Healing Hearts (New Hope Falls #6) - Kimberly Rae Jordan Page 0,6
faintly in the distance.
As he waited for someone to answer the door, he looked around again, taking in the overgrown grass of the yard, some of it poking up through cracks in the sidewalk that led to the steps of the porch. The paint around the trim of the windows and the porch railing was faded and peeling in spots.
He was a bit surprised at the state of the property where the babysitter lived. Michael must not have a problem with it, though, because he hadn’t mentioned anything about the house when he’d given Ryker the address.
The door creaked open, and Ryker turned to see a slender woman standing there with baby Vivianne cradled in her arms. Her blonde hair lay in a braid over her shoulder, and her light aquamarine-colored eyes regarded him warily.
“Sophia?” At her nod, he said, “I’m Ryker.”
After the briefest of hesitations, she took the hand he held out and gave it a shake. “Please come in.”
She moved back from the door, allowing Ryker to step into the house's small foyer area. There was a closet to his right while to his left, he had a clear view of the living room. For all that the outside of the home appeared to need some work, the inside was a different story.
It was nicely decorated, and it smelled clean with just a hint of an aroma of baking in the air. As his gaze roamed the room, it landed on a small boy with tousled blond curls. He was sitting in the corner of the couch with a pile of books next to him. His brows were drawn together as he stared at Ryker with a frown.
“I’m sorry that Vivianne isn’t ready to go,” Sophia said as she moved to where the car seat sat on the couch beside the little boy. “She decided to have a poop, so I had to change her.”
“It’s no problem,” Ryker assured her.
The little boy shifted his gaze from Ryker to Sophia, and he whispered something to her.
Sophia reached out and ran her hand over his curls. “Vivi will be fine, Bryson.”
Bryson shot Ryker a look that held a wealth of fear. Ryker tried to drag his gaze away from the little boy because that fear was pushing buttons in him that he hadn’t experienced in a while.
“Ryker is Michael’s friend,” Sophia said. “Remember I told you that Michael got hurt?”
Bryson looked at Sophia again and nodded.
“Michael needs help, so Ryker will be coming to pick Vivi up every day.”
“What about the lady?” Bryson asked.
“Lani will bring Vivi back in the morning. You don’t have to worry.”
Bryson regarded him again before saying, “Okay.”
Sophia picked up the car seat and carried it over to where Ryker waited to set it on the floor. “Sorry about that. He’s become rather protective of Vivi.”
Ryker turned his attention back to Sophia. He hadn’t been sure if Bryson was another child she was babysitting or her son, but now that he looked at her more closely, he could see the resemblance between them. The boy had the same eyes and blonde hair that Sophia had, and they both had slender faces and builds.
He couldn’t help but wonder if there was a father in the picture. The way Bryson had looked at him with fear concerned him. He understood children being wary of strangers—especially strange men—but Bryson’s reaction to him seemed to be more than that.
“That’s okay,” Ryker assured Sophia. “It’s a good quality for him to have.”
Though it might be concerning as to why he was so protective of a baby.
Sophia smiled as she glanced at Bryson. “He’s always so disappointed when Vivi gets picked up. I think he’d like to keep her.”
Ryker almost made a comment about Bryson needing a brother or sister, but he held his tongue. That wasn’t appropriate, especially when he’d just met Sophia.
“I’m afraid that Michael might object to that. He’s gotten rather attached to her.”
“That’s what I told him.”
“Speaking of, I’d better get going. Michael is waiting for me to get back with Vivianne and some food.” Ryker took the diaper bag that Sophia held out.
“Oh, also, she might be due for a bottle in a little bit.”
“Okay. I’ll let Michael know.” He picked up the car seat. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She held the door as he stepped back out onto the porch. With a final glance at Sophia and Bryson, who was now standing next to his mother, his hand in hers, Ryker headed to his truck. It took