He fired off a text back. Sure, I’m at the Black Horse. Meet me here.

  Her response popped up a moment later. I’m just at the coffee shop. Be there in a few.

  “What’s up?” Riggs asked.

  “Adeline’s coming by in a couple minutes.” He tucked his phone back into his pocket. “I’m glad we could do this.”

  “Me, too.” Riggs slapped a hand on the table. “And it’s good to see a woman making you smile from a text alone. She must be some woman.”

  Colter smiled. “She is.”

  True to her word, Adeline arrived at the bar a few minutes later, after Colter had already settled his bill. She strode past the patrons, garnering looks from the men there. Colter leaned back against the booth, taking his fill of her as she approached.

  Damn.

  Her silky blouse clung against all her incredible curves. The tight black pants and heels were just begging to hit his bedroom floor. But more than the lust alone driving him, his chest warmed whenever she came near.

  Her eyes twinkled with heat, as if she could read his thoughts. “Hi,” she said when she sidled up to the table. She stuck her hand out. “Riggs, right?”

  Riggs gave her his charming smile that all the ladies loved. He took her hand and shook it gently. “That’d be me, and you must be Adeline.”

  “You got it. It’s really nice to meet you.” She studied the empty plates, with only chicken wing sauce and bones, on the table. “Sorry, am I interrupting?”

  “Not at all,” Riggs said, sliding out of the booth. “We’re all done here, and I gotta head back to work anyway.” He gathered up all the plates, as well as Colter’s empty beer bottle and his glass. “Can I grab you a drink, food, anything?”

  “No, thanks, I’m okay,” she replied.

  Colter gestured her into Riggs’s seat, and she took his spot as Colter said to Riggs, “I’ll be in touch about that poker game.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Riggs said before setting that charming smile back onto Adeline. “Again, nice to meet you, Adeline.”

  “You, too. Hope to see you soon.”

  Colter gritted his teeth, beginning to hate that line. Because she wouldn’t see him again. She was leaving tomorrow morning. Unless he could think of a way to convince her that staying with him would be the best decision of her life.

  Riggs turned away but not before waggling his eyebrows in obvious approval over Adeline. Colter couldn’t agree more.

  He focused back on Adeline, taking note of her wringing hands. A jolt shot through his limbs at the unease on her face. “Everything okay?” he asked, hoping she was changing her mind about leaving.

  “Sort of,” she said. “I mean, kind of.”

  He arched a single eyebrow at her.

  She laughed nervously. “Okay, I guess that makes no sense at all. You see, this morning I was talking to Nora about everything that has happened, and how I’m feeling about stuff...and...”

  Colter hung on bated breath, waiting for her next words to make him a very happy man. But she surprised him.

  “I actually have a big favor to ask,” she said.

  “Of course. Whatever you need. What’s going on?”

  She rubbed the back of her neck, visibly swallowing. “Can I still take you up on your offer to come with me to meet my dad?”

  Of all the things he’d been expecting her to ask, that wasn’t it. He reached for her shaky hands, taking them in his. “Are you sure you want to do that?” He wasn’t sure he wanted her to meet the bastard who had turned his back on his own child.

  She pondered for a moment. Then nodded firmly. “I keep going back and forth, to be honest. Do I want this? Do I not? But in the end, after talking to Nora, and after our talk about him, I feel like this is my one and only chance to meet him. To find out what happened from his side of things. To understand what went so wrong with him that he could turn his back on a child.”

  She hesitated and drew in a deep breath. “I want him to see me. See that I’m doing well. And, if I’m honest, maybe I’m hoping a little that I can alleviate any guilt he has for being absent in my life. Maybe it could help his alcoholism.”

  Christ, this woman amazed him. He paused to consider what he’d heard. He couldn’t help but hope that maybe—just maybe—she was trying to make her life better in Devil’s Bluffs for herself. That she was also thinking of the future and how she could make things good here. Or at least doable so she didn’t have to leave at all. Maybe, just maybe, they could somehow make this work.

  Feeling desperate to keep her there, and safe, he held her hands tight. “If you need answers, then let’s get them.”

  Cheers erupted again from the other table as she smiled. “Thank you. I’m not sure I could do this alone.”

  “You could do this alone,” he said, brushing his thumbs against her soft skin. “But I’m glad you asked me.” He hesitated, thinking of her father. From what he knew of the man, he was decent enough. Although Colter didn’t know Eric’s history. “What if he disappoints you today?” he asked, throwing that out there.

  “I’ve considered that,” she said. “And, to be honest, I’m not sure how I’ll feel about it all. I just know that I don’t want another day to pass without at least seeing him face-to-face.” She hesitated. Then her voice strengthened. “I don’t want to be the person hiding behind bushes to avoid him. I want to face him.”

  “Then we go,” Colter said immediately.

  She inhaled sharply, then slid out of the booth. “It’s probably best if we go now, so I don’t realize this is a huge mistake and I change my mind.”

  “You can change your mind, you know,” he told her.

  “No—” she lifted her chin “—I really can’t. I need these answers.”

  * * *

  The drive across town to Lowe’s Mechanics took fifteen minutes, though it felt like a thousand had gone by. Sitting next to Colter in his truck, Adeline fidgeted the whole way while he took the roads easy. She wanted this. She needed this to look herself in the mirror every day. She refused to be that shy girl who was too afraid to speak up again. But her nerves didn’t get that memo.

  They drove past gorgeous mansions that sat high on hills. Farms’ brands were on every metal gate leading up to million-dollar houses. Old money lived here in this part of Texas. Since she’d been there last, new mansions had seemed to pop up everywhere. The land belonging to the state now housed neighborhoods. Money was sprinkled everywhere on the land now.

  Until they reached the small auto body shop on the corner of the road that had yet to have a millionaire take it over to knock it down. Her insides twisted. Eric’s shop looked better than she had expected. The white paint was fresh, the garden cute, with big hostas filling up most of the space and brightly colored wildflowers occupying the rest.

  Colter pulled into one of the parking spots in front of the shop and cut the ignition. He shifted in his seat, looking at her straight on. “You don’t have to do this, you know.” He placed a big, comforting hand on her thigh. “If you want to leave, we leave, no questions asked.”

  She studied the shop’s sign, which likely glowed at night. Eric might not make millions, but his shop was well cared for, not quite the place she’d expected an alcoholic to own. Which only made her even more curious about the man. “Actually, I do need to do this,” she said, tapping into a well of strength she hadn’t known was there. “The other day when we talked about my dad, all I kept thinking was, maybe he’s the reason I ended up with someone who eventually cheated on me. Maybe it isn’t Brock I need to find peace with, it’s my dad.” Desperate to not change her mind, she opened the passenger door and got out. “It’s time I find out what really happened from his side of things.”

  Colter removed the keys from the ignition and hopped out, joining her at the passenger side of his truck. “Want me to come with you?” he asked, his brow wrinkled.

  Warmth flooded her as he took her hands, squeezing tight. “Thanks, but I need to do this alone.”

  “All right.” He tugged her into him, wrapping his arms around her tight. His kiss gave her just the right amount of reassurance she needed. “You’ve got this,” he said against her lips. “I’m here if you need me.”

  Oddly, she believed him on both fronts. It registered in her mind how much she trusted Colter. How, even after Brock cheating, she believed every word this man said. Always. She liked his steadiness most. “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

  She gave his hands a final squeeze before releasing him. Digging deep into her well of strength, she left Colter behind and approached her father’s shop. Both bays were open, with vehicles on lifts and ramps. Music played on the radio, barely audible over the sound of an electric drill.

  “Excuse me,” she called to the man working beneath the car. “I’m looking for Eric Lowe. Is he here?”

  “Yeah, sorry, one moment,” the man replied, moving out from beneath the car. When he began approaching, he wiped his hands on his oil-stained coveralls. His fingernails were rimmed with black grease. Her mind stuttered, taking in his brown hair with silver at the sides, round brown eyes and height, of over six feet.

  “I’m Eric Lowe,” her father said, frowning at something over her shoulder. “What can I do for you?”

  Adeline followed his gaze, glancing over her shoulder. Colter leaned imposingly against his truck, glaring daggers at Eric. Her heart swelled with affection. Having someone in her corner felt good. Real good. Drawing in a deep breath to find her bravery, she faced her father. “I...I am—”

  “Adeline,” Eric wheezed, the color draining from his face. He took a wobbly step forward. “You’re my daughter, aren’t you?”

  The ground rocked beneath her feet. “How did you know?” she managed.

  Eric’s gaze roamed her face. His voice shook. “You look just like your mother.”

  The unexpected softness in his eyes rocked her back on her heels. Tears welled in her eyes, and she cursed every single one. She dug her nails into her palms, letting the pain help her hide her emotions. She studied the hard lines of his face, every wrinkle, his dark eyes. “I certainly don’t look anything like you.”

  “Not much like me, no, but your hair—” he visibly gulped, statue-still “—it’s my mother’s color.” He glanced over her shoulder, scanning the area. “Is your mother here, too?”

  “It’s just me,” Adeline answered. “I thought maybe I should come and meet you.”

  His eyes, full of dark shadows, widened. “That was brave of you. I’m glad you did. There’s...things to say...things to explain.”

  She stared at this perfect stranger, not sure what she’d expected to find. But this soft-spoken, obviously hardworking man was not it. “I—”

  “Daddy,” a high-pitched voice squealed.

  Adeline spun on her heels, spotting a young brown-haired girl, probably around ten years old, charging toward them.

  The girl waved a paper in her hands. “I drew a painting!”

  Behind her, a woman a bit younger than Adeline’s mother’s age strode toward them, holding hands with a little boy, who looked around seven years old.

  “Oh, wow, look at that,” Eric said, studying the picture of a cat sitting on top of a mushroom. “Just incredible, Sissy. You are quite the little artist.”

  “I am terribly sorry for interrupting,” the woman, who must be Eric’s wife, said to Adeline before guiding her daughter toward the shop. “Our daughter forgets that not everyone is as excited about her art as we are.”

  Adeline wanted to speak. She tried to, but nothing came out of her parted lips. A sour taste hit the back of her throat as she watched the woman plant a tender kiss on Eric’s mouth, followed with Eric kissing the top of his son’s head.

  Adeline’s world stopped turning, ice chilling her veins as the family chatted for a moment.

  When they vanished into the office off the bay, Adeline barely managed, “You have a family?”

  “I do, yes,” Eric said, shoving his hands into his pockets. “A loving wife and two incredible kids.”

  Stepsiblings? Family. The air seemed to thin as Adeline fought to inhale. She gripped her stomach as it churned. “But how? You’re an alcoholic. Not a family man.”

  Eric’s shoulders hunched as he bowed his head, not meeting her gaze. “That is true,” he said in a small voice. “I was an alcoholic for a long time. An ugly one. Even a terrible person, too.” His head finally lifted, a flush creeping across his cheeks. “But I got help. I got better. And I changed my life.”

  No. No. No.

  Her mind was scrambling to find a logical excuse for his actions. None of this made any sense. “If you changed for the better, why didn’t you try and find me?” A telephone rang off in the distance, but the sound seemed so far away as the realization dawned on her. “You didn’t want me,” she whispered.

  He took a step forward, stare pained. “It’s not like that.”

  She retreated a step. Of all the reasons she’d thought she didn’t know her father, it had never occurred to her that he’d have a perfect family. One that she had dreamed of her entire life. A mom. A dad. Siblings.

  She took another step back, an ache burning in the back of her throat. “This was a mistake. I shouldn’t have come here.”

  “No, wait...” Eric reached out to her, his eyes wet. “Adeline, please...”

  Even the wind seemed to go still as the pain of his betrayal ripped her apart. Turning, she ran toward Colter, who was already charging her way.

  “Wait,” Eric called.

  Colter caught her in his arms and snarled, “Don’t.”

  She heard her father skid to a halt behind her at the single powerful word growled from Colter’s throat.

  Her stomach rolled as Colter led her to the truck. She trembled as he opened the passenger-side door and she leaped inside. Everything went quiet; her heartbeat thundering in her ears no longer made a noise. She felt oddly sluggish. A hum filled the heavy silence, an emptiness invading all the warm spots inside.

  Until she heard her father say, “Colter. Please. Just wait.”

  “I said, don’t, Eric,” Colter said through gritted teeth.

  Vaguely, she suddenly became aware they were driving again, but she couldn’t recall Colter joining her in the truck or driving away from the shop. All she knew was Colter’s strong, comforting hand on her thigh and that his strength was a pulsating force next to her. She stared out her window at a hawk soaring over the crops, wishing she could be that bird, that she could fly far, far away from here.

  Eleven

  A couple hours had gone by since they’d arrived home, and Adeline still hadn’t come out of the guest room. Not that Colter blamed her—he’d been fighting against driving back to Eric’s to take out his frustration on her father’s face. He’d finished responding to the couple emails he’d needed to handle before he ended up in the kitchen and began cooking dinner.

  Still, Adeline never came out of the room.

  Goddamn you, Eric.

  Colter never should have let the meeting happen. Because now the truth stared at him hard. Adeline wouldn’t just want to leave Devil’s Bluffs—she’d want to run and get on the first flight out of there.

  Expelling a sigh to cut through the tension along his shoulders, he turned down the stove, letting the beef stroganoff simmer. He cleaned up the used dishes, setting the pot back onto the hanging rack above the island.

  Time seemed to stand still when he knew she was in that room, crying. His house had never seemed emptier, quieter. The only sound came from the bubbling of the sauce on the stove, and his skin began to crawl.

  Unable to stand the distance between them any longer, he moved down the hallway and stopped outside the guest room. He cocked his head, listening, but couldn’t hear a single sound. Earlier when he’d walked by, he’d heard her on the phone—he figured to her mom or Nora.

  He knocked once. “I’ve made dinner. Please come out. You must be hungry.”

  A long pause.

  Again, he knocked. “Adeline?”

  “I’ll be out in a few minutes,” she said, her voice sounding scratchy.

  His fists clenched at the obvious tears she’d been crying. Yet again, he felt helpless to assist someone in his life. “I’ll be in the kitchen,” he told her before heading that way.

  When he reached the stove again, picking up the wooden spoon off the banged-up cutting board, his cell phone rang on the countertop. He snatched it up, discovering his lawyer was calling. “Daniel,” he said into the phone. “What’s up?”

  “Hi, Colter, sorry to call so close to dinner,” he said in his gravelly voice. “I received a call from Julia’s lawyer a few minutes ago. They’re requesting a meeting.”

  “A meeting.” He set the wooden spoon back down. “Did they say what they want?”

  “To be honest, I’m not exactly sure,” Daniel answered. “Which is the reason I’m calling. Has anything transpired between you two that I should know about?”

  Colter moved to the big window in his living room, staring out at the trees dancing in the breeze. “Nothing that would warrant a meeting. I recently saw Julia at a charity event in Dallas. We were amicable.”

  “All right,” Daniel said, and he paused, perhaps taking a note down. “Nothing happened between you two there that would upset her at all?”

  “Nothing that would warrant a meeting.” Colter did not feel the need to tell his lawyer about his fake engagement. “Besides, what more could she possibly want? Is she entitled to something else I’m not aware of?”

  “No, she’s not,” Daniel said with a sigh. “I can refuse the meeting, but I suggest we have it. Meeting face-to-face is always better than over a phone call.”

  “All right.” Colter bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from saying things he shouldn’t. “I’ll be there. Send me the date and time when you’ve got it.”

 

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