Fall - A Rocky Lynch Story

Chapter 6

Rain was rare where we lived. However, when it did rain, it poured. Having our Sunday counseling meeting in the privacy of our back porch like we prefered was out of the question. Water was nearly flooding everything in the backyard. And since our dining room was still overflowing with wedding supplies, our next available option was the living room.

"Go with Car," I said to Ellie as Carter reached his hand down to take hers. Then I looked back up to the boy. "Thank you for watching the kids, sweetheart. It really helps me and dad."

He nodded with a small smile. "I don't mind. Do you think after your thing with Uncle Ry and Karlee, we could go to the store? I need some things for school."

"We'll see, baby," I said. "If not today, we can make a run after school one of these days."

"Mom's just afraid of the rain," Rocky interjected, coming out of the kitchen with a bowl of chips. "I can take you tonight." He clicked off the TV and turned to Avelyn, who was sitting on the couch. "Go play upstairs for a bit," he told her. She stared at him with a tight-lipped expression and said nothing. "Go," he repeated. "We talked about this, Avelyn." With a huff, she rolled off of the couch and marched up the stairs.

I smiled sympathetically as Rocky groaned and ran his hands through his hair. "Still not talking to you?" I asked him. The tension between those two had been high. Avelyn definitely had a strong stubborn streak, and she inherited that from Rocky. Neither one of them backed down without a fight, and this one was lasting.

But Rocky was starting to get tired. "All I want is for her to be more respectful. Is that so much to ask?" I shook my head in response and pulled him into a hug. My hand rubbed up and down his back. "I don't like her being mad at me. I'm half-tempted to get her a puppy just so she'll love me again."

"We both know that's a bad idea," I laughed. "I'll talk to her later."

The door opened and Ryland and Karlee rushed in, their hair dripping wet. "It's raining cats and dogs!" Karlee laughed, kicking off her shoes and pulling her wet sweater off of her.

"I can toss those into the dryer while we talk," I offered. I handed both of them small towels from the kitchen so they could ring out their hair. "I mean, they'll get soaked right away once you leave, but it couldn't hurt."

"Thanks Jules," Ryland said. They both handed me their soaked clothes and I disappeared to the laundry room. I set the dryer on high and turned the buzzer on. When I returned to the living room, everyone was already situated. Ryland and Karlee sat next to each other on part of the sectional couch, and Rocky sat across from them. I took my spot next to him. "So what's on the agenda for today?" Ry asked. He had his arm wrapped around his bride-to-be.

"Conflict," Rocky said. "And to start out, I think it's important to say that fights will happen. No doubt about it, you guys will fight."

"Starting out light, bro," Ry laughed.

"Conflict doesn't always have to be fights," I mentioned. "Rocky and I rarely ever have what people would consider fights, but that doesn't mean we don't disagree with each other from time to time." Rocky had his arm on the back of the couch, but his fingers lightly touched my shoulder.

"I've never heard you guys even argue!" Karlee said, shaking her head. "I've witnessed a good amount of conflict in my family, and it involves a lot of yelling and breaking things." I took a deep breath; Karlee rarely ever talked about her family life, and I was starting to see why. "You guys are the exact opposite. What's your secret?"

Rocky and I shared a glance before he spoke. "Sex, mostly," he said, and everyone laughed. "I'm not joking!" he defended himself. "When Juli and I do argue, it usually ends in compromise and then some good makeup sex. If it's a really intense argument, we take some alone time to think things over. But it almost always ends with both of us naked."