Read Online Major (The United Federation Marine Corps Book 5) by Jonathan P. Brazee - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Jonathan P. Brazee
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screech, followed by crying this time, reached them. “But maybe I need to stay away more often if this is what happens. I think three is enough!”
It was a little stressful, and more than a little noisy, but Ryck felt good with the extended gathering. He knew Hannah was enjoying the visit. She and the kids had arrived two full days before Ryck met them there, and he didn’t think she’d stopped talking with her family since. He would have liked to spend some more alone time together, but Hannah hadn’t seen her mother and sibs for almost three years, since before she was pregnant with Ben. This was a good trip for her.
And for Ryck, he had to admit. He and Lysa had been raised on a farm without many kids around. Even their school had been small. The concept of a vast extended family was something the two had never had.
Ryck had married into the Hope of Life family, but Lysa hadn’t. Yet both she and Barret had been welcomed with open arms. It was only slightly ironic that Lysa spent more time with the Hope of Life clan that Ryck did.
“OK, which one is that?” Ryck asked a red-headed boy of about eight ran by, his left shoe missing.
“Benjamin,” Zeke said.
“Another Benjamin? How many are there?”
“Benjamins? It be good solid name. ‘Son of the right hand,’ not that I need to be tellin’ you that, seein’ as how you got your own Ben. But that be Bethany’s Benjamin, and over there, that be Jeb’s Ben. Benjamin Resurrection, I don’t think you met Jeb, but he be in the Navy now, and he be Dinah and Andrew’s boy. You met Andrew, right? And then there be . . . ”
Ryck’s attention drifted as Zeke eagerly started his begats. He just relaxed, soaking in the company of those around him. He was proud to be a Marine, and he’d have it no other way. But as a Marine, he felt he was always on stage, that all eyes were on him. He knew that his accomplishments in the Corps really didn’t matter to those gathered today. Oh, he knew that Camyle, his niece, was proud that her uncle was the famous Ryck Lysander, that he’d been portrayed in two flicks, even. And some of the other kids were taken in with a touch of hero worship. But the adults, especially his mother-in-law, seemed to accept him, to welcome him, simply for being Hannah’s husband.
A tiny wave of guilt came over him at that thought. He tried to be a good husband, but being a Marine and being a good husband were not always compatible. Hannah loved her family, yet she had married Ryck and moved away. Not only that, but she was effectively a single parent for much of the time.
“I gotta go check on the wife,” he said, getting up and taking his leave as Barret and Zeke started casually arguing on what was the most common name among the Torritite community. They could have just queried their PAs and gotten the exact response, but the two friends seemed more interested in the thought process rather than the actual answer.
A ball came bounding over that Ryck dutifully kicked back, almost spilling the rest of his beer in the process. He entered the mudroom that separated the yard from the rest of the house, surprising young Daniel Hope of Life and his new girlfriend Reiko, who, from their startled expressions, had been sneaking a little lip-time. He acted like he’d seen nothing and entered the house, the smell of fresh-baked bread making him start to salivate.
Hannah was with several of her sisters and sisters-in-law, cutting the onions for the potshop, a braised stew that was a staple of Torritite gatherings. He came up in back of her, holding one finger over his pursed lips when Vicky, Hannah’s sister-in-law, saw him sneak up.
He slipped his arms around Hannah from behind and kissed her neck.
“I love, you, Mrs. Lysander. Did you know that?” he asked quietly.
Not so quietly, though, that her sisters didn’t hear as they responded with good-natured
It was a little stressful, and more than a little noisy, but Ryck felt good with the extended gathering. He knew Hannah was enjoying the visit. She and the kids had arrived two full days before Ryck met them there, and he didn’t think she’d stopped talking with her family since. He would have liked to spend some more alone time together, but Hannah hadn’t seen her mother and sibs for almost three years, since before she was pregnant with Ben. This was a good trip for her.
And for Ryck, he had to admit. He and Lysa had been raised on a farm without many kids around. Even their school had been small. The concept of a vast extended family was something the two had never had.
Ryck had married into the Hope of Life family, but Lysa hadn’t. Yet both she and Barret had been welcomed with open arms. It was only slightly ironic that Lysa spent more time with the Hope of Life clan that Ryck did.
“OK, which one is that?” Ryck asked a red-headed boy of about eight ran by, his left shoe missing.
“Benjamin,” Zeke said.
“Another Benjamin? How many are there?”
“Benjamins? It be good solid name. ‘Son of the right hand,’ not that I need to be tellin’ you that, seein’ as how you got your own Ben. But that be Bethany’s Benjamin, and over there, that be Jeb’s Ben. Benjamin Resurrection, I don’t think you met Jeb, but he be in the Navy now, and he be Dinah and Andrew’s boy. You met Andrew, right? And then there be . . . ”
Ryck’s attention drifted as Zeke eagerly started his begats. He just relaxed, soaking in the company of those around him. He was proud to be a Marine, and he’d have it no other way. But as a Marine, he felt he was always on stage, that all eyes were on him. He knew that his accomplishments in the Corps really didn’t matter to those gathered today. Oh, he knew that Camyle, his niece, was proud that her uncle was the famous Ryck Lysander, that he’d been portrayed in two flicks, even. And some of the other kids were taken in with a touch of hero worship. But the adults, especially his mother-in-law, seemed to accept him, to welcome him, simply for being Hannah’s husband.
A tiny wave of guilt came over him at that thought. He tried to be a good husband, but being a Marine and being a good husband were not always compatible. Hannah loved her family, yet she had married Ryck and moved away. Not only that, but she was effectively a single parent for much of the time.
“I gotta go check on the wife,” he said, getting up and taking his leave as Barret and Zeke started casually arguing on what was the most common name among the Torritite community. They could have just queried their PAs and gotten the exact response, but the two friends seemed more interested in the thought process rather than the actual answer.
A ball came bounding over that Ryck dutifully kicked back, almost spilling the rest of his beer in the process. He entered the mudroom that separated the yard from the rest of the house, surprising young Daniel Hope of Life and his new girlfriend Reiko, who, from their startled expressions, had been sneaking a little lip-time. He acted like he’d seen nothing and entered the house, the smell of fresh-baked bread making him start to salivate.
Hannah was with several of her sisters and sisters-in-law, cutting the onions for the potshop, a braised stew that was a staple of Torritite gatherings. He came up in back of her, holding one finger over his pursed lips when Vicky, Hannah’s sister-in-law, saw him sneak up.
He slipped his arms around Hannah from behind and kissed her neck.
“I love, you, Mrs. Lysander. Did you know that?” he asked quietly.
Not so quietly, though, that her sisters didn’t hear as they responded with good-natured
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