Ethel shook her hand. “Yes, you arrived in the summer. Call me Ethel.”
“Thank you. I’m Peyton.”
“Darius!”
He turned at the sound of his name and saw his half brother, Noah Cale, striding toward him. Noah’s mother, June Cale, followed in his wake. This is what he’d been afraid of when Simon and Ethel had turned up at Books & Bakery this afternoon. From the look in June’s almond-shaped bright brown eyes, she had concerns about their reception as well.
Ethel’s voice shook with fury. “Who the hell invited them?”
“I did,” Darius answered quietly.
CHAPTER 3
This wasn’t what Darius had wanted. He’d never meant to hurt his mother. But he hadn’t expected Ethel or Simon to attend the costume party. They’d never come before.
“You invited them?” His mother’s brown eyes were filled with betrayal. “Why?”
“Because they’re my family.” Darius willed his mother to understand.
She didn’t.
Ethel turned her scorching glare on Simon, who flinched from its heat. She gave June and Noah a dismissive look before disappearing into the café.
Peyton felt the tension rolling over her shoulders and up her neck. And she’d thought there was drama in her family. What had just happened?
“I’m sorry.” There was pain in Darius’s voice as he apologized to his two guests. It broke Peyton’s heart.
“It’s not your fault.” The woman put a protective hand on the young man’s arm.
Darius embraced her. She hugged him back. A sharp pain twisted in Peyton’s gut. Envy? No way! But who was this pretty lady? There was no denying the resemblance between Darius and the young man. Was he Darius’ son? Impossible! The newspaper reporter was too young to have a son who looked to be seventeen years old. What was going on?
“I’m glad you came.” Darius stepped back but didn’t release the woman’s right hand. “Everyone, I’d like to introduce you to my brother, Noah Cale, and his mother, June. They’re visiting from Sequoia.”
His brother. Relief hit her like a tidal wave. Sequoia was one of the towns near Trinity Falls. Peyton remembered seeing signs for it as she’d driven into town.
She glanced at Simon. He was staring at the trio with wonder. Now she better understood the vitriol between Simon and Ethel. If Noah was his son—and there was no denying the family resemblance—he would have been born right in the middle of Simon and Ethel’s thirty-four years of marriage. How long had Ethel known of Simon’s betrayal with this much-younger woman? That kind of hurt cut deep. But Darius was right. Noah was his brother. He had a right to know him. In the reporter’s position, Peyton would have done the same thing.
Darius continued the introductions, moving counterclockwise through the group. “Doreen Fever. Audra Lane. Stan Crockett. Megan McCloud. Our mayor, Ramona McCloud. Dr. Peyton Harris. Ean Fever. And my boss, Jackson Sansbury.” He skipped Simon.
June looked a little overwhelmed. A blush pinkened her brown-sugar features. She dragged her fingers through the short, dark brown curls that exploded around her makeup-free oval face. “It’s a pleasure to meet you all. Darius has told us so much about you.”
Peyton added her greeting to the chorus of welcomes.
Ean gave Darius’s brother a considering look. “I understand you play tight end for Sequoia High’s football team.”
“That’s right.” Noah’s cocky grin was identical to Darius’s. “And I understand you were Heritage High’s star quarterback. Back in the day.”
Laughter rolled through the group. Even Peyton enjoyed the exchange. Trash-talking must be another family trait.
Ean tossed his young target a calculating smile. “Trinity Falls was undefeated against Sequoia—back in my day.”
“In mine, too.” Jackson crossed his arms over his broad chest. “That would make it four straight years of Trinity Falls’s dominance over Sequoia.”
Noah threw back his head and laughed. “Well, if you old-timers have been reading the news, you’d know the tide has turned in the decades since you played high school ball. Sequoia has evened up the contest. In fact, we’re going to beat you next month.”
Peyton grinned at this form of male bonding. The laughter and comments coming from the rest of the group indicated she wasn’t the only one enjoying the exchange.
Jackson looked at Ean before arching a brow at the high school athlete. “You think so?”