Free Virgin Cowboy by Lacey Wolfe Page B

my daughter around that.”
    “I understand.” He stepped toward her.
    “Uh-uh. No more. You need to keep your distance.”
    “How come? Worried you’ll take me up on my offer to go to my
bedroom?”
    She rolled her eyes just as the doorbell rang. “Saved by the
bell.”
    “Saved?” He placed a hand over his heart.
    She winked then stood straight.
    He kissed her cheek. “They’re going to love you. Once my mom
gets to know you, her doubts will fade away.”
    He let his parents in, his mom hugging him and his dad
patting his shoulder.
    “It’s been a long time since we’ve been here.” His mom
looked around with her inspector eyes.
    “I hope it’s okay.” Growing up, his mom complained that he
and his dad were the messiest people she’d ever met.
    “It’s nice.” She put her hand out to Courtney. “I’m not sure
we’ve ever really officially met. I’m Gail.”
    Courtney shook her hand. “Courtney Johnson.”
    His dad shook her hand as well. “It’s a pleasure to meet
you.”
    So far, this was going well. Braden rubbed his hands
together. “Food is all ready if you’re hungry.”
    “I am.” His mom rubbed her belly. “What did you order?”
    “I got a bucket of chicken from the place you love, but
won’t eat.”
    “Good.”
    His mom hardly ever ate out. It was the way she’d been
raised. You only dined out for special occasions. His parents didn’t understand
this new generation that ate meals out several days a week, as well as lunch,
and their coffee. To her, you made a pot of coffee and flavored it if you
wanted.
    They took their seats at his small dining room table that
was only big enough for four.
    “Where’s your daughter?” his mom asked.
    “I left her with the sitter. It’s a school night and I
didn’t want her out late.”
    “I’m sure she’d want to be with you. How much time do the
two of you get together?”
    “Mom.” Braden couldn’t believe his own mother was going to
embarrass him. He was used to his siblings doing it, but this was new.
    “You’re right. She probably would rather me be home with her
tonight, however, this was important to Braden. I felt it was important for me
to be here and show you that I had time for your son.” Courtney placed a napkin
on her lap.
    His mom smiled wide, which surprised him. “I’m still not
sure about you, but you can certainly hold your own. If you stick around, I
could see you fitting in just fine with this family.”
    Braden let out the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been
holding and shared a glance with his father. He had no idea what direction this
dinner was going to go, but his fiery redhead wasn’t going to be pushed around
by his mother.
    * * * *
    “I’ll clean up. You sit and visit with your parents.”
Courtney grabbed the plates they’d collected on the end of the table and
escaped into the kitchen.
    She stood in front of the sink and closed her eyes. Gail
Carver wasn’t the sweet woman the town claimed she was. She kept a smile on her
face when she made comments like:
    Don’t you think it would have been good for your daughter
had you tried to find the father?
    How long can you run a bar and raise a daughter? You need
to be around for her, especially as she gets older. She’ll just get in trouble.
    Have you thought of another career choice?
    If you have a future with my son, are you going to be
bringing babies to the bar? That isn’t a place for them.
    And Courtney had countered back several times wanting to
know if Gail had issues with single mothers. That was the feeling she was
getting. How could someone be so judgmental when they’d never known her?
    She turned the faucet on and filled the sink with hot, sudsy
water.
    “Do you need help, dear?” Gail came up behind her.
    She turned the water off and turned around, not sure she had
the strength to take any more from Braden’s mother. Thank God her father had
raised her not to show emotion or really feel it. Because if she could admit
how she