Page 111 of Peach Tree Family

Chapter 29

They had only just arrived home from work and brought Ace home, and Theo was planning to go out again. Ace ran inside to see Butter. Theo stayed by the truck and told Seth, "I'm going into town. I'll get dinner from the café and talk to Mrs. Del Rio. I called and made sure she had time to meet with me."

Seth didn't like hearing that. "So you'll sell the house."

Resigned to it, Theo nodded. "Yes. I just need to find out if Mrs. Del Rio is still interested in buying."

"It's a family home. It's a shame for you to let it go."

"Money is what my aunt and her boyfriend are after. Once they have it, they'll leave us alone. But I might only be able to give up my half ownership of the house to Aunt Cindy. I don't know if she would settle for that. First I have to find out where Mrs. Del Rio stands in all this then figure out the next step." Feeling overwhelmed, Theo took a deep breath and Seth rubbed his back.

After everything that happened and what Seth tried to do, Theo knew he had to find a permanent solution. He drove into town with a heavy heart.

The peach trees were starting to bloom, and that meant the café was very busy. Theo had noticed the same thing at the inn.

As he went into the cafe, he saw that Rico and Sam were there but Hannah was the one manning the counter and handling his order. She was smirking at him in triumph the whole time.

As preoccupied as he was, Theo didn't have the patience to deal with her mind games. He was just going to ignore her, but Rico noticed something was up.

"What's with you?" he asked Hannah.

"Just patting myself on the back. I got Theo here to notice Seth," Hannah claimed.

"I noticed him just fine," Theo told her.

"Have you been matchmaking?" Sam demanded of her then pointed an accusing finger at Rico. "This is your influence."

Rico dismissed that. "Nah. She's doing her own thing." But then he eyed Theo. "So things are progressing between you and Seth?"

Theo wasn't going to get into that, but Hannah jumped in. "Sure are. They just needed a little kick in the pants. That's why Seth needs a pushy girl like me taking up for him. And don't tell me I didn't get things moving between you two," she said to Theo, but he wasn't about to give her any credit.

Thank God Mrs. Del Rio came out to speak to him. They sat down at one of the tables to talk. It turned out she was willing to buy the house, but she wasn't eager to do it.

"I hate to see you sell it. You know if I do buy the house, you can still live in it," she said.

"Thank you. Having a stable residence would help me get custody," Theo told her. "I don't want to give in to my aunt, but I need them gone. My aunt brought her boyfriend to the house, and he tried to take Ace with them by force."

"He what?" she said too loudly then smiled at the customers at nearby tables.

"I'm not sure if my aunt wanted that, but when her boyfriend grabbed Ace's arm, Seth was ready to tear him apart. I want them gone before something really bad happens. I just have to figure out how to make sure my aunt keeps her part of the deal."

"My God, they want to use Ace as a hostage," Mrs. Del Rio said, appalled.

"And they're going to get what they're after. I can't risk losing Ace to her. It's just the way it has to be," Theo said.

"I'll do whatever I can to help you, honey," Mrs. Del Rio said.

"You already helped us so much. Thank you."

His order was ready, and Theo picked it up and left. He had only taken a few steps away from the café when Jerry accosted him.

"Get the hell away from me," Theo said and tried to get around him, but Jerry wouldn't let him.

"You trying to run? You better listen up and do as you're told or you're gonna be in a world of hurt," Jerry threatened.

Theo sighed. He was ready to agree to what they wanted, but this idiot didn't know it, and Theo couldn't tell him. First he had to figure out how to make sure his aunt gave up any claim to Ace.

"I have nothing to discuss with you," Theo told him and tried to walk away again. Jerry got in his way, and Theo had to force himself to unclench his fist and not deck him. He had to keep his cool no matter what.

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