Racing Home (Bryant Brothers Book 1)

  RACING HOME

  Bryant Brothers Book 1

  by Tami Lund

  Cover Design: Obeithion Covers

  Editor: Julie Sturgeon

  Copyright: 2020 by Tami Lund

  License Notes

  Thank you for downloading this ebook. This book remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be redistributed to others for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to purchase their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer.

  Thank you for your support.

  All entities, locations, businesses, etc. in this book are strictly figments of the author’s overactive imagination and are not to be construed as real.

  Questions, comments, or desires to seek permission to use any part of this book for your own purposes should be directed to authortamilund@gmail.com.

  RACING HOME

  Bryant Brothers book 1

  Tommy Bryant is the top motocross racer in the country. He has the celebrity status, the money, the girls—his life is perfect.

  Or is it?

  When he meets Camila Alverez, a bartender who is trying to lie low because of a stalker, she wants nothing to do with Tommy.

  Which makes him realize there’s one race left to win.

  The one to her heart.

  Bryant Brothers series

  Each book has its own happily ever after, however it is recommended they be read in the following order:

  Racing Home

  To Love & Protect

  The Right Tool

  Picture This

  Meet the Bryants

  From the moment she said “I do,” Deanna Bryant was surrounded by testosterone. The Realtor who sold them the home she and her husband would raise their children in was male. The doctor who delivered all four of her babies was male. Every dog, cat, hamster, and ferret that joined the family over the years had been male.

  And of course, all four children…boys.

  To rub salt into a perceived open wound, her offspring had been—and still were—boys’ boys. None of them discovered the opposite sex until much later than the average age. And even after they did realize there were girls in the world, the three oldest didn’t see them as anything more than a good time and a distraction from their hobbies-slash-careers.

  Which were also distinctly and stereotypically masculine.

  Tommy, the oldest, raced motorcycles. Philip, the next eldest, after a stint in the military, had taken some mysterious job that involved security and contracts. His brothers liked to call him Philip Bond, much to his annoyance.

  Kyle was number three and a mechanic who, conveniently enough for his eldest brother, could fix damn near anything but specialized in motorcycles.

  Elliot was the baby of the family, and still in college. About to start his senior year, he was a photography major who had no earthly idea what he wanted to do with his life. He was, however, the first to bring a girl home to meet Mom and Dad.

  Funny enough, this book isn’t about him.

  Chapter One

  “You need to come home.”

  Tommy yawned so widely his jaw popped. He was still in bed, his eyes closed, his body exactly the right temperature in the cocoon created by the sheet and a thin blanket. “Why are you whispering, Mom?”

  “Your brother’s home.” She paused then added, “Elliot.”

  Good thing she clarified, since Tommy had three of them.

  “You’re whispering because Elliot’s home?”

  “Yes. Everybody’s still asleep.”

  Valid reason, except his parents’ house was huge, and his mom was probably standing in the kitchen or maybe in the family room, and both areas were plenty far enough away from the bedrooms that she could speak at a normal volume with no worries about disrupting anyone’s sleep.

  Except Tommy’s, of course.

  “Mom, I just got home”—he pulled the phone away from his ear to look at the screen and closed his eyes again—“six hours ago. It’s the first weekend I’ve been in town since Easter.”

  “I’m well aware, since I water your plants.”

  “Plants you gave me.” He’d never admit that he actually liked the greenery. It gave his otherwise barren apartment a somewhat comfortable feel, which was nice for someone who spent the vast majority of his time on the road, living out of hotel rooms. He should make an effort to do more to make it feel homey, except whenever he was home, the last thing he wanted to do was decorate.

  “And the fact that you’ve been gone so long is a perfect excuse to come visit your parents.”

  “I planned to stop by,” he defended himself. “No way I’d come into town and not gorge myself on your cooking.”

  “Don’t even pretend you only come here for the food.”

  “Fine, I won’t, although your cooking is definitely one of the top ten reasons for visiting.”

  “Good, then come over right now. Well, in an hour. I’m making brunch.”

  Okay, that was tempting, considering he hadn’t been able to talk himself into stopping at the grocery store when he rolled into town in the middle of the night last night, and he was pretty sure he didn’t even have bread to make toast at this point.

  “Just a few more hours,” he countered anyway.

  “Elliot brought a girl home from college.”

  Tommy’s eyes popped open. “Seriously?”

  Holy shit, none of them had ever brought a girl home. He was pretty sure none of them had ever introduced a girl to their mother, even as a friend. It was too risky. She was likely to start planning the wedding within the first ten minutes.

  Poor Elliot. He probably should get over there, if only to play interference between his baby brother and Mom’s need for an estrogen rush.

  Plus, he wanted to meet the girl his brother was willing to bring home and risk Mom throwing out baby names over dinner.

  “Fine,” he said on a sigh.

  “Stop and get a couple bottles of champagne on your way.”

  “What? Why?”

  “Can’t have brunch without mimosas.”

  Tommy blew out a relieved breath. For a minute there, he thought they were going to toast his brother’s engagement, and while that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, he figured he ought to actually meet the girl before the banns were posted.

  ***

  When Camila parked her Mustang next to the curb in front of the address her sister had given her, she noted that the door was open and two cars were parked inside the garage, plus two vehicles in the driveway. One was Maddy’s old Ford Focus and the other was a tricked out, newer model, black on black Silverado pickup truck.

  The house was a colonial, situated in a western suburb of Detroit. This place was actually closer to the bar where Camila worked than her own apartment was. The siding was white, the shutters dark green. Established bushes and trees dotted the front yard, and a mass of red, white, and purple petunias spilled out of a half barrel on its side next to the walkway leading to the front door.

  This was what her life had been reduced to? Begging her younger sister to ask complete strangers to take her in so she could hide from some unnerving bar patron who had decided he and Camila should be together forever, regardless of her opinion on the matter?

  She’d called Maddy and casually (well, that was the goal, anyhow) mentioned that she was looking for a place to stay for a few days—but not with their parents—and her sister had invited her to hang out with Maddy and her new boyfriend at his parents’ house.

  C’mon, Camila, you can do this. It’s only four days. You have to report back to work on Friday, and there’s a good chance your stalker will be gone by then.

  There was, wasn’t there? Being stalked was messing with her sleep schedule, as in she wasn’t getting much of it at all because her brain wouldn’t stop imagining all those scenes from too many Criminal Minds episodes that could actually happen to her.

  Her purse vibrated, and she dug out her phone to read the incoming text.

  Maddy: Where are you?

  Why was she stalling? This was a far better option than spending the week alone in her apartment. Plus, Maddy had mentioned a pool. It was practically a vacation.

  Scratch that, there was no practically about it.

  Sucking in a deep breath and expelling it slowly, Camila shot a reply to her sister that simply said, “Coming,” and then she climbed out of the car, grabbed her bag, and headed toward the house.

  Chapter Two

  Camila rang the doorbell, and a dog began barking like its life depended on announcing to the world that someone was standing on the front porch.

  After a few moments, she heard a masculine voice yell at the dog to shut up, and then the door was wrenched open and a lean yet solidly muscled man stood there, his body framed like a halo from light shining from somewhere inside the house.

  Holy criminy, was this Elliot? Camila hoped her sister stuck with him for the long haul, because this guy was hot. Yeah, yeah, that wasn’t what relationships should be based on, but damn, Maddy had certainly scored with this one, even if it was only for a few months. One glance at his hard, lean physique and Camila decided he was probably amazing in the sack.

  Totally logical, that was her.

  “Er, hi. I’m Camila.”

  The guy grasped the top of the doorframe and leaned forward, his gaze sweeping her body in that same way confident guys had been doing for probably thousands
of years. “Hey, Camila,” he drawled. “For future reference, nobody uses the front door here. Makes Freddy nuts.”

  “Freddy?”

  He gestured at the dog, who was now sniffing at Camila’s ankles, its stubby tail wagging about a hundred miles a minute. It was brown-and-white spotted and looked like a spaniel. One of those British sounding ones. King Charles…?

  “Cavalier King Charles Spaniel,” the guy said as if he could hear her thoughts. “Also known as Sir Freddy Krueger or Freddy for short.”

  “You named your dog after a fictitious serial killer?”

  He shrugged.

  “So, erm, you must be Elliot?”

  “Nope.”

  She waited. He gave her that classic guy once-over again. Not surprisingly, he flexed his pecs.

  Oh Lord.

  “So you’re one of his brothers.”

  “Yep.”

  She sighed. “I don’t suppose you have a name?”

  He grinned. She half expected him to say, “It’s XYZ, and I’m hoping you’ll be screaming it later.” Maddy could have warned her that the brother was one of those guys. Whichever brother this was.

  “Tommy.” He thrust out his arm. “Nice to meet you. Who are you?”

  She shook his hand. It was huge and warm and annoying in that it gave her tingles because she was definitely not interested in Mr. Full of Himself. “Er, I just told you my name is Camila.”

  “Yeah, I got that part. Why are you here, Camila? And how do you know my brother?”

  She canted her head. “Why are you so defensive?”

  He thrust his thumb over his right shoulder. “Because there’s already a girl here with Elliot, and while it’s kind of badass that he has more than one clamoring after him, I like the one that’s already here, so I’m thinking you should probably leave.”

  Camila’s jaw dropped to somewhere in the vicinity of her chest. Was this guy accusing her of being—what? A stalker?

  “Um, I’m Maddy’s sister. She said I could stay here for a few days.”

  His brows shot into his hairline while his gaze danced over her body again. She deliberately crossed her arms over her boobs and glared at him.

  Which earned her a slow grin in return.

  You’re kidding, right? Camila bit her tongue. Now that she was here, she didn’t really want to go back to her apartment, in case the actual stalker was hanging out there. Plus, she was admittedly looking forward to seeing her baby sister. And meeting the guy she was currently gaga over.

  Hopefully he was nothing like his brother.

  “Okay, so can I come in?”

  He chuckled. “Right. Yes. Come on in.” He moved to the side and mock bowed as he gestured for her to enter the foyer. The dog trailed along behind her.

  The house was beautiful but not in a could-be-on-the-pages-of-a-magazine way. More like, warm. Cozy. Comfortable.

  “Yeah, I feel the same way every time I come home.”

  Camila jumped at the sound of Tommy’s voice, far, far too close behind her.

  She twisted around, and he immediately lifted his hands, palms out. “Sorry. Betting you probably don’t like guys walking up behind you.”

  She shook her head and blew out a breath. “Yeah, not really.”

  “Anyway, my parents’ house. It’s, I don’t know…”

  “Comfortable?”

  “Yeah, exactly. I travel a lot, so I don’t get to experience the creature comforts of home very often. Makes coming here even more special, I guess.”

  What was she supposed to say to that? Tell me more? “Um, okay.”

  He waved to indicate she should follow him. “Everybody’s out on the deck.”

  With her overnight bag still in her hand, she walked through an office that probably had once been a formal living room and passed under an arched doorway that led into a kitchen-slash-dining space that spilled out onto a deck overlooking the backyard.

  The sink was built into an island in the middle of the room, which contained plenty of counter space for food prep and also for eating. Four cushioned stools were lined up on one side. Between the island and the door wall leading outside was a high-top table with six chairs. Through another arched doorway was a formal dining room with a long, wooden table that Camila was pretty sure could seat twenty comfortably.

  “Yes, they like to entertain,” Tommy whispered next to her ear, making her jump once again. How did the man read her thoughts like that?

  He opened a screen door and the dog rushed outside. Camila stayed on Tommy’s heels as he followed the dog. A pergola draped with purple flowers shaded the seating area where her sister perched next to a younger version of Tommy, talking animatedly with an older couple lounging on cushioned chairs across from them.

  “Camila,” Maddy shrieked then jumped up and charged toward her, knocking the wind out of her with her hug. Tommy casually reached out and pressed his hand against her back, presumably to steady her.

  “Guys, this is my sister,” Maddy announced to the older couple, her grin splitting her face in two.

  It was nice to see her too.

  “Hi,” Camila said, offering up that awkward wave everybody did when they were in an uncomfortable situation.

  The woman, who she presumed was Tommy and Elliot’s mother, had dark hair swept back into a ponytail and laugh lines around her eyes. She leaped up with surprising agility and grace. “So nice to meet you,” she cooed.

  “I’m Camila. Thank you for opening your house to me.”

  “Oh nonsense.” The woman flapped her hand. “This house is plenty big enough for all of us. And grandkids.”

  “Mom…” There was a warning in Tommy’s voice, but Camila was too focused on the woman who was hugging her.

  Grandkids? What the hell?

  Oh God, Maddy wasn’t pregnant, was she? Camila extracted herself from the embrace and narrowed her eyes at her sister.

  “Stop staring at my belly. You’re making me self-conscious,” Maddy said.

  Camila cleared her throat. “Um, how far along are you?”

  Maddy’s eyes went as wide as saucers. “Holy shit, did you just call me fat?”

  Shaking her head, Camila said, “No, not at all. In fact, you look amazing. Totally in shape. You aren’t showing at all.”

  “Not showing…” Maddy clapped her hands over her mouth and when she spoke again, her voice was muffled. “Ohmigod, you think I’m pregnant? Why in the hell would you think that?”

  “Well, you two are a little young and you still have to finish school, but if you need help with the baby, I’ll make myself totally available,” Tommy and Elliot’s mom announced, waving her hand like she was hoping to be picked first for the kickball team. “Also, if it’s a girl, I have a long list of names for you to choose from.”

  “I’m not pregnant,” Maddy practically shouted.

  Then what was up with the grandkids comment?

  Tommy and Elliot’s mother placed one hand on Camila’s arm and the other on Tommy’s and squeezed. “Look how cute you look together.”

  “What? Whoa.” Camila took several steps backward, shaking her head. “No, we aren’t, I mean, I don’t even know him. This—I’m just—I don’t…” She wasn’t here to hit on the woman’s other son; she was here to hide from a stalker. A fact she could articulate perfectly in her head, but the words would not spill out of her mouth.

  “Now that that’s settled, I’m Deanna,” the older woman cheerfully said. “And that’s Joe.” Deanna pointed at the older man with salt and pepper hair who headed over at a much slower pace to shake her hand. “Come on, I’ll show you your room.”

  As the woman headed back into the house, Camila glanced at Tommy, who rolled his eyes and shook his head. Hopefully, that meant he was on the same page as Camila and intended to set his mother straight about this idea that they looked cute together.

  They went up the stairs in the foyer and then hung a right. Camila glanced over her shoulder at Tommy, who was following behind and—was he staring at her ass? She snapped her fingers and he glanced up.

  And grinned.

  Yep, definitely checking out her backside.

  He better not be thinking along the same lines as his mother.