Page 27 of The Cowboy Comes Home

He let out a bark of laughter at the idea. “Playing to a crowd all the time? No, thanks.”

“Had enough of being the center of attention in your rodeo days?”

“Yeah.”

I wouldn’t mind being at the center of yours, though.

If he could have kicked himself without it being obvious he would have.

“At least,” she said, smiling widely at him now, “you don’t have the monster ego a lot of rodeo guys have. Or Hollywood guys, I suspect.”

That smile about did him in. He thought he could almost hear the crackle of that electric…whatever it was.

And it suddenly hit him that what he was feeling was what he’d seen already tonight. Between Jackson and Nic. Tris and Logan. Slater and his librarian wife.

The electric current of…connection.

Chapter Thirteen

“Sorry to interrupt.”

Emily looked at the petite blonde woman who had approached them, unsure whether to be sorry she had in fact interrupted them, or grateful. But either way, there was nothing to do but welcome Maggie Rafferty, such was her standing around here.

“Hi, Mrs. Rafferty.”

The older woman smiled. “Just Maggie. We’re both off duty—you don’t have to be so formal.”

Emily chuckled. “Okay. Maggie it is. How are you?”

“Fine, for an old lady.”

Emily scoffed. “Hah. I’ve met women half your age who are older than you.”

The woman most people considered the matriarch, not just of one of the founding families, but of the entire town of Last Stand, laughed.

“I do need a favor, however,” Maggie said. “I need you to introduce me to this young man.”

Emily had been about to do that anyway. She had noticed Tucker had gone silent at the woman’s arrival, but he hadn’t moved away as they talked. Maybe he was curious about this foundation of the Rafferty family, since he’d already met Chance and Ariel.

“Not,” Maggie added as she shifted her gaze to Tucker, “that I don’t know who he is, of course.”

Emily had assumed she probably did, given her eldest son, Keller, had spent some time on the circuit before tragedy had brought him home to see to his family and the Rafferty ranch.

“Then let me make it official,” she said. “Tucker, meet the royal matriarch of Last Stand, Maggie Rafferty. Maggie, meet rodeo star, Hollywood stunt guy, and—” she added it on impulse “—tonight’s amazing pianist, Tucker Culhane.”

The last words clearly startled him, and for a moment his gaze shot to her face. But he quickly recovered and gave Maggie a respectful nod that was practically a bow. Which Emily had to admit, she found charming.

So what do younotfind charming about this guy?

She would have rolled her eyes at herself if she wasn’t in a crowd. She made herself tune back in to the conversation; if Maggie Rafferty was talking, it was wisest to keep up.

“—already talked to the mayor about it and he thinks it’s a great idea. And Jackson too. In fact, he’ll be the one to introduce you.”

Emily blinked. Whatever the subject was, Maggie was talking as if it had already been decided, but Tucker was looking at her as if taken aback by whatever she had said.

“I don’t know…I mean I’m not…I’m ancient history in that world.”

“Hardly,” Maggie said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “Everyone I spoke to remembers you.”

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