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Honor-Bound Lawman
Danica Favorite
Her Rancher BodyguardWhen Laura Booth’s dangerous ex-husband escapes from prison, she turns to the one man who can protect her: Owen Hamilton. Living with the widowed former lawman—who once helped put her ex in jail—and his adorable twin daughters on their Colorado ranch is a welcome respite. For the first time, Laura feels safe—but after her troubled past, she’ll never trust her heart again.Owen would like to say only obligation draws him to Laura’s side. But in his gut he knows his feelings for the gentle beauty run deeper than duty—and it stops him cold. After guarding their wary hearts for years, can Owen and Laura give love a second chance?
Her Rancher Bodyguard
When Laura Booth’s dangerous ex-husband escapes from prison, she turns to the one man who can protect her: Owen Hamilton. Living with the widowed former lawman—who once helped put her ex in jail—and his adorable twin daughters on their Colorado ranch is a welcome respite. For the first time, Laura feels safe—but after her troubled past, she’ll never trust her heart again.
Owen would like to say only obligation draws him to Laura’s side. But in his gut he knows his feelings for the gentle beauty run deeper than duty—and it stops him cold. After guarding their wary hearts for years, can Owen and Laura give love a second chance?
DANICA FAVORITE loves the adventure of living a creative life. She loves to explore the depths of human nature and follow people on the journey to happily-ever-after. Though the journey is often bumpy, those bumps refine imperfect characters as they live the life God created them for. Oops, that just spoiled the ending of Danica’s stories. Then again, getting there is all the fun. Find her at danicafavorite.com (http://www.danicafavorite.com).
Also by Danica Favorite (#u1dc918ad-233b-5e69-b150-7a2563d7a8ae)
Rocky Mountain Dreams
The Lawman’s Redemption
Shotgun Marriage
The Nanny’s Little Matchmakers
For the Sake of the Children
An Unlikely Mother
Mistletoe Mommy
Honor-Bound Lawman
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
Honor-Bound Lawman
Danica Favorite
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-1-474-08044-6
HONOR-BOUND LAWMAN
© 2018 Danica Favorite
Published in Great Britain 2018
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.
By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.
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www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
“Come on, Laura. I’m going to help you today.”
Little Anna grabbed the reins and pulled Rascal in the direction of the barn.
Once again, Laura’s heart was warmed by the sweet child. What a shame this little girl didn’t have a mother.
Laura turned and saw Owen standing in the doorway, light filtering around him so that he was merely a shadow. How she longed to run to him and thank him for giving her one more piece of her dignity back. But to him, teaching her to ride was just one more practical part of life on the ranch. Just another part of his job.
“Thank you again for letting me ride Rascal. I truly enjoyed it,” Laura said.
Owen gave a jerky nod. “I’m glad. It’s a skill everyone should have, and it’s good you’re finally learning.”
His words confirmed Laura’s previous thoughts. No matter how close she felt to him, or how much she wished for them to be friends, he was just doing his job.
Dear Reader (#u1dc918ad-233b-5e69-b150-7a2563d7a8ae),
I’ve been playing with the idea for this story for a long time, so when I finally got to write it, I thought it would be super easy. And then a series of crazy things happened, and I had to write this book during one of the most difficult seasons of my life. The verse I chose for this book ended up being fitting, not just because my characters had to learn how to deepen their trust in God, but I did, as well. I learned the hard way that I am stronger than I think I am and can do more than I think I can, but only by the grace of God.
I pray that as you go through your own challenges, you find the same strength in the Lord as I did, and that He’ll give you blessings such as a mean rooster. No, wait. You probably don’t want a mean rooster. But if you do end up with one, you’ll be able to see the blessing in having him. Which might take a while, but when you take the time to seek the Lord’s goodness, you’ll see it.
I always love hearing from my readers, so feel free to connect with me at the following places:
Website: DanicaFavorite.com (http://www.DanicaFavorite.com)
Twitter: Twitter.com/DanicaFavorite (https://Twitter.com/DanicaFavorite)
Instagram: Instagram.com/DanicaFavorite (https://Instagram.com/DanicaFavorite)
Facebook: Facebook.com/DanicaFavoriteAuthor (https://Facebook.com/DanicaFavoriteAuthor)
May the peace of Christ be with you always,
Danica Favorite
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
—Proverbs 3:5–6
To Princess and the roosters she’s loved: Mat, Myron, Tristan and Char.
Thank you for the inspiration behind Henry the rooster. All rooster events in this story are based on real events, and while they were exasperating at the time, they’re kind of funny now. Here’s to the challenges of having an accidental rooster.
And to Cowgirl: thank you for all your horse knowledge and making sure my horse details are right. I guess all these years of taking you to the arena and watching you ride through freezing winters, scorching summers and all the days in between have paid off.
Contents
Cover (#u12d79f08-eb59-5b25-ad45-ba93fa9b53c7)
Back Cover Text (#ucc6bc997-eae1-5883-95d5-f66db0583bae)
About the Author (#ud15a6e88-6343-5cf4-8a56-5f025de50ae3)
Booklist (#u2bf3b57b-502e-533e-95e8-27732007ffa0)
Title Page (#u3bfd3ee9-d669-5711-9d5c-9a9255f634c4)
Copyright (#u22d7c234-e7f3-533d-865a-90ad7591f844)
Introduction (#u94afa01c-37e7-574f-a8cf-33a0725a66d4)
Dear Reader (#u308c9db7-2651-520c-bcce-7faeaec5ce5c)
Bible Verse (#uc60b40f1-ebb0-5717-a416-622dc5d7fa56)
Dedication (#ua45dbfe4-a319-5123-a8b7-c1fa4c318bdc)
Chapter One (#uc2acf77c-b19e-5965-afe5-d97a13e1c7fc)
Chapter Two (#u496d85db-feae-5d73-a2fe-69620739e417)
Chapter Three (#u101f4721-e73b-5674-b12c-ef87d7933214)
Chapter Four (#uff31818d-cc9d-5e8d-a907-9d5e4307b4fc)
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 Fifteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter One (#u1dc918ad-233b-5e69-b150-7a2563d7a8ae)
Leadville, Colorado
1884
Owen Hamilton shielded his eyes against the sun as he tried to make out the rider coming toward him. His small ranch outside of Leadville, Colorado, was too far from town to get many visitors.
His sister, Lena, stepped out of the house. “Were you expecting company?”
“No. Get inside and bar the door. Keep the girls close. You know what to do.”
Lena hesitated. “Should I get your shotgun?”
“I’ve got my belt,” Owen said, patting his hip. “No sense in drawing trouble if there is none.”
They’d had this conversation enough times that Lena gave a nod. “We’ll be inside. I’ll wait for the signal.”
Owen walked off the porch and headed down the path toward the oncoming horse. Now that the rider was closer, Owen recognized him.
He called over his shoulder at the house. “It’s just Will. Put on some coffee and see what you can round up for refreshment. I’m sure he’s tired after his long ride.”
Though he sounded cheerful, his stomach filled with dread. The only reason Will would come to see Owen unannounced was if it was about a case. When Owen had turned in his badge several months ago, he’d made it clear he wasn’t available to help his friend. Both Will and the sheriff had tried talking him into at least remaining a consultant. But after Owen’s last mistake, he couldn’t bring himself to potentially endanger anyone else. True, on that last case, no one had died. But Owen had gotten distracted, and because of it, a woman and her children nearly died. Though everything turned out all right in the end, he still couldn’t forget how easily things could have gone bad.
As Will dismounted, Owen walked over to greet him. “Go ahead and put your horse by the barn. There’s plenty of hay, and I’ll get some water for him.”
“Thanks,” Will said, sounding out of breath. He must have been riding hard. And from the horse’s sweaty flanks, Owen could tell that his initial instinct that this wasn’t a social call was correct.
“Lena is fixing some refreshments. Then you can be on your way.”
“You haven’t even heard what I have to say.”
“I figure I already know what you’ve got to say. When I turned in my badge, it was for good.”
Before Will could respond, Owen’s six-year-old twin daughters, Anna and Emma, came running out the door. “Uncle Will!”
“Pipsqueaks!” Will gathered the girls in his arms and gave them a big hug. Though Owen had no regrets in moving out to the ranch, sometimes he thought about how isolated they were out here. Living in Leadville, Owen’s children had the chance to socialize with a number of families, including Will’s. Though Will wasn’t their real uncle, their families were close enough that it felt like it at times. Leaving behind their social connections had been a small price to pay for his privacy. If he wasn’t living in town, no one could ask him to help on a case.
Maybe it sounded selfish, but Owen knew that if his fellow lawmen could just run down the street to ask for his help, keeping his badge hung up would be near impossible. Besides, he and Lena had grown up here. Lena hated the city, and they’d both agreed that they wanted the same kind of childhood for Owen’s daughters that they’d had.
Lena had given up so much for Owen, quitting her job as a teacher to move in with him and help take care of his daughters when his late wife left him nearly six years ago. It seemed only fair that Owen look toward Lena’s comfort. Lena had no intention of ever marrying, and after Owen’s disastrous marriage, he wasn’t too interested in finding a wife either. Which made being out here, several miles from town, perfect for both of them.
