Healing Hearts (New Hope Falls #6) - Kimberly Rae Jordan Page 0,23
you think Ryker will like my picture, Momma?” Bryson asked, peering up at her from beneath his curly bangs.
“I’m sure he’ll love your picture,” Sophia said. Strangely enough, she was quite confident of her response. Whether he really did or not, she didn’t doubt that Ryker would tell Bryson that he did.
Bryson gave her a beaming smile as he turned his attention back to the paper in front of him.
“And I’m sure Nana will love this picture, too.”
As she swayed back and forth with Vivianne, Sophia tried to figure out how to lessen Bryson’s hero-worship of Ryker. She hadn’t figured that he would deal with the situation of Bryson’s fear so well that Bryson’s opinion of Ryker would swing so completely in the other direction. She couldn’t help but wish Ryker had been just a little less effective.
By the time Ryker arrived, Sophia had come to the conclusion that she needed to speak with him about maybe pulling back just a bit. She wasn’t sure what his reaction might be, but hopefully, he’d understand.
“Ryker!” Bryson exclaimed when the man walked into the house.
“Hiya, buddy,” Ryker said, holding his hand out for Bryson to smack.
Bryson hadn’t even known about high fives until Ryker had taught him. Things like that made it hard to consider asking him to keep a distance from them.
In spite of that, Sophia was quite convinced that it was the right thing to do. Maybe if there were other men in her life who Bryson had connected with, the decision would be easier. Beyond Bryson’s attachment to the man, the things Ryker did for Bryson was making Sophia feel certain…things. Things she needed to not be feeling when she’d resolved to steering clear of men.
She was doing this for both their sakes.
“Do you need some help with your yard?”
Sophia stared at Ryker for a minute, pulling her mind back from the decision she’d made. “What?”
“Your grass looks like it’s getting a bit long,” he said. “Do you need some help with it?”
Well, phooey. How was she supposed to ask him to keep his distance when he was offering his help with the one thing she needed help with right then?
“Yes. I could use some help,” she admitted reluctantly, crossing her arms. “I’ve been trying to get around to tackling it, but it’s hard since Bryson hates being outside and also hates having me out of his sight.”
“Ah. I can see how that would make it difficult.” She waited for him to ask why Bryson hated being outside and having her out of his sight, but he didn’t. “I’ll come back once Lani gets to Michael’s to help with Vivianne. It should still be light enough for me to get some of the yard done before dark, though it will probably take a few evenings.”
She could wait a few more days to speak to him about pulling back a bit. Though putting it off because he was helping her felt a bit like she was taking advantage of him.
“You don’t have to do that.”
“Do you have a lawn mower?” he asked, ignoring her statement.
She hesitated. It felt wrong to take him up on his offer, but it appeared that he wasn’t going to give her much choice. “Yes. It’s in the shed in the back.”
“Why don’t I go have a look at what’s in the shed, so I know if I need to bring anything back with me.” He headed out the front door, and she stood watching as he disappeared around the corner to the back.
Bryson came to her side and peered out the window. “Is he coming back?”
“Yes. He’s coming back. He’s just checking to see what he needs to mow the grass.”
He looked up at her, his brows pulled tight over his eyes. “He’s not afraid of bugs and bees?”
“I guess not.”
It wasn’t long before Ryker was back. “Looks like you’ve got everything I’ll need, so I’ll be back in a couple of hours to mow for a bit.”
He left a few minutes later with Vivianne and the diaper bag. Sophia held the edge of the door as he walked to the truck, then sagged against it as Ryker drove away. She was grateful that Ryker was going to help her with the yard this time around, but she knew she couldn’t let herself rely on him in the future.
The more she got to know Ryker, the more appealing he was to her. She had to remind herself that