“I get you but I checked him out, too. He’s clean.” Rafe shook his head. “Give me some credit, guys. I’m not as dumb as I look.”
Ridge gave a grunt. “You could’ve fooled me.”
Ridge was expert at needling you till you were forced to tackle him but Rafe wasn’t falling for that bait this time. As old as he was there was nothing Ridge liked more than a rough and tumble tackle but this time he wasn’t going to get that satisfaction. If there was one thing Rafe had learned over the years it was never to take on your brother when he outweighed you by more than forty pounds.
“Long time no see, little brother.”
At the sound of the laughing, lilting voice, Rafe turned around to see Solie standing in the doorway, looking as fresh and lovely as usual. Immediately, he smiled and as he held his arms wide she walked into them and he hugged her tight. Then he set her away from him and looked down into her smiling face. “So how’s my favorite sister-in-law?” he asked.
“Oh, stop it,” she said, giving him a not-too-gentle punch on the arm. “I’m your only sister-in-law. Come on, you can do better than that.”
“Okay, okay,” he said, putting his hands up in self defense. “How’s my favorite Panamanian girl?”
She frowned. “And how many other Panamanian girls do you know?”
“Okay, how’s my favorite nurse?” he threw out quickly before she got it in her head to punch him again. Solie lifted weights at the gym and the strength of her punch was testament to its effect.
“Now that, I like,” she said with a wide smile. “Now don’t you forget it.”
“I won’t,” he assured her, brows lifted in earnest. He was scared of Solie and her punches and she knew it.
She laughed and walked over to where her husband stood watching them, his grin making it clear that he was enjoying his wife’s bullying of his youngest brother. His brows lifted in surprise, though, when she planted her palm in the middle of his chest and gave him a shove, sending him falling backward to plop his rear on the padded wicker sofa behind him. Then without ceremony the petite woman sat, too, making herself comfortable right on his lap.
Rafe could only shake his head and chuckle. It wasn’t hard to tell who wore the pants in this house. Ransom had his hands full with this one, which was just as it should be. He was so used to being the oldest and the one in charge that it was good to see him bossed around now and again. And this was one of those times.
That evening Rafe had a good time at Ransom and Solie’s. Although he’d complained about his brothers being there he’d actually been pleased they’d come. They didn’t often get a chance to hang out together and catch up and he knew it was mostly because of him. He’d gathered the reputation of being the family “rolling stone”, the one who would look for adventure in the most unlikely places. The thing was, he’d never been a ‘suit and tie’, in-office kind of guy. In fact, the last few weeks he’d spent at his corporate office, straightening out the latest issue, had been out of character for him. And now he was restless. And ready to wander.
After the meal when Solie and Ransom had gone indoors to chill a while in front of the T.V. and Ryder had left for home, Rafe took Ridge into his confidence. Knowing Ridge, notorious as a trickster, that was probably a big mistake but Rafe decided to take a chance.
“What would you do,” he asked Ridge, “if you met a lady who lives thousands of miles away, wants absolutely nothing to do with you but, for the life of you, you can’t get her out of your mind?”
“That’s easy,” Ridge said with a smirk. “I’d get my private jet, go to her wherever she was, charm the socks off of her, and get her to come back with me. Then I’d never let her out of the country.”
Rafe sighed. “I wish it were as easy as that.”
“So what’s up lil bro'? Don’t tell me you went to Europe and fell in love.” Ridge shook his head. “After Rhonda ditched you I didn’t think you would tie yourself to any other woman. Use them and lose them. That was your motto, right?”
Rafe gave him a cutting glance.
“Sorry,” Ridge said with a grimace. “Didn’t mean to throw that in your face.” Then he jerked his chin toward Rafe. “But don’t keep me in suspense, dude. What’s this all about?”
Rafe got up from the bar stool on which he’d perched and walked to the end of the patio, his back to Ridge. Then, as he tried to figure out how to explain things, he shoved his hands deep inside his pockets.
After a long silence he spoke. “Her name is Anya,” he said, his voice low. “Anya Petersen. From Germany.” He cleared his throat. “I met her all of five times but Christ, I just can’t get her out of my mind.”
“Uh-huh.” Ridge nodded. “One of those, huh?”
With his back still to Ridge, Rafe frowned. “One of those?”
“Damn good in bed. Can’t get her out of your system,” Ridge said, his voice smug. “I know those kinds of women.”
This time Rafe turned to face his brother, his frown now a glare. “Shut the hell up. It wasn’t like that. Not with Anya.”
Brows raised, Ridge stared back at him. “Oh? So what was it like, then? What the heck are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about a woman I admire and respect. Anya is…different. Different from any woman I’ve ever known.”
Ridge looked skeptical. “So what makes this one so special?”
Rafe didn’t have to think twice. “She’s smart and funny and super-independent. And trust me, she knows how to take care of herself.” He gave Ridge a rueful grin. “If you’re ever looking for a bodyguard she’d be perfect for the job.”
“Meaning?”
“That’s another story for another time.” Rafe wasn’t about to embarrass himself with an account of that episode. “She’s one-of-a-kind, Ridge. Once you meet her you’ll know what I mean.”
“Once I meet her?” Ridge cocked an eyebrow. “You talk as if you’re serious about this girl. She must really be something.”
“She is.” Slowly, Rafe nodded. “And that’s why some way, somehow, I’ve got to see her again.” Then he sighed. “Even though she doesn’t want to see me.”
Ridge’s frown deepened and that was when Rafe realized if he was asking his brother’s advice he would have to give him the full story. So he did. Every last word of it, even the part about almost tumbling face first to the floor, compliments of little Miss Petersen.