Texas Tender
Authors: Leigh Greenwood
LEIGH GREENWOOD!
“Leigh Greenwood continues to be a shining star of the genre!”
âThe Literary Times
“Leigh Greenwood remains one of the forces to be reckoned with in the Americana romance subgenre.”
âAffaire de Coeur
“Greenwood's books are bound to become classics.”
âRendezvous
“Leigh Greenwood NEVER disappoints. The characters are finely drawn . . . always, always, a guaranteed good read!”
âHeartland Critiques
A TEXAN'S HONOR
“A delightful addition to the Cowboys series . . . Greenwood brings readers straight into the heart of the west and into his likable characters' lives with a charming, fast-paced and enjoyable read.”
âRT BOOKreviews
THE MAVERICKS
“Fans of Greenwood's Cowboys series will be delighted with this latest installment. He delivers an action-packed story filled with tender moments.”
âFresh Fiction
THE RELUCTANT BRIDE
“Leigh Greenwood always provides one of the year's best Western romances, but his latest tale may be the best in an illustrious career. . . . Once again Mr. Greenwood will have one of the subgenre top guns of 2005.”
âHarriet Klausner
THE INDEPENDENT BRIDE
“Leigh Greenwood unfolds his Westerns like an artist. . . . Like his other books,
The Independent Bride
should be placed among the Western classics.”
âRendezvous
THE COWBOYS SERIES!
JAKE
“Only a master craftsman can create so many strong characters and keep them completely individualized.”
âRendezvous
WARD
“Few authors write with the fervor of Leigh Greenwood. Once again [Greenwood] has created a tale well worth opening again and again!”
âHeartland Critiques
BUCK
“
Buck
is a wonderful Americana Romance!”
âAffaire de Coeur
CHET
“
Chet
has it all! Romance and rustlers, gunfighters and greed . . . romance doesn't get any better than this!”
âThe Literary Times
SEAN
“This book rivals the best this author has written so far, and readers will want to make space on their keeper shelves for
Sean
. Western romance at its finest!”
âThe Literary Times
PETE
“
Pete
is another stroke on Leigh Greenwood's colorful canvas of the Old West. The plotting is brilliant and the conflict strong.”
âRendezvous
DREW
“Sexual tension and endless conflict make for a fast-paced adventure readers will long remember.”
âRendezvous
LUKE
“Another winner by Leigh Greenwood!”
âRomantic Times
“Howdy, ma'am,” the man said with a smile that practically obliterated the sunset. “I'm Will Haskins.”
She knew he was real, but no man could look like that. It simply wasn't possible.
“I'm here to see about buying your bull,” he said when she didn't respond.
How could she think about anything as mundane as selling a bull when she couldn't breathe?
“You did get my letter, didn't you? Did I get the day wrong? Isabelle says I never can keep things straight.”
She had to think, to speak, to do something besides stand there staring at him like she was a stuffed dummy.
“Are you alright?” he asked. “I saw you out next to the hog pen when I rode up. Maybe you were in the heat too long.”
“I am feeling a little dizzy.” She was feeling so weak she was about to faint.
“Maybe you'd better sit down,” he said, eying their small parlor. “Would you like some water?”
She had to get control of herself. She wasn't a silly girl who would fall speechless at the sight of a handsome man. Instead she was twenty, a woman of experience. There was no reason for her to act like a brainless ninny just because this man was twice as good looking as she'd ever thought possible.
Other books by Leigh Greenwood:
THE RELUCTANT BRIDE
THE INDEPENDENT BRIDE
COLORADO BRIDE
REBEL ENCHANTRESS
SCARLET SUNSET, SILVER NIGHTS
THE CAPTAIN'S CARESS
ARIZONA EMBRACE
SEDUCTIVE WAGER
SWEET TEMPTATION
WICKED WYOMING NIGHTS
WYOMING WILDFIRE
The Night Riders series:
TEXAS HOMECOMING
TEXAS BRIDE
BORN TO LOVE
The Cowboys series:
JAKE
WARD
BUCK
DREW
SEAN
CHET
MATT
PETE
LUKE
THE MAVERICKS
A TEXAN'S HONOR
The Seven Brides series:
ROSE
FERN
IRIS
LAUREL
DAISY
LEIGH GREENWOOD
DORCHESTER PUBLISHING
Published by
Dorchester Publishing Co., Inc.
200 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
Copyright © 2007 by Leigh Greenwood
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, without the written permission of the publisher, except where permitted by law. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author's rights is appreciated.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Trade ISBN: 978-1-4285-1700-4
E-book ISBN: 978-1-4285-1669-1
First Dorchester Publishing, Co., Inc. edition: January 2007
The “DP” logo is the property of Dorchester Publishing Co., Inc.
Printed in the United States of America.
Visit us online at
www.dorchesterpub.com
.
Texas Tender
Central Texas, 1886
Will Haskins slowed his mount to a walk as he approached the town of Dunmore. Most people would have said the small cluster of buildings bunched close together on the flat Texas plain was a poor excuse for a town. But to a man familiar with the tiny communities that dotted the Hill Country, it was just the right sizeâbig enough to offer a choice of places to eat, drink, and entertain himself, but not so big he'd get lost on his way back to his hotel.
The grass-covered prairie soon changed to soft ground cut up by the hooves of hundreds of horses and the wheels of dozens of wagons and buggies. Will headed his horse toward the main street that bisected the town in a clean, straight line. Flies buzzed around horse droppings, a yellow dog lounging in the shade under a porch yawned sluggishly, and the few people out and about moved slowly because of the heat. Summer in central Texas could be downright
brutal. Will was looking forward to finding a saloon or gambling establishment. Not that he gambled. Everyone agreed he wasn't stupid. Unfortunately, they all thought he was as shiftless as that yellow dog.
There was a reason he'd allowed himself to be saddled with such a reputation, but Will hadn't successfully explained it to anyone yet, not even his brother. His feelings of frustration, however, had continued to climb. Hell, he was twenty-eight. He might be the baby of the family, but he had been a grown man for ten years.
A young mother and her son caught his attention. While the young woman walked sedately along the edge of the beaten path, her son and his small dog dashed from one side of the street to the otherâthe boy throwing a stick, the dog catching it, and the boy chasing the dog to pry the stick away so he could throw it again. Will was so caught up in watching the play that he nearly didn't notice the sound of a horse approaching at a gallop. The boy ran to the protection of his mother, but the little brown-haired mongrel dogâthinking he was finally going to be allowed to keep the stick he'd chased so oftenâgamboled down the middle of the street, directly into the path of the horse and rider.
With no time to shout a warning or an explanation, Will dug his heels into his mount's sides. The powerful quarter horse was in a full gallop three jumps later. Despite being headed for a collision with the oncoming rider, Will didn't alter his course. Knowing he couldn't scoop up the dog without falling out of the saddle, he planned to put himself between the dog and the oncoming rider before the rider reached the dog, which had crouched down, frozen in fright at the sight of two horses hurtling toward him.
The two riders came together with the grunt of colliding horses, the squeak of leather, and curses from the other man, but Will's powerful quarter horse held his own against the tall, leggy bay gelding.
“What the hell do you mean by riding into me?” the other rider shouted. “Are you blind or just stupid?”
“Only a fool gallops a horse in town. Didn't you see that dog?” The little dog had recovered its courage and was scampering toward its owner.
“Nobody calls me a fool and gets away with it!” The man struggled to get his horse under control so he could draw his gun. By the time he had a hand free, Will was sitting calmly on his obedient mount, his rifle pointed at the man's belly.
“I don't think you want to do that,” Will said quietly. “You might hit somebody by mistake.”
The young man clearly hadn't bothered to notice that the woman and her son were in the direct line of fire. He stared at the rifle, rage twisting his handsome face into an ugly mask. “Get out of town,” he growled. “If I find you in my way again, you might not be so lucky.”
Uncowed by the young man's threat, Will replied, “I doubt there'll be any need to depend on luck.”
Losing the struggle to control his horse, the man put him into a canter and headed toward the center of town. Will sheathed his rifle and rode over to the woman and her son.
Still in shock, the woman finally managed to pull herself together with a visible effort. “Thank you for saving Pepper,” she said. “Lonnie would have been heartbroken if he had been killed.”