Page 29 of Daybreak

“Dad’s already out there,” Travis said.

Holly sighed as she thrust her fingers in her hair to comb the wayward curls away from her face. “I should have known, but I can’t go back to bed yet. Feel like raiding the fridge?”

Travis grinned. “I could eat. Give me a sec to get a shirt,” he said and ducked back into his room. He came out moments later wearing a T-shirt wrong-side out, with his hair sticking up like a rooster comb.

Holly grinned. Except for his height, he looked like he did when he was twelve.

“How about ice cream?” Holly asked.

“I’ll get the spoons,” he said and slid his arm across her shoulder as they headed for the kitchen.

The moment she opened the freezer, she didn’t hesitate at the choice. There were three cartons in the freezer, but rocky road ice cream had solved a world of troubles when they were growing up. Maybe a little cold and sweet treat would take away the bad memory of her dream.

For a few moments, they ate without talking, using their spoons like swords, taking swipes at each other’s eating territory trying to get the clump of marshmallow, or the nut poking up from the surface before the other one could get it, just like they’d done when she still lived at home.

Then Travis surprised her and leaned back, letting her have the good bite.

“I’m really glad you’re here, Sis. Sorry for the reason why, but I’ve missed you,” he said.

The bite of ice cream was melting on her tongue when she looked up and swallowed. “I should have come home more often. I wish I had now, for sure.”

“No way,” Travis said. “It’s a hell of a long drive from here to Dallas, and you’re on the far side of the city, to boot. You have a job with a lot of responsibilities, and we’re all proud of you. Mom especially. We won’t hear or see her anymore, but she gave us the best life, and more love than a lot of people ever get in a lifetime. Right?”

“When did you become the grown-up in this family?” she asked.

He grinned. “I just finally caught up with the rest of you.”

“You’re going to love college,” Holly said. “I’ll help you get settled, and Dad and I will always be your best backup.”

“Can I ask you something?” Travis said.

“Sure, anything. My life is an open book,” she said.

“When you’re not at work, what do you do for fun?”

“Oh… I… Uh…” She frowned. “Well, I meet friends for lunch sometimes, but I’m around people all day long, and most of them are complaining about what’s missing in the houses I’m showing them, or my boss is throwing a fit because a house someone just sold doesn’t have a clear title. That’s also part of my job, researching that stuff and filing all the paperwork to clear it. So, I do like my quiet evenings at home.”

He nodded and pointed at the pint of ice cream between them. “You gonna eat that last bite?”

She pushed it toward him. Travis scooped out the last big bite and stuffed it in his mouth. “So, I’m hearing no boyfriend, no significant other,” he said.

She frowned. “Don’t talk with your mouth full.”

He laughed and was still smiling when Garrett walked in.

“What’s going on?” he asked.

“Bad dreams, good brothers, and ice cream,” Holly said. “Is everything okay out there? I heard coyotes.”

“All clear,” Garrett said. “Is there any ice cream left for me?”

“In the freezer,” Holly said and wondered when Gunner was coming to Crossroads. Hopefully, before she left. Life was so much simpler here. Sitting at a table with him in the Yellow Rose would have been almost like a date. Not just lunch with an old friend.

She’d been so elated to run into him again, and then all of this happened. She felt a bit like she had when she was a kid, watching him getting on the bus and leaving for Dallas. She’d been too young for him to see her in that way, but their chance meeting at the supermarket felt like a gift, and then their early dinner at the taqueria—the fancy bow. She hadn’t felt that happy and carefree in forever.

He made that promise not to forget her, but the wreck happened and she left Dallas. Now they were a world apart and in limbo. The timing was all wrong again. There wasn’t one fair thing about any of this.

Her dad came to the table with a spoon and another pint of ice cream. His voice was a little shaky, but he was smiling. “Strawberry, in honor of my sweet lady,” he said, then took the lid off the little carton and dug out his first bite and popped it in his mouth. “So, what were you two talking about?” he asked.