Page 46 of Alaskan Blackout

“There are shops in town and I’m sure we can find something you like.”

“Why don’t we see how this evening goes?”

“I understand.” He took his eyes off the road to briefly look over at her. “And I’m sorry if I’m pushing things. Just tell me to back off if you want.”

“Thanks. And it’s okay. This is a strange situation for both of us.”

After spending some time showing her around Applewood, as she’d expected, it was a beautiful little town, and the surrounding area, with its sprawling ranches, was magnificent. Just now, Elias was driving them down a winding dirt road, presumably to his own sprawling ranch.

“So, what does everyone think about me coming?”

Elias chuckled, but she didn’t like the sound of it. “Cathy and I have talked about you. She actually urged me to find you. But everyone else?” He shook his head. “They don’t know squat.”

“What?” she exclaimed, sitting up straight and turning to face him. “They don’t know?” Her earlier estimation of the man was apparently correct.Drama, drama, drama.

“I thought it would be a fun surprise for everyone,” he finished.

Piper opened her mouth, trying to find the words. “Are they...a group that generally enjoys surprises?” she asked.

This time his laugh was hearty and filled the cab of the SUV. “I wouldn’t say they do.”

She wondered what othersurpriseshe’d arranged for his family in the past. “This is unbelievable,” she said, shaking her head. “I feel like you’re setting me up for something.”

“No, my dear,” he said. “I’m not setting you up. But I figured that this might be the best way for you to meet everyone. So no one has the time to get their backs up.”

“You think they’ll get their backs up?” she asked. But she should have realized that, of course, they would. She was walking into a family as the long-lost daughter of one of the richest men in Texas, and they would likely be thinking about their inheritances or whatever it was that rich people cared about when strangers walked into their lives.

“No, of course not. But there will be questions,” he told her.

“That’s to be expected. I have questions myself.”

He nodded. “All in due time,” he said.

As they crested the top of the hill, a large ranch house and its expansive grounds came into view. “There she is—home.”

“You still live on the ranch?” she asked.

“Cathy and I moved to Arizona a while ago. I left the ranch operations to my grandson, Garrett, and he’s newly married and I thought it would be a good idea to give him some room. We love it in Arizona. It’s a good change of scenery, but I miss the ranch. There’s nothing quite like it.”

As they got closer, a nervous energy tore through Piper. This was it. She took a deep breath. Her life was about to change. She was on her way to meet her new family. She hadn’t forgiven Elias for springing this on her, and all of them. It would be awkward as hell, probably tense, hopefully not hostile, but this was her chance to get to know her family, and she was going to take it.

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