“ARE YOU SURE about this, Lily?” Matteo watched as Peyton’s sister smoothed her hand down the nose of the horse he’d come to love. “I don’t want to take advantage.”
“You aren’t,” Lily assured him. “Conner and I agree, this lady and Goldie need a good, calm, peaceful environment, and as wonderful as the ranch is, there’s a bit too much energy for them here. We’ll take good care of them. Promise.”
“Of that I have no doubt.” He hated to part with the horse, but what was he going to do with her in an apartment in California?
“I hope you know you and Gino are welcome to come back and visit her anytime you want. Seems the least we can do after all you’ve done for Peyton.”
It was how she said it, with that overly lilting, singsong voice that had his ears perking up. “Something on your mind?”
Lily shrugged. “Just wondering if my sister’s smart enough to realize how good a man you are. How good you are for her. You know, I haven’t seen her go this long without having her nose stuck in a spreadsheet in...well, forever.”
“She’s feeling free because she’s finally taking a vacation,” Matteo said. “Nothing to do with me.”
“Somehow I think it’s more than that.”
He had enough of an ego to silently agree. In the days following the revelation her stalker wasn’t so much stalking as he was trying to figure out how to explain his side of things, Peyton had been on a tear where ranch activities were concerned. Trail rides, barbecues, games, activities, decorations for Halloween: she was a one-woman whirling dervish. He’d even heard her lamenting the fact that Hadley Blackwell was too good at her job as a resort wedding planner because there was nothing for Peyton to do to help her sister other than assure Lily she would most definitely be back at the ranch for the Christmastime ceremony. “Don’t go counting on anything happening between us just yet, Lily. Peyton and I are still...” What? Figuring things out? Deciding if there was something close to a future together?
He knew what he was leaning toward, what he wanted, but he’d been down this road before with a professionally determined woman.
Would he and Gino ever be enough for Peyton Harrison? If it was just himself he had to worry about, it would be one thing, but with Gino’s custody hanging in the balance, not to mention his future, there weren’t a lot of chances Matteo was willing to take. Still. It was definitely mood-elevating to consider a future that included Peyton.
“Speaking of my sister, where’s she gotten to this morning?”
“She wouldn’t tell me,” Matteo said. “She and Gino are on a secret shopping trip. Probably something to do with the Halloween bash tonight. They still won’t tell me what he’s going to be dressed as.”
“What are you going as?” Lily teased.
“The scariest thing I could think of.” He grinned. “I’m gonna be a cowboy.”
Lily laughed. “Oh.” She snapped her fingers. “Just one more technicality where the horse is concerned. What’s her name?”
“Beauty.” No other name suited. No other name came close. And no other name would do. “Her name is Beauty.” He moved closer and held out his hand for the horse to nuzzle. “And she’s going to have a wonderful life as a Blackwell.”
“COME ON, HURRY UP!” Gino’s entire body vibrated as he stomped his feet while Peyton knotted his little black necktie. “The party’s already happening!”
“It’ll be happening all night, little man. You can be a bit late.” How could one small boy cause such havoc in one two-bedroom cabin? He’d been beyond excited from the second he woke up this morning and had only gotten more energetic as the day wore on. Probably, she figured, due to the bottomless bowls of candy Hadley had all around the ranch. Candy corn, marshmallow ghosts, candy-coated apples, cotton-candy spiderwebs... If there was any sugar left in Montana, Peyton would be shocked. Every cabin porch was strewn with twinkling lights, stacks of carved pumpkins and wispy, gauzy ghosts billowing in the October breeze.
“I told Rosie I’d be there now,” Gino whined. “Aren’t you done yet?”
“Hang on.” Peyton reached behind her for the plastic star and clipped it to his belt. She’d convinced him to forego the toy gun he’d had his heart set on and instead talked him into a fluorescent-green water pistol. “And one last thing.” She pushed the pair of sunglasses onto his face and watched his face split into a huge grin.
“How do I look?”
“See for yourself.” She steered him over to the mirror. “Well?”
“Awesome! It’s perfect! Just like you said.”
“I happen to be a genius for Halloween costumes.” She’d always loved her and her sisters’ tradition of dressing up as a group with a common theme. One year they’d donned costumes of mother nature, each representing an element. Another they’d chosen their favorite TV cartoon characters. One of their last Halloweens together they’d each chosen a female scientist—Peyton had gone with Marie Curie despite the less than happy ending the woman had endured. “What’s Rosie coming as?”
“A witch.” Gino scrunched up his face. “She said it’s a witch who wears pink, but I told her I didn’t think there was such a thing. She said I’m wrong and that she’ll prove it tonight. Do witches wear pink, Peyton?”
“Witches wear whatever they want to wear,” Peyton told him. “I doubt Rosie’s often wrong about such things.” Talk about a bundle of energy. Katie and Chance’s little girl definitely gave Gino competition in that department. “You ready to show your dad?”
“Yeah! Let’s go!” he slammed out of the room. “Dad! I’m ready! Come see!” He jumped into a frozen pose that had Peyton snort-laughing as Matteo emerged from his bedroom, cowboy hat, boots, flannel shirt all in place.
What weeks before had been a slight flutter and zinging in her heart had, in the past few days, settled into a constant, buzzing, thrilling hum. There was something about this man—a man who had every reason to run far and fast from anything cowboy, yet here he’d donned the perfect costume to have fun with his son—and it made her heart stand up and take notice.
Matteo stared at Gino, confusion V-ing his brows. “Well, you look pretty professional. Who are you? A character from Men in Black? An FBI agent?”
“No.” Gino looked stunned that his father didn’t see it.
Peyton shook her head, just enough for Matteo to notice. “He’s you,” she mouthed before Gino caught her.
“I’m Protector Man!” Gino struck another pose. “Like you protect Peyton and all those other people with your job. See? I’ve got the suit and the gun and everything. I even have a badge!”
“I don’t wear—”
Peyton cleared her throat.
“Right.” Matteo nodded and walked over to his son, flipped his glasses down his nose. “You look amazing, Gino. I’m very flattered.”
“Peyton said you would be. I wanna be just like you when I grow up, Daddy. Peyton said I could, so can I?”
Matteo nodded. Peyton pressed a finger to her trembling lips. He really had no idea how absolutely amazing he was with that boy.
“You can be anything you want to be, G.”
“Well, right now I want to be at that party because I’m starving!” Peyton grabbed her own cowboy—or was it cowgirl?—hat, one she’d borrowed from Lily, and boot-scooted over to the door. “Let’s see how these Blackwells throw a party.”
“I MAY JUST die from the cute.” Peyton stuffed another marshmallow ghost into her mouth and tilted her head back to grin at Matteo, hand clasping her hat to her head. “Look how cute they all are!”
Matteo wasn’t one to throw the word cute around, but he had to admit, glancing at the smorgasbord of costumed children of all ages, cute seemed a pretty apt description.
“Look at all those Blackwells over with Gino.” Peyton sighed and moved closer to Matteo. “All dressed up like Wizard of Oz characters. There’s Rosie as Glinda because pink, obviously.”
“I think the two Totos are Jon and Lydia’s twins. What were their names again?” Matteo was having trouble keeping everyone straight.
“Marshall and Brendan. They’re just so... I just want to squeeze their cheeks!”
“Resist,” he teased. I see Abby and Gen over there by the ghoul punch. Scarecrow and Tinma—”
“Woman,” Peyton corrected him. “And sweet Poppy is Dorothy. Look at her terrific red shoes!”
“Where’s the lion?” Matteo craned his neck. “This is like some weird Halloween bingo game.”
“There.” Peyton pointed to Ethan’s son Eli, who was stealing the show with his golden mane of yarn and a cute black button nose.
They continued making comments and pointing out the various costumes, worn by both kids and parents, grandparents and Falcon Creek residents alike.
“I bet the entire town showed up to this thing.” Matteo slipped an arm around Peyton’s waist and drew her closer. “Pop said they would.”
“Hadley’s been working so hard on this. It’s nice to see everyone having such a good time.”
Strobe lights in orange, yellow and white pulsed and spun into the night sky. The picnic tables had been decked out with lights similar to the ones strung around the porches. Even the fence around the paddock displayed carved pumpkin heads and bushels of red, ripe apples.
Game booths had been set up, too, from bobbing for apples to ring toss onto traffic cones painted to look like giant candy corn. Darts to pop white-balloon ghosts and a fishing pond where frogs were chosen for a jumping contest.
“I like how everything’s cheery and fun.” Peyton rested her head on Matteo’s upper arm. “None of that übercreepy zombie stuff.” She shuddered. “That freaks me out.”
“Kids get scared enough these days,” Matteo agreed. “No need to add the same to holidays. Oh, look. Wonder what those are.” He sniffed the air and drew Peyton with him as he checked out the freshly baked handheld pies.
“Oh, good.” Hadley handed them each one with a look of relief. She was dressed to the nines as Little Bo Peep, complete with bright red cheeks and ringlet curls. “You two test these out for me. New recipe. I was trying for those English pasties. These are potato and cheese with a little bit of heat from chipotle peppers.”
Matteo had a bite, nodding in approval the second the treat hit his tongue. “It’s good.” He covered his mouth as he laughed. “When do you get to take a break and enjoy yourself?”
“Ah, good question.” Hadley pressed her hands into her spine and arched her back. “Junior here is currently doing practice kicks, preparing for his professional soccer career, so...never?”
“You can’t have anything else to do,” Peyton said, biting into her savory pastry. “And wow, Matteo was right. This is yummy. What can we do to help?”
“Honestly, you don’t have to—”
“Hadley,” Peyton said in that familiar, no-nonsense tone of hers. “What can we do to help?”
“The punch bowls need refilling, and so do the candy bowls. I’ve got another two trays of these things in the oven and then there’s the dessert table. I think the chocolate fountain—”
“We’re on it,” Matteo said before she got lost in the details. “Go find Ty and have fun. Get off your feet if you can.” He plucked up a nearly empty bowl of apples as Peyton retrieved more bowls and platters to top up from a nearby table.
“You guys are the best. Thanks.”
Thanks to Hadley’s impeccable organization skills, it didn’t take them long to replenish the food and get back to enjoying the party themselves. “I have to admit, this is all pretty great.”
“Why are you surprised?” Peyton asked. “Something told me this family knows a thing or two about parties.”
“Maybe with a surprise guest?” Matteo glanced toward the headlights heading along the driveway, jostling and bumping down the road toward the main house. “Is that an RV?”
“A rather ancient-looking one,” Peyton said. “I wonder who—”
“It’s Great-grandpa!” Rosie squealed before she hiked up her poofy pink gown and ran toward the vehicle. By the time she got there, her oversize crown was tipping precariously to one side. The rest of the kids trailed behind, Gino further away as he clearly was assessing the situation.
“Your cautious little protector,” Peyton teased Matteo. “Great-grandpa must mean Big E’s back home.”
“Wondered what took him so long,” Matteo said, then had the good sense to look guilty when Peyton moved in front of him to glare into his eyes.
“Explain, please.”
“Uh, it was Ty and Jon’s idea. They thought he should know what’s been going on since your so-called stalker showed up...”
“Oh, no. No, no, no. Tell me you didn’t make Big E aware of what happened.”
“Of course we did. Why not? He’s the one who sent you out here in the first place.”
“Why not?” Peyton groaned. “Because these days Big E’s been traveling around with my father!”
“He found Thomas? When?”
“No, not Thomas Blackwell.” She flinched as if he’d just reminded her of something she didn’t want to address. “Rudy Harrison. The father who raised me. They’ve been off on a wild-goose chase trying to find Thomas.”
“And this is bad because...?”
Peyton sighed. “I guess we really haven’t talked a lot about this. But there’s not much more to the story. Big E is convinced, and apparently my father is, too, that Thomas is still alive and out there somewhere. He wants us all to reunite in a big family shindig.” She rolled her eyes. “After all these years, if Thomas hasn’t been seen or found, it’s not going to happen.”
“Is that what you know?” Matteo asked. “Or are you trying not to get your hopes up?”
All humor faded from her face. “That’s...an interesting question.”
“I’m full of them.” Matteo reached out, stroked a finger down the side of her face. “You have a big heart, Peyton. You don’t let a lot of people see it often, but it’s there. And it’s been broken. Not getting your hopes up about your real dad is one thing you can do to try to protect yourself.”
“I wouldn’t even know what to say to him if I ever saw him again.” She shook her head, the confusion marring her face scraping against his heart.
He took a deep breath, looked up into the pristine night sky, lost himself for a moment in the faint lights of the universe winking at them. “All my life, I dreamed about belonging to someone. Anyone. To know who I came from. My parents. Mom, Dad. Grandparents. Siblings. Cousins.” He glanced over to where his son circled Big E as the older man climbed out of the RV, followed by another man who looked a bit shell-shocked by the scene surrounding them. “Don’t be afraid of what might be and forget to see what is, Peyton. These people, they’re your family. And there are so, so many of us who have never been, will never be, that lucky.”
“Matteo.” Peyton reached up and caught his face in her hands. “You are lucky. You can be. Maybe we...”
His cell phone vibrated in his back pocket. He held up a finger. “Hold that thought.” He pressed his mouth to hers for a long moment before he checked his screen. Knots that had loosened days before tightened in his chest. “It’s Sylvia.”
“Oh.” She frowned. “Are you going to answer it?”
“Yeah. This is the first time she’s called me back. Do you... I’m sorry.”
“No, don’t apologize.” She pointed toward the cupcakes as if trying to distract herself. “I haven’t tried every flavor yet, and I’m planning to get my fill before I head home the day after tomorrow.”
He nodded absently, wanting to answer the call before Sylvia changed her mind and hung up without leaving a message. He moved off toward the cabin and away from the partygoers and noise. “Sylvia. This is a surprise.”
“Matteo, hi. Yes, I know. I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner.” She sounded breathless, a bit anxious, something he’d never known his ex-wife to be.
“Is everything okay? With the baby?”
“Oh, he’s fine,” Sylvia said. “I’m sorry. I just got the best news and I wanted to... Well, there’s this huge deal that came our way a few days ago. Like life-changing, it’s-going-to-get-me-my-promotion kind of deal. Major distribution worldwide with serious backing and capital.”
“Congratulations.” What else was he going to say. “I thought maybe you were calling about Gino. About me calling you the other day to ask if he’d ever been tested for a learning difference.” Temper, he reminded himself. Keep it under control.
“Oh, that. Right. Slipped my mind. No, I don’t remember his teachers saying anything about it, but here’s the real reason I’m calling. This new promotion means I’m going to be doing a lot of traveling. All over the world this time, not just between the States and Japan. Jiro’s not crazy about the idea, but it’s not something I can pass up. The thing is...and I hope you can tell Gino for me. I’m not going to fight your claim for full custody, Matteo. I think it’ll be better for him, for all of us, if he stays with you.”
Matteo’s head went light. He grabbed hold of the paddock fence to stay on his feet. “Say that again?” The bubble of pressure that had settled in his chest two years before stretched to the point of bursting.
“I’m relinquishing custody to you, effective immediately. It just makes sense, Matteo. For all of us.”
So she kept saying. “Just like that. You aren’t going to come out and say goodbye or help him get settled here?”
“I honestly don’t know when I’ll find the time. You know what? I’ll give him a call next week, and we’ll video chat. Just like you used to. You do still want full custody, don’t you?”
“Certainly.” He just wasn’t expecting her to give up. And that’s exactly what it sounded like she was doing. But why? Why now? What had changed her mind? It couldn’t be the new baby. “I’ll have my lawyer draw up the documents.”
“No need. I had them drawn up and sent copies to you and your lawyer. They should be waiting for you when you get back from Montana.”
“Right.” He nodded, trying to clear the fog in his brain. “Okay. I’ll look them over as soon as I get home. Sylvia?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.” He didn’t know what else to say. “Just...thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Oh, and do me one favor? Thank Peyton for me? Her stepping in to help make this deal come together changed everything. My bosses are so excited to be working with Electryone, and they’re giving me the credit. Next stop, CEO. Talk later. Bye.”
The farewell stuck in his throat. He lowered his hand, stared at the screen. “Thank Peyton?”
“Thank Peyton for what?” Peyton ran up behind him, held out a cake pop decorated like a pumpkin. “Eat one of these. They’re fab. So, what did she say?”
“Who?” Matteo couldn’t quite process everything he’d heard.
“Who?” She hip-bumped him and laughed. “Sylvia. Why did she call?”
Matteo stared into her eyes and looked for even a hint of surprise or curiosity or...confusion. But there wasn’t anything like that. Because she already knew. “She gave me full custody of Gino.”
Her smile seemed genuine enough, but he thought he also saw relief on her face. “Congratulations, Daddy. I knew it would work out. We should go tell Gino he doesn’t have to go to boarding school.” She darted away, but he reached out and caught her arm, pulled her back. “What? Don’t you want to tell—”
“What did you do, Peyton?”
“Do?” Her eyebrows shot up, but once again, the surprise wasn’t there. She was a good liar, except with him. “Do about what?”
“Sylvia said to thank you for helping make this deal of hers happen. What deal?”
Peyton scrunched her nose. “She wasn’t supposed to say anything about that. I didn’t think she would. I didn’t want to share the credit.”
“What. Did. You. Do?”
Now the shock appeared as she twisted her arm free. “I did my research. I looked into her. Her business dealings, her résumé and business portfolio. I did an analysis of what she was probably looking to do with her career. Where she wanted to go. I found we had some mutual interests and connections. So, I reached out, and it ended up that there were benefits for both companies, mine and hers, to doing a deal together.”
“Why?” It didn’t make sense. “Why would you try to help my ex-wife?”
“Because after reading about her, I felt as if I understood her. I hedged my bets in assuming that job was more important to her than keeping custody of your son. I was right.”
“You were right.” Could she hear herself? “You blackmailed my ex-wife into giving me custody?”
Her gaze sharpened. “It wasn’t blackmail. No one mentioned Gino,” she snapped. “Or where he’d be better off. It was a business negotiation. It’s what I do for a living. I find what works to my company’s advantage, and I do what’s necessary to get the deal done. Only, in this case, you were the company. I don’t understand—”
“No, I can see you don’t.” Matteo began to pace, shoved his hands into his hair and knocked off his hat. It fell to the ground with a dull plop. “You didn’t even give me the chance to fight for him. Instead you just made it all happen.”
“I guess this means I won’t be getting a thank-you?”
“You want me to thank you for bribing my ex-wife into giving me our son. Tell me something, Peyton. And please, take a moment to think about this.” The anger he’d felt toward Sylvia paled in comparison to what raged through him now. “What happens in, say, five or ten years, when Gino’s older, and Sylvia, in Sylvia’s loose-tongued, callous way, lets slip the fact that she got her fancy new job by giving up her son? That she threw him away in exchange for a payday?”
Peyton’s eyes went cold. “Even if she did do that, you have your son with you. He’ll be loved, and he’ll know he’s wanted. He won’t be left behind. You won’t leave him behind.”
The light dawned. Even as he connected the dots, the anger remained. “I am not your father, Peyton. I am not Thomas Blackwell, and you know what? Neither is Sylvia. You can’t fix what’s wrong with your own life by trying to fix mine.”
“That isn’t what I was doing.” But he could see it in her eyes. The question. The doubt. “I wanted Gino safe. That kid deserves the entire universe, and he was never going to get it with her. She was shipping him off to a boarding school he didn’t want to go to that may or may not have clued into the help Gino needs. That light he has inside of him.” Her breath caught. “That light inside of him would have gone out, and no one would have been there to see it.”
“You didn’t even give me the chance to try.” He shook his head. “Peyton. You didn’t even give me the chance.”
“Some risks aren’t worth taking,” Peyton said.
“Everything’s a deal to you, isn’t it? A business opportunity. A chance to advance. Tell me, did you talk Ty into those new solar panels? You know, during those days you were hiding out here from a stalker?”
“Gabriel was only stalking me to scare me off my job,” she said through tight lips. “And yes, Ty and Hadley let me know this morning they’re going to move ahead with the panels once the Olwen deal is...done.” She trailed off, as if realizing his question had been rhetorical. “This is done, isn’t it?” She whispered, blinking so fast he couldn’t see her eyes any longer. “This...whatever it was between us. It’s done.”
“You went behind my back, Peyton. You could have said something, anything to me about this. We could have found a way to approach Sylvia without you having to buy her off. What if she changes her mind one day about Gino’s custody and sues me after all? She’s got my...” His what? What was Peyton to him? His girlfriend? The woman he loved? The woman he’d fallen hard and fast for, despite all his reservations. “She’s got my client doing my dirty work.”
“She won’t do that,” Peyton said. “She’s making her arrangements with you all legal and aboveboard. Presumably she could change her mind at a point down the road, but by then Gino will be happy and used to being with you, and no judge would change that arrangement, surely.”
He let out a harsh breath. “You thought of everything, didn’t you?”
“Yes.” She inched up her chin. “I did. And I won’t apologize for making sure your son gets to stay with you, where he’s safe and protected and cared for. I am sorry you can’t see it for what it was.”
“And what was it?”
“Love, Matteo.” Her voice broke, but the tears shimmering in her eyes against the moonlight didn’t fall. “It was all done for love.”
With that, she turned her back on him and walked away.