Page 54 of Trusting a Cowgirl

She pulled groceries out of a brown paper bag and placed them on the counter. “You’re serious?”

He rested his elbows on the counter, staring at her intently. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Grace placed her hand on her hip and snorted. “We just started—whatever this is. We’ve had like two dates, if that. You tell me. Does that sound serious enough to meet my father?”

How could he tell her he felt serious enough that he wouldn’t mind going out to look for rings? Okay, he was getting ahead of himself. He could see that now. “I dunno. Shane said…” He shook his head. “Never mind. Forget it,” he muttered.

He couldn’t decide if he was more upset about the fact that she didn’t want him to meet her father or that she didn’t think they were serious. He was so out of his element. More than that, he was out of practice. Based on her reaction, he was taking things too fast.

She shifted, her arm dropping to her side, then leaned forward as well. She grasped his hands with hers while her eyes narrowed with curiosity. “You know I can tell when you want to talk about something, right?”

Riley ran his thumbs over her knuckles. “I guess that’s a hazard of you having a therapy background.”

Grace tilted her head slightly. She wasn’t asking him outright to talk. It was entirely possible that she wanted him to insist they don’t.

He glanced up at her once more. Honestly, hedidn’twant to talk about it. Even when he hung out with his guys, they didn’ttalkor give advice. It was more like catching up with each other. Riley squeezed her hands. He might as well just get it out of his system. There were worse things she could be asking him about. Certain things that he’d keep to himself forever.

“I had a meeting with Shane today.”

“How did that go?”

“That guy is a real piece of work, you know that?”

Her lips twitched, but she didn’t comment.

“What kind of guy tells a stranger that he should meet the father of the girl of his dreams?”

This time she did smile. “What kind of stranger tells the owner of the therapy center he’s using that he’s developing feelings for the girl who’s helping him get through his sordid past?” She looked away for a moment then her gaze bounced back to meet his. “Is that what this is all about? You want to meet my dad because of what Shane said?” It was the first time he noticed the tightness in her voice.

That’s when the realization hit him over the head. “You don’t want me to meet him.”

She grimaced. “Not really. I mean, it’s not why you think. This is new. I don’t want to jinx it.”

Riley frowned. His stomach twisted uncomfortably. The way she phrased it wasn’t so bad, but the notes of uncertainty in her tone were enough to set his teeth on edge. For all her lectures on not hiding stuff, he could tell she was doing just that. “And yet your father probably already knows more about me than I know about him.”

The wrinkle that formed between her brows would have been adorable if not for the reason it was there. Did she think he was an idiot and that he wouldn’t put it all together? She’d commented on all this already. Shane was more direct, but he knew—there was no hiding their relationship from anyone now.

“Your dad. He already knows. What’s the point in trying to keep it a secret?”

“He doesn’t know. If he did, he’d have said something…” Her voice trailed off and she pulled her hands from his. “He would have asked about you or asked to meet you.” Her eyes got a far-off look and she gnawed on her lower lip, then she nodded resolutely. “Yes. He would have said something if he knew. It’s not like my dad to sit back and just let things simmer. He’s much more direct than that.”

“Don’t you think it would be better to get out ahead of this? What do you think he’s going to say when he finds out that I’m not only someone who’s utilizing the services here, but that I’m so much older than you?”

She laughed, but it was strained. Her eyes darted away from him and she got back to work pulling the groceries for their dinner from the bag. “You’re worrying about this too much. While he’s still very direct, people like Shane are thinking about what he was like before he made all these changes to our family rules. They’re scared of what he used to be. Not what he is now.”

“Your tone doesn’t instill much confidence.” He stared hard at her, daring her to meet his gaze, but she didn’t.

Well, if she wasn’t going to facilitate the meeting, he’d have to figure out a way all on his own. Theirs might be a new relationship, but it was still one that was worth investing in. Back in the day, men like Riley would make their intentions known. Zeke sounded like an old-fashioned kind of guy. He’d probably appreciate the fact that Riley would come to him.

Grace would just have to accept that it was going to happen with or without her approval.

20

Grace

It wasn’t fair. All Grace wanted was to slow this down, think things through. The second she had even a small interest in someone, everyone was breathing down her neck about it.

Brielle was telling her that she needed to be careful how she acted whether or not she announced to her father who she was dating. Apparently, her boss even had an opinion on how things should be handled when it came to her father—something that left her unnerved.

---