Rita Rainville: Too Hard To Handle

Of course, it wasn’t his fault that she was wary of men—especially the alpha types. Or that what Christy craved right now was a peaceful life, a life dedicated to her new job and simple pleasures. A life rid of complications—especially the ones created by demanding men.

Besides, she hadn’t been a bit interested when he’d taken off his shirt, she assured herself. The sight of his hard body hadn’t doubled her pulse rate, either, and his heat hadn’t sizzled through her fingertips, warming her from head to toe.

Yeah, right, she thought.

Dear Reader,

“Happy Birthday to us.…” Exactly twenty years ago this May, Silhouette Romance was born. Since then, we’ve grown as a company, and as a series that continues to offer the very best in contemporary category romance fiction. The icing on the cake is this month’s amazing lineup:

International bestselling author Diana Palmer reprises her SOLDIERS OF FORTUNE miniseries with Mercenary’s Woman. Sorely missed, Rita Rainville returns to Romance with the delightful story of a Too Hard To Handle rancher who turns out to be anything but.…Elizabeth August delivers the dramatic finale to ROYALLY WED. In A Royal Mission, rescuing kidnapped missing princess Victoria Rockford was easy for Lance Grayson. But falling in love wasn’t part of the plan.

Marie Ferrarella charms us with a Tall, Strong & Cool Under Fire hero whose world turns topsy-turvy when an adorable moppet and her enticing mom venture into his fire station.…Julianna Morris’s BRIDAL FEVER! rages on when Hannah Gets a Husband—her childhood friend who is a new dad. And in Her Sister’s Child, a woman allies with her enemy. Don’t miss this pulse-pounding romance by Lilian Darcy!

In June, we’re featuring Dixie Browning and Phyllis Halldorson, and in coming months look for new miniseries from many of your favorite authors. It’s an exciting year for Silhouette Books, and we invite you to join the celebration!

Happy reading!

Mary-Theresa Hussey

Senior Editor

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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To my retreat buddies—you know who you are.

Thanks for the love, laughter and support.

Silhouette Romance

Challenge the Devil #313

McCade’s Woman #346

*Lady Moonlight #370

Written on the Wind #400

*The Perfect Touch #418

The Glorious Quest #448

Family Affair #478

It Takes a Thief #502

Gentle Persuasion #535

Never Love a Cowboy #556

Valley of Rainbows #598

*No Way To Treat a Lady #663

Never on Sundae #706

One Moment of Magic #746

*Arc of the Arrow #832

Alone at Last #873

*Too Hard To Handle #1445

Silhouette Desire

A Touch of Class #495

Paid in Full #639

High Spirits #792

Tumbleweed and Gibraltar #828

Hot Property #874

Bedazzled #918

Husband Material #984

City Girls Need Not Apply #1056

Silhouette Books

Silhouette Christmas Stories 1990

“Lights Out!”

believes her storytelling ability was honed by her father, a man who told absurd tales with a straight face and a gleam of amusement in his blue eyes. She learned from both parents that laughter, as well as love, makes the world go ’round. Her early years were spent reading every book available and replotting the endings of sad movies.

Rita has been a romantic for as long as she can remember. She began writing romance novels, and continues to this day, because she believes in humor, happy endings and the enduring qualities of love, honor and commitment. She is also spurred on by letters she receives from readers, letters that say things like, “…when I read your books, I laugh out loud and the pain goes away.”

Rita is a happily married mother of two super sons, one incredible daughter-in-law and a wonderful grandson. She lives with her husband in northern Arizona.

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Epilogue

“Lady, you’ve got two minutes to get these loonies off my land.”

Christy Calhoun’s eyes widened as the gaze of the large, tanned man on horseback settled on her. He had scanned her nine companions and the cluster of recreational vehicles scattered around his property before turning to her and issuing the direct order. When he tilted his brown Stetson back off his forehead, she saw that the expression in his narrowed dark eyes was no friendlier than his words.

One quick glance at the older people milling around her resolved her unspoken question. They, in their eye-popping yellow T-shirts each picturing a human waving at a big-eyed alien and the words I’m not Suffering from Alienation, were the loonies; she, in jeans and a white sleeveless T-shirt, was, by default, the lady.

He was more than large, she decided with a blink. Caught between her and the glare of the late-May sun, he looked very big. Huge. And hard as granite, if the thighs gripping his saddle were any indication. He was, with his broad chest and shoulders wide enough to fill a doorway, more than a tad intimidating.

Before Christy could utter a word, a motor home, the last of their caravan, trundled off the road and up the grassy slope in their direction, smoke pouring out the front grille. Slamming to a stop well behind the other vehicles, the driver leaped out and dashed toward the cluster of people. Before he had gone ten feet, the motor home’s chrome grille erupted and flames shot out, blistering the paint and shooting up a plume of dark smoke.

Swearing, the large cowboy swung off his horse and pointed to the hill behind him. “Move,” he shouted to the stunned observers. “Now. To the other side. The damn thing’s going to blow.”

Christy took a last look at the blazing motor home then turned to check the people swarming up the hillside. Noting they were all accounted for, she slid her arm protectively around the petite woman beside her. “Come on, Aunt Tillie. The man said to move.”

“We’ll be fine, dear,” the older woman murmured, hiking up her long skirt and obediently trotting up the hill after her friends. “Just fine.”

“Not if we don’t hustle.”

“Oh!” Tillie skidded to a stop and turned back. “My bracelet. It’s gone.”