Her Cowboy Lawman

“I have a feeling he gets that from his mom.”

She glanced up at him and he could tell she was no more comfortable around him now than she’d been a half hour ago. If anything, less so now that her brother was gone.

“His dad was stubborn, too.”

And there it was again. The spark in her eyes. The one that flared for a second and then seemed to be snuffed out, almost as if her memories smothered it cold.

“I’m sorry about your loss.”

The flash returned again, but there was something more than just a flash. Was it anger? Sadness? Disappointment? Whatever, it was something that made him lean forward a bit as he waited for her response.

But all she said was “Thank you.”

That wasn’t what she’d wanted to say. He would bet his life on it.

He stared at her son, the boy catching his glance and grinning from ear to ear. “Must be tough raising a kid on your own.”

Her hands clutched the rail in front of her, blanching the knuckles and turning the tips of her fingers bright red. “You have no idea.”

No. He didn’t. He’d never felt the urge to marry. He told himself it was because he hadn’t found the right woman, but deep down, he knew the truth. He liked being single. He enjoyed his freedom. He liked to go wherever he wanted, whenever he wanted to do it, and so he respected people who, like Lauren, were willing to sacrifice such a huge part of themselves to raise another human being. Actually, respect didn’t begin to cover what he felt.

“You did the right thing moving here.” He had no idea why he said the words, but he knew he’d hit a nerve when she turned toward him. “It’s a great place to raise kids.”

She flicked her chin up. “Thank you for your approval.”

And now she’d taken his words wrong. “I just meant a lot of people move here to raise kids. We have good schools and good people and a community spirit that’s hard to beat.”

“So says the sheriff that’s up for reelection.”

Did he sound like a politician? Man, this had gone from bad to worse. “I love my hometown.”