In Colton's Custody

Chapter 1

Asher Colton latched the barn door and strode toward the corral, his favorite boots scraping the dusty earth in a comfortable rhythm. That the man he’d known for only two days matched him in both pace and in the number of scuffs on his boots made Asher grin. Those were small similarities, and they didn’t know anything for sure yet, so he schooled his features as he sneaked another glance at the guy next to him.

Unfortunately, Jace Smith caught him peeking, so Asher stared out over the open fields and banks of trees that made up Rattlesnake Ridge Ranch. With its rich red, Arizona soil stretching to the base of Mustang Valley Mountains and kissing the sky where the heights dipped, the Triple R was the only place Asher had ever been truly content.

Well, until recently.

Now the land he oversaw at least gave him an excuse to look away from the newcomer and prepare himself for whatever question he would pose next.

Instead of asking one, Jace cupped both hands over his headful of dark hair. That sun is already a killer out here, even this early in the morning.

The side of Asher’s mouth lifted. The guy might have seven more years of life experience than Asher’s thirty-three, but when it came to ranch education, their guest was as much a newborn as their spring calves were.

What did you expect? It’s May in Mustang Valley. Highs are always in the mideighties this time of year. It’s not that different from anywhere in southeastern Arizona, is it?

Guess I spend too much time in the air-conditioning.

Ya think? Anyway, I told you to wear a hat.

Asher adjusted his own and wiped sweat from his forehead as he’d already done a dozen times that morning. Unlike their guest, who’d been staying at the mansion the past few days, as ranch foreman, Asher had already been at work for hours.

Yeah. Need to get me one, Jace said, as he pulled out a pair of sunglasses and slipped them on.

Would be a good idea.

It was hard to believe anyone living in that part of the state wouldn’t already own a decent cowboy hat, especially someone who might be, well, a relative. He pointed farther up the panel fence with cedar posts and caps.

Come on. I promised to show you the new additions.

Has it been a big season?

Great so far. We’re getting several hundred calves a day.

Are those good numbers?

Really good. Our operation runs over twenty thousand cows and another ten thousand heifers. Both Angus and Hereford. In case you don’t know, cows are females that have had at least one calf, and heifers are females that haven’t calved yet.

I know that. I’m not that much of a city slicker.

Good to know. Asher doubted Jace was telling the truth but didn’t call him on his fib. It wasn’t the guy’s fault he’d been raised in the city. Or, possibly, by the wrong mother.

A few months earlier, Asher’s whole family had been rocked by the revelation that his oldest brother, Colton Oil CEO Ace, had been switched at birth. Since then, his dad had been shot, a crime in which Ace was a suspect, and was in a coma; the family had worked to track down the real Ace. Jace’s arrival at the ranch two days earlier had been a surprise, but if the information Jace had received was true, then they might have solved their mystery.

This place is amazing. I’m lucky just to have seen it. Jace looked up and down the fencerow. "If not for the earthquake last month, I might never have found the courage to find out for sure if I’m one of the babies someone switched at that hospital."

Tragedies definitely shake us up and spur us to action. Asher was talking about his own family, but the other man was too caught up in his story to notice. "Oh. Pardon the pun. You know, spurs."

Jace smiled over at him before returning to his story. If I’d spoken to Luella anytime in the past decade, I could have asked her some questions about what that nurse had said, but I doubt she would have told me the truth. She never did about anything else.

Asher purposely didn’t look at Jace then, giving him time to collect his composure. It was a kindness that men gave to each other.

It’s too bad you had such a difficult relationship with your...well, the woman who raised you.

That Jace always referred to Luella Smith by her first name was telling. Some mother she must have been.

Asher had kept it to himself that his two brothers were still tracking Luella, the woman who had apparently switched her healthy son for a sickly baby, Ace, but Jace’s connection to her gave his story credibility.

Bet that keeps you busy.

Caught lost in his thoughts, Asher blinked. Jace gestured toward the field. He was clearly trying to change the subject, a ploy Asher should have been familiar with since he used it whenever anyone brought up his ex-girlfriend, Nora.

We’re busy, all right. No sleep for ranchers or ranch hands during calving season. Poor Harper. Half of her nighttime diaper changes have come from the housekeepers and the kitchen staff lately.

Twice as many in the daytime, too, now that his most recent nanny had hightailed it out of town. His shoulders drooped over the slim pickings he would face in yet another candidate search. How was he supposed to prove that as a single dad, he could be a better parent than his father ever had been, when he couldn’t keep consistent childcare for his six-month-old daughter?

Cute kid, by the way.

Thanks. Asher couldn’t help grinning at that. It was hard not to like a guy who complimented his baby.

Strange, isn’t it?

What? Asher slid a glance his way. Not sleeping or changing diapers. I get a lot of practice at both.

I bet you do, but that’s not what I meant. It’s just this whole situation. I still can’t get used to it. I keep looking for any physical resemblance between us.

Find any?

With you? Not so much.

That would be less likely. Either way. Asher rushed to add the second part.

Why did he keep getting ahead of himself? They had no proof yet. He owed it to his family to remain skeptical until they did. Ace deserved at least that much.

Anyway, Jace was right. Asher looked no more like the guy than he did his adopted brother, Rafe. Jace bore no resemblance to Asher’s full siblings, blond twins Marlowe and Callum. On the other hand, with all that dark hair and those blue eyes, Jace fit right in with Asher’s half brother, Grayson, and half sister, Ainsley, the other two children of Payne’s first marriage. Everyone at the mansion had noticed.

Guess we’ll know for sure soon enough.

Asher startled as the other man seemed to have read his thoughts. S’pose so.

He gave the dirt an extra kick and ground his molars. They might as well have been talking about the weather rather than the life-altering reality that Jace might be the real Ace.

Just thinking it made him feel disloyal to the man he knew as Ace. If only they could turn the clock back four months, to the time before that mysterious email had drop-kicked his family’s world and the structure of Colton Oil. Before they’d learned about the baby switch. He longed for those days of blissful ignorance.

How do you think Ace is doing? Jace asked.

Not as well as you. Somehow, Asher managed not to say that out loud, though Jace’s questions from the past two days were starting to annoy him. As well as can be expected for a guy whose life has been flipped on its head.

I get that.

Asher shrugged. Jace clearly could relate to receiving news that had changed his life, but it was probably easier for someone to discover that a silver spoon might be slipped in his mouth than to have one yanked out, along with a few teeth.

It’s just that Ace is the only one of your siblings I haven’t met yet, Jace continued. I totally understand why the others are keeping their distance until after the DNA test. I appreciate that they at least dropped by and introduced themselves.

Six of seven isn’t too bad for just two days.

His siblings were curious. No one could blame them for that when they might have been meeting Payne Colton’s real firstborn with his late first wife, Tessa, for the first time.

But Ace’s situation is a little different, Jace continued.

He’s been busy, too.

If lying low back at his loft condo in the city’s industrial zone—or at the Dales Inn in town—counted for busy anyway. In Ace’s defense, he had to stay put while the media trucks lingered at the hospital and just outside the ranch’s main gate.

Is he still considered a suspect in your dad’s attempted murder?

Asher bit back the temptation to tell Jace to mind his own damn business. Depending on the results of the test they’d scheduled, Colton family matters just might be his business.

He’s been questioned and told not to leave town. Now you know everything I do.

What about Payne? Any updates on him?

Nothing beyond what Ainsley told you two nights ago.

That’s what I figured.

If Jace noticed the edge to Asher’s voice, he didn’t show it. Anyway, there was no more to say. His dad was still in a coma, and there was no guarantee when, or even if, he would ever awaken.

He’ll wake up.

Asher stiffened, the other man rightly guessing his thoughts again.

Hope so.

When did you say Ainsley would pick me up for the test?

About twelve thirty. Appointment’s at one. Not soon enough for Asher. At least then it would be her turn to play Twenty Questions with Jace.

I knew that. I’m just nervous, I guess.

Asher shifted his feet. The Coltons weren’t the only ones whose lives were in flux. Still, that didn’t make him want to talk about it. Or think about it. Good thing they’d finally reached the near side of the calving pasture, where several cows were nibbling grass and nursing their young.

These are some of our newest arrivals.

He leaned forward to rest his forearms on the six-inch-wide fence cap, and the other man followed his example.

Wow, the calves are amazing.

That was something they could agree on. If nothing else on the Triple R made sense to Asher lately, this land and the cattle were things he understood.

See that calf closest to the fence? He pointed to an animal with distinctive markings on its head and legs. It was pulling voraciously on its mother’s teat. He just showed up last night. Thought he was never going to get up on his legs.

Looks like he made it.

Yeah. His lips lifted. After a rocky start, the little guy was doing just fine. Asher had secretly been calling the calf Lucky Boy, but he couldn’t let it get out that the foreman was nicknaming new arrivals.

What was wrong with him? Jace asked.

A healthy calf usually stands up and nurses in the first two hours. Those from difficult births, like him, sometimes take longer. It’s critical that calves nurse within the first four hours to benefit from the antibodies in colostrum. If they don’t, we’re forced to tube feed them.

Jace made a sad face as he watched the animal several seconds longer.

Poor little guy. What did you end up doing?

Just as we started to intervene to give him his best chance for survival, he popped up on his feet and went to his mom for breakfast.

Sounds like a lucky calf to be born on the Triple R. Are you calling him Lucky?

We don’t give them nicknames.

That’s not a rule, is it?

Asher shifted his head so Jace wouldn’t see his grin. He still didn’t want to get ahead of himself, but he had a good feeling about Jace. It would be nice to have at least one sibling who cared about animals as much as he did. His cell buzzed in his back pocket, interrupting his thoughts. He pulled out the phone and checked the number to make sure it wasn’t Neda, one of the housekeepers, calling about Harper. Usually, he let business calls go to voice mail and answered them when he returned to his office at the back of the barn, but he froze at the words on the caller ID. Mustang Valley General Hospital? Had his dad’s condition changed? Or worse? Maybe Payne Colton wasn’t the kind of dad people wrote greeting cards about, but that didn’t mean Asher wanted him to...

Sorry. I should take this.

He stepped away and turned his back before tapping the button to answer the call. Rattlesnake Ridge Ranch. May I help you?

"Have I reached Asher Colton?" a female voice asked.

This is Asher. He squeezed the phone tighter and pressed it against his ear.

My name is Anne Sewall. I am the administrator at Mustang Valley General Hospital.

Has something happened with my father? he blurted before he could stop himself.

His heart thudding, he clamped his free arm to his side and waited for the worst news he could imagine.

Oh. No. The woman made a strange sound into the phone. You’ll have to call the nurse’s station on the floor for specifics on your father’s condition. I’m sorry for causing you distress.

"Then why are you calling?"

It was a testament to his superior restraint that he didn’t include the hell in his question. What had she thought he would assume? It wasn’t a secret in town that his dad was a patient at Mustang Valley General.

There’s another, unrelated matter that we need to discuss. I was hoping that you could bring your infant daughter to my office today and—

What are you talking about? And what do you want with Harper? Was there something the pediatrician missed in her six-month checkup?

No. Her nervous chuckle filtered through the connection. It’s not that. Again, I apologize, Mr. Colton. I realize that this is unusual. But if you’ll just meet me in my office, I’ll explain the whole situation.

I would rather that you explain it right now. His mother had always called him stubborn, and he was proving her right, but he couldn’t help it. This woman had already frightened him twice, and he wasn’t about to let her go for a hat trick.

That would be highly irregular. She cleared her throat again. This is a delicate matter. We don’t customarily divulge this type of information over the phone.

"Well, I would say that it’s not usual to phone a community member out of the blue and, in the space of two minutes, give him concerns about both his father and his child." He didn’t care if he was the one jumping to those conclusions. She should have explained herself better.

Fine. She sighed. Obviously, this information would be more appropriate if given in person.

Noted. So?

I’m sorry to inform you that there’s a possibility that your daughter, Harper Grace Colton, and another infant, also born on November 2, might have been accidentally switched in Mustang Valley General’s nursery.

Again?

He didn’t care if his question came out as a yelp. Was this a joke? In what realm of possibility could there be two Colton babies—albeit forty years apart—who’d been switched at birth?

How could you let this happen?

Now, we don’t know anything for certain, Mr. Colton. That is why we’re asking you and the other party to bring your infants in immediately for DNA tests.

She prattled on about how sorry the hospital board was for this possible mix-up, but he wasn’t listening. All he could think about was his sweet little Harper, with her crop of light brown hair, those dimples like his and eyes as brown as Nora’s. How could there be a chance that she wasn’t his? Or Nora’s, if a mother who abandoned her baby could even count as one.

Harper was his. She looked just like him. Everyone said so. He shook his head to dismiss the unfathomable possibility that they weren’t even related.

What kind of bumbling hospital are you guys running?

We deeply regret this possible mistake. Thankfully, we’ll be able to clear up the questions with a DNA test. It won’t hurt the infants. Just a cheek swab.

She spoke about it as if it was only an inconvenience, like an online retailer mixing up two customers’ packages. As if the results of those tests wouldn’t have the power to destroy not one but two families.

I’ll be there as soon as I can.

With that, he clicked off the call. He didn’t care if his tone was rude.

Everything all right?

Asher’s shoulder blades squeezed together. He’d forgotten that he wasn’t alone. He glanced at Jace. Concern etched in lines between the man’s brows. Jace’s shoulders were back, his arms pressed to his sides, as if he was preparing himself for bad news. The kind that could devastate a guy who thought he’d just found his father.

It’s not about Dad, Asher said automatically, not even bothering to include my. It was the decent thing not to worry the guy unnecessarily about Payne, like the hospital administrator had done to him.

Jace’s shoulders dropped forward. Thought I’d never get the chance to meet him. If we find out he and Tessa really are my parents, then I already missed the chance to know one of them.

Asher nodded, staring at the ground. He couldn’t imagine what it would be like for a guy to track down his possible biological parents, only to learn that one of them had passed away years before. He couldn’t think about that just then, either. One crisis at a time.

Look, there’s something I need to take care of. Can you hang around the ranch until my sister picks you up? Our cook, Dulcie, will make you whatever you like for lunch if you stop by the main house kitchen.

I know my way around. I’ve met Dulcie, too.

Oh. Right. He wasn’t thinking clearly.

Don’t worry about me. I can find something to occupy my time. Jace pulled his phone from his pocket. Maybe I’ll even catch up with my friends back home. They probably think I’ve vanished by now.

Probably. Okay. Thanks.

Asher started toward the house.

And Asher?

He looked back once more.

Whatever it is? I’m sure it will be okay.

He nodded, unable to trust his voice. Though he could have told their guest where he was going and why, he wasn’t ready to share it. Even if Jace might have understood the trauma of a switched-at-birth situation better than anyone. And even if they could have carpooled to Mustang Valley General since Jace was headed to the same lab. Heck, with Dad still there, they should have applied for a Colton bulk discount on their medical bills.

Asher continued up the path past the rows of white barns and outbuildings. He had to force himself not to run to the house and his own wing on the third floor, where Harper would be just waking up from her morning nap. Once inside his living quarters, he sprinted all the way to the nursery, unbuttoning his sweaty plaid shirt as he went. He would grab something clean on his way out the door.

In her room, Harper was already sitting up in her crib and making cute sounds for the video monitor that Dulcie watched from the kitchen. Wisps of the baby’s barely there hair stood up, punk-rocker style.

Where’s my Harper girl?

She squealed, her wide, toothless grin stretching even farther.

His possible big brother had said everything would be all right. But Jace couldn’t promise that. Just like no one could guarantee that Payne Colton would awaken from his coma and demand an accounting of the first-quarter books at Colton Oil. Depending on the outcome of today’s DNA test, Asher’s life and that of his sweet baby girl might never be okay again.

Chapter 2

Willow Merrill startled at the sound of the blaring horn while driving her mini SUV past one of the few stoplights along Mustang Boulevard, also called Mustang Valley Boulevard on some old maps. Okay, that light had been pink. Well, more fuchsia.

Sorry.

She waved at the other driver, who scowled back at her through the open window. At least it hadn’t been one of her day-care clients. She needed to calm down and pay attention to her driving if she wanted them to arrive at the hospital without heading straight to the ER.

At least she didn’t have to worry that the honk had frightened her six-month-old baby. Luna’s squeals coming from the rear-facing infant car seat in the back told Willow her daughter was just fine.

What are you laughing about back there?

The baby cackled as she did at all her mother’s jokes. Great. Her kid was going to be a thrill seeker, a luxury Willow had never known.

Her kid. Willow swallowed. How had she forgotten, even for a few seconds, why they were headed to the hospital in the first place? This couldn’t be happening. The woman on the phone had to be wrong. One more thing in a week that had started out bad and had gone downhill from there. Her gaze flicked to the notebook in the passenger seat. She’d written all the details from the call on it before giving her own instructions to her staff and racing out with Luna in her arms.

There had to be a mistake. How could there be a chance that precious Luna wasn’t her child? The infant’s tawny skin was as dark as hers, and the child’s capful of brown hair had already begun to curl. If only basic resemblance could guarantee that they were mother and daughter. Nearly a third of Arizona’s population was of Latino heritage like her, so babies with Luna’s hair and skin coloring were hardly rare in Mustang Valley.

An ache formed in Willow’s chest, squeezing and twisting. Heat gathered behind her eyes. No, she wouldn’t cry. Luna needed her to be strong. She needed her mother. And nothing could convince her that Luna wasn’t the baby she’d once cradled inside her own body and had met at her first breath. She’d promised this child a life filled with the type of security Willow had only dreamed of. Could she have made that vow to the wrong infant?

Managing to avoid more near misses on her trip along the town’s main drag, she pulled into the hospital campus and parked at the five-story building’s main entrance.

She buckled Luna in the stroller the child loathed and rolled it through the automatic doors. Following the signs, she headed down a long corridor and stopped in front of the administrative offices.

A woman in a light pink pantsuit pounced on her the moment she pushed Luna inside.

You must be Mrs. Merrill. The woman pumped Willow’s hand, a flush climbing her own pale neck, her blond bob bouncing. I’m Anne Sewall, but please call me Anne. I appreciate your coming over so quickly.

It’s Willow. And thanks for giving me the information over the phone.

The older woman’s glasses shifted as she wrinkled her nose. I didn’t have a choice, since the other party had insisted that I release the details that way.

Other party. That was the only descriptor Willow had for someone who might be about to steal away her child. She wasn’t ready to wrap her thoughts around the possibility that another mother might be raising an infant biologically connected to her.

Will your husband be joining us this morning?

Willow shook her head. No. He was my ex-husband. I mean, well, both he and his new wife are deceased.

The last development was recent enough that this was the first time Willow