feel the strength of his arms around her and taste his lips once again.
Foolish, foolish thoughts. She’d been devastated when he’d left her ten years ago. Ten years was a long time. She had no idea what kind of a man he’d really become, and the last thing she wanted was to allow Fort Knox back into her life in any capacity.
Jade’s front door opened and Cody came running out. Allison drew another deep breath to steady her emotions. Whether she liked it or not, Knox was back in her life for now. She just prayed he wouldn’t do anything to hurt Cody.
Anger still ripped through Knox as he headed back to Thorne’s ranch. The only thing that tempered it was the remaining shock of discovering he was a father.
Knox had never known his father. Livia had divorced Tad Whitman when Knox was only two and then she’d changed his last name to Colton and moved to Austin. He wasn’t even sure if Tad Whitman was really his father. There had been rumors that Tad’s father had gotten Livia pregnant.
After that there had been a succession of stepdaddies and new siblings, but never a real father figure in his life on a permanent basis other than Mac. Knox wanted better for Cody.
Maybe Cody already had a father figure in his life. The thought gave him pause. He hadn’t asked if Allison was married and another man was raising Cody as his own.
She was certainly attractive enough to have caught some man’s eyes. He hadn’t been so consumed by his anger that he hadn’t noticed she was even prettier now than she’d been when they’d been an item.
Her dark blond hair had been pulled back into a messy knot at the nape of her neck, emphasizing her high cheekbones and sensual mouth. The green blouse she’d had on had toyed with her hazel eyes, turning them more green than gold.
And nobody wore a pair of jeans like Allison. The denim hugged her long, slender legs and reminded him of how much he had loved those sleek legs tangled with his.
He tightened his hands on the steering wheel and embraced his anger. It was far easier to sustain that emotion than drift into ridiculous thoughts of his past relationship with Allison.
He’d spent far too many nights in the past thinking about her, missing her and wondering what might have been if they’d made different decisions so long ago. He’d also spent many of those nights hating her.
Almost ten years ago he’d called her to see if the baby she’d had was his. She’d told him it belonged to an old boyfriend and she’d gotten pregnant during the time after she and Knox had renewed their relationship. He’d hated her then for betraying his love.
He’d already been reeling because of his mother’s arrest. He’d told Allison in the midst of that drama that he just needed some time and distance from her. He’d needed a couple of weeks to pull himself together and to make sure his siblings were doing okay. But with his younger sisters taken care of and the rest of the clan self-sufficient, Knox had left for Texas and gotten a job as a Ranger.
He’d never really intended to leave Allison forever, but it had taken him months to get his head back on straight after his mother’s trial and all that dust had settled. Life with the Rangers had been all-consuming and just about the time he felt it was right to reach out to Allison again, he’d heard she’d had a baby.
The timing was right for the child to be his, but then she’d told him it wasn’t and he’d been devastated. Her betrayal had been just another blow by a woman...one he couldn’t get past.
But this betrayal cut even deeper. Dammit, she should have told him about Cody. He’d already missed so much of his life. Not only had he missed out on the wonder of his birth, but he’d also missed Cody’s first step, his first word...so many firsts.
He took the turn into Thorne’s ranch a little too fast and dust kicked up as the back tires of his sports car spun out. He quickly righted the car and pulled to a stop in front of the attractive ranch house.
“Hey, are you looking for a second job as a race-car driver?” Thorne shouted from the door of the barn as Knox got out of the car.
Knox waited as his half brother approached him. Thorne’s dark skin gleamed in the sunshine and his smile eased some of the tension in Knox’s gut, some...but not all.
Thorne’s smile fell and he obviously felt the tension radiating from Knox. “What’s up?”
“Have you ever seen Allison Rafferty’s boy?”
“Sure, I’ve seen him around town with Allison. Why?”
“Have you ever noticed that he looks a lot like me?”
Thorne’s light brown eyes narrowed slightly. “Why don’t we go inside? This definitely feels like a sit-down talk.”
Knox nodded. The two men didn’t speak again until they were seated across from each other at the kitchen table. “I just found out that Allison’s son is mine,” Knox finally said.
Thorne’s eyes widened in surprise. “I had no idea,” he replied. “I remember there was some speculation and a little scandal when everyone realized she was pregnant, but I figured if the baby was yours you would be here with her.”
Knox fisted his hands on top of the table. “She lied to me, Thorne. Almost ten years ago she told me her baby’s father was an old boyfriend. She’s kept him from me for all these years.”
Thorne leaned back in his chair, his expression thoughtful. “Can you really blame her?”
Knox stared at Thorne in surprise. The last thing he’d expected was for his brother to defend Allison.
“Think about it,” Thorne continued. “You had pulled away from her when Mother was arrested.”
“I had to make sure all of you were going to be okay. I thought I was going to take physical custody of Jade and Claudia. I was more than a little out of my mind when I left, but I always figured I’d eventually wind up with Allison.”
“Did you tell Allison that at the time?” Thorne asked.
Knox frowned. “No, I just told her I needed a little break from her.” He hadn’t wanted her to know how crazy he was at the time; he hadn’t wanted her to see him as weak. And then he’d heard about the baby and it had been the light in a sea of darkness...until she’d told him the baby belonged to an ex.
“Knox, you were gone and the Colton name was being dragged through the mud because of Mother’s arrest. The whole town had turned against us. Is it any wonder she didn’t want to burden her child with anything Colton?”
Myriad emotions flooded Knox’s head and he rubbed a hand in the center of his forehead where a headache had begun to pound. No, it wasn’t any wonder Allison hadn’t wanted that. At that time, Knox hadn’t wanted to be a Colton, but she still shouldn’t have lied to him when he’d asked her point-blank about the baby.
“Allison is well respected in Shadow Creek.” Thorne leaned forward. “Now her reputation is stellar. She’s known as a great single mother, a savvy businesswoman, and is generous in charity work.
