But he shouldn’t have done it. He’d been trying to get his footing, but one thing he knew for certain was that he had to make smart choices about what was best, not just for him but for his children. He might regret not kissing Olivia just once, but he’d regret messing up with his daughters a whole lot more. His focus needed to be on them, not on romance. They were still little—he could fix this if he focused and worked hard enough. This was a fresh start for him, and maybe he didn’t need Olivia’s reassurance that he was a good man. He needed to work his tail off and prove it.
“Turn left up here,” Olivia said softly, and he slowed for the turn. These roads were starting to feel more familiar now, a combination of driving them recently and his returning memories.
Sawyer glanced over at Olivia. Her cheeks were still pink, and he couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she was. He wanted to reach over and hold her hand, but he wouldn’t. He was the one taking this too far—it wasn’t her fault.
The next couple of turns, Sawyer remembered without prompting. Things were getting easier, and he could tell that he’d be back to some semblance of normal pretty soon. His roots were sinking deep again with every memory that came back and every new one that he made with his daughters and his uncle on this land. Except Olivia had been a part of that, too, and when she left, she’d leave an aching hole behind.
The West Ranch was coming up, and he signaled the turn. He was home. He could feel it in his gut—that sensation of everything settling down into a comfortable rhythm like a heartbeat. He turned into the drive and followed it around. As he approached the house, he saw two extra vehicles parked next to his uncle’s truck, a shiny black sedan and a large wine-colored SUV that looked expensive to both drive and buy. One would be Evelyn’s...
“I wonder who’s here,” Sawyer said.
He glanced over at Olivia, and saw that the blood had drained from her face. He looked back toward the vehicles, anxiety ramping up inside of him.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“I know that SUV.” She let out a shaky breath. “I’m so sorry, Sawyer. I had no idea they’d just show up like this—”
“Who?” But as his stomach sank, he already knew the answer.
Olivia met his gaze with a pleading one of her own. “Mia’s parents.”
Sawyer’s brain spun, and he looked at that SUV once more as he parked. Mia’s parents, who’d been so furious that their daughter had lowered herself to his level that they’d cut her off. His girls’ grandparents, who now said they wanted to make up, get to know him, get access to his daughters.
He parked the truck behind his uncle’s and hopped out. He had a bad feeling about this.
Lord, guide me, he prayed silently.
Olivia slammed her door shut and followed him a couple of steps behind as he headed for the front door. He wasn’t really keen on meeting these people, but he also didn’t want to leave his daughters around them, either, without him there. He pushed open the door and when he stepped inside, the rumble of conversation stopped and all eyes turned to him.
An older man sat with Bella on his knee. He was slim and wore dress pants and a vest with a starched white shirt. His hair was silver, and his eyes were steel blue. He must be Wyatt White. Next to him was an older woman with hair dyed brown. She wore some expensive-looking wrap around her shoulders that perfectly matched her lipstick. She must be Irene. She looked like an older version of Mia, he realized in a flash. Lloyd stood by the sink, a crying Lizzie in his arms, Evelyn standing next to him looking uncomfortable.
“Hi, there,” Sawyer said, breaking the silence. He stepped up to the older man and scooped his daughter out of his arms. That felt better. Lizzie saw him and stopped crying immediately.
“Daddy!” she said plaintively.
“Hi, Lizzie,” he said, and he gave her a smile, just for her. Then he turned to look at the interlopers sitting at the table. They shifted in their chairs and smiled at him—a prim kind of smile that hid any real emotion.
“Sawyer,” Wyatt said, rising to his feet. “It’s been a long time.”
Wyatt put his hand out to shake, and Sawyer did the polite thing and shook his hand. He didn’t like this, though. It felt off. He glanced back at Olivia behind him, and her face stayed pale.
“Hello, Olivia, dear,” Irene said with a smile.
“Hi,” Olivia said weakly. “What are you doing here?”
“We were tired of waiting,” Wyatt said with a shrug. “We decided to come on down to Beaut ourselves. Sawyer, we heard about your injury. How are you doing now?”
“I’m fine,” he said. “Thanks. What can I do for you?”
“We were hoping to talk,” Wyatt said, taking his seat again. “We let things get out of hand before, and we want to fix it. I think we’ve left this gap between us for far too long.”
Lloyd cleared his throat, and he and Evelyn exchanged a look.
“We’re going to let you all talk,” Lloyd said as he eased Lizzie into Olivia’s arms. “Nice to see you again, Senator, Mrs. White.”
“You, too, Lloyd,” Irene said with a smile. “Thank you for the visit. And nice to meet you, Evelyn.”
Lloyd took Evelyn’s hand and tugged her after him out into the living room. Apparently, Lloyd figured Sawyer would need some privacy for this, and maybe he did. But having Olivia here with him mattered, too. She knew these people, and he didn’t even remember them. But there was something about having them in his kitchen that felt like a threat.
“I
