Lone Wolf by Tracy Krauss Page B

skirt.
    â€œHow about if I get you and Whisper some punch?” Nicole’s suggestion was met with hoorays from both Maggie and Whisper. She took each little girl by the hand and led them through the crowd toward the refreshment table. Thomas watched them, a slight curve forming at the corners of his mouth.
    â€œShe’s really nice.” Tanzi’s voice cut into Thomas’s momentary reverie. “I’m happy for you.”
    He blinked back to his niece. “Yes, she is. And thanks.”
    The moment was broken when Thomas’s old friend Con McKinley came up to Thomas and slapped him on the back. “Congrats.”
    Thomas turned with a wide smile and the two men shook hands vigorously. “Con. Good to see you. Thanks, although it’s the kids who really deserve the congratulations.”
    Con laughed. “I don’t know about that. I’d say the parents have had the tougher job. I know my brother Ivor is glad to get one more out of the house, although Tyson was a pretty easy one to raise. Ivor lost most of what hair he had left when Bonita graduated.”
    Just then Con’s wife, Rachel, joined them, their eight month old son, Kohl, on her hip. “Hi.” She smiled but her eyes flickered downward after the briefest connection.
    Thomas nodded his greeting. “Hello.” He felt absolutely neutral toward this woman, and the thought made him glad. At one point when he’d first moved to Marshdale, he’d initiated a relationship with her…or was it the other way around? In any case, it almost ruined his friendship with Con. Fortunately, things hadn’t worked out. He was happy that Con and Rachel had gotten together. He now knew that God had someone else in mind for him. “By the way, this is my niece, Tanzi.” Thomas pointed to the group of young people where Ryder, Renee, and Con’s nephew Tyson, had congregated. “And that’s her sister, Renee. They came down from Saskatoon.”
    â€œNice to meet you.” Con and Rachel took turns shaking Tanzi’s hand.
    Nicole returned with the girls in tow. “Don’t spill,” she ordered, gesturing at the orange liquid hovering close to the rim of each little girl’s glass. She looked up and caught Con’s nod of acknowledgment and smiled tentatively as she passed Thomas a clear plastic glass of punch.
    Thomas put his hand on the small of Nicole’s back in a possessive manner and drew her closer. “I’d like to introduce you to some friends of mine. This is Con McKinley and his wife, Rachel. This is my friend Nicole Ducharme.”
    â€œHello.” Nicole reached out with her free hand and touched hands briefly with both Con and Rachel. Then she focused on Kohl. “And who is this handsome boy?”
    The boy turned his face away and buried it in his mother’s shoulder. “His name is Kohl. He’s kind of shy,” Rachel apologized.
    Ryder, Renee, and Con’s nephew Tyson McKinley bounced up to the group.
    â€œCongrats, Tyson.” Thomas pumped the young man’s hand.
    â€œThanks.” Tyson, always a shy and somewhat gangly individual, looked down at his toes.
    â€œSo I hear you’re going off to university in the fall?” Con directed at Ryder.
    â€œThat’s the plan,” Ryder said.
    â€œWhere are you headed?” Con asked.
    â€œDad thinks I should go to Regina,” Ryder said, “but I’m leaning more toward Saskatoon.” He looked his father straight in the eye.
    â€œWhat?” Renee squealed. “Sweet!”
    â€œI went to Saskatoon,” Con said. “Their agriculture program is top notch—the best in the world.” He turned to his nephew. “Tyson is going there, too. Right, Tyson?”
    Thomas nodded his understanding. “Oh. So that explains Ryder’s preference for Saskatoon over Regina.”
    â€œIt makes sense. We could get an apartment together. Be