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The Rancher's Hand-Picked Bride
Elizabeth August
Gwen Murphy, once the girl from the ranch next door, owed her aging Apache neighbor big-time. But deploy her private-investigator skills to a find a wife for Morning Hawk's greatgrandson? And move into his home to do so? Dang it! For years, virile Jess Logan had stirred feelings celibate Gwen wanted no part of.Once under Jess's roof–and his amused masculine scrutiny–Gwen did her best to procure him a spouse. Or did she? For Texas heat scorched her whenever Jess was near, melting her lifelong icy grudge against men. Finally she saw her heart could be whole, if only she could find the courage to let Jess claim her as his woman.
“That’s Gwen Murphy standing there, Jess reminded himself. She’d rather slug a man than kiss him.
But with her hair all sleep mussed and her curves in that old cotton robe that showed more leg than he guessed she was aware of, she looked sexier than any woman in the flimsiest negligee.
“You’re still here,” Gwen grumbled.
“I told you I’d see you through your recent loss.”
“Not necessary,” Gwen replied. But, suddenly light-headed, she slumped against the doorjamb.
Jess reached her and lifted her into his arms. Her robe opened more, and he realized she was wearing little or nothing under it. Arousal threatened again.
Gwen yanked her robe around her and rasped, “Put me down.”
He must be crazy to be attracted to her, Jess thought. He liked his women soft and sweet.
While tangling with Gwen…would be like tangling with a cougar!
Dear Reader,
Spring cleaning wearing you out? Perk up with a heart-thumping romance from Silhouette Romance. This month, your favorite authors return to the line, and a new one makes her debut!
Take a much-deserved break with bestselling author Judy Christenberry’s secret-baby story, Daddy on the Doorstep (#1654). Then plunge into Elizabeth August’s latest, The Rancher’s Hand-Picked Bride (#1656), about a celibate heroine forced to find her rugged neighbor a bride!
You won’t want to miss the first in Raye Morgan’s CATCHING THE CROWN miniseries about three royal siblings raised in America who must return to their kingdom and marry. In Jack and the Princess (#1655), Princess Karina falls for her bodyguard, but what will it take for this gruff commoner to win a place in the royal family? And in Diane Pershing’s The Wish (#1657), the next SOULMATES installment, a pair of magic eyeglasses gives Gerri Conklin the chance to do over the most disastrous week of her life…and find the man of her dreams!
And be sure to keep your eye on these two Romance authors. Roxann Delaney delivers her third fabulous Silhouette Romance novel, A Whole New Man (#1658), about a live-for-the-moment hero transformed into a family man, but will it last? And Cheryl Kushner makes her debut with He’s Still the One (#1659), a fresh, funny, heartwarming tale about a TV show host who returns to her hometown and the man she never stopped loving.
Happy reading!
Mary-Theresa Hussey
Senior Editor
The Rancher’s Hand-Picked Bride
Elizabeth August
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Books by Elizabeth August
Silhouette Romance
Author’s Choice #554
Truck Driving Woman #590
Wild Horse Canyon #626
Something So Right #668
The Nesting Instinct #719
Joey’s Father #749
Ready-Made Family #771
The Man from Natchez #790
A Small Favor #809
The Cowboy and the Chauffeur #833
Like Father, Like Son #857
The Wife He Wanted #881
* (#litres_trial_promo)The Virgin Wife #921
* (#litres_trial_promo)Haunted Husband #922
* (#litres_trial_promo)Lucky Penny #945
* (#litres_trial_promo)A Wedding for Emily #953
* (#litres_trial_promo)The Seeker #989
† (#litres_trial_promo)The Forgotten Husband #1019
† (#litres_trial_promo)Ideal Dad #1054
† (#litres_trial_promo)A Husband for Sarah #1067
The Bridal Shower #1091
* (#litres_trial_promo)A Father’s Vow #1126
* (#litres_trial_promo)A Handy Man To Have Around #1157
The Rancher and the Baby #1187
* (#litres_trial_promo)The Determined Virgin #1229
Paternal Instincts #1265
The Bride’s Second Thought #1288
Marrying O’Malley #1386
Truly, Madly, Deeply #1404
A Royal Mission #1446
Slade’s Secret Son #1512
The Rancher’s Hand-Picked Bride #1656
Silhouette Special Edition
One Last Fling! #871
* (#litres_trial_promo)The Husband #1059
Silhouette Intimate Moments
Girls’ Night Out #880
Logan’s Bride #950
Silhouette Books
Jingle Bells, Wedding Bells 1994
“The Forever Gift”
36 Hours
Cinderella Story
ELIZABETH AUGUST
lives in western North Carolina with her husband, Doug. They have three grown sons. She began writing romances soon after their youngest was born.
After a bout with cancer, she has learned to relax and enjoy life more. To this end, she has taken up golf. She says her game could use a great deal of improvement, but the beauty of the mountain courses takes her mind off of her bad shots.
Elizabeth has published under the pseudonym of Betsy Page for Harlequin.
Contents
Chapter One (#ua6607390-cc0e-5381-a7cc-3e0847902ffd)
Chapter Two (#uc1cfaaa3-be13-52d0-830e-993a5354c601)
Chapter Three (#u4c5395e7-ae0c-5fe6-8e07-d31a3857c099)
Chapter Four (#u6731797d-4c09-5fa9-a58e-ea1959f7f7f6)
Chapter Five (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Thirteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter Fourteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter One
Gwendolen Murphy, known to friends and foes alike as Gwen, grimaced distastefully as she turned onto Logan property. It had taken her nearly an hour to get here from Lubbock and the ranch house was another half a mile from the main road. The Texas heat was oppressive and halfway there her air-conditioning had decided not to work. Her short chestnut hair was damp with perspiration and beginning to curl into little ringlets, the back of her shirt where it rested against the seat was wet and her jeans were clinging with an uncomfortable heaviness. But the physical discomfort wasn’t what was gnawing at her.
Coming back to this small bit of Texas brought too many unhappy memories. The tiny frame house she and her mother had lived in was on property that abutted the Logan ranch. Just driving past the place where she’d spent her childhood had sent a cold chill down Gwen’s spine. Memories of her two stepfathers interspersed between her mother’s boyfriends, the smell of liquor in the house all of the time, her mother passed out on the couch, had assailed her. Her mother hadn’t been a bad woman, just a weak one. Something Gwen had vowed never to be.
And then there was Jess Logan. Since grade school, she and Jess had harbored a mutual dislike. It was, she knew, more her doing than his. Even at that young age, her reaction to him had been defensive. He’d stirred emotions within her that made her uneasy, and the distrust of men she’d learned from watching her mother had fed that uneasiness. As a result, she’d rejected his initial offer of friendship and from then on both had avoided each other whenever possible. Still, the uneasy effect he had on her had been constantly there, deep inside, a nagging something she’d worked hard to kill. When she’d moved to Lubbock following her mother’s death, she’d figured he was one thorn that was out of her life for good.
“I don’t know why I agreed to come,” she grumbled. But that wasn’t true. She’d come because Morning Hawk, Jess’s great-grandmother, had summoned her. There were those who thought the old woman was a few bales short of a full load. Others were intimidated by her. And they all had good reason. Morning Hawk could be enigmatic and cantankerous, but Gwen owed her. It was a debt that dated back to Gwen’s early teens…and was the only time, until today, that Gwen had ever had any contact with Morning Hawk.
Parking in front of the ranch house, she saw the elderly, pure-blooded Apache, small, bent and looking withered with age, sitting in a rocking chair on the porch. As Gwen left the car and mounted the short flight of steps, Morning Hawk rose to greet her.
“I have a quest for you,” the woman said without any preamble.
Gwen felt as if she’d stepped back in time about a hundred years. “A quest?”
Morning Hawk motioned for Gwen to follow her into the house. It was a large, well-maintained home, furnished comfortably. More upscale than most ranch houses, but then the Logans could afford it. Oil had been struck on their land several years earlier. But in spite of the enormous added income the find had produced, it was still a working ranch. Jess’s father had died years earlier. His two brothers had followed in their father’s footsteps and become Texas Rangers. Jess had been the one who had stayed home to run the ranch for his mother. Gwen hoped he was out on the range and would stay there until she was gone.
“Come along.” Morning Hawk took her by the arm and guided her down a hallway. Stopping in front of a closed door, Morning Hawk knocked sharply, then opened the door and, with Gwen still in tow, entered.
Seated at the desk in the study punching buttons on a computer keyboard was Jess Logan. Half-Apache, his Native American heritage was strong in his rugged features. His muscular build and callused hands gave evidence that a great deal of his time was spent in manual labor. Gwen had to fight down the urge to turn and run. Silently she cursed herself. In spite of all the effort she’d put into trying to rid herself of this effect he had on her, it was as strong as ever.
Jess frowned at his great-grandmother. “You said you had someone coming this morning it was important I meet with.”
His tone told Gwen she didn’t fall into that category. Well, he wasn’t on her list of people she wanted to see either.
“Remember your manners,” Morning Hawk admonished. She motioned for the two of them to be seated as she seated herself.
