Love in Texas

Chapter 1

Paisley comes running down the skyway, leaving the airplane. Her big brother, Dominic Moretti, is there waiting to scoop up his little sister. It has been months since they last saw each other. They have never gone longer than a few weeks without being together in person, but this was a new experience for all involved. Lately, if he wanted to visit her, extensive travel was needed. She has been in Europe for 11 years.

It is a hot and humid day in Dallas, Texas. Luckily for those departing planes, they have covered jetways. He usually flew privately, but this was his baby sister returning from abroad, and she was very independent. She had not allowed him to send his private plane for her.

“Paisley, I have missed you so much,” he exclaims as he tousles her hair. There are 8 years between them, but they are as close as two siblings can be.

Trailing behind Paisley is a handsome young man carrying several bags. He has never met her brother, Dom, in person. And he is intimidated, to put it mildly.

“Dominic, this is my boyfriend, Carlo. Carlo, meet my brother Dom!” She says as she introduces them.

Carlo is just staring at this giant of a man. He is speechless upon meeting her brother for the first time. He is six feet four inches tall with jet-black hair and dark eyes that stopped sparkling the minute she said 'boyfriend'.

Paisley herself is a petite beauty who takes more after their mother, while Dominic is the spitting image of their father. His body is lean and muscular with a deep tan from time spent outside in the Texas sun. She is perhaps five feet tall, with the same dark hair, but the most gorgeous green eyes. Paisley has fair and flawless skin from pampering time indoors.

“Nice to meet you, sir,” Carlo says as he extends his hand for a handshake. “Paiz has told me so much about you. I feel as if we have already met. “

In his head, Dominic mutters to himself in a quiet tone so he can’t be heard. “Well, she hasn’t mentioned a word to us about you. You must not be important enough to mention.” But he plastered a smile on his face. He would do anything for his baby sister.

Paisley can tell Dom is surprised to meet Carlo, but she knows they will hit it off if they get to know each other. Carlo is so fantastic and takes such excellent care of her, spoiling her rotten. Dom had never really liked any of her boyfriends, but he always tolerated them if they treated her well.

“Where are mom and dad? I thought they were coming with you to pick us up. I miss them so much,” she exclaims as she scans all the faces in the crowd.

“They wanted to, but they are planning a surprise welcome home party for you. It has been several years since you last visited the ranch. Everyone will want to say hi, so they decided to invite them all to dinner. Plus, there is another guest in town, and they are so excited to have a giant celebration,” Dom states.

Who is this other person who could be significant enough for her parents to want to include in her welcome home party, she wonders.

“So, who is this mysterious person who is arriving today also?” She asks Dominic.

“You will find out at the party, Paiz, don’t worry, you won’t be disappointed.” Dominic chuckles.

“Let’s grab your bags and get started. It is a long drive out to the ranch, and we want to be home before dinner.”

“Lead the way, brother.” Paisley motions for him to go first as she grabs her purse that Carlo has been carrying. He looks a little like a pack mule carrying all her things, and these are the items she didn’t check. She has never been one to pack lightly. She never knows what clothing might be needed for an event.

They make it to baggage claim right as the bags are starting to pop out of the chute. Their greeting took longer than expected. Dom grabs a trolley and brings it over. He knows his sister way too well. She packs enough for a family of four. Five identical suitcases in pale pink come out first. Dominic reaches to grab them; he knows his sister’s penchant for pink. Carlo reaches out and grabs a large suitcase emblazoned with the LV logo.

Dom respects that Carlo only has one suitcase; his sister would never be able to do that. Maybe this gentleman isn’t so bad after all. Plus, the bag is of excellent quality. He constantly worries that men will pursue Paisley because of her family wealth.

Dominic leads them out of the airport, where a chauffeur-driven black Escalade is waiting. A man named Hank gets out and opens the back to put all the luggage in. As he sees all of Paisley’s bags, he laughs under his breath. Maybe he should have brought a second vehicle just for her luggage.

Paisley runs up to hug him. Hank has worked for her family since she was born, so he is just another member of the family. He helped her learn to ride horses, but he was also the one to catch her the first time she snuck out her window to go to a party.

“So, how overboard have mom and dad gone with this party?” Paisley asks Hank.

He looks at her with a blank face. “Miss, I don’t know what you could possibly be talking about. “ He knows not to mention anything about the surprise party or the bosses will have his head. “It is so good to see you again. The house is not the same without your cheery smile. “

Paisley blushes a deep red. Hank has always been so kind to her. It was he who taught her how to drive when her parents were too busy and Dom was away in the big city, starting his business.

She was so proud of her brother. He made his first million by the time he was 30. He started a commercial real estate business with his best friend Rafe Mancini right after they both graduated with MBAs from the Wharton School of Business. He refused to take any money from his father, as his best friends had wanted to stand on their own two feet.

Rafe had grown up in the investment world; his father was a mover and shaker on Wall Street. He owned and ran the Mancini Investment Group. So he had a few good contacts that helped the boys in the first few years. Dominic was the smooth talker; he could sell sand to a man dying of thirst in a desert.

Chapter Two

The Moretti Ranch is one of the largest ranches in the state of Texas and the largest in the North Texas area. It encompasses over 11 plots of land, totaling more than 17,000 acres, which have been accumulated so far.

The ranch spreads as far as you can see in every direction. It took a while to drive there from the airport, and the traffic in Dallas is ridiculous. But the first view always brings a smile to Dom’s face. This will all be his one day. They have several smaller plots in the area where they move different herds at different times of year. His father had automated everything and had ranching down to a science. He was the first of his compatriots to implement RFID tagging on all his cattle, incorporating everything electronic.

They have been in Texas for four generations, originally from near Verona, Italy. They still have their beautiful homestead located there, but the family doesn’t visit often. Paisley has spent quite a bit of time there over all her European years. It was like her home away from home. Whenever she felt nostalgic, she would spend a few days there. Additionally, that was also where she would meet her family, so she wouldn’t have to fly back to the US.

Carlo is a native Italian; his family originated from outside Rome. He has never seen a ranch of this size, and it astounds him. Paisley always just mentions it as her family home, but she never mentions the size. Their Italian home is tiny in comparison to this majestic estate, but just as beautiful.