Teacher's Christmas Cowboy (Trinity Falls Sweet Romance - Icicle Christmas #5)

Cora stood in the hall, blown away.

She had seen Jared as a restless cowboy, a man who only wanted to be outside—who yelled at strangers about fishing holes and ripped broken mailboxes right out of the ground.

But Sylvester had offered him a book, and Jared had actually read it and wanted to talk about it.

And beyond that, he understood the things that were important to her son, and he was trying to help him with all of them. From finding a way to get him a real Christmas tree with his mother’s blessing, to a family party, to an adventure book club for two and a library in his bedroom, Jared was ready to meet Sylvester right where he was.

And he didn’t judge Cora, or say she was overprotective. He respected her desire to do whatever was best for her boy, a stance that made her let go of a worry she hadn’t even realized was binding itself around her heart, like the netting around the tree.

She suddenly wondered what their holiday would have been like here if Jared Webb hadn’t stormed his way into their lives, and she felt a stab of loneliness so intense it frightened her.

He’s good for us, she realized. But what does that mean?

9

JARED

Jared smiled as he closed the book.

He was perched on the side of Sylvester’s bed after the boy had told his mother in no uncertain terms that he wanted Jared to read to him tonight.

Now he was dozing off peacefully, looking younger than usual with his normally expressive little face relaxed and soft.

It hadn’t taken many pages of The Incredible Journey, the next book he wanted Jared to read, to send Sylvester off to sleep. Jared could tell from the broken spine and tattered pages that the boy had read the book many times before. But the excitement of putting up the tree and the nice supper afterward were probably what had really done the trick. It had been a special night.

But why did I stay?

Jared wasn’t sure of the answer. Cora had taken to asking him every afternoon if he would like to stay for supper. He always refused, feeling that he was here to work off a sort of moral debt. Accepting dinner would just be making himself a burden on her resources.

Deep in his heart though, he knew what had really been holding him back—the buzz of attraction he felt every time he got lost in the depths of her boundless gray eyes.

But was there room in them for her to see him like that? Cora had already loved and lost, and her boy was her whole world.

Jared had never really even had a serious girlfriend. Even if the attraction were mutual, dating a grown woman with a child felt like it was out of his league somehow.

If it didn’t work out, it would hurt more than just her, he thought to himself, gazing down at the sleeping boy’s face that was so often turned up to his meet his with admiration.

And if it did work out, well…I don’t know.

But deep down he did know. A woman like Cora wasn’t going to be interested in dating for long. She had a full and busy life already.

If he wanted her to even consider being with him, he’d need to be all in, ready to put a ring on her finger and be a father to her son. And he was sure he wasn’t ready for that. After all, he was the jokester of his family, the lighthearted one. Could he really just fall into the role of being somebody’s husband, and someone’s dad?

But if he was honest with himself, these past weeks felt a lot like he had been practicing for just that, with everything but the romance.

He stood slowly, careful not to shake the bed enough to wake Sylvester. A sudden impulse had him leaning down to stroke one soft cheek with his calloused thumb.

Sylvester was a good boy—the very best. He deserved a stepdad who knew how to be there for him, one who could provide for him lavishly, not some farm-working cowboy who was still learning how to take care of himself.

Jared straightened and headed downstairs to the rich scent of gingerbread and pine needles. His mind wandered to images of Cora waiting for him, perched on the sofa, looking alluring, or sitting at the table with wine glasses and candles.

Instead, he traveled through the house to find her at the kitchen table, her head in her hands.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, sinking into the seat opposite hers, his earlier fears forgotten. “What happened?”

“I’m so sorry,” she said, straightening up at once, and looking embarrassed.

“Don’t be sorry,” he told her. “What’s going on?”