Page 2 of The Cattleman's Unforgettable Love

These spaghetti dinners had become a thing between them — a regular, easy ritual. Ford loved spending time with the little guy, and he knew that Tanner and Everly appreciated the occasional evening to themselves.

The spare shirt had been part of the deal ever since the first time Ford fed Ashton spaghetti and the kid ended up wearing more of it than he ate. Everly hadn’t been impressed by the state of his clothes when he got home.

Ashton climbed onto his seat and fastened the top snap of the shirt with a grin.

“It’s not my fault. I’m not normally a messy eater,” he said. “It’s just that your spaghetti’s so good.”

“I’m glad you enjoy it. Dig in, but fasten a couple more snaps first.”

He slid the plate closer so Ashton could reach the garlic bread.

“You never answered my question.”

“What question was that again?” Ford asked.

“Are you lonely?”

Ford paused, his fork halfway to his mouth. He gave the question serious consideration, then shook his head slowly.

“No. I’m good. But thank you.”

“I have so many uncles and aunties now. And I have my new best friend, Mateo. And little Maya’s cool too, even though she’s a girl. I love it here.”

“I’m glad,” said Ford. “I do, too.”

“But…” Ashton looked at him carefully. “You don’t have anyone to love.”

Ford had to smile as Ashton wiped his sleeve across his mouth, smearing spaghetti sauce everywhere.

“You’re kidding me, right? You think I don’t have anyone to love?” He poked the kid’s shoulder. “You don’t think I love you?”

“I know you do. I don’t mean like that.”

Ford shrugged. “All those aunties and uncles of yours? They’re my brothers and sisters and their partners. You think I don’t love them? You know I love your dad. And your mom.”

Ashton nodded slowly. “Do you mind that I call him Dad, even though we both know he’s not really?”

“Mind? I love it. If he wasn’t your dad, I wouldn’t be your uncle, would I?”

Ashton nodded again. “Yeah, but… you know what I mean.”

“I do. But why do you ask? Has someone said something about it?”

Ashton shook his head quickly. “No. It’s just that me and Mateo were talking about it.”

“Talking about what?” Ford asked.

“You know, how he calls his mom and dad ‘Mom and Dad’? But they’re not really his parents.”

Ashton’s eyebrows drew together. “But that’s not right either, because they are his parents. They’re just not his original parents, right?”

“That’s how I see it. Is he happy that they’re his parents?”

“He loves it. And so does Maya. It’s just that… we were wondering how everyone else feels about it. You know – you’re all real family. And we’re just, well…”

Ford laid a hand on the kid’s shoulder. “You guys are real family. As real as it gets. And don’t ever think otherwise.” He frowned. “And if anyone tries to tell you otherwise—”

Ashton laughed. “Cody and Wyatt at school did try saying that when I first came. But Dad sorted them out – we’re all friends now. Everyone knows that Mateo and Maya and me are MacFarlands. So, we’re good.”