Cowboy Daddy Read Online Free PDF Page B

girl shrugged. More silence. Anne searched her mind for a topic of conversation. She didn’t know very much about teenagers. Most of her friends
    had chosen the career path rather than marrying and having children. A few had recently changed their minds, but they were still in the pregnant stage or had infants and toddlers. Her cousin, Becky Sue, had teenagers, but Anne couldn’t ask her for advice without getting a lot of questions in return. Questions she wasn’t ready to answer. Anne didn’t watch much TV, and she had a feeling her taste in music and movies was light-years away from the girl’s.
    In the kitchen, a timer rang. Anne sprang to her feet and raced toward the other room. “Dinner is almost ready,” she said. “I’ll be right back.”
    But her escape was short-lived. Laurel followed her into the kitchen and leaned against one of the counters. Like the other rooms in the condo, this one had been professionally decorated and the predominant color was white. The counters, floors and appliances gleamed. Copper pots provided contrast, while the bleached wood cabinets softened any glare.
    Laurel watched with interest as she poured the steamed vegetables into a serving bowl. “Daddy called you Ms. Baker.”
    “I know.”
    Anne thought she was lucky that was all he’d called her. His distrust and anger radiated like a giant beacon, circling through the room and lighting up all the corners. She felt so exposed having him in her house. It was difficult to act normally knowing he sat in judgment of every word she said. She half expected him to decide that she was an inappropriate role model and march his daughter out of her presence. If it were up to him, there never would have been a meeting at all.
    Anne looked at the young woman glancing around the room. Curiosity brightened her hazel eyes, turning the multicolored irises more green. Long brown hair bounced and swung with each turn of her head. So alive, Anne thought. Bright and pretty and interested in everything. Pride swelled within her. She savored the sensation before allowing her practical nature to firmly squash it. Laurel was her child by birth, but not by environment. She had no justification for her pride; she’d done nothing to earn it. And yet—
    She stuck a serving spoon into the bowl of vegetables and handed the container to Laurel. “Put this on the table, please. Through there.” She motioned to the dining room, off the opposite end of the kitchen.
    And yet, she didn’t want to lose her. Not after just meeting her. One meeting, Jake had said. But was that Laurel speaking or was it his own agenda?
    Laurel returned. “Should I call you ‘Ms. Baker’?”
    “My name is Anne,” she said.
    “Anne,” Laurel repeated. “Okay.” She said it again. “Does anyone call you Annie?”
    Anne smiled. “My mother used to. My cousin still does. Just family members I guess.”
    Anne returned her conspiratorial grin, then made the mistake of glancing at Jake. He stood beside the wet bar, clutching the glass of wine so tightly she feared he would snap the delicate stem. Their gazes locked and his cold rage threatened to freeze her into oblivion. His intensity shocked her and her laughter died. She fought the urge to step closer to Laurel and protect her from her father’s wrath. She understood his need to stake his claim, even as she resented his selfishness. Would it be too much to ask him to share her for an hour?
    “I should see about dinner,” she said, then ducked into the kitchen.
    Once alone, she pressed her hands against her flushed cheeks. She didn’t want to know that this was difficult for Jake Masters. Just thinking about his assumption that she would expect to be paid to see her own daughter made her want to march right back into the living room and tell him to leave.
    But she couldn’t. Partly because she had taken the money they’d offered thirteen years ago. Even knowing that she’d had every right to accept the payment and