CHAPTER 5
TRAVIS
Travis happened to know firsthand that Gavin worked out-of-control hours and traveled on business every weekend he didn’t have his kids—sometimes even when he was supposed to have them. The one thing Gavin did not do was apologize.
Travis could remember maybe three times when he’d heard an apology from his oldest brother. All three of those times were hoisted on him by their mother’s insistence. And as soon as she left the room, Gavin took them back.
So it made no sense when in the middle of the ground-beef, mad-scientist, taco-palooza snack bar Rachel had put together—Gavin apologized. But there he’d been apologizing to Rachel. Mom, Dad, and everyone else heard what sounded to be his sincere apology for administering an unexpected dose of canines the night before.
Gavin didn’t even take it back when Mom went inside. Which meant…something was up with his brother.
Maybe Rachel’s agreement to go to the lake struck some kind of hole in the always-right façade of his older brother. For the record, it wasn’t eavesdropping on his brother and his ex if a guy was returning puppies.
Travis decided to noodle on that later. First he had a party to enjoy. And now he had some retribution to dish out—Frank style. He moseyed right up to the twins’ bedroom and found the kid he was searching for.
“You know what you should take to your dad’s?” Travis asked Kellan.
He could’ve gone with Brady, but Kellan was probably a better bet once Travis planted this particular little seed.
Brady had a lot more people pleasing in him. Kellan was more about doing what pleased him.
“What?” Kellan glanced up from the overnight bag he was filling with birthday presents and other related loot.
“Those recorders you showed me last week after your baseball game. I happen to know your dad loves music. He’ll think they’re fun.” Travis chucked his nephew on the shoulder.
Rachel emerged from the boys’ closet with a couple of pairs of pajamas. She blinked hard at Travis, as though trying to figure out where he’d come from.
“I know he particularly likes music right when he wakes up. So be sure you play them first thing in the morning. Bonus points if you manage to do it before he’s out of bed.” This was not a fib. Gavin would think the recorders were fun—for five seconds—because, damn, the screeching noises those so-called instruments let off would make him pull his hair out just enough, but not so much that Travis felt like a jerk for suggesting it.
Besides, served him right for showing up late. And for cutting down the tree Travis had been climbing when they were teenagers. And for dumping over Travis’s canoe last summer at the lake. Twice. The first time could’ve been an accident. The second time definitely screamed malicious intent.
“Oh, and you should take that sand stuff.” Rachel handed over a bucket filled with multicolored sand packets meant for layering into plastic jars. Travis had a hunch the boys wouldn’t be filling jars with the sand but would probably wind up in a sand war, stuffing it in each other’s clothes, on bedsheets, and in various other annoying crevices.
At least, that’s what Travis would’ve done with his brothers when they were that age. Bonus points if you could manage to get the sand wet first. Double bonus points if you got it stuck in the other guy’s shorts.
He had a hunch Rachel knew the sand thing had that kind of potential. Sending it to their dad’s house held a note of brilliance.
“Uncle Travis is right, Dad loves music. The puppies would probably love to sing karaoke with you, too,” Rachel suggested, catching Travis’s gaze with a wicked gleam in her eyes. “You should take that with you.”
Kellan nodded with all the enthusiasm of a kid given permission to shove sand down his brother’s shorts and wake everyone up to his rendition of the best of Justin Bieber.
Travis smirked.
Yeah, Rachel knew exactly what she was doing.
He gave her a subtle go-on-ahead nod. The knowledge that his little recorder idea might cause a little sand in Gavin’s shorts warmed him like he was sitting on a beach in summer.
“Great idea, Mom.” Kellan scrambled to put everything into a pile.
“I’ve got your number on this one,” Travis murmured to Rachel from the side of his mouth.
She lifted a shoulder and nibbled at her bottom lip. “You inspired me with the recorder idea.”
“I have a unique set of skills.” Travis leaned against the doorway so he wasn’t in her personal space. They were getting along great, and he didn’t want to fuck that up.
“I’ve heard about your unique set of skills.” Rachel crossed her arms. “Gavin told me all about them.”
Travis just bet. He studied her face, searching for details, but none emerged. His back teeth set on edge.
