discover at least fifty new kinds of dinosaurs.”
The girl standing next to the boy jabbed him in the ribs. “Shut up, Danny. You’re not going nowhere.”
The boy swatted at his classmate’s arm but continued to look at Kendall, his gaze both determined and self-conscious, as if he hadn’t meant to share his dream out loud.
“I have no doubt you’ll be a great paleontologist, and even if you decide to study the dinosaurs we already know, I’ll do a story on you.” Kendall bent so that she was at eye level with the kid. “As long as you work hard at what you love, that’s the important part. You remember that, ok?”
“Ok,” the boy answered, nodding solemnly.
The teacher stepped forward and thanked Kendall, then instructed the class to give her a round of applause. As they filed out of the lobby, one of the mothers told her how much she was looking forward to watching the dates on It’s Raining Men . Kendall smiled and made a joke about hoping she’d attract the right kind of men, but stopped when Ty winked at her over the woman’s shoulder.
“Thanks again, Ken,” Mary said as the lobby door closed behind the final students. “You have a real gift with the kids.”
“I don’t know about that,” Kendall said, “but I like talking to them.” There was always one, like the boy Danny, who tugged at her own memories of childhood. Wanting more than life seemed willing to offer.
She turned to see Ty staring at her with a mix of thoughtfulness and puzzlement that unsettled her more than his flirtation in the studio. “What?”
He smiled. “The more I know you, the more I like you.”
She could tell he was sincere, and that threw her off balance more than anything. Maybe she could brush off a spark, but the tenderness in his gaze was harder to ignore.
“We should go,” she said, and moved past him, trying hard to hold onto her self-control. She led the way to the back of the building, where Steve was loading gear into one of news vans.
“Do you need help with anything?” she asked.
The burly cameraman slammed the rear door shut. “We’re all set. Hop in.”
“Great.” She slid open the side door and turned to Ty. “You can sit in the front so you can give directions once we get into the burn area.” Without waiting for a reply, she scrambled into the back of the van.
Ty had a brief moment to enjoy the sight of Kendall’s backside as she bent forward to step into the vehicle. A moment later the door closed, leaving him staring at his own reflection in the darkened glass window. He shook his head and climbed into the passenger seat.
He didn’t know what he’d expected from this morning, but watching Kendall charm a roomful of elementary-age kids hadn’t been it. He’d seen a vulnerability in her response to the aspiring paleontologist that made him want to know more about what made her who she was.
That proved easier said than done when she remained silent in the back seat for most of the ride. Yet the sweet, clean smell of her perfume drifted into the front seat, curling around Ty’s senses in a way that left him distracted and dazed.
It took all his concentration to follow the conversation the cameraman started as they left behind rush-hour traffic on the interstate and cruised up the two-lane mountain highway that led to the national forest and the burn area.
“You grow up in Denver?” Steve asked, easing the van around a turn.
“North of the city,” Ty answered, “in Boulder.”
“No kidding? I’m from Arvada,” Steve said, naming one of the small towns that made up the Denver suburbs. He slanted Ty a curious expression. “Did you say your last name was Bishop?”
“Yeah.”
“When I was in college, there was a kid named Bishop who played wide receiver for CU.”
“My brother Charlie,” Ty said. “I played in high school but didn’t have the discipline for college ball.”
Steve slapped a meaty hand against the steering wheel. “That was your
The girl standing next to the boy jabbed him in the ribs. “Shut up, Danny. You’re not going nowhere.”
The boy swatted at his classmate’s arm but continued to look at Kendall, his gaze both determined and self-conscious, as if he hadn’t meant to share his dream out loud.
“I have no doubt you’ll be a great paleontologist, and even if you decide to study the dinosaurs we already know, I’ll do a story on you.” Kendall bent so that she was at eye level with the kid. “As long as you work hard at what you love, that’s the important part. You remember that, ok?”
“Ok,” the boy answered, nodding solemnly.
The teacher stepped forward and thanked Kendall, then instructed the class to give her a round of applause. As they filed out of the lobby, one of the mothers told her how much she was looking forward to watching the dates on It’s Raining Men . Kendall smiled and made a joke about hoping she’d attract the right kind of men, but stopped when Ty winked at her over the woman’s shoulder.
“Thanks again, Ken,” Mary said as the lobby door closed behind the final students. “You have a real gift with the kids.”
“I don’t know about that,” Kendall said, “but I like talking to them.” There was always one, like the boy Danny, who tugged at her own memories of childhood. Wanting more than life seemed willing to offer.
She turned to see Ty staring at her with a mix of thoughtfulness and puzzlement that unsettled her more than his flirtation in the studio. “What?”
He smiled. “The more I know you, the more I like you.”
She could tell he was sincere, and that threw her off balance more than anything. Maybe she could brush off a spark, but the tenderness in his gaze was harder to ignore.
“We should go,” she said, and moved past him, trying hard to hold onto her self-control. She led the way to the back of the building, where Steve was loading gear into one of news vans.
“Do you need help with anything?” she asked.
The burly cameraman slammed the rear door shut. “We’re all set. Hop in.”
“Great.” She slid open the side door and turned to Ty. “You can sit in the front so you can give directions once we get into the burn area.” Without waiting for a reply, she scrambled into the back of the van.
Ty had a brief moment to enjoy the sight of Kendall’s backside as she bent forward to step into the vehicle. A moment later the door closed, leaving him staring at his own reflection in the darkened glass window. He shook his head and climbed into the passenger seat.
He didn’t know what he’d expected from this morning, but watching Kendall charm a roomful of elementary-age kids hadn’t been it. He’d seen a vulnerability in her response to the aspiring paleontologist that made him want to know more about what made her who she was.
That proved easier said than done when she remained silent in the back seat for most of the ride. Yet the sweet, clean smell of her perfume drifted into the front seat, curling around Ty’s senses in a way that left him distracted and dazed.
It took all his concentration to follow the conversation the cameraman started as they left behind rush-hour traffic on the interstate and cruised up the two-lane mountain highway that led to the national forest and the burn area.
“You grow up in Denver?” Steve asked, easing the van around a turn.
“North of the city,” Ty answered, “in Boulder.”
“No kidding? I’m from Arvada,” Steve said, naming one of the small towns that made up the Denver suburbs. He slanted Ty a curious expression. “Did you say your last name was Bishop?”
“Yeah.”
“When I was in college, there was a kid named Bishop who played wide receiver for CU.”
“My brother Charlie,” Ty said. “I played in high school but didn’t have the discipline for college ball.”
Steve slapped a meaty hand against the steering wheel. “That was your
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