The Virgin Cowboy Billionaire’s Secret Baby(20)
“Are you just visiting?”
Dara shook her head. “No, I’ve moved back.”
Heather nodded toward the arena. “Are you riding tonight?”
Dara glanced over her shoulder and then shrugged. “No, no. I haven’t been back that long. And I’ve been out of the saddle for a while.” Too long. Way too long. “Might have to start that up again, though.” She turned to her former classmates. “What about you? Are any of you riding?”
They all shook their heads.
“My husband’s doing roping,” Heather said.
“Mine too,” Jamie said. “And reining.”
Jenny smiled. “I’m just here to watch my kids.”
Heather glanced toward the warmup ring, then at Dara. “You know Matt Coolidge is riding tonight, right?”
“I do. I came to watch him, actually.”
The three of them exchanged knowing looks.
“Well,” Jenny said, “you’ll be in good company. He’s the reason every single woman in the county is here whenever there’s a rodeo.”
“Really?”
“Are you kidding?” Heather laughed. “Why wouldn’t they be?”
“Right?” Jenny grinned. “Who knew? Matt Coolidge. A billionaire.”
Dara blinked. She knew he’d made enough to land him on a few Most Eligible Bachelor lists in glossy magazines in recent years, and he’d retired early, but billions? “A billionaire? Really?”
“Of all people, you didn’t know?” Jenny scoffed. “You really have been gone a while, haven’t you?”
Dara’s mouth went dry. “A few years, yes.”
Heather chuckled. “And somehow, we all eventually end up back in Aspen Mill.”
The other girls nodded in agreement. Dara just put on the best smile she could and turned toward the warmup arena again.
In the middle, Beth had stopped beside Matt, and the two of them were talking, oblivious to Dara and their three former classmates watching them.
“Time has sure been kind to him,” Heather said under her breath.
“Yeah, it has,” Jenny said. “He’s even better without that hat on.”
Jamie nodded. “Mmhmm. That man looks good with a little gray.”
And all those extra zeroes behind his net worth, right? Dara tried not to roll her eyes. They hadn’t given him the time of day in high school—Heather probably never knew he’d had a hopeless crush on her all through their sophomore year—but they sure were enamored of him now. What a shock.
Heather turned to Dara. “Whatever happened with you guys anyway?”
Dara’s blood went cold. How many people knew? “Sorry, what?”
Jenny elbowed her gently. “Oh come on. Everybody knew you two would end up together.”
“Us? Together?” Dara laughed and waved her hand. “No, no. We never dated. We’ve always been just friends.” Always except the last decade, her conscience added, as if she needed that guilty little prod below the ribs.
“Really?” Heather asked. “I can’t believe you’ve never dated him.”
“Nope. Never.” And wouldn’t the three of you shit yourselves if you knew I’m having his baby?
Dara’s heart sank. Matt was struggling enough with dating. Now he’d be a single parent too. Probably the first virgin single father in the history of Aspen Mill’s dating scene. Sure, women fawned all over men with babies, but adoring a man with a baby in his arms wasn’t the same as dating a single parent.
Explaining that would be fun for him too.
“So, yeah. I have this kid. But I’m a virgin. Crazy, huh?”
As if she didn’t feel guilty enough for compounding his problems with his family. She’d moved back to town with a whole bag of monkey wrenches to throw into his life.
“Oh!” Heather startled her out of her thoughts. “The barrel racing is about to start.”
Dara glanced at the warmup ring, and sure enough, everyone was filing out and making their way to the main arena’s in-gate. Matt and the other guys hovered near the rail so they could watch, and the women who were in this class stayed near the gate.
Along with her old classmates, Dara went up into the stands and found a seat. Someone must’ve finally decided that the rusty metal bleachers had to go, and they’d installed rows of cushy—if dusty—fold-down seats. So much better than they used to be.
The first few competitors were definitely a mixed bag. One made it around all three barrels with no trouble, but she wasn’t quite fast enough. The next two were on point—fast, tight turns and final sprints that made her jaw drop. The fourth was going great until her knee knocked over the third barrel. That hurt her time, and probably her leg too. God knew Dara had done that a few times herself, and the sound of the rider’s kneecap clipping the barrel made her skin crawl.