The Virgin Cowboy Billionaire’s Secret Baby(46)
“Jesus.” Matt exhaled sharply. “And I suppose you can’t tell her that the baby has a father.”
She winced, lowering her gaze. “I should have. I feel really awful about keeping it a secret.” She frowned and shifted her weight. “I’m not ashamed of you being the baby’s father. I just—”
“I know you’re not.” He fought the urge to put a reassuring hand on her arm. They were too out in the open for that right now. “There’s plenty of time between now and when the baby is born for us to tell people.”
“There is.” She ran a hand through her hair. Shaking her head, she sighed and met his eyes. “It’s so fucked up, if you think about it. You went above and beyond by donating in the first place, and you’re stepping up now when no one would hold it against you if you didn’t. And yet…”
“And yet our families have petty grudges they won’t let go of.”
“Yeah. And the minute my family knows, it’s going to get to your family. And with that will your mom is holding over your head…”
To hell with what people thought. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her gently. “Listen to me—the only people who need to know right now are you and me.”
She nodded. “But if those people didn’t matter, we could just tell them and let the chips fall wherever.” She lifted her head and met his eyes. “They do matter. That’s the problem.”
“Yeah, they do. I know.” He sighed and reached up to smooth her hair, but froze, remembering where they were.
She tensed, as if she’d remembered too, and they both glanced around as they separated, pulling back to a more platonic distance. Immediately, he wanted to draw her back to him, but…not here.
“Anyway.” She waved a hand and cleared her throat. “I guess it’s just kind of been gnawing at me that my mother knew, but I couldn’t tell her the whole truth.”
“Give it time. We’ll all get there. And for the record, I know you’re not ashamed of what we’re doing. I understand completely.”
She smiled. “Thank you.”
“Hey, we’re in this together.”
“Yeah, we are.” The smile turned to a classic Dara Marley grin. “In more ways than one, I guess.”
He shivered. “We probably don’t need to tell anyone about that part.”
She laughed. “No, probably not. It can be our little secret.” With a wink, she added, “Our dirty little secret.”
Goose bumps prickled beneath his shirt. “You know, you’re not making it very easy to concentrate out there.” He nodded in the general direction of the arena.
“Who, me?” She batted her eyes. “So sorry.”
“I’m sure you are.”
“So does that mean you want to come to my place after Hanson’s Place tonight?”
He gulped. “Um.”
“Should I take that as a yes?”
Forget Hanson’s Place. Forget the rest of the rodeo. Let’s—
“I’ll take it as a yes.” She nodded toward the arena. “Come on. Let’s go watch the rest of the classes.”
Right. Because he was sure he’d be able to concentrate now.
They sat in the stands to watch a few of Beth’s students, as well as Beth competing in the reining division. All the while, Dara’s presence kept Matt’s head spinning, and although he wanted to cut out early and get the hell out of there, they couldn’t leave until Beth was finished because the horses still had to go home. He could wait.
And he had to admit, he got a charge out of sitting here, surrounded by all these people, with this little secret—this dirty little secret—between him and Dara. Despite the suspicions everyone had had about them when they were teenagers, not one person in these packed stands knew that tonight, he’d be in bed with Dara. He doubted there was a man in here who wouldn’t have jumped at the chance, but none of them had that chance tonight except for him. After going his entire adult life without being with a woman, never mind one as hot as her, he let himself indulge in a bit of smugness.
Sorry, boys. She’s with me tonight.
Afterward, Dara helped load the horses into the trailer, and then she followed while Matt drove the rig back to the farm.
As they got out of their respective vehicles, Beth asked, “You guys coming to Hanson’s Place tonight?”
On most nights, that offer of an escape was all he needed to relax, and he’d be fine with going out to the bar and staying until they were both ready to go.
Not tonight.
“Actually, I think I’m gonna skip it tonight.” To Dara, he said, “You’re more than welcome to—”