Travis's Gift (Riley's Pride #3)- Sandra R Neeley Page 0,65

walked out beneath the archway that both welcomed and thanked everyone for coming, the father looked up and noticed the back of the sign thanking them for being there, and inviting them back for their fall celebration. “Hey, ya’ll are having a pumpkin patch next year?” he asked.

“We are, and we hope you’ll join us. And this year, even though you already have your tree, you’re welcome to come back just to enjoy the rest of the festivities,” Travis said.

“We absolutely will,” the man said.

“Oh, look!” his wife commented, as she put the change from the tree away in her purse. “A ten percent off coupon for the pumpkins in October,” she said, holding up the flier that Travis had handed her with her change.

“You’ll see us again this year, and next,” the man said, waving as they continued on their way.

Roman followed them as far as the front gate, then closed the gate behind them as they left. “Ya’ll drive safe, now!” he called out to them congenially. After he locked the gate and switched off the spotlights that illuminated the archway bearing the name of the place, he walked toward Travis. “We did good tonight,” he said.

“Yeah, we really did. I can’t believe how popular this place was tonight,” Travis said. “Libby? How many ornaments you think the kids painted tonight?” Travis asked, as he counted money from the lock box he’d used to keep their money in.

“Easily twenty-five at least. One third of the cookies and treats are gone. We went through three commercial thermoses of coffee and five of hot chocolate,” she said.

“Told you it would be a great idea,” Scotty chimed in from a few feet away, switching off the netting machine and leaning over to pick up some torn netting from the ground.

“You did indeed. I think you just helped us take our first step into the strongest part of our business, Scotty,” Travis said. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. But, thank Libby. It was my idea, but she put it all together,” Scotty said.

“Hey, Travis?” Lucas said, stepping out of the trees and striding toward Travis.

“Hey!” Travis answered, as he set down the garbage bag he held in one hand while filling it with empty used cups and napkins that ended up strewn across the ground near the refreshment table.

“You have any rogues hanging out on your place?” Lucas asked, coming to a stop in front of Travis with his hands on his hips.

“No. Not since Roman, and you of course. And I didn’t consider him rogue, he was my friend before he ended up here. Neither did I consider you rogue when you crossed my property from time to time,” Travis said. “Generally, we have some cross the outer edges of our property a few times a year. I’ve marked the perimeter. They know the land belongs to me, and they know what I am. I’ve never had any problems, and if it takes them a few days to move along, I don’t usually bother them. They’re just looking for a place to rest. Why? You find somebody out there?”

“Not exactly. I can’t shake the feeling that I’m being watched. Got the feeling a few times tonight,” Lucas said.

“Want to go check it out? I can come with you,” Travis said. “I’ve picked up on somebody nearby, but figured they were just resting like I said.”

“Naw, that’s not necessary. I didn’t feel threatened, just felt like I was on display, or like I wasn’t alone,” Lucas said.

“You want us to make sure?” Roman asked.

“I’m not feeling threatened, but maybe we should make a trip around the perimeter. I’ve got to keep my family safe above all else,” Travis said.

“We got it. You finish up here, we’ll go check it out. When we’re done, we’ll head out,” Roman said.

“You sure?” Travis asked.

“Yeah, ya’ll finish up. We’ll check it out, and if we find anything we’ll let you know,” Roman said.

“Alright, appreciate it,” Travis answered, hurting more than he wanted to let on. “But if they’re just taking a breather before moving on, I have no problem with that.”

“Understand,” Roman said, nodding as he followed Lucas.

Scotty, Travis, and Libby finished cleaning up the area and putting all the garbage in the bins out front to be picked up in the morning. They moved the refreshments back inside the house along with the coffee and hot chocolate dispensers. They gathered up all the crafting supplies and put them back into the baskets sitting on the tables, then