Page 78 of Colton First Responder (Coltons of Mustang Valley)

She’d intended to discuss it more with Grayson, and he’d called her to invite her to dinner with his family tonight at their ranch.

That discussion would have to wait.

He had picked her up early at her request so she could buy a nicer outfit to feel more comfortable meeting his family.

She made a mental note of the cost and added it to the amount she’d been keeping track of to repay Grayson when she got access to her own assets.

Now they were nearly at the ranch. Grayson had told her he had related her story to one of his brothers, so he figured the rest of his siblings were now aware of it.

“Plus,” he said, “that possible brother of ours is going to be there, too.” Grayson had described the situation to her, including the likelihood that the man known as Ace Colton, their oldest brother, was not related to them by blood at all, and that the mysterious Jace Smith now claimed to be the real Ace.

“Do you think, then, that this is the real guy?”

“I guess we’ll find out,” Grayson said as he pulled in through the gate and pulled into a parking spot. near the entry to the main house. “He’s agreed to a DNA test.”

Would she ever want to live here? Staying overnight in Grayson’s suite was okay, but more? That thought came to her as he strode beside her up the wide walkway to the front door. He didn’t knock but opened it.

She was glad she had chosen a dress and heels that appeared elegant enough for this venue, a slate blue dress decorated with white flowers, short sleeved and of a flowing fabric—dressy, yet far from formal. And except for the length of her hair, she knew she looked like herself once more.

Grayson showed her through the living room to the dining room, where most of the seats were occupied. He introduced her to a lot of people, all Coltons—except the guy who was Jace Smith and still, possibly, a Colton.

Some of them had spouses or significant others there, too. Savannah was happy when she sat at Grayson’s right side, and to her right were his brother Callum, with whom she understood Grayson was very close, plus his fiancée, Hazel Hart, and Hazel’s adorable daughter, Evie, a five-year-old who had long brown hair and a fun, outgoing personality.

The kind of daughter Savannah might wish for someday.

And that thought caused her to look toward her left, where Grayson sat.

At that moment, he was looking in her direction, too—though not directly at her. He appeared to be observing little Evie, as well.

Was he interested in having kids, too? Savannah had never asked him that.

Could she, would she, like an ongoing relationship with Grayson, including a marriage and kids? At that moment, with his family around, and with her own life a whole lot better than it had been, Savannah had to believe she would, in fact, like it.

But would Grayson?

“So what do you think of my family?” Grayson whispered into her ear.

“They seem like nice people,” she said noncommittally. “This is certainly different from how I was brought up. My family’s a lot smaller.”

“Well, maybe you need a larger one,” Grayson murmured, then appeared to realize what he had said and took a swig of beer from the stein on the table at the far side of his salad bowl. “Or you should have had one to help you through the mess you just went through a lot better than I could help you.”

Savannah was amused at his attempt to back down from what he had said—even as she began to ponder how she really would get along with his family...if.

“No one could have done better than you,” was all she said.

She didn’t have an opportunity to discuss what he meant any further, since it seemed his family members wanted to get to know the strangers in their midst a bit more. From Ace to attorney sister Ainsley, Rafe, twins Callum and Marlowe, and ranch foreman Asher, they all started asking her questions. Savannah concentrated on their names, wanting to remember them even if she didn’t know who else they had brought to this dinner. Her mood was high, thanks to her exoneration—and she had something to announce that she hadn’t yet told Grayson, either. This seemed like a good enough time to let him know.

“And it’s now official,” she said, looking at him. “I received a call from Police Chief Al Barco before. All charges against me have been dropped.”

“I knew that,” Grayson chimed in. “Barco let me know he’d told you, and it’s in the media today, too.”

And Savannah could only laugh as the others in the room congratulated her.

They next held a detailed conversation with Jace, who told them about a really awful childhood, where his mother was hardly present. But his attitude, at least, was good.

That led to their last major discussion of the evening—about Payne Colton, who remained in a coma. Savannah felt so sorry for him, and for all his children. She wished she could do something to help.

And maybe she could—at least a little. She would encourage Grayson to go see his dad tomorrow.

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