Page 93 of Sing For Me

Eva

It’s fascinating to watch how Will changes over the first half of our vacation at the Ransome farm.

Since the first day I met him, I noticed a tension in Will. It was there in his clenched jaw, the way his face would harden into tight lines whenever he thought I wasn’t looking. It was there in the rigid set of his shoulders, in the deep silences he would fall into seemingly without cause.

That tension was hiked up to the highest degree when we got here. I know he was stressed out about the paparazzi invasion into our lives. He worried about the way I was reacting to it and the way it might affect his business. I wasn’t sure this trip would help him much—he seemed so convinced that the interference of his family was going to make things worse.

But that’s not what happens, at all. Instead I watch as Will’s tension visibly fades away under the warm Tennessee sun. He smiles more. The sound of his low, rumbling laugh echoes across the rolling fields of the property more times than I can count. It seems like he’s constantly on the move, perpetually active as he hikes and swims and plays endless games with his cousins.

But then there are the quiet moments, the times when I watch him chilling with Rose and River and Alex and Fox, talking and laughing for hours. Sitting out under the stars. Watching the sunset over the distant mountains. Will Ransome is relaxed here on this farm in a way I’ve never seen from him before.

Maybe it’s the distance from all the real-world troubles. Or maybe it’s the crisp mountain air, being outdoors, sitting in the sun. But I have a feeling it doesn’t have much to do with the location. I think it has a lot more to do with the people he’s with. The family that he so clearly loves.

And he does love them, in spite of all his bitching about their pushiness. He’s still prone to snap at anyone he deems to be too intrusive with me, but beyond that, he clearly enjoys every minute with them. He plays capture the flag with the Littles. Kicks a soccer ball around with his mom and sister for hours. Takes Silas for a sunset kayak ride, just the two of them. Wakes up early to help Vega and his Grandma make waffles for the entire family. Sits and talks with his mom and his aunts.

He’s at home here, with all of them, and I love to watch him.

The only person he doesn’t seem one hundred percent comfortable with is his father. I noticed it the first night we were here, when Will went up to the grill to grab us each a second burger. His dad said something to him and even though the older man was smiling, Will went visibly rigid. I watched as Cash’s face dropped, a hand coming up to clasp his son’s shoulder, but Will shook him off, grabbing the burgers without another word.

When he came back to my side, he was quiet and closed off for a good five minutes before River eased him out of his sudden funk with a constant barrage of teasing.

Something about the interactions between Will and Cash seem off to me the more I watch them. His shoulders go back to that tense set I was used to seeing in LA. And I see it again a few times when he talks to his uncles, too. Over lunch one day, Violet wonders where her father is and when Daisy mentions that he’s in the compound’s recording studio with his brothers, Will goes so rigid that he knocks over his soda can.

I want to ask him what that’s all about, but his closed off expression whenever I bring up the Ransome brothers keeps me from questioning him. His mood seems so light most of the time we’ve been here, and I don’t want to ruin that.

On Thursday afternoon we’re in the living room of the lodge playing yet another round of Risk, this time with Levi and Alex, when there’s a commotion outside. A slamming car door, some excited squealing, lots of loud voices talking over each other. Will looks up at Levi, eyebrows raised. “Are we expecting someone?”

Levi grins. “Why don’t you go outside and see?”

I follow Will out onto the porch. A crowd has gathered at the end of the gravel driveway, where the cars are parked. I watch as Cash pulls a tall guy I’ve never seen before into a hug, slapping his back. I look over to ask Will what’s going on and see that his face is lit up.

“My brother,” he says, excitement barely contained in his voice. “Wyatt’s here.” I almost think he’s going to jump off the porch in his eagerness and run down there, but he takes my hand instead, giving it a squeeze. “Come and meet him.”

“You’re such an asshole,” Cash is saying, one arm still wrapped around the taller guy’s shoulder, huge grin on his face. “You told me you couldn’t come.”

“I thought you’d like the surprise, old man.”

As we get closer, I can see that though he’s several years older, Wyatt looks an awful lot like Will. They’re both about the same height, taller than their dad, though Wyatt isn’t as broad or muscular as Will. His build is more wiry and there’s something almost elegant about his movements. Piano player, I remember, glancing at his long fingers as he wraps his mom in a hug.

He sees Will over her shoulder and grins. “If it isn’t my suddenly famous little brother.”

Will flips him off but the second Sam releases him, the two brothers are embracing. “You look good, kid,” I hear Wyatt say, his voice so similar to Will’s I might not have known who was speaking if I hadn’t watched his mouth move.

They release each other and Wyatt’s eyes go right to me, the same smirk I’ve seen a hundred times on Will tugging at his mouth. “You gonna introduce me to your girl?”

My stomach dips a little when Will doesn’t correct him. “Wyatt, this is Eva. Eva, my obnoxious big brother.” But he’s smiling more broadly than I think I’ve ever seen him and when Wyatt reaches over to shake my hand, Will’s eyes go soft.

The moment is broken when a tiny blur in pigtails and a rainbow print sundress throws herself at him. “Shoot, CeCe,” Wyatt laughs, picking her up off the ground in a bear hug. “I think you’ve grown two inches.”

Silas is there too, pushing in to hug his brother, and I take a step back, watching Will’s siblings interact. Over their shoulders, I see Cash wrapping Sam up in a big hug while she wipes her eyes and watches her kids.

You can feel the love and affection pouring off of this family in waves. It almost feels too personal for me to observe. I’m struck with the strongest urge to talk to Katherine. I catch Will’s eye and give a little wave. His forehead creases and he moves to follow me, but I shake my head before turning to the farmhouse. No one else seems to notice my departure in all the excitement over Wyatt’s surprise arrival.

I settle on the faded blue quilt covering my bed and look out the window. From here I can see all the Ransomes down on the lawn, gathered around Wyatt. The ache in my chest is getting sharper, so I pull out my phone and call my sister.

“Are you engaged yet?” she says in place of a welcome.

I snort. “We’re not even dating, Kat.”