“What was that for?” Thorne asked in surprise.
“For the hard talk and good advice.”
“Anytime,” Thorne replied and then he headed out the back door.
Knox sank back down at the table, his thoughts on his younger half brother. Knox had been five when Thorne had been born, but it hadn’t taken him long to realize Thorne didn’t look exactly like him. Instead, Thorne had the same dark skin and curly hair as their African-American ranch foreman, Joseph “Mac” Mackenzie.
Rumors had flown in the small town, and Livia, with her usual wicked machinations, had thrown her husband at the time under the bus. She’d transformed Wes Kingston, the father of her son River, from a dashing rancher to an abusive husband who eventually divorced her. Mac had stayed on as foreman at the ranch to be near his son. He’d even bought some of the land to ensure that he’d never be displaced.
Wes Kingston hadn’t been the last of his mother’s lovers or husbands, and each one had left her financially better off until she was one of the wealthiest people in the area.
Her last husband, Fabrizio Artero, had been a successful Argentine horse breeder. He’d been a decent stepfather and had doted on Jade until he’d been kicked in the head by a horse and died.
Knox got up and moved to the window to stare out at the pastures in the distance, his thoughts still consumed by the woman who had given birth to him.
Livia hadn’t made it into the inner society circles in Austin, but here in Shadow Creek she’d ruled as queen. She’d built a much-needed hospital, had funded most of the 4-H program and had thrown elaborate barbecues that had been the talk of the town.
Nobody had known the depths of Livia’s deceptions until she was arrested and indicted on charges of human and drug trafficking, among other crimes. Nobody had known that she’d been a ruthless general working for an organized crime group. She’d even been found guilty of murder.
She’d been under investigation by the FBI for years and they’d finally gained the evidence they needed to put her away forever. La Bonne Vie, the family’s beautiful mansion, their land and all the livestock had been confiscated by the authorities. The place had remained vacant since then.
Knox could only hope the authorities would find Livia as quickly as possible and get her back behind bars where she deserved to spend the rest of her life. He hoped his mother didn’t even know that he was back in Shadow Creek.
He turned away from the window and shoved thoughts of his mother out of his head. She wasn’t his problem anymore, other than the fact that her latest escapades had screwed up his job for now.
He went down the hallway to the bedroom where he was staying and sat on the edge of the bed as thoughts of a different woman filled his mind.
Allison Rafferty.
His blood warmed as he thought of how the sun had sparked in her hair. For a moment he imagined he could smell the apple and spice scent she’d always worn, the fragrance that had once represented tangled sheets, sweet sighs and lovemaking.
She’d been in his blood for years. She’d been his first lover and he’d once thought they would be together forever. There had been other women during the times they’d been broken apart, but none had touched him like she had.
He jerked himself off the bed. He didn’t want to sit around and think about Allison and what they had once shared. She wasn’t the woman he’d once believed was good and pure. Hell, half the reason he’d left town in the first place was to shield her from any evil his mother might bring to her life.
She was nothing more to him than a woman who had lied, who had kept the secret of his son for far too long. He’d have to deal with her because of Cody, but he would never, ever forgive her.
* * *
The next day, Allison watched the spring sunshine flood through one of the beautiful stained glass windows of the First Methodist Church of Shadow Creek. Reverend Johnson stood at the pulpit and droned on with his sermon about turning the other cheek and forgiveness, but Allison was too busy praying to pay much attention to what he had to say.
In less than an hour Knox would pick up Cody and spend the day with him. She prayed that Knox would keep his promise and not tell Cody that he was his father. She hoped Knox was in this for the long term and she desperately prayed that he wouldn’t break her son’s heart.
She’d never prayed as hard as she did now, with Cody wiggling in impatience next to her and a wealth of anxiety pressing tight in her chest.
She should have told Knox no. She should have held her ground and not allowed him to spend any time with Cody. Now it was too late to go back on it because she’d already told Cody, who was excited about spending time with Knox.
Normally after church she and Cody lingered and visited with friends and neighbors, but today they hurried to the car immediately after the service was over.
“I can’t wait for Knox to pick me up,” Cody said as soon as she was on the road and headed home. “I’ve never been to Mr. Mackenzie’s ranch before. What do you think we’ll do there?”
“I don’t know. But I’m sure whatever you do, you’ll have fun,” she replied. “And you know how nice Mr. Mackenzie is.”
“Yeah, he’s cool. Knox is really cool, too. Did you know he’s a Texas Ranger?” Cody’s voice held all the excitement of a boy anticipating a brand-new adventure.
“Yes, I knew that,” Allison replied.
When they reached their two-story house just off Main Street, Cody was nearly out of the car before she had completely parked. He raced to the porch and danced in impatience as he waited for her to join him and unlock the front door.
“I’ve got to hurry. He’ll be here in fifteen minutes,” Cody exclaimed.
“Make sure you hang up your church clothes,” Allison yelled after him as he scurried up the stairs to his bedroom.
In fifteen minutes, her entire life would change and she couldn’t begin to guess if the changes would be good or bad. She tucked her keys back into her purse and then walked through the living room and into the kitchen.
No matter what she thought of Knox Colton, he would now be back in her life. Her biggest concern was that he would be around just long enough to completely capture Cody’s heart and then he’d be gone once again.
He’d do to her son what he’d done to her. Even though ten years had passed, despite all the life that she had lived in that passage of time, she still remembered the anguish that had filled her heart when Knox had told her he needed time away from her. She’d been blinded by her hurt, and that’s why she’d lied to him in the first place.
There was no question that Cody could use a male figure in his life. Since the death of Allison’s father two years ago, there had been no masculine influences for him. She hadn’t considered dating. Raising Cody and running the family business had been enough.
She sank down at the table and wondered what on earth she was going to do with herself during the time Cody was with Knox today. For a little more than nine years her life had revolved around her son. On most Sundays they spent the day together, playing games and watching movies and cooking his favorite foods for dinner. Sundays had always been special for them because it was the one day a week when she wasn’t at work at the family construction business.
She didn’t even know if he’d be back by dinner this evening, and he hadn’t eaten any lunch. Should she make him a quick sandwich? She quickly dismissed the idea. Surely Knox knew that if he was picking Cody up right after church he would need some lunch.
She tried to shove her anxiety aside as Cody came into the kitchen. Church clothes had been replaced by a pair of jeans and his favorite blue-plaid flannel shirt.
“Looks like you’re all ready to go,” she said around the sudden lump in her throat.
He nodded and his eyes grew somber as he slid into the chair next to hers. “Will you
be okay today without me?”
She looked at her son in surprise. “Buddy, I’ll be just fine. I might spend the day doing some girlie stuff.” A nine-year-old shouldn’t have to worry about his mother spending a Sunday afternoon alone.
“Girlie stuff?” Cody looked at her curiously.
She nodded. “I might take a nice, long bubble bath and then paint my nails and watch a sappy movie.”
“Sounds boring,” Cody replied. “What color are you gonna paint your nails?”
“I was thinking maybe purple with green sparkles.” She waited for it and she wasn’t disappointed.
Cody laughed. The wonderful, boyish sound filled the kitchen and wove a path straight to Allison’s heart. “You are not,” he finally replied.
At that moment the doorbell rang.
“I’ll get it,” Cody said. He shot off his chair and fight-or-flight adrenaline pulsed through Allison. She heard Cody’s excited voice and then Knox’s deeper one.
She took a couple gulps of air in an attempt to still her nerves. She didn’t mind sharing Cody, she just wasn’t sure she wanted to share him with Knox Colton. But she reminded herself that it didn’t matter what she wanted anymore.
She was just starting to rise from her chair when the two walked into the kitchen. “Don’t get up.” Knox waved her back down.
“Cody hasn’t had any lunch,” she said, as if that was the most important information he needed to know. He needed to know that Cody hated green peppers and that he sometimes ran too fast for his own safety. Knox needed to know that Cody had a heart of gold and cared deeply about others.
There were so many things he needed to know, but her voice failed her in that moment. She’d always thought her kitchen was large and airy, but it seemed much smaller with Knox’s presence.
He looked ridiculously handsome in a pair of tight jeans and a dark blue, long-sleeved polo shirt that hugged his lean stomach and emphasized his broad shoulders and muscular biceps. His black cowboy hat rode at a cocky angle on his head.
“Don’t worry, I’ll see that he gets lunch,” he replied and ruffled his hand on top of Cody’s head. Cody looked up at him with a big smile. “I planned on bringing him home sometime after dinner. Does that work for you?”
“I’d like him home by seven at the latest. He has school tomorrow. We should exchange cell phone numbers.” She hoped Cody didn’t feel the tension in the air. Although Knox’s tone of voice was pleasant enough, his gaze was cold as ice as it lingered on her.
“That’s a good idea,” he agreed.
“And then we’ll go, right, Knox?” Cody asked eagerly.
Knox laughed. Oh, Allison had forgotten the magic of his deep, wonderful laughter. “And then we’ll go,” he agreed.
For just a moment his gaze met Allison’s and the icy cold had been replaced with a warmth that stole her breath away. It was there only a couple of seconds and then gone.
He averted his gaze to sweep the kitchen. “You’ve got a nice place here.”
“Thank you,” she replied. “I bought this house after Dad passed away.” She’d been shocked to discover that her father had a substantial life insurance policy when he’d passed. It had been enough money to buy the house outright and had given her and her son some financial security.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” he replied. “John was a good man.”
“Thank you. He’d been sick for a long time.” A hollow wind blew through her as she thought of her father.
“Grandpa Rafferty helped me build a birdhouse. It’s hanging in a tree in our backyard,” Cody said. “Maybe when we come home later you can see it and you can also see my room. But now shouldn’t we get going?”
Knox grinned down at Cody. “Yeah, let’s get going.”
Allison got up to walk them to the door. “I’ll see you this evening.”
“See you later, Mom. And don’t paint your fingernails purple and green,” Cody replied.
With that they were gone, taking half of her heart with them. The house had never been as silent as it was then, with only the sound of her heart beating in her ears.
She returned to her chair in the kitchen and stared unseeing out the nearby window. Not for the first time in the past two years, she wished her father was still there.
John Rafferty had been a single parent after Allison’s mother had died of cancer when her daughter had been five. He’d been both mother and father to her, and eventually good friend and mentor.
He could build a bookcase and braid her hair. He could renovate a kitchen and bake cupcakes for a school party. Unfortunately a heart attack had left him in a wheelchair and eventually his weakened, diseased heart had just stopped working.
Growing up, she’d spent much of her time with the smell of freshly cut wood as familiar as the sound of her own voice. After school and on the weekends, she spent time at the construction company her father owned, the same one she now owned and operated.
What a hypocrite she was, sitting there and missing her own father and at the same time half wishing Cody’s had never shown up in town.
Cody deserved to know his dad. She could only hope and pray that Knox took far better care of Cody’s heart than he had of hers.
With the day stretching out in front of her, she moved from her chair at the table to the one at the small kitchen desk. She opened the laptop and powered it on.
Every couple of days, it was usual for her to check out Everything’s Blogger in Texas, a wildly popular site that served up the gossip of the area. It was a guilty pleasure, just like watching the Real Housewives franchise once a week.
Today the cover story was of a Dallas socialite who had been arrested for drunk driving after leading the police on a dangerous chase.
The headline on the second lead story was Femme Fatale Still on the Loose. Allison clicked to read the article. It was a rehash of Livia Colton’s escape from prison with nothing new added to the story since her disappearance.
A slight chill ran across her skin as she thought of Knox’s mother. The last thing she had wanted was for Livia Colton to find out she had a grandchild. Allison had always known the woman was a hateful witch, but she hadn’t known how truly dangerous she was until her arrest and subsequent trial. Fear of Livia Colton had been part of what had made her lie to Knox about Cody’s paternity.
Was that why Knox was back here? Was it possible he was not really on a vacation at all, but rather was on duty here in case his mother showed up?
And if that was the case, then once his mother was back behind bars, would he once again leave Shadow Creek to return to El Paso and not look back?
She had to believe that he intended to be more than a hit-and-miss father in Cody’s life. She also had to believe he’d protect Cody at all costs. At the very least she had to give him the benefit of the doubt until he proved differently.
The hours of the day crept by achingly slowly. She took a long bubble bath and painted her nails a pearly pink and tried not to wonder about what Knox and Cody were doing. She dusted the living room and ran the vacuum cleaner in an effort to keep herself busy.
After that she headed back to the kitchen, made herself a salad for a late lunch and then whipped up some of Cody’s favorite double chocolate chip cookies.
While they baked she sat at the table and found her brain working through a hundred questions in her mind. Was Knox married? Was Cody his only child or did he have a family in El Paso?
She should have asked him more questions yesterday at Jade’s place, but the shock of seeing him, the horror of realizing he knew about Cody, had made her half-brain-dead.
She told herself that her curiosity had nothing to do with how the very sight of him had stirred old memories, of how the scent of him...a familiar clean, woodsy scent, had evoked a pool of heat inside her stomach.
<
br /> The only reason why she was curious about his life was that she needed to know how Cody might fit into it. What would a custody agreement look like between them? Would she now be sending her son to stay for a month in the summer with Knox and a stepmother? Would she now have Christmases without her son? Or Easters? Or Thanksgivings?
And what about his mother, who was now on the run from the law? Dear God, she didn’t even want to think about Livia getting anywhere near her son.
She needed to find out tonight exactly what Knox wanted. She had always kept a controlling hand on her life. She’d had to be in control to wear the many hats she wore.
At the moment, everything felt wildly out of control and she still had three hours before they’d be home. One thing was certain: she wasn’t going to let Knox Colton leave her house tonight until he’d answered some important questions.
Chapter 3
It had been a day of wonder for Knox. If he had imagined the kind of son he would want, it would have been a boy just like Cody.
Cody was bright and curious and extremely well mannered. No matter what he thought of Allison, Knox had to give her credit for doing a stellar job in raising the boy.
Knox found Cody’s laughter intoxicating. He even liked the way Cody’s forehead crinkled just a bit when he was thinking hard. He was easygoing and a real pleasure to be around.
“I had so much fun today,” Cody said as Knox pulled into Allison’s driveway.
“Me, too,” Knox agreed. “I’d like to spend more time with you. Would that be all right with you?”
“Sure, that would be cool as long as it’s okay with my mom,” Cody agreed.
“Oh, I think it will be fine with your mother,” he replied.
They got out of the car and Knox placed a hand on Cody’s shoulder as they approached the front door. His chest swelled on contact with the slender shoulder beneath his hand. His son. He just couldn’t get over it.
He dropped his hand back to his side as Cody went through the front door. “Mom, we’re home,” he called out. He glanced back at Knox with one of his wide grins. “Hmm, she must have made cookies.”
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