Cassie Miles - Mountain Heiress

USA TODAY bestselling author Cassie Miles shows what happens when a big-city girl meets a sexy cowboy after inheriting a Colorado ranch.

Since quitting the rodeo circuit, Zach Sheffield hadn’t much time for people, never mind city folk. A stranger had inherited a famous ranch in their Colorado town, and worse than not knowing one end of a horse from the other, he pegged Gabby Rousseau as a mustang, for sure.

Local legend said that Gabby’s estate hid the Frenchman’s treasure, making it a frequent target for thieves. After the first break-in, Zach knew Gabby would need protection, but the beauty from the big city was putting up a fight. He knew he was better off tending to his horses than praying for a breakthrough…but then again, Zach had never met a mustang he couldn’t tame.

Beyond gorgeous, he was iconic and, at the same time, utterly original. He dismounted near the place where she’d gotten tangled up last night and he sauntered to the fence with a cool, looselimbed stride. When he pushed his hat back on his forehead and looked toward the house, she stepped behind the curtain so he wouldn’t see her staring.

Their meeting last night hadn’t been under the best of circumstances, and he certainly hadn’t done anything since then to make her think he was glad to see her. But she’d sensed chemistry between them. Maybe she and Zach would never have a relationship, but she could easily imagine some kissing in their future. She wouldn’t mind sticking around at the Roost long enough to see where things with Zach might go.

Though born in Chicago and raised in LA, USA TODAY bestselling author CASSIE MILEShas lived in Colorado long enough to be considered a semi-native. The first home she owned was a log cabin in the mountains overlooking Elk Creek, with a thirty-mile commute to her work at the Denver Post .

After raising two daughters and cooking tons of macaroni and cheese for her family, Cassie is trying to be more adventurous in her culinary efforts. Ceviche, anyone? She’s discovered that almost anything tastes better with wine. When she’s not plotting Mills & Boon ®Intrigue books, Cassie likes to hang out at the Denver Botanical Gardens near her high-rise home.

Mountain Heiress

USA TODAY Bestselling Author

Cassie Miles

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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CAST OF CHARACTERS

Gabby (Gabriella) Rousseau—Born and raised in Brooklyn, she’s a city girl whose dreams of becoming a fashion designer are put on hold when she inherits a house in the Colorado mountains.

Zach Sheffield—A former rodeo star and all-around cowboy, he owns a horse ranch and is renowned as a trainer/horse whisperer.

Daniel Rousseau—Gabby’s ne’er-do-well brother has a gambling problem and is always out to make a quick buck.

Michelle Rousseau—Gabby’s deceased great-aunt was a successful artist who left her Colorado home to Gabby and Daniel.

Rene Rousseau—Gabby’s other deceased great-aunt and the sister of Michelle. She stayed in Brooklyn and raised Gabby and her brother after their parents died.

Louis Rousseau—The ancestor who established the Rousseau dynasty in Colorado in the 1860s.

Charlotte Potter—A plain Jane teenager who cared for Michelle before she died and blossoms after a glittery makeover.

Rhoda Phillips—Zach’s housekeeper has a talent for organizing his business and for bookkeeping.

Jason Fox—The Aspen-based attorney acts as the executor of Michelle’s will.

Kevin Fox—The red-haired nephew of the attorney wants to become a professional snowboarder.

Harrison Osborne—The art dealer handling Michelle’s work has his hands full with cataloging all the paintings.

Ed Striker—The local handyman works for Osborne.

Sarah Bentley—Her nonprofit organization, Forest Preservation Society, is heavily endowed by Michelle Rousseau.

To Jerry Kreiter and, as always, to Rick.

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter One

The night was never this dark in Brooklyn. If she’d been back in her home borough, Gabby Rousseau could have counted on a streetlamp or the glow from a sidewalk window or the never-dimmed glare of Manhattan across the river. But here? In the Colorado mountains? She couldn’t see ten feet in front of her, even with her headlights on high beam. Heavy clouds blocked the starlight as sheets of rain pummeled the roof of her poor, tired, little Ford hatchback.

She considered pulling over until the storm let up but she didn’t dare. What if her tires sank into the mud at the edge of this skinny road that was more pothole than pavement? Then where would she be? Stuck. In the rain. Without a yellow cab for hundreds of miles.

Dis-as-ter! Her cell phone was out of juice, and the charger didn’t work. She had no GPS. For the past hundred miles, the car had been making a clunk that got louder and louder. The heater didn’t work, which meant the defroster was defunct and she had to crack a window, which let in the rain. She was wet and cold and, just when she thought it couldn’t get any worse, the lightning started.

Zigzag bolts of raw electricity slashed the darkness. In the flash, she saw a stark vision. The clawing branches of a thick forest seemed to grab at her car. Jagged rocks appeared at the edge of the road like evil, ancient sentinels. She glimpsed movement. Something was out there. Probably zombies.

She’d been driving four days—four long, miserable days—across the country. Finally, she was close to her destination. She couldn’t give up.

Thunder rumbled like a barrage of cannons. Her fingers tensed on the steering wheel. This morning when she’d started out, the June weather had been hot enough that she’d put on a pair of high-waisted chino shorts and platform sandals—an unfortunate choice of outfit because she was freezing cold. Her legs rippled with goose bumps. Her toes were numb.

Another bolt of lightning cut through the sky. The thunder roared and rumbled.

“Enough.” She couldn’t take much more. “Come on, Universe. Give me a break.”

If it stopped raining, she’d never criticize the weather again. Was the Universe open to a deal like that? “If I find my way, I’ll give up anything. No more chocolate. No more overdrafts in the checking account.”

She needed something bigger to deal with, something more important, something life-changing. She needed the barely worn, red-soled Christian Louboutin heels she’d picked up secondhand before she left civilization. “That’s right, the Louboutins. Go ahead, Universe. Take my shoes. Just let me find the place I’m looking for.”