Her face paled.

“I’m sorry,” Fender said quietly. “You didn’t want to see me when Rogan first told you, and I had to try. So I signed on to work on the ranch.” He drew in a long breath. “I tried so damned hard to get custody of you. I really wanted you with me. Your mother was too eaten up with spite and hatred to let me near you. I just…gave up. I was afraid she’d make up a story and have me put in prison. But not a day went by when I didn’t love you or want to get you away from her. I tried several times over the years, through lawyers, to get custody. I failed every damned time.”

“Why did she hate me so?” she asked miserably.

“Because you weren’t hers,” he said flatly.

She gasped. “What?”

“When we first got married, we found out that she couldn’t have a child. I’d been briefly engaged to another woman and she’d gotten pregnant. She was dying and begged me to take you. I did, against your mother’s wishes. She hated me for it, hated you, hated the world.”

“So that was why,” Mina said heavily.

“That was why. You’re my daughter. But you’re not your mother’s daughter. The woman who gave birth to you was a kind, sweet woman who was frail and undemanding. Your mother was flamboyant and seductive and I fell head over heels for her. It was a flash in the pan. I paid for it, your real mother paid for it and you paid for it. One mistake, and you and I are still paying for it.”

Mina felt a weight lift from her heart. She finally understood. “I’m sorry,” she began.

“I’m the one who should be apologizing,” he interrupted her. “It was my fault. All of it. I left your mother for another flash in the pan, although I didn’t regret it except for losing you. The woman you thought was your mother was a greedy, cold, hateful woman, who poisoned every life she touched. She said she’d make sure I never got custody of you, no matter what lies she had to tell.” He swallowed. “If you want to fire me, I’ll understand. I didn’t come here to ruin your special day.”

She just stared at her father. She didn’t know what to say. “I wish I’d known sooner,” she said finally.

He shrugged. “You know now. That’s enough. I’d like to get to know you all over again,” he added. “I’m so proud of you.”

She managed a weak smile. “I’d like that, too.”

He nodded. He smiled. “So I’ve still got a job?”

“You bet.”

“Then I’ll get back to Catelow and do it.”

She nodded. “You can write me. I’ll write back.”

“I’ll do that. Thanks,” he added huskily. “For giving me a second chance.”

“Thanks for clearing up the mystery. No wonder she hated me. I was ashamed that I could never love her. Now I’m not ashamed anymore.”