Page 51 of Love Unbound
Free took a drink of his own beer and chuckled. “Good things, I hope.”
Jodi and Shaun wandered into the pole barn after Jodi glanced back to say, “I’m going to grab a drink.” Free smiled and nodded.
“How long have you and Shaun been together?” Free asked. He looked the younger man up and down, admitting that he was a handsome guy. He had sandy blonde hair that was long enough to touch the collar of his shirt and fall over his brow. His eyes were a whiskey brown. He had a construction worker build, strong and lean.
“Almost a year,” Tommy replied, taking another drink of his beer.
Free nodded, watching as the younger of the two sisters poured two hefty cocktails. Lord have mercy, Jodi was going tobe hammered in an hour if Shaun was in charge of the alcohol tonight. Free laughed, raising his beer in a salute. “She’s a handful.”
“That she is,” Tommy laughed. “What about you and Jodi?”
Free had braced himself for that question. He knew it was going to be a recurring question over the course of the night, since it was no secret he and Jodi were… Whatwerethey? He felt like a besotted teen again. He hadn’t been in any kind of real relationship in well over a decade.
“We’re… figuring it out as we go,” Free said simply. “It’s still new.”
“Well, I knew her when she was with that Josh tool,” Tommy muttered and took another pull of his beer. “It’s nice to see her smile again.”
Free nodded, taking a self-conscious drink of his beer. He still wanted to pulverize Josh’s face into nothing, despite Jodi’s objections. He was glad to hear that the general opinion of Jodi’s ex-husband was one of distaste. He didn’t feel quite so bad about the loathing he felt for the man, learning that others shared the same feelings.
Paul Storm and Levi sidled over to them then, and Free extended his hand to the elder, shaking it firmly. “Free, how are you, son?” Paul asked, his green eyes twinkling.
“Good, sir,” Free said and smiled. He had always liked Jodi’s grandparents. They had taken him in just as Serenity and Levi had done. He’d never felt out of place when with this family, that was for certain. “How are you?”
“Oh, just fine, just fine indeed,” Paul said, his voice gravelly. He gestured to the bruise that was fading beneath Free’s left eye. “You getting into trouble already?”
Levi grinned at Free, who rolled his eyes and chuckled. “Courtesy of your daughter’s husband.”
Paul glanced between the two of them and shook his headwith a low chuckle. “Damn bully.”
“He deserved it,” Levi grumbled roughly, though he grinned around a drink of his own beer. He cocked his head toward Jodi, who was laughing as she spoke animatedly with Shaun, Serenity, and Gram. “Thank you.”
Free swallowed hard. “For what?” he asked roughly. Nerves made his heart thud erratically in his chest.
Levi’s eyes were softer than Free remembered ever seeing them when he said gruffly, “For giving me my daughter back.”
Paul harrumphed, sidling away, though Free saw the moisture in the older man’s eyes as he turned away, toward the pole barn. Free avoided Levi and Tommy’s eyes, the latter jumping like he’d been bit, taking a long drink of his beer and then coughing when it went down the wrong pipe. Levi pounded Tommy on the back roughly.
Pop and Gram met at the wide door of the pole barn and he reached up to ring a hand-crafted iron bell suspended from the wall. When the clanging quieted, the large group of guests stopped what they were doing and turned toward the two, who stood hand in hand.
Paul called gruffly through the gathered crowd, “Let’s eat.”
Jodi found Free moments later, her cheeks flushed and a wide smile on her face. She linked her arm with his, looking up at him, and he couldn’t stop the hand that came up to tuck one of her errant strands of curls behind one ear. He allowed his fingers to linger along her cheek for an extended moment, reveling in the feel of her against him.
He didn’t know how he was going to let her go.
But he did know he didn’t want to.
Chapter 38
The local country band that was on a small stage played rousing renditions of classic favorites, keeping the guests entertained and on the large wooden dance floor that had been constructed in the backyard. A massive, already roaring fire had been built in the hand built fire pit. Folding chairs circled it, with family members and friends chatting. Children ran through the large yard, chasing each other, playing, and laughing. Jodi recognized several of her young cousins, but had yet to see her aunts or uncles.
Dinner had consisted of the roasted pig and chafing dishes filled to the brim with foods that Jodi knew to be all fresh from her grandparents’ gardens; corn on the cob, potato salad, baked beans, mixed vegetables, and so many other options that Jodi and Free didn’t have room on their plates to try. An entire table was laden with desserts: pies, cookies, fruit, and some decadent monstrosity that was made entirely of chocolate.
Jodi and Free sat together at one of the many wooden picnic tables that were arranged throughout the expansive yard. They were joined shortly by her parents, and Shaun and Tommy. Warren had left for his sophomore year of college the day before, despite Seren’s pleas to wait a couple more days. Her brother Tristan was off in the distance with several other cousins and her uncle Spencer, tinkering with dirt bikes, and her sister Fallon was curled up in a hammock beneath one of the towering maple trees engrossed in a book.
Serenity’s sister, Summer, found her way over to them,accompanied by her husband, Micah, who happened to be Levi’s baby brother. Summer was the exact opposite of her older sister, with golden blonde hair and green eyes. Micah looked like a younger, clean shaven version of Levi, short dark hair and cobalt blue eyes. Their youngest trailed behind them, a towheaded little boy with blue eyes the same shade as Micah and Levi’s.
As soon as the young boy saw Jodi he grinned and ran toward her, launching into her arms for a bear hug. Jodi squeezed him tight and kissed the top of his white-blonde head. “Hi, my little Benny boy!”
