Rachel had no idea.

She still held the wine she’d brought with her for their small holiday dinner, which they’d planned on skipping out on as soon as they possibly could. From the reception line that stood up to meet Owen, that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

She watched as TJ walked up to Owen and opened his arms.

Instead of offering a hug, Owen put his hand out to shake. At fifteen, Owen was only a few inches shorter than his father, and there was no mistaking the resemblance. “We’re glad you’re here, Owen.”

Rachel noticed Owen’s shoulders stiffen.

She handed the wine to Selma and walked to him without apology.

“Hello, TJ,” Owen addressed his father.

Some of the family around them muttered among themselves.

She had to literally push her way to Owen’s side. There weren’t many times she’d seen Owen vulnerable. A couple of times when they were in the hospital when it became apparent Em wasn’t going to make it, and again at her funeral. Right at that moment, Owen glanced around the room, his eyes wide.

“Merry Christmas, TJ.” Rachel attempted to disrupt the tension.

“Hello, Rachel.”

“Owen and I had no idea your family was so large.”

TJ held his arms wide. “Well, we are.”

Rachel looked at Deyadria. “A little warning might have been warranted.”

“So you could have kept him away from us?”

The room went silent.

“Mom.” TJ looked at his son. “We’re a lot to take in.”

“Wait until Uncle Theo starts drinking,” someone in the crowd said.

Several people started laughing.

“You okay?” Rachel asked Owen.

He attempted a smile and a quick nod.

She leaned close so only he could hear her. “Say the word and we’re outta here.”

For over an hour, introductions were made, a laundry list of names she’d never remember. Selma offered her wine twice, twice Rachel said no. There was no way in hell she wasn’t going to be able to bolt out of there if Owen so much as sneezed.

The room was overwhelming for her, and she wasn’t the center of everyone’s attention.

The dinner table stretched to accommodate the mass of people. If there was a kids’ table to be had, Owen would have been the only one at it. Apparently the two cousins in their late twenties who had new families were living out of state.

Owen answered the polite questions about school and adjusting to the move. When he didn’t offer more than brief answers, Uncle Theo, who was the obvious drinker in the group, changed the subject to TJ.

“So are you sticking around now?” the older man asked.

TJ glanced at Owen. “That’s the plan.”

“I thought a photojournalist spent their time in foreign countries, chasing wars,” Owen said.

“I’m ready for something new.”

“Have you found a job here?” Rachel asked, really wanting to know all the details she could about TJ’s sudden change of heart about traveling all over the world.

“I’m working on it.”

Deyadria spoke up. “Did you know your father has had his work featured in just about every political magazine and national newspaper in print?”

“No.”

“Well he has. He’s quite famous in his field.”

Rachel couldn’t help but wonder if that were true, why it was he didn’t have a job with the first place he interviewed.

“I hope the sacrifices you made were worth it,” Owen said directly to TJ.

TJ didn’t respond. Instead he took a long swig of his cocktail.

Several conversations started around the table, taking the light off them. By the time dinner was done, Owen looked like he’d had enough. Much to Deyadria’s and Tereck’s distress, Owen said he wasn’t feeling well, and Rachel ran with his cue.

While Owen said good-bye, TJ pulled her aside. “I want to start seeing him.”

“That really isn’t up to me.”

“I want a chance with him, Rachel.”

She lowered her voice. “Then do yourself a favor and don’t pull this kind of crap on him. Ask him what he wants, and respect his response.”

“He’s just a kid.”

“No, that’s where you’re wrong. He is fifteen going on twenty-five. He has a mind of his own. Don’t treat him like a child.”

It looked as if TJ wanted to argue.

He didn’t.

Owen was silent most of the way home.

Then the floodgates opened. “Where the hell were all those people my entire life?”

“I don’t know.”

“Some of them had sticks up their ass, just like the weather killers.”

“Selma was nice. Theo was real.”

“He was drunk.”

“It doesn’t get more real than that,” she said.

He rolled his head back. “What is TJ up to? Since when does he want to be a dad?”

“Did he tell you that?”

“Yes.”

“How do you feel about that?”

“Like he’s too late. He should have thought about that when I was a kid. I know my mom gave him a choice, never forced him to step up. But that didn’t mean he shouldn’t have.”

Rachel turned off the interstate. “I hear ya, Owen. But before you blow him off, think about what you might be missing the rest of your life if you do.”

“Like what?”

“That big family.”

“With the hag?”

Rachel grinned. “Every family has at least one hag.”

“I bet there isn’t one hag at Jason’s tomorrow.”

That was probably true. “Just think about it. Don’t cut people out of your life because of one hag and one deadbeat dad.”

She pulled onto their street. “Oh, by the way . . .”

“Oh no, what?”

“About tomorrow.”

“Don’t tell me it’s canceled. Jason promised me a match on Call of Duty.”

The thought of Jason hashing out a video game with Owen had her smiling. “No, we’re going.”

“Then what?”

She pressed the button on the remote and pulled into the garage.

There wasn’t an easy way to tell him, so she just did. “Jason is my boss.”

“What do you mean?”

She cut the engine, opened the door so the dome light lit their faces. “I didn’t find out he was my boss until after I picked him up on the side of the road.”

“How could you not know he was your boss? Don’t you see your boss every day?”

“Okay, he’s not my direct boss. He, ah . . . he owns the company.”

“You’re kidding?”

She let herself out of the car, expecting Owen to follow.

“It was super awkward at first. Still feels strange. Anyway, tomorrow you’ll meet his brothers and their wives. I was told there were a handful of other people coming, but nothing like we saw tonight.”

Owen shrugged, rather unaffected by the news. “As long as no one claims to be a long-lost uncle or cousin once removed, I’m good.”

“No risk of that.”

Inside the house, they dumped their coats in the mudroom and turned on the lights.

“Thanks for having my back tonight,” Owen said.

“I’m always going to have your back.”

He offered a rare one-arm hug and then turned to go to his room.