Page 23 of The Prey
At fifteen minutes before noon, he pulled in to the drive of the Hiller Ranch, an extremely excited four-year-old boy in his booster seat behind him. “You sure Miss Gia be here, too?”
It was at least the fifth variation of that same question he’d been asked on the five minute drive. Gia was all Ryan had talked about since he’d wakened. She was all he’d talked about since the night after they’d eaten lunch at the diner with her, actually. Gia—and one of the Hillers’ puppies.
Ryan really wanted a puppy. And…to see Miss Gia again.
“She lives here now, bud. We’ll definitely see her.” Hudson was going to make sure of it. Ryan had been talking about her nonstop. And Hudson…well, he’d beenthinkingabout her nonstop. “Why?”
“Because, Daddy,youhas to be with her and kiss her lots and lots, then she’ll be in loved with us, we’ll have to give her a really shiny ring, and make a big party wedding, and then she’ll be my new mommy forever, like Miss Chantal gets to be Calvin’snew mommy forever now too. After they do all the wedding cake stuff. That’s how itworks.Calvin said so. You and Miss Gia has to do the wedding cake stuff first then she’ll be my mommy forever and ever and ever!” Ryan was almost erupting in his seat as he practically yelled it in his excitement. His cast kicked against the carseat repeatedly, jarring Hudson’s damned teeth out.
“What gives you that idea?”
“Because Calvin says that’s how he gets his new mommy now. But bad guys taked Miss Chantal first. I don’t want that to happen with Miss Gia, Daddy. So you gots to be really careful. There are lots and lots of bad guys out there. We have to take care of her really, really good so she’ll love us forever and forever!”
Well, interesting. She’d captivated his son as much as she had him—which didn’t surprise him at all. “Why Gia, buddy?”
“Because she’s really, really nice. She holds me, and plays with me, and washes my face, and ties my shoes, and hugs me, and colors with me, and takes me to see the puppies, and tells me stories and sings me songs like a mommy does. And she loves me lots more than my other mommy does. My old mommy from before.”
Talk about a knife to the heart.
“Your mother does love you, Ryan. She just doesn’t know how to be a good mother.” Once a year, a check arrived on Ryan’s birthday. That was the extent of contact they’d had with Cindy since his son was six months old. He’d send her an email in response, with updates about Ryan’s life and how he was doing. She never asked questions, just sent a thank you in return.
“Well, Miss Giaknowshow to be a good mommy. A really good mommy. And I know you think she’s pretty, too. And you probably want to kiss her, right? You has to, because you has to kiss your fon-says lots and lots. They like that, Calvin said.His daddy kisses Miss Chantal all the time now. Dr. Chad kisses Miss Genny lots, too. And now they are all going to have a party wedding. And Calvin said he seed Dr. Guthie kiss the doctor lady with yellow hair lots, too.”
Well, apparently there had been a lot of kissing going on at the Hiller Ranch lately. He’d suspected as much when he’d stayed there before. He wouldn’t mind doing some kissing at the Hiller Ranch, either.
“That is between grownups. Gia is very pretty and very nice, though. So you just focus on having her as a friend for now, okay?” And leave the capturing of her forever to Hudson.
“I want her as my mommy real bad, Daddy. More than anybody elseever.I wished in the wisheding wheel by Calvin’s barn and wished Miss Gia could be my mommy forever. But Calvin says wisheding wheels have to be secrets, or it doesn’t work. ‘Cause he did it for Miss Chantal to be his mommy a long time ago and now she is going to be. After the wedding cake stuff. See? That’s how it works. So don’t tell, okay?”
His heart melted, thinking of two little boys making those kinds of wishes—and believing a magic well held their answers. “I won’t. I promise.”
He parked, and made certain no other cars were moving before he got his son out. Hudson hugged him close. “You know, even if it’s just me and you and Aunt Hala, we’re going to be happy and okay, right? Because we have each other and we love each other forever.”
“Yep. But we can love Miss Gia forever, too. I think that would be really nice.”
“Yes, me, too. Let’s go find her together, okay?”
He was still trying to put what Ryan had said into proper perspective when he walked into the Hiller house and thereshewas. Right there. Like she’d been waiting. Giavonna AnnaliseHiller—the most beautiful, intriguing, maddening woman in the world.
She held a baby in her arms. His own sister was right next to her, another baby in her own arms. They were just chattering away about something, holding babies and looking beautiful. He thought the babies were the Fieldses’ grandchildren. The Fieldses lived next door, and now their daughter Chantal was marrying Giavonna’s brother Gene, and their younger son Chad was marrying Gia’s sister Genny. And apparently having big party weddings, big enough to capture a pair of preschoolers’ attention.
“Miss Gia, Miss Gia, we’re here!” Ryan almost yelled, clunking to her side. “Hi, Aunt Hala!”
“Hey, Ryan. We were waiting for you to get here. Calvin and the girls are in the backyard, if you want to go back there. There are lots of other kids back there, too. Everybody is playing,” Gia told him, after giving him a one-armed hug. He got the same from Hala. Ryan patted each baby gently on the head, and then was gone.
“My nephew, a real tornado,” Hala said, as Grady came in the kitchen. Hudson’s sister tensed, and she shot the man a wary look that had Hudson’s attention sharpening. Grady Hiller and Hala tended to bicker and snarl at each other quite a bit—almost as much as Hudson and Gia had.
Until recently.
Grady reached out to Gia. “I’ll take that kid. It’s my turn, woman. You’ve hogged him long enough.”
Gia handed the baby boy over. “Great. Just in time for you to change him. He’s wet. Diaper bag is by the bathroom door, if you think you can handle a diaper. His mother is helping her mother-in-law bring over pies from their place. Rory will be back in about fifteen. But his dad is outside somewhere with Ronnie’s brother.”
“Great. Soggy kid. Still, he’s really cute. Think Charlie will trade him to me in exchange for a puppy?” Grady made faces at the kid and then was gone.
Giavonna just laughed, open and free. Hudson’s gut tightened. He loved it when she laughed like that.
“Grady’s always been a sucker for babies and kids. Hala, I think we need to pool our resources and find him a decent woman of his own. He’s getting old. He deserves ten kids. And I want more nieces and nephews.”
