She didn’t want to read anything into what he’d said, but with the way he was looking at her, she couldn’t help doing so.
“Hello, Mom.”
Before Iris could gather her wits to greet her son, he extended his hand out to Matt. “Hello, Mr. Caulder. I met your daughter Deena yesterday when we went horseback riding, but you and I haven’t been introduced. I’m Garlan Michaels.”
She watched Matt smile as he accepted her son’s hand. “Garlan, it’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard nothing but good things about you.”
Garlan chuckled. “And I’m sure they all came from my mom. By the way, if you’re trying to get any scoop as to how this gender reveal party will turn out, don’t waste your time. Mom can keep a secret better than anyone I know.”
Now it was Matt’s time to chuckle. “I’m finding that out. I’ve asked her twice now and she hasn’t told me anything.”
At that moment, her two teenage godsons, Denver and Dade, joined them. They gave Iris huge hugs. When Matt remarked that they favored Alisdare, they laughed, and Denver said it was because their father, Dillon, and Alisdare’s dad, Dare, looked so much alike. They even warned him that if he saw their younger cousin Beau, who was Canyon Westmoreland’s son, he would think the three of them were brothers since Beau favored them as well.
Then they asked Matt how it felt to be Sid Roberts’s son.
He smiled. “It’s taking some getting used to.”
“Well, he’s a hero. I wish more people knew about him and how he worked to save horses. Most people only know him as a rodeo star,” Denver said.
Then the topic turned to horses, and Iris was surprised by how much Matt knew about them. Garlan, as well as her godsons, had always had a fascination with them, and thanks to so many expert horsemen in the Westmoreland family, they’d learned to ride early. When the two brothers left to go talk with their cousins from Australia, Garlan asked Matt if he’d ever gone skiing. Matt told him he had, and that he enjoyed the sport. The topic then shifted back to horses.
Garlan finally left when Prince Ari got his attention. It was then that Iris asked Matt, “How do you know so much about horses?”
He smiled and took another sip of wine. “I’ve always been fascinated with them. My godparents, the Saxons, owned several, and I learned to ride right along with Dominic. In fact, they gave me my first horse as a birthday gift when I turned ten.”
He became solemn, as if remembering. “Come to think of it, my fascination goes back before then. I used to watch a lot of rodeo shows on television, and my mom even took me to a couple of rodeos.”
“To see your father perform?”
“I don’t know. She never mentioned his name. At the time, she knew I was a fan of Sid Roberts like every other kid my age.”
“Does a part of you regret she didn’t tell you he was your father?” she asked.
“No. My godmother explained that Mom knew of his love for the rodeo and refused to compete against it. Not even for me. A part of me believes it would have been nice knowing my father, just like I’m sure there are times Garlan wishes he’d known his. However, you learn to accept that some things weren’t meant to be. It was Mom’s decision to make, and I accept it.”
He got quiet for a moment before saying, “According to what my mother shared with my godmother, Sid Roberts explained the reason he didn’t want to choose between marriage and the rodeo. It was because his father had been forced to do that very thing.”
“How did it turn out?”
“He chose the rodeo.”
“Over his wife and child?” Iris asked as if appalled.
“From what I was told, the woman was his second wife. Sid’s mother had been his first wife, who had died in childbirth. He married the woman when Sid turned eight, and she understood and accepted that Sid’s father would be gone a lot on the rodeo circuit. She agreed to those terms but then complained when he was rarely around for a good seven months out of the year. After they had been married about two years she gave him an ultimatum. Her or the rodeo. He divorced her and took Sid with him when he left. Sid regretted leaving because the marriage had provided stability for the first time in his life. He was old enough to attend a regular school instead of traveling with his father. When he grew up, he hadn’t wanted to be placed in a position like his father’s, so he decided not to marry.”
Iris nodded. “So, Sid Roberts and the triplets’ mother, Carolyn Roberts, had the same father but different mothers?”
“Yes.”
“And Carolyn basically did to Corey Westmoreland what her mother had done to her own father. Not let him know of her pregnancy.”
“Looks that way,” Matt said.
The music stopped, and Iris knew that Act Two of the gender reveal party was about to begin. Placing her wineglass aside, she said, “That’s my cue to head back toward the stage.”
“Will I see you later?” he asked.
“Not sure. You’re playing poker with the guys tonight, and I plan to pack to return home in the morning.”
