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“Well...good.” She leaned back so the waitress could put her salad in front of her. “What about Poppy?”
“She hasn’t changed.” He tried to keep his voice neutral.
“You’re okay with that?” she asked.
He shot her a look. “I’m not some lovesick kid, Tandy. Life goes on.”
“This is me,” she pointed out. “So knock off the manly thing. She mattered, a lot. I don’t know what she did to you, but I remember how you fell apart. I don’t want you to go through that.”
She hadn’t done a damn thing. Not that it mattered now. “She’s off the market and, no matter what you think, I won’t steal another man’s woman.” He took a bite of his hamburger.
“That’s nice to hear.” Tandy grinned, pushing her salad around but not taking a bite.
“Talk about a high opinion.” He laughed.
“I love you, even when I don’t understand why you do what you do—which is the majority of the time. Maybe having someone watching you, someone that matters, will help you...grow up and be the man I know you can be.” She shook her head. “And don’t get offended—you know I’m right.”
Toben swallowed, shrugging off the flare of irritation that her brutally honest words stirred. In the few days since Rowdy had entered his life, he’d been more intentional with his words and actions. “Doesn’t mean I want to hear it...” He glanced at her. “Thing is, I don’t know how to do that. To be a father a son can be proud of. But I want to.”
“Oh, Toben.” Tandy set her fork down and leaned forward. “You do. Think of everything you wished we had—everything that would have mattered. That’s what you do for him.”
Toben nodded.
“Can I meet him?” she asked.
He smiled. “Of course. I’m just biding my time until Mitchell leaves town.”
Tandy’s brow arched. “Why? If this guy is a fixture in their lives, shouldn’t you come to terms with that?”
Toben focused on his food then. “I’m doing the best I can. Right now Rowdy comes first. It was clear Poppy’s boyfriend wasn’t a fan of me. I don’t see the point in making things harder by being where I’m not wanted.”
Tandy sighed. “And Poppy’s take?”
“We haven’t had much time to talk.” He took another bite of his burger. It didn’t help that every time they were together, talking was the last thing on his mind. She unleashed a sort of charge along his skin, heightening his awareness and drawing him in. If he had something important to say, one look from her chocolate-brown eyes erased it from his mind. And made him itch to touch her.
“Don’t you think you should make time?” Tandy brought him back to reality. “If you’re going to raise Rowdy together, setting ground rules is a good place to start.”
The thought of sitting down with Poppy, laying out a plan for raising Rowdy... He could just see the flash of temper in her eyes. “Guess so,” he admitted grudgingly. “It’s not too soon?”
“Too soon? I’m surprised you’re sitting here. I’d be there, dogging his every step and learning everything I can about him.” She shook her head, her expression shifting again. “Oh... You’re worried about making her angry?”
He nodded. “I might believe her, about trying to tell me. But I don’t know if she believes me that I didn’t know.”
She stared at him for a long time.
“What?” he asked, setting the remains of his burger on the plate.
“Put yourself in her shoes. I guess I’d be hard-pressed to believe you, too.” Tandy shrugged, taking a bite of her salad.
He steered the conversation into more neutral territory. She was working as a vet technician in the teaching hospital but hoped to get accepted into the veterinary
medicine program that fall. She’d made the waiting list...and the waiting was taking its toll. He, on the other hand, had every confidence she’d be accepted. She was the smart one; she worked hard. Considering how hard the last few years had been on her, losing the man she loved and the baby they were expecting, it was about time something good came her way.
He dropped her off at the veterinary hospital and crossed over the highway, driving down Main Street. Poppy’s big red truck was parked in front of her shop. The lead-glass door was propped open—so Toben took it as an invitation.
He pulled in next to her truck, turned off the ignition and climbed out. “Poppy?” he called from the doorway.
He wandered inside, running his hands along the woodwork of the shelves. The store hadn’t looked this good in years, all detailed craftsmanship, quirky cubbies and custom built-ins. He heard the telltale sound of a grinder in the back room and headed that way, pausing when he came to a stack of rodeo memorabilia.
