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The Sheriff Wins A Wife
Jill Limber
So much had changed since Jennifer Williams had fled Blossom on her wedding night–except her reaction to Sheriff Trace McCabe. Sure it had been silly to think she would be in town all summer and not see him.Without even turning around, she'd recognize the low rumble of his laugh anywhere. And though she hadn't intended on exchanging nostalgic kisses on the Ferris wheel or reliving their romance–two facts were crystal clear. 1) Her feelings for him had never died and 2) It was time Trace knew they were still married!
She hadn’t seen Trace McCabe since the night they’d gotten married.
Recollections of his smile flashed through her memory like summer lightning. Memories of the hurt and confusion her decisions had caused stung like the sparks coming off a Fourth-of-July sparkler.
Her stomach flipped and her hands began to sweat.
Trace McCabe.
The reason Jennifer had stayed away from her hometown for eight years.
Then she turned, and his easy grin became a look of disbelief, shock—followed by a flash of anger.
Dangerous thoughts and emotions shook her. Her stomach jittered just as it used to when she was seventeen.
Perhaps her feelings hadn’t been buried as deeply as she’d thought.
Dear Reader,
To me, September is the cruelest month. One minute it feels like just another glorious summer day. And then almost overnight the days become shorter and life just hits. It’s no different for this month’s heroes and heroines. Because they all get their own very special “September moment” when they discover a secret that will change their lives forever!
Judy Christenberry once again heads up this month with The Texan’s Tiny Dilemma (#1782)—the next installment in her LONE STAR BRIDES miniseries. A handsome accountant must suddenly figure out how to factor love into the equation when a one-night stand results in twins. Seth Bryant gets his wake-up call when a very pregnant princess shows up on his doorstep in Prince Baby (#1783), which continues Susan Meier’s BRYANT BABY BONANZA. Jill Limber assures us that The Sheriff Wins a Wife (#1784) in the continuing BLOSSOM COUNTY FAIR continuity, but how will this lawman react to the news that he’s still married to a woman who left town eight years ago! Holly Jacobs rounds out the month with her next PERRY SQUARE: THE ROYAL INVASION! title. In Once Upon a King (#1785), baby seems to come before love and marriage for a future king.
And be sure to watch for more great romances next month when bestselling author Myrna Mackenzie launches our new SHAKESPEARE IN LOVE miniseries.
Happy reading,
Ann Leslie Tuttle
Associate Senior Editor
The Sheriff Wins a Wife
Jill Limber
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
To Matthew and Zachary: my newest little heroes
Books by Jill Limber
Silhouette Romance
The 15 lb. Matchmaker #1593
Captivating a Cowboy #1664
Daddy, He Wrote #1756
The Sheriff Wins a Wfe #1784
Silhouette Intimate Moments
Secrets of an Old Flame #1266
JILL LIMBER
lives in San Diego with her husband. Now that her children are grown, their two dogs keep her company while she sits at her computer writing stories. A native Californian, she enjoys the beach, loves to swim in the ocean, and for relaxation she daydreams and reads romances. You can learn more about Jill by visiting her Web site at www.JillLimber.com (http://www.JillLimber.com).
THE BLOSSOM BEE
The Buzz About Town
By: Harriet Hearsay
We’ve got the dirt…straight from the pigpen!
It seems Jennifer Williams, now of Dallas, is back in town and helping her niece with Petunia the pig. But don’t you know, this girl is clueless about hogs and she nearly landed flat on her behind the first time in the pen. Surprise, surprise—guess who was there to pull her out of the muck and straight into his arms? Her old flame, Sheriff Trace McCabe! This columnist is definitely ready to watch the mud fly between these two!
Contents
Chapter One (#ud598feba-e5d5-5668-a0d4-b92dba349e07)
Chapter Two (#u0d075f5b-24ff-5a7d-88a3-7a08291af00d)
Chapter Three (#u6ac2786d-10ae-5a40-8880-97ff9394481c)
Chapter Four (#ub48a1c25-d4c3-5679-815e-6a0c769deb3b)
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)
Chapter Sixteen (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter One
Jennifer Williams tried to avoid breathing through her nose.
It had been eight years since she’d been to the Blossom County fair, and she’d forgotten how bad the smell of the animal barn could get during the heat of the day.
She’d never been involved in 4H in school. Her mother hadn’t allowed her or her sister to participate. Ellen Williams had declared that no daughter of hers was going to lower herself to clean up after an animal. Jennifer had felt left out; all her friends had raised 4H animals. But now, standing beside the smelly pen that held her niece Kelly’s 4H entry, Jennifer thought perhaps her mother had had a point.
Petunia the pig was large, pink and cranky. As far as Jennifer was concerned, Petunia was a three-hundred-pound porcine nightmare that was not going to end anytime soon.
This was not how Jennifer had anticipated spending her summer. But when her older sister, Miranda, called three days ago asking for help with a difficult pregnancy, Jennifer had taken vacation time from her job as a forensic accountant, packed up her seven-year-old son, Zack, and left Dallas.
She’d moved from Blossom the summer after high school, and aside from brief visits home to see her sister and bury her mother, she’d stayed away. There were too many bad memories here. And she wouldn’t have come back now, but Miranda and her daughter, Kelly, were family—outside of Zack, the only family Jenn had.
Petunia gave a squeal of displeasure, pulling Jenn out of her reminiscences. She watched as the very pregnant pig struggled to her feet and knocked over her water bowl.
The last thing Jenn wanted to do was climb into the pen with a grouchy pig, but Kelly and Zack had gone to get sodas twenty minutes before, leaving Jennifer to wait for Kelly’s 4H adviser.
Jennifer smiled, remembering the scowl on Kelly’s face when Zack had signed that he’d go with his cousin and Jennifer had translated for Kelly. No teenager wanted to haul a little boy around with her when she might run into her friends, but Kelly would have to get used to it, at least for a few months. Jennifer would need Kelly’s help looking out for Zack, especially after the baby arrived.
It was important that Zack learn to get around despite his deafness. He was usually shy about straying from her side, and when he showed some independence, Jennifer encouraged it. She just wished her niece had been more open to Jenn’s offer to teach her sign language so Kelly could communicate with her cousin.
Petunia nosed at her water bowl, her squeals escalating. She sounded as if she was being mistreated in some horrible way.
With no sign of Kelly, Jenn had little choice but to go into the pen and refill the water bowl. She had never raised a pig, but she knew from growing up in Blossom, Texas, that an overheated animal, especially a sow close to giving birth, could spell trouble.
The problem was that Petunia hated to be penned and had become an escape artist. Jenn found the bag of dog biscuits in Kelly’s canvas bag, slipped a few into her pocket, then tossed a handful across the pen to lure Petunia away from the door.
While the pig rooted in the hay for the treats, Jennifer let herself inside and closed the gate behind her. Just as she was congratulating herself on keeping the pig penned, she stepped in a soft pile of droppings hidden under the straw. Petunia chose that moment to sniff at Jenn’s pocket, smearing her white shorts with a mixture of mushy dog biscuit and pig saliva.
Jennifer heard the low rumble of male laughter right behind her and froze. Without even turning around she knew who that laugh belonged to. Trace McCabe. The one person she had hoped to avoid during her stay in Blossom.
Recollections of his smile and laugh flashed through her memory like summer lightning. Memories of the hurt and confusion her decisions had caused stung like the sparks coming off a Fourth-of-July sparkler.
Her stomach flipped and her hands began to sweat.
Trace McCabe.
The reason she’d stayed away for eight years.
She hadn’t seen him since the night they’d gotten married.
She knew she’d been silly to think she could be in Blossom all summer and not see him, but she hadn’t wanted to face the memories and feelings she’d avoided for so long.
What had happened between them should stay in the past quietly buried. She had no inclination to dig it up.
She took a deep breath and reached for her composure, plastering on what she hoped was a neutral expression.
Her hesitation cost her as the annoyed pig gave her a shove that sent her stumbling against the side of the enclosure. Petunia moved in quickly and pinned Jenn in the corner.
A big pair of warm hands grasped her upper arms, lifted her and hauled her backward, clear over the top of the pen.
She turned, and knew the moment he recognized her. His easy grin turned into a stunned expression.
She looked up at him, forcing a smile. Dangerous thoughts and emotions shook her. He was bigger, more handsome and so dearly familiar. Time had been very kind to Trace. The trim khaki sheriff’s uniform showed off his lean, broad-shouldered body.
Darn! Why couldn’t he have gotten fat, or bald?
Her stomach jittered just as it used to when she was seventeen. Perhaps her feelings hadn’t been buried as deeply as she’d thought.
Expressions of disbelief and shock chased across his face, followed by a flash of anger. He quickly recovered his composure and gave her a forced smile that didn’t look as if it belonged on his tanned face.
The air between them seemed to shimmer.
“Hey there, Trace,” she said, amazed her voice sounded so normal.
She could feel her heart racing. She fought the urge to simply turn and walk away from him, get in her car and head for home.
Not an option, she thought. Not this time. She’d run from her responsibilities—from him—once before. She wouldn’t run again.
Time for plan B, she thought, resigned. Maybe she could act as if they were just old friends. She forced a smile and said, “How’s it going?”
Trace let go of Jenn and stepped back. He felt as if he’d gotten hold of a live wire. He was having trouble getting a deep breath past the ball of anger that flared in his chest.
When he’d walked into the stock barn at the end of his shift and spotted the woman standing in the pigpen, he’d had no idea it was Jenn. She was wearing clothes that belonged at a country club, not in a pigpen. Her sophisticated hairstyle hadn’t come from the local beauty shop, and she had sandals on.
Anyone who grew up in Blossom knew you wore boots in a stock barn.
She’d changed a lot in eight years. Her body was more slender and she wore her once-long hair in a tousled, streaked style.
After all this time, thinking about her and wondering, she was standing right in front of him, smiling and greeting him as if they’d seen each other yesterday. As if they’d been casual friends.
Fury streaked through him.
He took off his hat and ran his hand through his hair. “Hey, Jenn. What brings you back to Blossom?”
He struggled to match her casual attitude and give himself a moment to round up his feelings. It was going to take some doing, but if that was how she wanted to play this first meeting, he’d go along. His emotions were in such a turmoil he honestly didn’t trust himself to do otherwise. She looked sophisticated and snooty. Dallas had rubbed off on her.
He realized he was slapping his hat against his leg, and he stopped the motion.
Her eyes were just the same. A deep amber color. The same color as the topaz earrings he’d bought her on his way back to Blossom, before he’d known she’d run off to Dallas and left him behind. He kept those earrings in a box in his dresser. They served as a reminder of his lack of judgment where women were concerned.
She shrugged one tanned shoulder and said, “Miranda needs some help this summer, so I decided to spend my vacation in Blossom.”
