Grown Enough For Love - Chelsea Falin Page 0,3

stop. Now. Thoughts like that could ruin 20-something years of friendship real fast.

“Gabriel?” Jay called his name. Had he been trying to get his attention? “You okay, man? You look out of it.” He laughed and said, “You were like, staring… you decide you’ve got a thing for little Miss Sav here?” Jay pulled his sister in sideways and cocked an eyebrow at Gabriel. “I know she’s grown, but it would be too weird, man. Just too weird.” Jay shook his head.

Gabriel laughed as he stole a glance at Savannah. Her green eyes sparkled and her strawberry blonde curls were a mess. “No way, man. She’s like a little sister to me.” He shook his head. “I’m tired, that’s all. Long day at work and Rio didn’t want to go to sleep last night.”

“That reminds me,” Savannah elbowed Jay in the side. “Why didn’t you tell me Gabriel was a dad?”

Jay winced, rubbing his side. Then he shrugged. “I don’t know. Didn’t I tell you?”

Savannah shook her head emphatically. “Definitely not.”

“My bad.” Jay shrugged, looking unapologetic. Savannah snorted and rolled her eyes. Gabriel felt like it was old times again. After everything he’d been through with Marissa, this was what he needed.

Unfortunately, Savannah didn’t stay very long. She wanted to figure out a place to live on her own and said she needed to get to sleep early for a long day tomorrow.

Once Savannah left, Gabriel excused himself to his bedroom. Most nights, he shared the bedroom with Rio. Tonight, however, Rio was staying at his parent’s house so Gabriel could catch up on some sleep. He’d get him tomorrow after another day working for Dade City Landscaping.

As he laid there, Gabriel thought back to the way things used to be. Before he dated Marissa, when there was only Jay and Gabriel… and, of course, Savannah. One memory stuck out in his mind, although he couldn’t have said why.

The three of them walked barefoot down the railroad tracks off Highway 301. Nanny trailed at Gabriel’s heel as always.

Savannah had gotten in trouble with her parents and been forbidden to go inside the house again. Jay had taken pity on her and, after a stop at the gas station across the street for candy, said they could walk the tracks. For a reason unknown to Gabriel, Savannah had always loved trains and the train tracks. He guessed it may have something to do with the freedom they represented, but never questioned it.

Jay and Gabriel together kept a close eye on Savannah, who wandered in front of them. Her red-tinted curls were held back in a tight ponytail. She balanced on a track, placing one foot in front of the other with great care. Gabriel smiled. Less than an hour ago, Savannah had been a ball of stress with a tear-stained face. At ten, she bounced back quickly to her cheerful self.

“Think we’ll ever go anywhere besides Dade City?” Jay asked his best friend.

Gabriel shrugged. “I don’t know, man. I like the place, but it’d be cool to get out and see other things. You know?”

Savannah turned around and leaped off the rail. “I will!” Her green eyes were bright and the sun caught the red in her hair.

“You will what, kitten?” Gabriel asked.

Savannah pouted. Gabriel never understood why she hated his nickname for her. It was a term of endearment, not mean. Savannah got over it in mere seconds and went back to smiling. “Get out of this town. I’m going to do it.”

Jay and Gabriel exchanged sideways looks. It was Gabriel who answered. “Sure you will, kitten.” Savannah only smiled and started leaping from one wooden board to the next like it was a long game of hopscotch.

Well, she did get out, Gabriel thought. He hadn’t, and neither had Jay. Jay had gone to PHCC but dropped out shy of receiving an associate degree. Then he’d gone to work for the local electric company, where he still worked today. Gabriel had been at his landscaping job for as long, and all he’d ever done was get tied down to Marissa’s drama.

Exhausted, Gabriel closed his eyes. Despite a reeling mind, he quickly fell asleep. Much to his demise, Gabriel’s dreams were haunted by a beautiful green-eyed girl with strawberry blonde hair.

Chapter 2

“You should find a real job, Savannah. Nobody makes money online these days unless they are established industry experts.” Savannah’s mother berated her daughter’s choice of career for the hundredth time. “You are not an established industry expert in anything.”

“Mom,