A Family, At Last

“Why did you need to get out of town?” She hadn’t seemed like a flighty woman, but appearances could be deceiving. He’d learned that the hard way.

“Christmas isn’t a...good time of year for me. I usually fly to Vermont to see my parents, but I canceled the trip.”

The fragility was there, still, in her face, especially her eyes. “Why isn’t it a good time of year for you?” Then he remembered. He’d learned that her brother had died on Christmas Eve. It took some of the steam out of him, allowing a little sympathy to worm its way into his irritation.

“You ask hard questions,” she said, sort of smiling. “A lot of factors went into my decision, including getting angry at Gloriana Macbeth. I’m always well behaved in public, but this time I wasn’t.”

An image of the many-times proclaimed sexiest woman alive flashed in Vaughn’s head. “I read she was a client of yours.”

“She was.”

“Ouch. That bad?”

Karyn shrugged. “It was suggested that I take some time off.”

He didn’t want to know more, didn’t want to see the hurt in her eyes any longer. Didn’t want any kind of attachment to her. He’d always been drawn to women who needed taking care of. He recognized it as his fatal flaw.

“I just wanted to meet my niece,” she said quietly.

“That hasn’t been—”

“Confirmed. I know. I just feel it in my bones.”

“I need hard fact.”

She sighed. “I know.” She looked around. “It’s gotten dark. I need to go while I can still see the roads. I’m sorry I bothered you.”

She was too late. He heard his mother’s truck head up the driveway. As soon as the vehicle stopped, Cassidy jumped out and raced to Vaughn. She had red and green frosting not only on her clothes but also in her hair, the same sprung curls as Karyn’s, although blond rather than light brown.

Vaughn stumbled over the introductions, especially when Karyn’s eyes glistened. He gave her name but nothing else. His mother, her short blond hair hidden by her usual straw cowboy hat, looked at him curiously, but Cassidy just offered her hand to shake.

“Nice to meet you,” his daughter said, like an adult, to Karyn.

“Same here.” Karyn looked like she wanted to scoop up Cassidy and never let go.

Cassidy peeked into Karyn’s car. “Do you live in there?” she asked, her green eyes going wide.

Karyn laughed. “No, but it’s full, isn’t it? I’m traveling.”

“Are you staying with us?”

Karyn didn’t take her eyes off Cassidy. “I have reservations at a motel nearby.”

“But why are you here?”

“She came to paint, Cass. She’s an artist.” He ignored the way Karyn fired daggers at him with her eyes as he winged an answer he hoped his daughter would accept.

“Paint what?” Cass asked.

“Whatever interests me,” Karyn said.

“Oh!” Cassidy’s eyes went wide, then she jumped up and down. “It’s my turn! It’s my turn, isn’t it? Finally. Right, Daddy? My official family portrait.”

“Um...” Karyn took a couple of steps back, panic having replaced the daggers. “I don’t—”

Cassidy hugged her father. “Oh, boy! Come on, Karyn. I’ll show where it’s going to go.”

“Sweetheart,” Vaughn said, putting his hands on her shoulders to still her. “Karyn needs to get back to the motel.”

“But it’s dark.”

“Cars have headlights.”

“Cass has a point,” his mother said, a twinkle in her eyes.

Little escaped her. She’d obviously seen there’d been some misperceptions going on.

“She should stay here with us,” Cass said, looking triumphant.

“What?” Vaughn and Karyn said at the same time.

“You have enough room,” his mother said. “It’ll be so much better than driving back and forth. That’s a long trip to make every day.”

“Oh, I couldn’t,” Karyn said, but everyone looked at Vaughn.

“Sure you can,” Cassidy said. “The Ryders are always good hosts, right, Grammie? Right, Daddy? We are known for it,” she added because she’d heard it said for her entire life.

Vaughn felt stuck at first, then he realized he’d been given a great opportunity. She could observe him and his daughter for a couple of days and see what a team they were, how much love they shared, what a good parent he was. The setup could be the advantage he needed to convince her not to take him to court over custody—or whatever plan she had in mind. She’d mentioned instructions in a will—

No, she couldn’t win custody, even shared. Probably. But he didn’t want to hedge his bets.

“Of course you should stay here,” he said. “I’m sorry I didn’t make that clear sooner.”

“And you’ll come to dinner at the homestead tonight,” his mother added.

“Oh, no. Thank you but no. I can’t intrude on family time.”

Since when? Vaughn wondered. Maybe it had been her plan all along.

“Nonsense, dear. There’s plenty of food. You might be overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of us—not only our family but our staff, too. It’s a little chaotic but fun.” She gave Cassidy a kiss. “We’ll see you later, all cleaned up.”

“Go hop in the shower,” Vaughn told his daughter when his mother’s truck was out of sight. “Shampoo twice.”

“Okay, Daddy.” She skipped off then hopped the stairs one at a time, her boots hitting each step hard. She slipped them off before she went into the house.

Karyn rounded on Vaughn. “What does she mean about a portrait?”

“All the kids have a portrait done at around this age. She’s well aware of it and has been pressing me to have hers done.”