Page 51 of A Montana Secret Admirer
Because that was who he was to her.
He hadn’t missed a single sunset. He ate lunch with her and the boys most days, too. The looks he’d secretly give her when he was working with her sons were more than enough to set her body on fire.
And the kissing.
He had a knack for making her feel like they were the only two people in the entire universe when he had his arms around her.
There was a sense of peace about him, too.
The flowers had stopped coming, and as far as she was concerned, there were only two reasons. The first was that the secret admirer had noticed just how much time she was spending with Reese. Or Reese was the one leaving her flowers, and now that he had her, he didn’t feel the need to leave her notes and flowers anymore.
She couldn’t decide if that made her sad or not.
Part of her wanted to bring it up and ask him point blank if he was the one behind the little gifts. She wanted him to confess so she could consolidate it all in her head.
But another part of her almost liked the mystery—as if finding out it was him would change the way she felt about how it all started.
That stirred up a bit more unease than she was prepared for at the moment.
Reese was watching her where she stood next to Tegan. He was in the saddle, and he was looking more forlorn than usual. Up until she’d seen his sad expression, she’d been tempted to tell him about Reese and what was happening between the two of them.
Up until that point, she’d wanted to share her good news.
But now? Tegan was her priority. His happiness trumped her own, and she would never put herself or anyone else above him or Jessi.
“What’s the matter, bud?”
He glanced at her, drawing his attention away from something in the distance. When she looked over that way, she saw one of Reese’s cousins with his kid. The boy looked to be a couple years older than Tegan. They were working on lassoing techniques, and the boy was laughing at just how much better he was getting than his father.
Serenity returned her focus to Tegan and nudged him. “What’s bothering you?”
“I miss Dad.”
His words were like a punch to the gut. Tegan didn’t talk about his father. She could count the number of times he’d talked about his father on two hands. He didn’t mention missing him or wondering if he had made it to heaven like his younger brother did. Tegan was such a closed book that Serenity had nearly sent him to speak to a therapist.
At the time, she’d felt like a hypocrite. She’d not wanted to force him to do something she wasn’t ready for, either.
It might have been wrong, but it had been her decision, and after the first couple of months since Finn’s death, Tegan seemed to bounce back from his melancholy attitude.
“Me, too,” she whispered.
He frowned down at her, and the amount of anger that simmered in his eyes was just as much of a shock as the words he said. “No, you don’t.”
“What?”
“You don’t miss him.”
“What makes you think that?” she demanded. “I miss your father every day.”
He shrugged and turned his attention once more to the father and son duo across the way.
“No, Tegan. You can’t just say something like that and not explain yourself. It’s important that you tell me how you’re feeling.”
He didn’t speak. In fact, he attempted to pull his horse away from where she’d been petting it. But she grabbed the reins and forced him to stay.
“Talk to me.” She was barely able to whisper it.
His eyes darted to meet hers. “You’re happy. You smile all the time.”
