Ryan rolled his eyes.“Don’t even joke about it.”
The other man’s grin was incorrigible.“When she has two children, she’ll get another twenty percent access.There’s no mention of a spouse being a requirement to that.”
He rubbed his jaw.“Those stipulations certainly are unusual.Not as old school as I’d have imagined either.”He cut Adam a look.“Shouldn’t ask how you managed to learn all that, huh?”
“Nope.Best not.”
He chuckled a little.“Again, good job, Adam.Now, toddle off and get to work on my to do list.”
“Bastard,” Adam grumbled under his breath, making Ryan grin at him.
He nudged him in the side.“I’ll tell Mom on you.”
His brother grunted.“Just what I need.Her on my back.”
“She’s worried about you.You don’t have a single Triad brother yet.”
“I’m coping fine.I’m too busy watching after your sorry ass.Anyway, now you’re mated, you’ll take off some of the pressure from me.She’ll be hankering after grandkids and driving you insane about that.”
Because he knew his kid brother spoke the truth, Ryan just grimaced.“I’ll see you later for the debriefing with Santiago and Erickson.”
Adam nodded and quickly hustled off back the way he’d come.
Alone now, Ryan trailed along the pebbled path to the lodge and felt his heavy heart at what he’d just learned lighten when he saw El seated on the front porch.
Her legs were splayed out in the sun, and she was leaning back on the marble step, her elbows propping her up.
“You know we have sun loungers, right?”he asked, cocking a brow at her.
Her head had been flung back as she basked in the early morning rays like a kitten seeking warmth, but at his words she peered up at him.“I didn’t feel like sitting on one of them.”
He blinked at her, then his grin turned sheepish as he squatted down beside her and sat on the cold step.
“It’s good to see you, sweetheart.I missed you.”
She flushed, then argued.“I was here the whole time.”
He shook his head.“Not at my side, where you should be.”When El bit her lip, he asked, “What made you come out today?”
He’d know she’d come out eventually, just hadn’t known when.
And as she was safe at the lodge, close to hand, and not running, he’d been okay with giving her the time she needed to come to terms with this strange new world she was living in.
“I saw Trip leap into the pool this morning.H-He shifted midway but I didn’t realize that.I thought he was hurt so I ran out to see if he was okay.”
It said a lot that she cared.Of course, human decency could have dictated her actions but he knew that wasn’t the case.Not here, anyway.
She’d been scared for Trip’s sake.
The bond was forming, strengthening, he realized with no small amount of satisfaction.
“You know, the more I learn about you, the more I’m surprised.”
Her brows lifted.“Yeah?What have you learned?”
“On our date, you looked beautiful.”
Her cheeks turned pink.“You told me.Thank you.”
