Free Learning to Ride by Erin Knightley Page B

as he tipped his head in greeting toward the women. His grandmother’s overly enthusiastic welcome registered at last. Cautiously, he said, “Is that so?”
    She looked perfectly innocent as she hurried over to give him a hug, but he knew a matchmaking smile when he saw one, and this one had Cupid written all over it. He almost snorted. As if he needed any more encouragement to make a fool out of himself in front of Madeline.
    He allowed his gaze to stray back to the “someone” in question. The mere sight of her standing there when he walked in the door had knocked the air straight from his lungs. What in the world was she doing here in his family’s home, looking sexy sweet in her pink jeans and lacy white shirt? He was still mad at her, no matter how cute she looked.
    “Yes, sir,” Grandma Letty replied, with a devilish twinkle in her blue eyes. She swept a beckoning hand toward their visitor. “Miss Madeline, you must meet my handsome grandson. He’s practically famous, believe it or not.”
    When his eyes collided with Madeline’s, he mentally implored her to keep her mouth shut about any of their time together. Hell, he’d rather his grandmother not suspect they even knew each other. One whiff of a connection and she was liable to run with it like a dog with a stolen T-bone.
    Madeline’s expression was unreadable, and that made his pulse quicken. But after only a few seconds, she slid her gaze over to his grandmother and smiled. “You must be very proud to have a famous grandson.”
    Tanner’s rigid shoulders relaxed. She was clever—there was no lie in her response. His grandmother fairly preened as she nodded and patted his arm. “Proud as a peacock. Well, now that he’s retired,” she added. “Leave it to a man to make a career out of riding an ornery beast ten times his weight. This old heart of mine couldn’t have taken much more.”
    For the first time in years, guilt pricked his conscience over the matter. It had taken his grandmother years to not visibly pale anytime someone mentioned the rodeo, but toward the end of his career, they had come to a cease-fire over the matter. She’d even shown up for his last competition. He didn’t want to think on the worry he’d caused her by chasing his dream.
    Now, following the last conversation he’d had with Madeline about his choice of career, he felt the old defensiveness set in. The way she was looking at him, with one brow raised in an I-told-you-it-was-crazy sort of way, got his dander up all over again.
    Pointedly turning his attention away from her golden gaze, he squeezed his grandmother’s hand. “I reckon you’ll outlive us all, no matter what I do for a living.”
    “We’ll leave that up to the good Lord, thank you. I’m just glad to have you back home where you belong.” She turned a smile toward their visitor. “And speaking of home, Madeline is new to town. Now mind your manners and greet her proper-like.”
    He suppressed a sigh. There was no escaping now that he was here. Stepping forward, he held out a hand. “Nice of you to come visit, Madeline.”
    She glanced down at his hand, looking distinctly surprised by the gesture. After a second, she reached out and slid her hand into his. “Glad to be here, Tanner. Your grandmother is a delight.”
    The feel of her soft, warm skin against his work-roughened palms sent a spark of desire through him. It wasn’t a welcome sensation, given how they’d last parted. They were all wrong for each other, no matter what his thumping heart had to say about the matter. He quickly broke contact and shoved his hand in his pockets.
    “Well, I won’t keep you,” he said pointedly.
    “Oh, um, I was just about to help clean up,” she replied, shooting a look toward his grandmother. “What can I do?”
    “Why don’t you gather up the wineglasses while I sit a spell? Tanner here can do the washing.”
    His jaw nearly hit the floor. In all his years, he’d never once seen his grandmother