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Beneath Montana Skies
Mia Ross
This cowboy is back home to start over…After one wild ride too many, rodeo star Tyler Wilkins is back in his Montana hometown starting from scratch. But he sure didn’t expect to find he and Morgan Whittaker—the feisty rancher he left behind—have two adorable daughters.Can this reckless cowboy become a man Morgan will trust enough to earn the title of daddy…and possibly husband?
This cowboy is back home to start over...
but two adorable surprises wait at Mustang Ridge
After one wild ride too many, rodeo star Tyler Wilkins is back in his Montana hometown starting from scratch. But he sure didn’t expect to find that he and Morgan Whittaker—the feisty rancher he left behind—have two adorable daughters. Can this reckless cowboy become a man Morgan will trust enough to earn the title of daddy…and possibly husband?
MIA ROSS loves great stories. She enjoys reading about fascinating people, long-ago times and exotic places. But only for a little while, because her reality is pretty sweet. Married to her college sweetheart, she’s the proud mom of two amazing kids, whose schedules keep her hopping. Busy as she is, she can’t imagine trading her life for anyone else’s—and she has a pretty good imagination. You can visit her online at miaross.com (http://www.miaross.com).
Also by Mia Ross (#u992060d2-f76f-54da-8b58-96b67a820699)
Mustang Ridge
Beneath Montana Skies
Liberty Creek
Mending the Widow’s Heart
The Bachelor’s Baby
His Two Little Blessings
Oaks Crossing
Her Small-Town Cowboy
Rescued by the Farmer
Hometown Holiday Reunion
Falling for the Single Mom
Barrett’s Mill
Blue Ridge Reunion
Sugar Plum Season
Finding His Way Home
Loving the Country Boy
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk).
Beneath Montana Skies
Mia Ross
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-1-474-09045-2
BENEATH MONTANA SKIES
© 2018 Andrea Chermak
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.
® and ™ are trademarks owned and used by the trademark owner and/or its licensee. Trademarks marked with ® are registered with the United Kingdom Patent Office and/or the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market and in other countries.
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
“Allie and Hannah are my daughters, aren’t they, Morgan?” Tyler asked.
“No, Ty, they’re my daughters.” Tapping her chest for emphasis, Morgan went on, “They’re Whittakers, end of story.”
Folding his arms, he scowled down at her. Then his demeanor shifted, and he grimaced as if she’d sucker punched him. “Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked in a quiet voice laced with regret.
“I didn’t think you’d be interested,” she shot back. “You walked out on me with no explanation, no forwarding address. I didn’t think you were exactly father material.”
Tyler absorbed that in silence, a woeful look settling into an expression she’d never seen on him before.
Gazing out the door toward the house, he turned back to her with the firm jaw she recalled so well. “I would’ve found a way to make it work for us. You know that. You never even gave me a chance.”
Morgan had to acknowledge that he was right, and the twinge of guilt she felt grew more insistent even as she tried to reason it away...
Dear Reader (#u992060d2-f76f-54da-8b58-96b67a820699),
Welcome to Mustang Ridge!
I’ve always wanted to write a story set out West somewhere, and I had an absolute blast with this one. The idea came to me one night while my family and I were watching a documentary about a small town in Montana that was fighting against planned mining and energy development. What struck me was that the people waging this battle were everyday folks: farmers, ranchers and small business owners. They banded together to keep those changes from destroying the wild beauty of the land they treasured.
Morgan Whittaker stepped onto that same stage, strong, determined and ready to meet any challenge. Or so she thought. As capable as this rancher and single mom had always been, she quickly realized that her latest effort would require a team dedicated to keeping her hometown the way it was meant to be. She had plenty of courage when it came to animals and hard work, but taking on a challenge this huge required her to lean on her strong faith and trust in someone she’d long thought was out of her life forever.
After all he’d been through, Ty Wilkins needed some of that faith himself to start his life over. He found it in the smiles of the daughters he met for the first time. Forging a connection with them instantly, he was willing to do whatever it took to be part of their lives. Forgiving himself for past mistakes was another story. Once he did, he was open to embracing a future with Morgan, creating the kind of family he’d always longed for.
This is just the beginning of the story of Mustang Ridge. I’m looking forward to finding out what happens next!
If you’d like to stop in and see what I’ve been up to, you’ll find me online at www.miaross.com (http://www.miaross.com), Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads. While you’re there, send me a message. I’d love to hear from you!
Mia Ross
Forgive, and ye shall be forgiven.
—Luke 6:37
For all the people fighting to keep our wild lands wild.
Acknowledgments
To Melissa Endlich and the dedicated staff at Love Inspired. These very talented folks help me make my books everything they can be.
More thanks to the gang at Seekerville (www.seekerville.Blogspot.com (http://www.seekerville.blogspot.com)), a great place to hang out with readers—and writers.
I’ve been blessed with a wonderful network of supportive, encouraging family and friends. You inspire me every day!
Contents
Cover (#ufd484a61-cb86-5ed4-b8ee-01e505839009)
Back Cover Text (#u25b9b64d-05c4-5447-aafc-65afa91c233f)
About the Author (#u96abc578-5184-50c2-87ad-60dc8c041454)
Booklist (#u81f1ac44-c13d-5ae2-932d-93588e4f3e57)
Title Page (#u799063ef-1461-5f34-a4c3-95a18ceb879f)
Copyright (#u832b734a-7523-558b-9a81-56797f71017c)
Introduction (#u8897b28f-021e-52ce-a0a8-7dc002c873dd)
Dear Reader (#u2e096455-c54b-57f6-9390-533bc685b295)
Bible Verse (#u25a6d3d8-0b46-57ff-9e29-f2e61e34bad2)
Dedication (#u9df19228-a497-5cd2-89c3-127111a7db77)
Acknowledgments (#u56d9c966-909c-5124-a263-0fdd7d1231ea)
Chapter One (#uc3bcd76d-871a-5370-8c50-8b74f60d7bbd)
Chapter Two (#u1ceaa1af-eba4-5719-8947-88849b5301e9)
Chapter Three (#u83e5b896-7264-56df-a92c-850b803da285)
Chapter Four (#u0bbc42e9-c30d-5559-9d35-9882666ef6ea)
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)
Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
Chapter One (#u992060d2-f76f-54da-8b58-96b67a820699)
“Hey there, cowgirl.”
Holding a fifty-pound bag of sweet feed balanced on her shoulder, Morgan Whittaker froze in midstep. It couldn’t be, she thought, before it occurred to her that was just wishful thinking. The once-familiar voice behind her could only belong to one person, and although she hadn’t heard that smooth tenor in ages, she’d recognize it anywhere.
Very slowly, she turned halfway around and let her eyes confirm her suspicion. Thankfully, she was wearing her mirrored aviator sunglasses, so he couldn’t see the contempt she knew must be plain in her eyes. “Tyler Wilkins. What’re you doing here in Mustang Ridge?”
Under the brim of his cream-colored Stetson, the gold tinting his hazel eyes sparked with a bit of his infamous temper. But it quickly mellowed, replaced by one of those easygoing grins that had charmed her—and countless other women—for so long. “Well, now, last time I checked, this was my hometown, too. I haven’t been to Montana in a while, so I figured it was time for me to make a visit.”
“I’d say seven years is more than a while.” For her, it was a lifetime ago. She was almost thirty now, and for her those days were a distant memory. From the look of things, nothing had changed for him, except that his rangy, athletic build had filled out a bit. He was more solid now, but she knew from hard-won experience that was just an illusion. There had never been anything solid about Ty. Unfortunately for her, she’d discovered the truth about him too late. “And since it’s June, shouldn’t you be headed to Reno for that big roundup I read about? The article said the humongous rodeo purse is drawing every able-bodied cowboy west of the Mississippi.”
Something flashed across his weathered features, and for a brief moment she thought it almost looked like regret. Then again, the cocky bull rider had never been prone to remorse, even when he was clearly in the wrong. The look vanished quickly, and she decided it had just been a trick of the sunlight and shadows underneath the overhang that shaded the sidewalk in front of Big Sky Feed and Seed.
“Not goin’ this year,” he said simply, hooking his thumbs into his wide leather belt.
She noticed that he wasn’t wearing his prized silver champions buckle because, really, you couldn’t miss one of those if you tried. Something about him wasn’t adding up for her, and while she shouldn’t care, she had to admit that she was suddenly curious about what had brought him home. Figuring it couldn’t hurt to ask, she dove in boots first. “Why not?”
He didn’t answer, and when he took a step toward her, she instinctively pulled away. “What on earth do you think you’re doing?”
“Taking that bag of feed before it caves your shoulder in.”
Suddenly aware that she’d slumped a bit under the weight, she straightened up and glared back at him. “I’m perfectly capable of handling it myself.”
“Suit yourself.”
He didn’t retreat, but he did drop his hands. Realizing that people were beginning to stare at them, she ignored his helpful gesture and heaved the bag into the back of her 4x4. She turned to catch him wearing an expression that struck her as being almost mournful before a half grin rushed in to replace it. “To answer your question about the rodeo, I’m just taking some time off. No big deal.”
Any idiot could tell there was more to the story than that, but she didn’t have the time or the patience to drag anything more out of him. Besides, he was obviously not keen to talk about it, or he would have spilled his guts to her already. She still couldn’t believe he’d approached her in the middle of the street this way. Then again, he’d probably been hoping that a meeting in public would keep things between them more or less civil. Apparently, he’d gotten smarter since the last time she saw him.
She’d mostly recovered from the shock of seeing him, so she called up her backbone and opened the driver’s door. “Well, enjoy your vacation. Bye.”
