The Cowboy's Surprise Baby (Cowboy Country Book 3) by Deb Kastner Page A

Teenagers weren’t everyone’s cup of tea. And he did have a lot on his plate as it was.
    She knew without a doubt there would be something for him. He’d been born and raised in Serendipity. The townsfolk wouldn’t turn their backs on one of their own, especially not one with a baby to love and care for.
    “I know it sounds like a bit much,” Alexis added, “and I apologize that I’ve had to drop it on you so suddenly, but I want you to know I sincerely believe in the reason I’ve asked you to work here and specifically in this capacity. I don’t ask lightly. I’ve prayed about it, and I truly feel you’re the right man for the job.”
    His gaze widened, but instead of looking at Alexis, his eyes landed on Tessa. She couldn’t help but think that the next words out of his mouth were going to be about her—or at least because of her.
    “Yeah—no. I’m sorry, but I don’t think so.”
    And she was right.
    * * *
    A
mentor
?
    Alexis thought he could be a mentor? To a bunch of impressionable teenagers? How blind was she? Not to mention everyone else sitting at the table with him. They were all acting as if he was something special, as if he could add to the team in some positive way.
    What were they seeing that he wasn’t? Because when he looked in the mirror, all he saw was a rough-edged cowboy-slash-sailor who’d made more mistakes in his life than he could count—
major
mistakes. Errors that would affect some people’s lives—like Grayson’s—forever. Cole didn’t want a teenager looking at
his
life as an example of how to live. He wasn’t someone
any
parent would want around their children.
    Anyway, wasn’t that what the counselors were for?
    Despite the fact that his heart had never healed toward her, he knew Tessa to be the kind of woman a teenager would be smart to emulate. He’d fallen in love with her for a reason. She was as intelligent as she was beautiful, and she had a kind and compassionate spirit that benefited everyone she came into contact with.
    Well, everyone except for him. But that was between the two of them. It didn’t have a thing to do with the work—the ministry—she was a part of now.
    As for Marcus Ender, Cole didn’t trust the man as far as he could throw him, but again, that was for personal reasons. For all he knew, the same traits that made his hair prickle were the same ones that made Marcus a great counselor.
    Whatever. The only thing Cole knew for sure was that
he
wasn’t anything close to mentor material. It was bad enough that he’d been strong-armed to help prepare the kids for some kind of musical number for a barbecue he didn’t even want to attend. But this was too much.
    “Hey, look,” he said, holding his hand out palm up and offering an apologetic shrug, “I appreciate what y’all are trying to do here for me. I do. But me and kids? We don’t mix all that well. I’ve had zero experience with teenagers. And to be perfectly honest with you, I’ve already got my hands full with Grayson.”
    “That’s true,” Alexis admitted. “There’s a learning curve when it comes to teenagers, but no more so than with babies. And it appears to me you are adjusting quite nicely with your son. I have high hopes for you here.”
    Griff barked out a laugh. “My wife is making it sound like you can kill two birds with one stone. Take what you learn with the baby and apply it to the teenagers.”
    “And who’s to say you can’t?” Alexis jabbed back in a teasing tone of voice.
    “Not helping,” Tessa mumbled, pressing her free palm to her forehead.
    The movement caught Cole’s attention, and it was only then that he realized her other hand still rested on his arm. He snatched his forearm away from her touch as if she’d bitten it and clenched his fists in his lap.
    His dander rose at her comment. Tessa hadn’t spoken loudly enough for anyone except him to hear, but what she’d said still cut to the core of his ego. Maybe internally he acknowledged that