Free Always a McBride by Linda Turner Page B

Wiley?!”
    â€œDid somebody mention my name?” Stepping to her husband’s side, Angel Wiley gave Taylor a sweet smile that had been seen on movie screens around the world. “You must be Taylor. Hi, I’m Angel. Joe’s keeping you talking on the doorstep, isn’t he? Please, come in and meet the rest of the family.”
    Taylor normally took pride in the fact that he wasn’ta man who was easily impressed. He didn’t care what someone did for a living—he was more interested in the kind of person they were. The McBrides were nothing like he’d expected. Within seconds, he was surrounded by them. They greeted him with friendly smiles and handshakes, then drew him into the gathering as if they’d known him for years.
    At first, he thought they had to be crazy. He was a stranger—all they knew about him were the lies he had told them. Didn’t they realize what a risk they were taking by inviting someone they didn’t know into their home? But as Merry introduced him to her husband, Nick Kincaid, the sheriff, and he met Zeke and his wife Elizabeth, who both had their doctorates, and Janey, a nurse, and her husband, Reilly Jones, a heart surgeon, he realized that these were educated people who were all successful in their careers. And even though Joe had never made it to college, he’d made Twin Pines one of the most successful ranches in the state. He and the others hadn’t gotten where they were in the world by being stupid. They sized him up with a quick look and accepted him for who he said he was.
    He wasn’t normally a dishonest man, and though he’d thought he could pull off this charade with ease because he was only seeking justice for being denied a father all these years, he discovered that he wasn’t comfortable with the lie. Not when he was a guest in his half brother’s home and taking advantage of his hospitality. For the first time in his life, he was surrounded by family, and all he wanted to do was tell them who he was.
    Guilt pulled at him, angering him. Dammit, this wasn’t supposed to happen! He wasn’t supposed to like them! That wasn’t why he was here. He just wanted them to know what kind of man their father had been.And he couldn’t tell them until Sara returned from her honeymoon and he could confront her with the truth. In the meantime, he planned to keep his silence and remember what he was there for.
    They didn’t make it easy for him. They were so damn likable! And then Janey caught him off guard by saying the one thing he’d been dreading. Seated across the table from him, she studied him with intelligent brown eyes, then frowned in confusion. “You look awfully familiar. I know you said you were from San Diego, but are you sure you don’t have relatives living around here somewhere? You just look so familiar.”
    â€œAre you holding out on us?” Zeke teased him. “Is that why you decided to focus your book on Liberty Hill? Tell the truth. You’re related to Abner Hawkins, aren’t you? You’ve sort of got the look of him.”
    â€œHe does not!” Merry retorted with a grin, then confided, “Trust me, Taylor, nobody thinks you’re related to Abner. Zeke is just pulling your leg.”
    Not the least repentant, Zeke just grinned. “When Abner hears you’ve been talking about him, he’s going to be hurt, sis. You know he’s had a crush on you for years.”
    Merry just rolled her eyes, and Taylor couldn’t help but grin with the others. “Why do I have the feeling that I’ve been insulted? Just what does this Abner character look like?”
    â€œDon’t ask,” Nick advised, chuckling.
    â€œTrust me,” Janey added, struggling to hold back a smile, “you don’t look anything like Abner. But you do look familiar.”
    The need to tell the truth pulled at him again, this time stronger than before, but