You Rock My World (The Blackwells of Crystal Lake 3)

And he was a pain in the ass half the time.

“Yeah. I know.”

Travis continued to clean his fishing gear while Zach watched him. The big defenseman had decided to head to Crystal Lake when Travis pulled out of the fishing trip. Said he couldn’t handle the crew without Travis and that some much needed R&R was more what he was looking for.

Travis chuckled at that. The truth was, the guy was chomping at the bit to do something, and hanging here on the dock all day wasn’t gonna cut it.

“So what happened?”

Travis set down his pole and stretched. The new reel worke

d like a charm and was pretty much ready to go the next morning. The plan was to head out early and catch as much as they could before the heat rolled in. He got to his feet, looked down at his friend, and saw the curiosity there. He knew Zach well enough to know he wouldn’t give up until he had some sort of answer—they’d never talked about Travis’s past or his short-lived marriage. In fact, Zach hadn’t known about Ruby until a few days earlier when he’d shown up.

“It’s a long story.” Travis gathered up his gear.

“The good ones always are.”

“Yeah, well. This isn’t a good story. I was an asshole, and she deserved better. That’s pretty much it.”

Zach got to his feet and joined Travis as he headed back to the small cottage.

“You still got a thing for her?” he asked.

“Nope.”

“Really?”

Irritated, he shot a look to Zach as he stowed his gear inside the deck box. “Why do you sound so surprised? Ruby and I haven’t been a thing for years. Besides, even if I thought I stood a chance in hell with her, she’s with someone else now.”

“That’s never stopped you before.” The not so subtle dig brought a scowl to Travis’s face. Was he ever going to live down Clarisse Hall? Hell, he hadn’t known the woman was married (he thought maybe a boyfriend) until her husband showed up and surprised them in bed. That had to count for something.

“Yeah, well. This time, there’s no chance of that happening. She can barely look my way without wanting to throat punch the hell out of me.”

Zach followed him inside the cottage. “Then why are you here?” At Travis’s scowl, he laughed. “Hey, not that I’m complaining or anything. But seriously, the fishing trip was your idea.”

“It was Dave’s.”

“No, it was yours and he ran with it.”

“Whatever,” Travis muttered. “My brother needed me to look after this place, and I told him I would. There’s nothing stopping you from joining the guys.”

Zach grabbed a towel from the cabinet and headed to the shower. “Nah. I think I’m going to have more fun around here.” His grin was wicked. “Just sayin’.”

Zach disappeared before Travis could respond, which was fine, because his pal was absolutely full of crap. Travis didn’t have a thing for Ruby; he just wanted to make things right. Hell, it was normal for a man to feel a little jealousy over the new guy. He looked at his reflection in the window above the kitchen sink.

Totally normal. Right?

* * *

An hour later, they rolled in to the Coach House. He spied his brother Wyatt and some pals sitting in the far corner but took a moment to look around before heading over. The place was hopping, filled to near capacity, and a country/blues band had just taken the stage. So many memories here. So many good people he’d left behind.

“Regan let you out of the house tonight?” Travis said with a chuckle as he approached the table. He slapped his brother on the shoulder.

Wyatt grinned. “Hey, I’d rather be home with Regan than sitting here with these ugly mutts, but she’s out of town for a conference.” He held up an empty beer mug. “You buying?”

“It’s worth the trip to the bar, my friend.” Adam Thorne grinned. “The new waitress is damn easy on the eyes.”

“Yeah?” Travis raised an eyebrow. “And how does Violet feel about that?”