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world.
    Vidalia’s daughter Melusine and her husband Alex Stone were out of town on a job. They were both PIs with their own lucrative agency. The others were
    all gathered around, taking seats at the table. Maya had her 4-year-old twins with her. Kara and her husband Jimmy, Big Falls chief of police, had brought
    their son Tyler. Edie and Wade hadn’t reproduced yet, and Selene and Corey probably never would. 
    Rob’s father was behind the bar, drawing tall glasses of beer from the taps and lining them up on the bar top. His older brother Jason came in behind
    him with two giant white sacks bearing the Sunny’s Bakery logo on them, and grinning like he’d just won the lottery.
    Something was up with Jason. He’d been altogether too happy lately. And if he kept frequenting Sunny’s place, he wasn’t going to fit his
    jeans anymore.
    Everyone gathered around the pushed-together tables and started passing the food. Vidalia caught Rob’s eye and said, “You gonna keep us in
    suspense ’til dessert, Robby?”
    Rob winked at his stepmother and said, “I’ve done something kind of drastic, and I want you to know before the grapevine gets hold of
    it.”
    He had their attention. His dad sipped a beer, but everyone else was quiet, watching him, waiting.
    “I bought the old Kellogg Ranch at this morning’s tax auction.”
    “Hot damn! That’s a gorgeous spread,” Selene said, smiling at him. Her husband Corey nodded his agreement.
    “Are you gonna run cattle?” Vidalia asked.
    “Horses.”
    Lots of questions were asked all at once. Rob held up his hands and noticed his father was the only one not animated and inquisitive. “I need to tell
    you the rest. I took on a partner.”
    “That’s ridiculous, you’ve got plenty of—”
    “I know, Dad. Hear me out on this. I wanted to buy it on my own, without any of your money. I wanted to start from scratch, just to see if I could do
    it. And I’d saved up enough. But that wouldn’t have left me any extra for buying stock and getting the place up and running.” He saw the
    hurt in his father’s eyes, and the way Vidalia leaned closer to him, slid an arm around his waist, and said something soft into his ear. He nodded,
    but he still looked wounded.
    Rob went on. “Then I met someone who also wanted to buy the place, and only had about enough for half. So we threw in together. She wants
    to—”
    “She?” Vidlalia’s head came up, and her eyes sparked with interest.
    Selene said, “Mysterious stranger. Told you so. She’s beautiful, too, right?”
    “Who is she?” Maya asked. “Someone local?”
    “Her name is Kiley.”
    “Wait, wait, you don’t mean Kiley Kellogg?” Vidalia asked.
    “Yes, Kiley Kellogg. She grew up there.” It was really tough to get a word in with the way his family loved to interrupt. “She’s
    got this plan to use part of the land to do holiday-themed stuff for kids. Hayrides and pumpkin patches, corn mazes and a Christmas tree lot. I figure
    there’s plenty of acreage to do both. I agreed to let her name the place Holiday Ranch, and she agreed to let me live in the house.”
    Vidalia was frowning, the wheels behind her eyes turning.
    Maya said, “When do we get to meet her, Robby?” She was always friendly, supportive and strong, the heir apparent to the matriarchy of the
    Brand-McIntyre clan.
    “I thought I should tell you first. She’s got no family, other than a businessman father who’s out of the country, and frankly, I think
    she could use one.”
    “Businessman father,” Vidalia muttered.
    Maya sent her a look, then exchanged one with Selene, Edie, and Kara. The Brand women tended to speak without words all the time. It was damn uncomfortable
    for the men of the tribe, who never seemed to learn the unspoken language of the women. Rob thought maybe the women liked it that way.
    “So you’re moving out of your room above The Long Branch?” Jason asked. He’d already moved out himself. His fixer-upper outside