave?” Kylie asked, glancing between Travis and Sawyer. All three of
them stared back at her for long seconds before she spoke again. “What? Based
on what you showed me today, I think it would be fitting.”