Page 38 of My Billionaire Cowboy Protector

“He was a great man,” Taylor replied.

“Yes, he was, but I’m pretty sure that half of the people here just showed up to be seen.”

“Cynical much?” Willow whispered on the other side. “Although my guess is that you are right.”

The church was unbearably hot, and the service seemed to take forever. There must have been at least a hundred cars in the procession to the cemetery. Prayers were said and eulogies were given. Then, the family stood in line receiving condolences, shaking hands, or hugging everyone. Rachel kissed Lane on the mouth, smirked, and continued down the line.

Lane shook his head.I’ll be glad to be away from her.

While riding back to the mansion, Lane said, “The first thing I’m going to do is get out of this monkey suit and have a beer.”

“Beer yes. Change of clothes, no. People will be showing up for the reception.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Lane said. “Haven’t we received enough Sunday and yesterday?”

“I’m sorry,” Caroline said, patting his knee.

The rest of the day dragged on. People treated the reception as a networking event. They discussed business matters, their personal lives, and occasionally Grandpa. Finally, much to Lane’s relief, everyone was gone.

As soon as the door shut on the last guest, he and Taylor went upstairs to change into their sweats and T-shirts. They had just changed when someone knocked on the bedroom door. Colton and Willow stood in the doorway.

“We want to go home,” Willow said.

“Right now?” Lane asked.

“No, Silly. First thing in the morning,” Willow said. “I’m sure that you two have had about as much of New York as you can handle, too.”

“Yep,” Lane said.

The four of them talked to the rest of the brothers. They were ready to go home, too.

“We need to tell Mom and Dad together,” Colton said. “Otherwise, Mom might try to guilt us into staying a while longer.”

“I understand,” Caroline said, surprising them all. “I know that New York isn’t your thing. I will miss you guys. The only reason we moved here was because my dad was ready to retire from the oil business.”

They spent the rest of the evening telling stories about the family. Lane wouldn’t miss New York, but he would miss his parents.

The plane was crowded with ten people stuffed into it. Every seat was taken. Most of them slept during the entire trip. It had been a whirlwind of activity and emotions. Grandpa had been such an important of their lives and his loss had been a devastating blow.

Lane looked over at Taylor who had stared out the window the entire flight. He wondered what was going through her mind.

I will miss cuddling with her. She and I need to talk about our relationship and where it is going. I do care about her, a lot.

When they finally landed, everyone said their goodbyes and went home, probably to fall into bed and sleep for a week.

As soon as they got back, Taylor said, “I’m going to check on Diablo,” and made a beeline for the corral.

Robert greeted him with a smile.

“Congratulations,” he said.

“Why?” Lane asked suspiciously.

The older man handed him the local paper. It was folded back so that Lane could see the wedding announcement. There was a large picture that his mother must have taken of him and Taylor at the gala.

“Oh, my heavens. What has that woman done?”

“It looks like your Mama put a notice in the paper that you and Taylor were going to get married.”

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