But he didn’t make it past the threshold. There was an older man coming up the walk wearing brand-new jeans and a plaid flannel shirt. With his hair shaved so close to his head and all the changes nearly a quarter of a century had wrought in his face and body, he looked different, but Dallas easily recognized him.
It was his father.
Aiyana had had such a wonderful week. Her wedding had been beautiful, her honeymoon romantic and relaxing, and, so far, Christmas had been spectacular. She was excited to think that Dallas might finally allow himself to fall in love and grow some roots, especially because she really liked Emery. Aiyana thought she might soon have another daughter-in-law and was singing along to “White Christmas” while helping the twins pick up all the discarded wrapping paper when she heard the angry shouting that brought all of her holiday cheer to an abrupt halt.
“Get out of here while you can still walk!” she heard Dallas shout. “I don’t ever want to see you again. Do you understand?”
“Dallas, hear me out,” came the reply. “I’m not the same man I was. I found God while I was in prison, and He’s changed my life.”
Aiyana’s hand flew up to cover her mouth. “Oh no.”
She knew Cal had heard the same thing, because he looked equally shocked. “He’s here,” he said. “That son of a bitch didn’t honor the agreement.”
Aiyana’s heart jumped into her throat. She’d contacted the prison while she was on her honeymoon to inquire about Robert Ogilvie—what type of man the warden and the correction officers who dealt with him thought he was, and had been disappointed to hear what they had to say. They claimed that he was manipulative, unrepentant and one of the most selfish human beings they had ever known—and that was saying a lot, considering the men they dealt with on a daily basis.
“You’re so full of shit,” Dallas said. “I could kill you for what you did.”
Aiyana nearly tripped over a chair in her hurry to get out of the house. Dallas had been so happy once he’d made the decision to fly to Boston. Had Robert shown up fifteen minutes later, he would’ve missed him. She couldn’t believe that he would have to face this during the holidays, after all.
“What are you doing here?” she asked when she saw Robert standing—surprisingly defiant—halfway up the walk to her house.
Dallas’s father lifted a hand. “I’m sorry. I waited as long as I could. I’m not here to cause any trouble. I stayed away, like you asked me to, so that I wouldn’t bother you during your wedding.”
Like she’d asked him to? He accepted a thousand dollars to stay away but had still interrupted their holiday. “As if this is any better?” she said. “It’s Christmas morning!”
Dallas whirled around to face her. “You knew he was in town and you didn’t tell me?”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “He came here a couple of weeks ago, but he promised me he wouldn’t try to contact you until after the holidays. I wanted to give you that much time to enjoy being home.”
“I would’ve waited and come in January like you wanted,” Robert explained. “But I was afraid Dallas would leave right after Christmas, and I wouldn’t be able to find him. I’ve waited so long!”
“How can you even say that?” Seth said. He and her other sons came pouring out of the house and were gathered around her on the porch, their faces filled with shock, outrage and anger for Dallas’s sake. “How can you feel any self-pity after what you’ve done?”
“I wasn’t in my right mind when...when that happened.”
“In your right mind?” Dallas echoed. “Your boss had just discovered that you’d been redirecting funds and embezzling from the company! You were going to be arrested and you wanted to run away, start over.”
“No, I was drunk.”
“You did a lot of terrible things when you were drinking. That part’s true. But you weren’t drunk that day. I remember it all very clearly.”
“That’s not true!” he argued. “And even if it was, I’m not the same man I was twenty-three years ago.”
“Oh yeah? What’s changed?” Dallas asked.
“I’m sorry for what I did.”
“I don’t believe that. And your lousy apology won’t help Jenny or Mom, anyway. As far as I’m concerned, you’re dead, too.”
“Forget him, Dallas,” Seth said. “Mom will get rid of him. We have to leave now or you’ll miss your flight. Don’t let him ruin what you have planned today.”
Dallas didn’t respond, didn’t act as though he’d even heard what Seth said.
“Can I just...get your number or something?” Robert asked. “In case you change your mind? I have no one else. I would... I would love to figure out how we can have some sort of a relationship.”
Dallas’s voice dropped to a menacing level. “You’re not hearing me. I’ve had nightmares my whole life because of you. I will never allow you back, never be able to forgive you for what you did. You need to leave.”
Aiyana tried to grab Dallas’s arm as he finished going down the steps of the porch, but he pulled away from her.
Robert backed up, but he didn’t leave. “Dallas, please.”
“He’s not worth it, Dallas,” Aiyana said. “I’m so sorry that I was tempted to believe him. I wanted to believe him, want anyone who’s sincerely sorry to get a second chance. But I was wrong this time. I know that now.”
He didn’t answer. He was too mesmerized by the sight of his father, so she stopped trying to reason with him. “Get off my property,” she said to Robert, “before I call the police. And don’t ever come back.”
“I thought you were good Christian people!” he snapped. “How can you turn me away, treat me like trash?”
“After what you did, you have no business being here,” Dallas said.
“You heard him. You
