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The pizza was delicious but couldn’t distract from the surreal nature of the moment, she thought. Hard to believe that until a couple of weeks ago, she hadn’t thought of Toby in years, and yet here she was, in his home, eating dinner with him and his son.

His home appeared new, with expensive touches. He’d come a long way from the teenager who’d lived in what was then the poorer part of town. Back then his number one goal was not to be a drunk like his dad, but beyond that, he hadn’t had much direction. Obviously he’d found his way.

Chapter Twelve

Once they’d finished dinner and had put away the leftovers, the four of them went upstairs. Harrison showed Reggie and Belle his room, then begged his father to let him watch a movie with Belle. The Great Dane was all in when it came to lying on the sofa with her favorite boy. Reggie and Toby left them and went to his spacious office at the end of the hall.

“How many rooms are there?” Reggie asked as he put down the wine bottle and glasses he’d carried upstairs.

“The usual amount.”

She thought about what she’d seen downstairs. “Let me guess. Five bedrooms, a bonus room, a home office and possibly a basement.”

His appealing smile turned sheepish.

“That’s right. We have just over five thousand square feet.”

“Nice.”

This office had a big desk, built-in bookshelves and a comfortable-looking sofa against the far wall. Behind it were pictures—of Harrison from infant to now, and of Judy’s Hand Pies food trucks and a storefront she didn’t recognize.

He followed her gaze. “That was the first one,” he said. “I opened it in Austin.”

“You have an empire.”

“Of sorts.”

They took seats on the sofa, and he poured her a glass of wine. She took it and looked around.

“I’m shocked. You didn’t have the decorators turn this room into a Christmas paradise. Why is that?”

“You know I don’t care about that kind of stuff for myself. It’s important to celebrate for Judy and Harrison.”

“You like it, too.”

“Not as much as they do.”

“The tree downstairs is beautiful. Magazine-worthy. But I’m going to guess the one you do with Judy and your son is more meaningful.”

“It is.”

She eyed him over her glass of wine. He looked like what he was—a successful and content man. His gold-blond hair was a little darker than it had been back in high school, and the shape of his face was sharper. His eyes were the same color blue. Sort of medium with a hint of gray.

He’d been good with the students today, helping them with their hats. Not that she should be surprised. He was a great dad. So, why wasn’t he married, and where was Harrison’s mother?

Although she wasn’t comfortable asking the question directly, she didn’t mind hinting at it.

“You were young when you had Harrison,” she said as casually as she could.

“Twenty-two.” He set down his glass. “When I left here my senior year of high school, I just wanted to get away. I ended up in Texas. I figured it was big, and there were plenty of spaces to get lost.”

“Your goal was to get lost?”

“I was all of eighteen. I might have been a bit dramatic in my thinking.”

“How did you support yourself?”

“I worked construction. I would hang out at sites, and if someone didn’t show up, I filled in.” He smiled. “Not with the big equipment. They didn’t let me do that, but there’s always plenty of grunt work that doesn’t require training. I became a regular, and the money was decent. I started in Lubbock, then went to Dallas. While I was there, I met a girl.”