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“Thanks, Sue,” Ty said as he gave her a smile.
When he focused back on me, he said, “The sunrise breakfast is what I recommend.”
I glanced down at the menu and scanned it. I was so fucking nervous I wasn’t even sure I could eat. After reading what the sunrise breakfast was—two eggs, bacon, sausage, and two slices of toast—my stomach growled.
“That sounds good,” I replied, then looked up at Rose’s father. He looked to be in his late forties, maybe? His brown hair had streaks of gray in it, but his blue eyes were identical to Rose’s. The man was built and looked like he could beat the hell out of someone if they looked at him—or his daughter—the wrong way. Rose was also the spitting image of her father. He was good-looking, and I could only imagine what he looked like in his younger days. A cowboy hat sat to the side of him. He looked cool as a cucumber, and I quickly searched my memory to see if Rose had mentioned her father being a Mariners fan. Nothing came to mind.
Damn it.
“Mr. Shaw—”
“Ty, you can call me Ty.”
I nodded. “Ty, you’re probably wondering why I asked to speak with you.”
He leaned back, folded his arms over his impressively built chest, and narrowed his eyes at me.
I closed my eyes. Jesus Christ, did I really just think that he had an impressively built chest?
When I opened my eyes and focused on him, he raised a brow. “Son, why don’t you just come out with it before you give yourself a damn stroke.”
Clearing my throat, I replied, “Of course. Mr.…um…Ty, I met your daughter Rose a few months back in Seattle.”
“Yes, she mentioned you.”
My eyes widened, and I couldn’t help but smile. “She has?”
He nodded. “She said it was a one-night thing, and I have to say I’m not too happy about it.”
I suddenly had the urge to flee. Rose told her father we slept together? Kill. Me. Now.
“Don’t worry, I’m not going to beat your ass. That is, unless you hurt my daughter. Then me, and three other men who love Rose will hunt you down and break both of your arms.” He stopped talking and looked as if he was thinking of something. “It’s more like me, five other grown men, and three young adult men who ride bulls for fun. One for a living now. I’m sure that would hurt you more than punching that pretty face of yours. Would probably end that baseball career you have as well.”
My mouth fell open, and I glanced around the café to see if anyone else had heard the threat. If they had, they did one hell of a job pretending they hadn’t.
Sue appeared out of nowhere. “Ready to order?”
When it appeared I hadn’t gained my ability to speak yet, Ty ordered the sunrise breakfast for both of us.
“Something other than coffee?” he asked.
Glancing up at Sue, I replied, “Wa…water…please.”
Her brows drew in, and she shot a look at Ty, who simply shrugged.
“I’ll get this in and bring you a water.”
I nodded, then looked back at Ty. “She told you we spent the night together?”
“She did. Now if you’re here to tell me she’s pregnant because she was too scared to ’fess up, then you better be ready to run out that door. I’ll give you a twenty-second head start, but just know that I may be older than you, but I’m fast as hell.”
“What? No! I mean, I don’t think she is. She hasn’t said anything to me about it.”
Ty instantly relaxed, dropped his arms, and flashed me a bright-ass smile. “Thank God.” He laughed. “I really didn’t want to kick the ass of one of my favorite baseball players. I don’t think my son and nephew would have forgiven me.”
I stared at him in disbelief.
Ty laughed. “You can relax now, son. You’re safe.” He pointed at me. “For now.”
When he winked, I wasn’t sure if I should laugh or cry.
“Now, I don’t think you came here to talk to me about bulls, unless you’re interested in either breeding them or riding them.”
“Riding them?” I asked, a little bit of excitement slipping through.
Ty leaned forward, and his smile was bigger, if that was possible. “Do you want to ride a bull?”
For the first time since I’d set foot in the café, I felt relief. Excitement. “Does the fact that I have a tear in my rotator cuff change how I should answer that question? Because I really want to say yes.”
Ty’s smile faded some. “Shit. Yeah, you can’t ride one if you’re injured.”
I sat back in the booth. “Well, fuck.”
He laughed. “I like you. Don’t hurt my daughter, or I’ll strap you on my meanest bull and see how long the rope will hold.”
I laughed, and when he didn’t, I immediately stopped. “The last thing I would ever want to do is hurt your daughter. I know this sounds crazy, and it probably is, but something happened that night between us. Something I’ve never felt before. I know Rose is not interested in a relationship, and I understand her reasons. Well, I think I do. I would never pretend to understand what any woman thinks.”
