Part 33 (1/2)

”You know?” she asked.

”That you're the Stantons' long-lost granddaughter? I just found out. Congratulations.”

She looked confused. ”I- What do you mean?”

”You certainly landed on your feet, didn't you? Was this why you really came to Paradise? Was the rest of it just a lie so you could worm your way into the town and see the lay of the land?”

”I came to find my father,” she said, her eyes now lighting up for battle.

”And did you find him?”

”Not yet.”

”Well, I'm sure you will. I'll be going. I don't want to stand in the way of this family reunion.” Katherine put a hand on his arm as he moved to go past her. He shook it off.

”I'm sorry. I should have told you last night, but I couldn't find the words.”

”That would have ruined all the fun, wouldn't it?” He dropped his voice down to a hush meant only for her ears. ”Did it give you pleasure to sleep with a man, knowing you were about to take everything he ever wanted?”

Katherine's eyes widened. ”What are you talking about? I'm not taking anything from you.” She looked from Zach to Harry and then to Claire, who had entered the room with her. ”Why does he think I'm taking something from him?”

Claire looked at her husband. ”You didn't.”

”It's hers, Claire. She's our heir. You told me so yourself. When we're both gone, she'll inherit the farm.”

”I don't want the farm,” Katherine said quickly.

Zach released a bitter, tortured laugh. ”Sure you do. It's what you always wanted. I'll clear my things out today.”

”Zach, no,” Claire said imploringly. ”Harry, say something.”

”Don't be ridiculous,” Harry said. ”You're not going anywhere. I'm not going anywhere, at least not yet. This is all down the road, Zach. I'm only telling you now because I want you to know the truth.”

”Thanks. I appreciate that. I appreciate everything you did for me. But it's time to move on. I always knew I wasn't a Stanton, even though you let me feel like one. This isn't the place for me. It's Katherine's now. She's your blood. And that's really what it's all about, isn't it?”

”Zach, wait,” Katherine cried.

Zach slammed the door on her words, on the Stantons, and on the only woman he'd ever let himself love. As his father would say, It's time to move on, son, this game has been played out.

”I have to go after him,” Katherine said to Claire. ”He doesn't understand. He thinks I lied to him. I just didn't know how to tell him. It was all so muddled in my mind.”

”Zach needs to cool down,” Claire said, but her eyes reflected her worry. ”I'm sure he didn't mean what he said about leaving today. Harry, tell Katherine Zach will be all right.”

Harry didn't look so certain. ”I don't know, Claire. I don't know anything anymore.”

For the first time Katherine took a good look at her grandfather, the man who'd sent her mother fleeing halfway across the country. For some reason she'd expected him to be as strong as an oak tree. But this aging, thin man with weathered skin and sad brown eyes did not look terrifying. He did not look nearly as scary as Mitch.e.l.l, for that matter. How odd that her mother had run away from one powerful man only to tie herself up with another. Maybe she'd been seeking what she'd left behind all those years ago.

Harry regarded her with the same thoughtful perusal she was giving him. ”Katherine? May I call you that?”

”Yes.”

She felt awkward, not sure if she should call him Mr. Stanton or Harry or Grandfather-whether she should shake his hand or look down her nose at him or hope he'd like her.

”Why don't we all sit down?” Claire suggested. Katherine took a seat on the couch while Claire and Harry sat in the chairs by the fireplace. For a while the only sound in the room came from the ticking clock on the desk.

”I didn't realize you and Zach...” Claire didn't finish her sentence. ”I'm sorry. It's none of my business.”

Katherine felt numb. All she really wanted was a chance to talk to Zach, to try and explain why she hadn't told him about her connection with the Stantons. She hadn't deliberately lied to him, and she certainly hadn't known anything about the horse farm or the Stantons' plans to leave it to her. But even if she could catch up to Zach, she doubted he would listen. He was too angry. The cold fury in his eyes had scared the heck out of her.

”You should leave the farm to Zach, or do whatever it is you intended to do,” Katherine said abruptly. ”I didn't come here to mix everything up. And I don't know the first thing about horses.”

”You'll learn,” Harry said. ”Sam can teach you. If Zach wants to go, he can go.”

Harry sounded so heartless, like he didn't care that he'd just destroyed Zach's dream. For a moment Katherine caught a glimpse of the man Harry must have been when her mother had come to him with the biggest problem of her life.

”Did you say the same thing to my mother?” Katherine asked. ”When she refused to give me up?”

Harry didn't even blink. ”Your mother did what she wanted to do.”

”Did she have a choice?”

”Did she have a choice to have a baby out of wedlock? Yes, I think she did,” Harry replied.

”Perhaps it was a mistake, an accident. You didn't have to kick her out of the house.”

”Katherine,” Claire interrupted. ”There's a lot more to the story than you know.”

”I'm sure there is. I'm not sure I want to hear it.”

”Your mother never wanted to hear anything either,” Harry said. ”She was incredibly stubborn.”

”And we both know where she got that from.” Claire frowned at Harry. ”Don't you think we could tell Katherine some of the good things about Margaret?”

”I have work to do.” Harry stood up and nodded to Katherine. ”Let Sam know when you want to look around the place. He can show you the ropes. You can start out slow, learn as you go.”

”I don't want to learn. I'm not sure I even like horses.”

”You sound just like Margaret.” Claire put a hand to her mouth and blinked back a tear. ”I think she might have said those very words the day she left.” She stood up and reached out a hand to her husband.

He stared at it for a moment, then took her hand within his, joining them together, a pair against one, against her. ”Horses are our family business, and you're part of the family,” he said.

”My mother didn't like the horses?” Katherine asked.

”Harry gave Margaret her first horse when she was five years old. She loved riding then, but Princess got sick and died a few years later, and something went out of Margaret when that happened.”

”Princess?” Katherine echoed. Her mother had had a horse named Princess?