Page 26 of Cowboy Wolf's Secret Baby

Conner caught a glimpse of Kelly staring at them out of the corner of his eye. She had a very ugly look on her face and knew that she was furious. He couldn’t help but remember Zephyr’s reaction to Kelly earlier and compare it to how he reacted to Taryn.

Kelly is probably thinking the same thing. I hope that she doesn’t do anything stupid and go after Taryn.

He watched the rodeo queen slip into the shadows and turned his attention back to Taryn and Zephyr. Beth walked up to them.

“There you are,” she said. “I figured that I would find you here when you didn’t come to the stands.”

“Sorry, Mom. I should have asked you.”

Beth smiled at Taryn and patted her on the back. She turned her attention to Conner. “You are just trying to kill yourself out there, aren’t you?”

“You’ve been talking to my mother,” Conner said. “She insists that someday I’m going to go home in a million different pieces.”

“She’s not wrong,” Beth replied. “At least for now, Taryn is sticking to barrel racing and breakaway roping. I know she wants to participate in bull riding, too, but hasn’t to protect my heart.”

Conner laughed. “If I die in the rodeo, at least I’ll die doing something that I love. How many people spend their whole lives wishing that they could do something fun but never dare to go out and do it? I dread the thought of being on my death bed wondering what if I had done this or what if I had done that.”

Beth grimaced and her face flushed. Conner briefly wondered what that was about. His thoughts were cut off when Zephyr nudged him, looking for a treat.

Conner pulled an apple out of his pocket and handed it to Taryn. She bit off chunks to feed to the horse, who gently nibbled it from her hand.

“You must be magic. He’s never that nice when he takes it from me,” Conner said.

Beth bit her lip. Conner wondered what was bugging her.

“We both did well tonight,” Conner said. “How about some sandwiches from the deli and some ice cream after that?”

Taryn turned to Beth, her face shining. “Mom, can we?”

“Sure,” Beth said.

“Why don’t I follow you to your house, and then I’ll drive. It makes more sense than you following me all over town.”

Beth hesitated for a second and then said, “Sure.”

The three of them had a great time, with Taryn once again talking nonstop about her life, school, and everything she loved to do. Beth and Conner didn’t have a chance to do more than smile and nod.

Finally, she took a breath and said, “Tell me about your home.”

“When we aren’t driving around, Zephyr and I live in a town called Angel’s Creek in New Mexico. All of my family lives there. My brother and his wife have a little boy and two little girls. They keep him busy.”

He told her a little about his family there and some of the fun he had when he was home. Once the last bite of the waffle cone was devoured, Conner drove them back to Beth’s house.

“Can Conner come in and read with me?” Taryn asked. “Mom and I take turns reading from a book.”

Beth sighed and said, “If Conner wants to.”

“Sounds fun,” Conner said. He was actually shocked by the idea that hanging out with Taryn and reading with her did sound fun. He had never done anything so domesticated his entire life.

Taryn hugged him before she went into her room to brush her teeth and go to bed. That was another first for Conner. He had never been hugged by a female under the age of eighteen before, except for his nieces.

“Sorry about that,” Beth said. “I’ve never seen her take to anyone like that before. She is usually quiet and reserved.”

“Taryn? That’s hard to imagine,” Conner said.

“I know. She has really opened up to you.”

“She’s a sweet girl,” Conner replied.

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