The Shore (17 page)

Ryan and Madison arrived at Mac’s house just as Abby was pulling a suitcase out of her car.

“You expecting to stay a while?” Ryan asked, pointing to the suitcase.

Abby rolled her eyes. “This boy thinks he needs to take his entire bedroom just to spend one night somewhere else. And he even has his own bedroom in their house!”

Ryan laughed as she walked beside her, a small bag on her shoulder. “Can I help with anything?”

“No, thanks. But if Jake comes home wanting a dog, I’m going to kill you.”

Ryan was pretty sure she was serious.

She looked over to see Berkley bounding toward a little boy that must have been Jake. He sat on the ground and was instantly attacked by Berkley with face kisses.

“Looks like they’ll be just fine,” Ryan said with a grin. Abby rolled her eyes again.

The girls turned to see Mac walk onto the porch. “Welcome to girls’ night, ladies! Ya’ll ready for some fun?”

They laughed as they walked toward the porch.

“Mac, Abby, this is Madison. Madison, this is Mac and Abby,” Ryan smiled as she made the introductions.

“Nice to meet you guys. Thanks for letting me tag along tonight,” Madison said with a warm smile.

“Oh, honey, we’re glad to have you! The more the merrier!” It was almost as if Mac had started the party early, but she really hadn’t. She was just that welcoming and happy to be going out tonight.

“Jake, come here, sweetie,” Abby yelled to her son. Berkley had finally let up on the face kisses enough that he could stand and walk over.

“Ryan, Madison, this is my son, Jake. Jake, this is Ryan and Madison. They’re friends of mine and your Uncle Riley and Aunt Mac’s,” Abby said as she introduced her son to the girls.

“It’s nice to meet you, Jake. Have fun with Berkley tonight, okay?” Ryan said with a warm smile.

“Okay,” Jake answered, his cheeks turning the slightest bit pink.

“Come on, sweetheart. Let’s go find your Uncle Riley,” Abby said to Jake, lugging the suitcase behind her.

As Abby went inside to get things situated with Jake, Mac turned to Madison. “It’s nice to meet you, Madison. How do you know Ryan?”

“We work together at the same firm,” she replied. “We’ve known each other for about, what? Four years or so?”

“Something like that,” Ryan answered.

“Well, I’m glad you’re with us tonight. We could use some new blood,” Mac winked.

Mac turned to Ryan and laid a hand on her arm. “You doing okay, sweetie?”

“I’m okay,” Ryan smiled softly. “I’m glad we talked this morning.”

Mac gave Ryan one of her motherly smiles. “Me, too.”

Ryan looked at Madison then back to Mac and continued, “Madison and I talked some things through today. I have some issues with my sister and I might have overreacted a bit when Cody told me about Paige.”

Madison coughed loudly into her hand as she said, “Just a bit.”

“I’m glad you got things sorted out for yourself. Have you talked to him yet?” Mac asked, glad that Madison wasn’t letting Ryan slide either.

“I texted him this afternoon. He’s going to meet us at the bar sometime after his game tonight.”

Mac smiled her approval. “Good.”

“He is?” Madison asked.

“Yeh, sorry I didn’t tell you,” Ryan said to Madison.

“It’s fine by me. I want to meet this boy that’s got you all a mess,” she grinned.

Ryan blushed and looked up to see Abby, Riley and Jake join them on the porch. “Hey, Riley.”

“Ryan,” he nodded.

“Riley, this is my friend Madison. Madison, this is Riley, Mac’s husband and Cody’s older brother.”

Madison gave a small wave. “Nice to meet you.”

Riley nodded in response.

“He’s not much of a talker,” Mac winked toward Madison.

Madison smiled at them both. “No problem.”

Ryan noted a bit of coldness from Riley. She knew she had everyone worried, and all of those people were related to him. Once things were settled with Cody, she would need to apologize to him, too.

“Alright ladies, you ready to get your drink on?” Abby said with anticipation.

“I think so. Let me just grab my purse,” Mac responded. “You want to take my truck or your car?” she asked to Abby.

“Let’s take your truck, but I’ll drive.”

“Oh, brother,” Riley said under his breath at Abby.

“Hush, you. I back into something once and you won’t let me forget it. Once!” Abby said trying to defend herself.

“Come on, Jake. Let’s go get our stuff. Have fun tonight and be careful. Call me if ya’ll need a ride home,” Riley said, pointing a finger at the four of them now that Mac had returned.

“Yes, baby,” Mac said with a smile as she put one hand on his cheek and gave him a quick kiss. “Have fun tonight with the boys. Love you.”

Riley just smiled at her as if the smile would say what his unspoken words hadn’t.

Abby leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of Jake’s head. “Be good for Uncle Riley, okay?”

Jake nodded with a smile.              

“Let’s go!” Abby exclaimed as she headed toward Mac’s big truck.

Riley and Jake pulled up to the field where Cody was playing ball. It was a small park with concrete paths that led to three fields and a concession stand with bathrooms in the center.

Riley spotted players with Cody’s team jersey. “Looks like Cody’s team is playing on the far field,” he said and started walking in that direction. Jake followed, loving these nights out with his uncle.

After setting up a couple chairs to sit in, Riley asked, “You want to hit the concession stand? Get something to drink?”

“Okay,” Jake answered, already looking forward to the sugary treats he knew his uncle would let him have.

As they started walking, Cody approached them. “Hey guys! Glad you could make it.” Cody patted Jake on the head. “You off to get some snacks?”

“Yup!” Jake said with a big smile on his face.

“Don’t go getting me in trouble with Abby, Riley. She still thinks the last sugar high he got at the ball field was my fault,” Cody said as he turned to Riley.

Riley just laughed and Cody knew his warning was pointless.

Riley enjoyed watching the game with Jake, getting up every couple of innings for a new snack.

This kid could eat me out of house and home.

But it was fun having someone to spoil. He and Mac tried to have kids of their own, but nothing worked. They’d gotten pregnant twice and miscarried both times. After the second, Mac wanted to stop trying and Riley had agreed. He wasn’t sure either of them could handle the loss of another child. In the meantime, Riley figured if he couldn’t have his own kids, he’d spoil the shit out of his nephew.

Riley liked spending time with Jake and liked that he was a male figure in his life. He’d known Jake since the boy was two weeks old and considered him a son anyway. Riley could never understand how Trey could just walk away. It made him mad to think how he and Mac had been trying to have kids for years while Trey just threw Jake away like garbage. If he ever met that guy, someone was going to have to hold him back from giving that asshat a piece of his mind.

Jake had a blast cheering on Cody’s team, and it certainly helped that they won. Cody joined them after the game and gave Jake a high-five.

“You must have been our lucky charm, Jake. Did you see all the runs we scored?”

“Yeh! It was really cool!” Jake almost yelled. Cody laughed, it was nice to see someone get so excited about the game.

“So where to next?” Cody asked.

“You want to go grab a burger?” Riley asked in reply as he started packing up the chairs and collecting all of the wrappers.

“Yeh!” Jake answered. Clearly the snacks he’d eaten hadn’t sufficed.

“Alright,” Cody said, laughing. “Meet you at the pier? I just need to finish cleaning up.” He was looking forward to seeing Ryan tonight, but he didn’t want to get there too early. He wanted her to have a chance to enjoy herself with the girls.

“Sounds good,” Riley replied as he picked up the chairs to carry them back to the truck.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The girls were having a great time and they were just getting started. Abby drove them to a little restaurant down the island that had some of the best seafood they could get their hands on, according to her. They were a couple drinks in when she finally brought up the subject.

“So are you going to tell us what happened with Cody?” Abby asked, looking at Ryan.

Ryan stopped chewing, looking at Abby and then at Mac and Madison. “Umm… okay,” she said with a mouth full and continued to chew.

After wiping her mouth with her napkin, she said simply, “Cody told me he lost his virginity to my sister. I kind of overreacted.”

Abby’s mouth hung open. “He what?”

Ryan shrugged. “It really shouldn’t have been a big deal. It happened a long time ago. But my sister and I have this history and it just hit me really wrong.”

“Have you talked to Cody about it?” Abby asked.

“Not yet. He's supposed to meet us wherever we end up tonight, but I doubt we’ll have any real in-depth conversations. Tomorrow, I’m sure, we’ll talk about it.”

“You realized this and haven’t talked to him yet?” Abby pressed.

Ryan looked to Mac, surprised by Abby’s reaction, then looked back to Abby. “No, not yet,” trying to keep her voice level. Abby’s expression hadn’t changed. “I needed some time to think, that’s all.”

“Think?” Abby asked. “About what? Cody would be a great catch for anyone.”

“And then…” Madison added.

Ryan shot Madison a “shut the hell up” look. “And then nothing.”

“And then what, Ryan? What’s going on?” Mac piped in, sounding concerned.

Ryan sighed and looked at Madison. “Thanks.”

Madison just shrugged.

“I didn’t want to say anything yet because I haven’t had a chance to talk to Cody,” Ryan said.

“Is everything okay?” Mac asked.

“After Cody told me about Laura…” Ryan began to say.

“He told you about Laura?” Abby questioned, not believing it. Laura was a topic Cody did
not
like to talk about. “Wow. He must really like you. You need to talk to that guy.”

“I know, Abby, and I will. Okay?” Ryan said forcefully but quietly. Taking a deep breath, she started again. “After Cody told me about Laura, and I told him about my ex-boyfriend cheating on me, I decided to take a walk on the beach. And that’s where I ran into him. My ex.”

The three girls just looked at Ryan, waiting for her to continue.

“Long story short, I ended up at Jaxon’s place after Cody and I fought. Some things happened, but I realized things with Jaxon were over. Not to mention, I really like Cody.” Ryan said.

Mac reached her hand across the table to Ryan’s. “Sweetie, I know Cody is like a brother to me, but you can always come to me,” she reiterated with an endearing smile.

Ryan nodded, “Thanks, Mac.”

“Me, too, Ryan. I know we haven’t talked in a long time, but I’m here for ya,” Abby added.

Ryan could feel the tears forming in her eyes and did everything she could to keep them back. “Thanks, Abby.” Ryan knew she had fucked up with Cody and it was nice to see they weren’t taking sides.

It was quiet for a moment before Madison broke the silence. “Okay, are we going to sit around with tissues or are we going to have some drinks, dance our asses off and have a good time?”

The table erupted with laughter. “I vote we finish up here and go get our groove on at some bar. Thoughts ladies?” Madison added.

Everyone agreed and as they went to leave the restaurant, Ryan pulled both Mac and Abby in for a hug. “Thanks you guys.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Riley and Jake were halfway through their first drinks when Cody finally arrived at the pier. He looked over to the table where he was sitting when he realized who Ryan was. It was at that table where his feelings for her started.

“Cody!” Jake yelled, waving his arms to get pseudo-uncle’s attention.

“Hey guys,” Cody said, joining them at the table. “You order yet?”

“Naw, we were waiting for you,” Riley answered.

After they ordered, Cody looked to Jake. “So, how’s school going? You ready for summer vacation?”

“Yes. I like school, but I just want to play on the beach.”

The older guys chuckled. “Yeh, Jake. That feeling will probably never go away,” Riley answered.

“You’re in what, first grade?” Cody asked Jake and he nodded. “Got a girlfriend?”

It was adorable the way his cheeks turned a light shade of pink. “No,” he answered and raised his hand to scratch his nose.

“Something tells me that’s not exactly true, Jake,” Cody grinned. “What’s her name?”

Jake looked from Cody to Riley, trying to determine if it was okay to admit his secret. “Chloe, okay? I don’t want to talk about her and don’t tell my mom,” he answered and Cody and Riley started laughing.

“It’s okay, buddy,” Cody said while ruffling the hair on Jake’s head. “She in your class?”

“Yeh,” he answered quietly.

“That’s pretty cool, Jake. We won’t say anything to your mom, okay?” Cody said and he couldn’t get the smile to leave his face. It was just too cute. He had a fleeting thought about how he would like to have kids someday.

Maybe with Ryan.

“Okay,” Jake answered and then it looked like light bulbs went off in his head. “Do you have a girlfriend, Cody?”

Riley chuckled. “Well, Cody?”

Cody beat a stare at Riley before turning his attention to Jake. “Technically, no, Jake. But there is a girl I really like.”

“Oh, okay,” Jake answered simply.

“And if your uncle here would tell me where your aunt is tonight, I could go see her.”

Jake looked at Cody with a question on his face, unsure what his aunt had to do with this girl.

“Let it be until tomorrow, Cody. Let her enjoy her time with the girls,” Riley responded.

Cody sighed. He just wanted to talk to her for crying out loud. “Remember that time you and Mac got in a fight right before you got engaged? She wasn’t talking to you and I knew where she was. Do you remember what you did to me?”

Riley looked at his brother.

So this is how it’s going to be then, huh?

He remembered how he’d nearly given Cody a black eye when he tried to withhold information. Thankfully Luke had been there to stop him. “Yes.”

“I think you owe me, Riley. Besides, I was texting with Ryan this afternoon and she agreed to me meeting up with them tonight.”

The older brother sighed and pulled out his phone. “Fine. Mac wasn’t sure where they were going, but I can look on the app to see where they are.”

Cody grinned. “Don’t you just love technology?”

Riley grunted in response and looked up to see the waitress bringing their food.

Cody was anxious all through dinner. He didn’t want to rush them, but he wanted to see Ryan. It had been too many hours since he’d seen or talked to her. She would have had several drinks by the time he got to her, so having any sort of meaningful conversation was probably out of the question. At least he’d be able to see her, hug her, and maybe give her a kiss if she would let him.

Once Jake finished his hamburger, a feat Riley wasn’t sure how he managed being as he’d eaten all of that candy earlier at the game, Riley asked for the check and paid the bill. He could tell Cody was antsy to leave but was being courteous enough to wait until everyone had finished their meal.

At their trucks, Riley pulled Cody aside after he helped Jake get in and buckled.

“Just… take it easy tonight, okay?” Riley said, trying to impart some brotherly advice.

“I know, Riley. I just need to see her. I need to know she’s okay.”

Riley nodded. “Talk to you tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Riley,” Cody responded as he walked toward his truck.