Free The Last Cowboy In Texas by Pat Dale Page A

that. She wasn’t.
    He’d opened his door when she said, “That’s okay, Troy . I’d rather go in on my own. We both need time to think this through. Will I see you tomorrow?”
    “Yes. You certainly will. Goodnight, sweetheart. Mind my calling you that?”
    She hesitated, staring into his eyes. It was an endearment her father had used with her mom for as long as she’d been alive. “Only if you truly mean it.”
    “I mean it. I meant everything I said tonight.”
     
    * * *
     
    She went onto the porch and waited until he drove away. When she stepped inside, Cil greeted her. “He kissed you, dear. What’s happening?”
    “Mom, you spying on me again?”
    “Not spying. Just curious. You left with one man and came home with another. That generally means something unusual happened. Want to share it with your mother?”
    “Not really.” She instantly regretted her words at the crestfallen look on Cil’s face. “Nothing serious, Mom. I told Dr. Carlson he’s a lowlife, and then Troy said he loves me.”
    With a pouty frown, she added, “Then I told him I love him, too.” Seeing the quizzical look on her mom’s face, she asked, “Why did I say that?”
    “Usually a woman would say that because she believes it. Do you love him?
    “Yes. I’ve always loved him. But that doesn’t mean I should tell him. Does it?”
    “I don’t know, child. All the rules seem to have changed since I was a girl. That’s how it would have been back when I was your age. Why wouldn’t you tell him how you feel?”
    “I don’t want him to get any bright ideas.”
    “Honey, the man hasn’t been born that doesn’t get bright ideas. It’s not keeping him from having them that you want to worry about. It’s keeping him from acting on them before you get what you want.”
    “That sounds pretty mercenary.”
    “Not at all. When he’s ready to commit to a life with you and you alone, you’ll have what you want. Won’t you?”
    “I think so. Honestly, until this evening I’d never given it much thought.”
    “Is that so?” She grinned. “That’s why you write those wonderful stories of yourself getting exactly that from Troy in all the forms in which you’ve recreated him in your books?”
    “I’m not in my books. And Troy certainly isn’t!”
    “Paige, darling, just look at you. You’re positively flushed, thinking about it. You are Lady Eve and Troy is Sir Robert. Even I can tell that. And your fantasies are basically an extension of your own dreams and hopes.”
    She’d been found out. “I could never become just another of Troy ’s affairs.”
    “If he loves you and you love him, then you’ll just have to find a way to make sure you’re his very last affair. The one that doesn’t fade away.”
    “I don’t want an affair with Troy or anyone else.”
    “Oh, yes you do, dear. An affair for all time. That’s how you keep your love alive and growing, darling. When a man’s in the middle of an affair, he can’t even imagine who the next woman might be. So, you find the man of your dreams and make sure you become the affair he’ll never get over.”
    Paige hugged her and went upstairs, thinking about what had been said. Is Troy the love of my life? Will he be the affair I’ll devote my life to keeping alive? My affair for all time?
    She didn’t know but there was no denying the glow that had ignited with Troy ’s first kiss and still burned deep within.
    Troy drove home slowly, puzzled by Paige’s ambivalence. She’d been so willing to kiss him with passion but then she’d drawn back as soon as she’d had a chance to think about what she was doing.
    She loves me. I know she does. How can I get her to let go of what holds her back? I’ve got to get to the bottom of this or I’ll never be able to settle down.
     
    * * *
     
    Next morning, Paige was just going into the Herald when Troy pulled up. “Good morning,” she said as he approached her on the sidewalk.
    “Hi. I have the ad copy ready