I held up my hands to get her to stop talking. “Destiny, stop. Please just stop talking. There was never anything real between us. It was something our fathers wanted. I’m not even living here; I live in Texas!”
With a smile, she placed her finger in her mouth and bit down on it. “But, you’re moving home.”
I needed to nip this in the bud and quickly. “Destiny, I’m with Ava.”
Her eyes widened. “With Ava? As in, you’
re dating her?”
Were we dating? I mean, hell, we made plans to have sex later. I’d consider that dating.
“Ryder? Are you going to answer me?”
“Yes, Destiny. Ava and I together.”
“Exclusive?”
My mouth dropped open as I stared at her.
“Yes, exclusive. Jesus Christ, Destiny,” I said as I raked my hand through my hair.
“Destiny, I’m about ready to head on out.”
I glanced over to the door and saw my sister, Jennifer. With a smile, I walked past Destiny and kissed my youngest sister on the cheek. “We didn't get a chance to really talk.”
Jennifer smiled a smile so wide I couldn't help but chuckle. “It’s okay, I got to talk to Ava, who I love by the way! I might love her mother a bit more though and possibly might have scared her some with my book talk.”
My sister Jennifer was an English literature major and loved to read. “I’ll be sure to let her know you’re not crazy.”
Hitting me lightly on the chest, Jennifer winked. “Treat her right, Ryder. I can tell she’s special.”
“Oh gag me,” Destiny said as she pushed past my sister and I. “I’m ready to go.”
Jennifer rolled her eyes before giving me a hug goodbye. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“Sounds good. Be careful driving, Jennifer.”
“Will do! Bye, Ryder.”
My sister took off like a bolt of lightning and made her way through the house, saying goodbye to everyone. Destiny kissed my parents goodbye and followed Jennifer out the door. One quick look around the room and my eyes caught that smile. Ava stood across the room chatting with my sister Dani and her husband, Rich.
I made my way over to them and heard Dani telling Ava goodnight.
“You’re not driving back tonight are you?” I asked as I slid my arm around Ava’s waist. I was making it very clear to everyone we were together. I couldn’t help but catch Nate’s smile as I briefly looked his way. Tomorrow I’d be having a nice little chat with him about the stunt he pulled in the barn today.
“No, we’re staying in my old bedroom.”
Dani’s mouth dropped open with an idea she pretended she had just come up with. If I knew my sister, she’d been cooking it up for a few hours. “Hey, I’ve got a great idea. Maybe we can go for a hike tomorrow morning, show Ava a little bit of Montana.”
“That would be amazing!” Ava said with a grin.
“Perfect. We’ll chat more at breakfast. Right now, though, I’m exhausted and this pregnant girl needs to get some sleep.” Dani wrapped Ava up in a hug while I shook Rich’s hand. “It was wonderful meeting you and your family, Ava. I’m so glad you all decided to come spend a few days here with us.”
Ava’s face blushed. “It was wonderful meeting you too, Dani. I can’t wait to see more of Montana.”
Dani turned and gave me a wink. “Sleep good, Ryder.”
“Oh don’t worry, I’m sure I will.”