Almost a Cowboy by Em Petrova Read Free Book Online Page B

sat back in their seats.
    She fingered the edge of one picture. “This could be you at thirteen years old.”
    It was true. The kid bore the same square jaw, the same look in his eyes. Hell, the same chin cleft.
    He snatched up the picture and flipped it over. Jefferson Davies, age 14. “Christ.” He dropped the picture as if it were on fire.
    Caroline shook her head. “I can’t believe this was going on the whole time.”
    “Tell me about it.”
    “Are there other papers in his office?”
    “No. The day I arrived, I rifled the desk, the safe, and every other drawer in the house. I didn’t find anything.”
    “How did you know about the other kids?” Caroline’s eyes were bright with interest.
    “He told me. When Ma died, I came home and found him with these pictures. He told me then.”
    She sucked in a breath. “That’s why you never came back.”
    He bobbed his head, keeping his gaze locked on the smiling faces. One kid had a cowlick. Another pimples. God, these were real people. They shared his blood, just as Clinton and Gunnison did.
    Realization walloped him.
    He smacked the table with a palm, and Caroline jerked. He threw her an apologetic look. “The names.”
    “What?” Confusion crossed her beautiful face.
    “Our names—Utah, Gunnison, Clinton. We’re from Utah.”
    “Yeah, so?”
    “State, county, county.”
    “Okay,” she said slowly.
    “What if Bennett or Jefferson are cities or counties in another state? It might lead us to them.”
    Excitement sparked in her eyes. She started grabbing the photos and flipping them. Once twelve names faced up, she jumped to her feet. “Be right back.”
    He watched her ass sway away from him. Roused from his shock and anger, he let the heat mount inside him. Whatever happened, he had her in his arms again. He wasn’t going to let her go.
    He was still staring at the doorway when she returned carrying a black rectangle.
    He’d seen the devices in mail flyers but never in person. She switched on the tablet computer. On the screen was a picture of the little fur-ball she called Arial. The kitten had strongly protested Utah being in bed with its owner and spent some time meowing loudly before Caroline gave it a bowl of milk and locked it out of the bedroom.
    “I’m good at tracking down information. Let’s see what we can find.” She tapped the screen.
    Utah’s gaze snagged on a particular name. He covered it with a blunt fingertip. “Alexandria. Think it’s Virginia?”
    “Dunno,” she said absently. “We’ll look there first.” Her fingers moved over the screen. A second later, she cried out, “Aha!”
    Turning the screen around, she held it up for him. “Alexandria and Franklin. Both Virginia cities.”
    A knot tightened in his gut. “Pa made a lot of runs to Virginia.” His hauls across the country in the big rig had once fascinated Utah. He’d dreamed of becoming a truck driver too. Now everything about the occupation felt dirty.
    In the end, he wasn’t anything—football player, truck driver, or even a cowboy. When he’d lost Caroline, he’d run from it all and become a mountain bum.
    But with Caroline, I might finally become who I was meant to be.
    She glanced up to find him staring at her. A faint blush burned her cheeks, and she was suddenly the tempting little treat from his youth. She flashed a smile, granting him a glimpse of her square white teeth that had nipped a path down his body last night. Then she’d blown his mind by sucking his cock. No fumbling youthful efforts from her. No siree, just pure skill.
    His muscles tensed at the memory.
    As she flipped through screen after screen, he mentally undressed her. Last night he’d spent countless minutes exploring her every inch. She bore a new scar on her ankle she claimed she’d gotten jumping off a rock in the river. And also a jagged white scar on her forearm that made her clamp her lips shut.
    She set the tablet down and plucked two pictures off the table, placing