Ripples. A Bam Brown story. (Complete)

Chapter 14

The next morning dawned bright and sunny. There was only one window in the trapper shack and Bam had tacked a cloth over it for privacy, but the bright sun still shone starkly through.

Bam had woken you early with soft kisses on your neck and cheek. You rolled over to face him and began to slide a hand gently down the muscles of his chest, sliding across his flat stomach. But before you could move your hand down any further, you felt Bam grip your wrist and move your hand back up, pressing it to his chest.

"It's time for breakfast." He said a little sadly. You knew you would have to get up sooner or later, but you had hoped it would be later.

You had spent a wonderful night with Bam, talking and laughing about everything you could think of, and making each other very happy in so many stimulating ways. There had been ripples of doubt in your mind that you would be able to spend any amount of time with him, alone and quiet. But the family had left you alone for the entire night and for that, you were immeasurably grateful.

After washing and dressing quickly, the two of you hurried to meet the family for breakfast in the main cabin. Bam kept his arm draped over your shoulder as the two of you tromped up the steps. A loud rumble filled the air just as you stepped up onto the porch and you grabbed at your growling stomach.

"Girl, was that you?" Bam asked as he pushed open the cabin door. He placed a hand on the small of you back to steer you inside.

"Yes, I'm starving. We didn't eat dinner last night, remember?" You reminded him as he closed the door behind him.

"Not my fault you couldn't keep your hands off of me." Bam grinned and strode past you to give his sister Rainy a hug.

The rest of the family was still gathering so you scanned the room, looking for his mother. Spying her in the kitchen near the sink, you made your way over, trying not to trip over a large white cat who sprinted past you.

"Good morning." Ami smiled and reached her arms out to you for a hug.

She had been the first one to greet you when you first arrived at Browntown. She had opened her arms to you for a hug that very first day and you didn't know it then, but it would be the same way she would greet you each morning after that.

The family, with the exception of Noah, seemed happy to see you at breakfast. Most of them had gotten a chance to spend a little time with you the afternoon before. And if they felt the same way about you that you did about them, you had very high hopes for your first full day in Browntown.

The family was so kind and inviting. It made you a little homesick for your own family who you had left so many years ago to travel with your career. But you were already beginning to feel close to most of Bam's family and that tender thought drove the homesickness away like a cloud in the breeze.

Turning back to the sink, Ami grabbed up a stack of blue metal plates and handed them to you.
"Your job." She smiled and pointed toward the large table where the family had begun to gather.
"Yes, ma'am." You laughed and gave her a little curtsey, then turned toward the large table set near the window.

As you swung around, you and the plates slammed into a huge wall of muscle. Knocked off your feet, you and the plates both clattered noisily to the wooden floor.

"Gabey!" Bam yelled and stomped over to roughly push Gabe out of the way and help you to your feet.
"Bam, no. It's ok. I guess we both wanted to use the same space." You joked to try to ease the tension and squatted back down to help Gabe pick up the fallen plates.

Bam wanted to be angry and you could see he wanted to yell one more thing, but you gave him a tiny frown and a barely perceptible shake of your head. With your eyes on his you pleaded for him to let it go. You wanted things to go well with his family and make as few scenes as possible. As Gabe scrambled to pick up the last plate, Bam frowned, then stepped close and put his mouth right on your ear.

"You're making me soft, girl." He whispered and backed away toward the table.

"You are going to wash those again, right?" Bam said suddenly. With a half-smile on his face he pointed a finger at the plates in Gabe's hands and then directly at you.

You pointed a finger back at him and growled sarcastically, "No!" Then ignoring his laugh, you pulled Gabe with you over to the sink to rinse off the plates.

"Are you ok?" Gabe's voice was lined with concern and his cheeks were still pink with embarrassment.
"Yeah, I'm fine. If you were trying to kill me you'd have to try a lot harder than that." You slid the first plate under the running water then handed it to him to dry.

"I've been told I'm a little clumsy." He twisted his mouth to the side and didn't meet your eye.
"And are you?" You asked pointedly, looking into his bright blue eyes.

"I guess." He shrugged and looked back down at the next plate you handed him.
"Hmmm." You glanced over at him and then back to the sink, hoping he would take the bait.
"Hmmm, what?" He asked.

You had spent some time chatting with Gabe on the ride from town to the island. He had started out fairly quiet, but as the trip progressed, he had gotten more comfortable with you and ventured a few funny comments from time to time. He had a silly sense of humor but he was incredibly kind and helpful and you already knew he would do anything for you. By the time you reached Browntown, you had decided he was going to be your favorite of all Bam's brothers.

"OK. Here's what I want to know." You handed him another wet plate. "If you're so clumsy, why are you the one your family turns to when there is precise cutting to do with the chain saw? And..." You rushed on and didn't give him time to answer. "And if you're so clumsy, why are you the one they trust to hold up seriously heavy objects while someone else works underneath?"

Gabe stared at you and you saw his grin start to appear as he began to understand what you were getting at. It wasn't that you planned to psychoanalyze him, but it was easier for an outsider to see things that the family may be too close to see. And what you saw was a sweet, strong man who, when he needed to be, wasn't clumsy or klutzy at all.

"I'm just saying." You reached out and laid a hand on his thick upper arm.

"You'll want to be careful with her, Gabe. Sometimes a beautiful box hides a nasty secret inside." Noah stepped up and pronounced his words carefully and distinctly, hoping they would cut you to your core.

Piercing him with a hard stare, you almost let yourself snap back and possibly start a long and ugly verbal give and take. But you were determined not to continue this sparring with Noah. You hoped to have a long and intimate relationship with Bam, and you wanted so much to become a part of his family. So as Gabe watched with raised brows, you smiled a huge smile at Noah and threw open your arms.

"Oh, Noah!" You purred loud enough for everyone to hear. "You said I'm beautiful!"
And with that you threw your arms around him and crushed him to you in a tight hug.

"Stop it." He protested with his words but you felt his body soften within your embrace.
"I don't hug." He said stiffly but the glimpse you caught of his face, you could see he was struggling not to smile.

"Well, I do hug." You laughed and finally released him. Then you placed your cheek close to his. "Truce?" You whispered so that only Noah could hear.

You could see Noah struggling with how he wanted to respond. On one hand you had made him look foolish at the practice range. But on the other hand, he didn't like the tension between you any more than you did. You kept your hands on his shoulders as he considered your words. Noah reached up and gently removed your hands from his shoulders and you were sure he wasn't going to let you off so easily. But then he slowly held out one hand for you to shake.

"Truce." He smiled back and your heart flipped over with relief.

"Are we ever going to eat this morning?" Bam's deep voice boomed from right behind you and his arm stole around your waist.

Startled, you jumped at his sudden touch and as you swung around, you smacked hard into Gabe and knocked all the newly clean plates out of his hand. As the metal plates fell noisily to the floor, there was dead silence in the room for a half a second.

Then Bam grabbed your hand and began pulling you toward the table, muttering loudly,

"Let's just use paper plates this morning, ok?"