Judy Duarte: The Cowboy's Lullaby

“For what it’s worth, I’m notsuch a bad guy.”

True enough, Chloe agreed, but there must be a reason Jake Braddock hadn’t been given full custody of Brianna.

“You don’t believe me?” Jake asked.

“Sure I do.” She tried to force sincerity into her smile, yet a veil of scepticism slid over his angular face. He didn’t object, which she appreciated. She wasn’t up for a confrontation until after she’d had her morning coffee.

She decided to flirt and make him squirm a little, but she’d have to put that on hold and take care of her morning caffeine addiction. Though her craving for a hot cup of java was calling her, she glanced over her shoulder to find Jake’s eyes locked on her.

A grin tugged at her lips as she returned to her quest for coffee. Jake Braddock was her favourite type of challenge.

And he’d just thrown down the gauntlet.

To Bob and Betty Astleford. I couldn’t have handpicked better parents. I love you, Mom and Dad.

JUDY DUARTE

always knew there was a book inside her, but since English was her least favourite subject in school, she never considered herself a writer. An avid reader who enjoys a happy ending, Judy couldn’t shake the dream of creating a book of her own.

Her dream became a reality in March of 2002, when the Cherish line released her first book, Cowboy Courage . Since then, she has sold nineteen more novels.

Her stories have touched the hearts of readers around the world. And in July of 2005, Judy won a prestigious Reader’s Choice Award for TheRich Man’s Son .

Judy makes her home near the beach in Southern California. When she’s not cooped up in her writing cave, she’s spending time with her somewhat enormous, but delightfully close family.

You can contact Judy at: JudyDuarte @ sbcglobal. net or through her website www. judyduarte. com.

Dear Reader,

Can you believe it’s July already?

It’s time for barbecues, picnics and fun in the sun. I don’t know about you, but during the lazy days of summer, I take a book to the pool or the beach and escape for an afternoon. And I hope that’s what you’ll do with The Cowboy’s Lullaby .

For those of you who have been fans of THE BAYSIDE BACHELORS series, this is another for your collection. Only this story isn’t about a one-time delinquent who made good. Instead, it’s about Chloe Haskell, Joe Davenport’s sexy, kindhearted neighbour. Chloe is far more heroic and loveable than people give her credit for being. Still, she has a journey to make that will earn her the right to have her own happily ever after.

I hope you enjoy reading The Cowboy’s Lullaby as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Wishing you romance,

Judy

JUDY DUARTE

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Chapter One

Jake Braddock was nursing a Monday-morning hangover and brewing a pot of coffee when the call came in, telling him that his stepmother, Desiree, had passed away.

“What do you mean she passed away?” he asked the hospital spokeswoman. Desiree hadn’t even reached her fortieth birthday. “What happened?”

“Officially the cause of death was pneumonia. But it was cancer related.”

Cancer?

Jake pulled out the black-and-chrome bar stool nearest to the phone line and took a seat, raking a hand through his hair. He cursed the throbbing in his head, which was now pounding like a son of a gun.

“I didn’t know she was sick,” he muttered. Not really. Well, not that sick.

A week or so ago, when she’d returned from San Diego for the last time, Jake had taken a good hard look at her and noticed dark circles under her eyes and a wan complexion. When he’d suggested she see a doctor, she’d said not to worry, that she was under medical care.

He’d suspected she was ill, but he hadn’t had any idea that her condition was terminal.

“I, uh…” He stumbled over an explanation. “She and I…weren’t very close.”

Apparently not , the silence seemed to say.

He cleared his throat, hoping to clear his head, as well. “Let’s start over. I knew she was sick, but she never mentioned cancer.”

Or told him that she was dying.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” the woman said. “Mrs. Braddock made all of her arrangements, so there isn’t anything for you to do. I’m just following hospital protocol by notifying the next of kin.”

“Then, I guess, that’s me.”

“And Chloe Haskell in San Diego.”

Jake stiffened. “Who the hell is Chloe Haskell?”

“I don’t know, sir. Mrs. Braddock listed the two of you as her next of kin.”

“What about her daughter?” he asked.

“Would that be Ms. Haskell?”

“No, it wouldn’t.” Well, hell. Maybe it was. He supposed Desiree could have another child. Older, maybe. Grown. Like him. He hadn’t really known his stepmother that well, other than the fact she’d been a topless dancer before marrying his old man.

Either way, now he’d have to tell Brianna, his nearly five-year-old half sister, that her mommy had died. Of course, he’d have to find her first. Desiree had been traveling back and forth to San Diego for the past couple of months, but last week she’d returned to Dallas without the child.

And that was odd.

Jake might have issues with Desiree about a lot of things, but he’d come to realize she was a devoted mother. At least, that had been his opinion before she’d left Brianna in San Diego.

When he’d questioned her about it, she’d said, “Brianna is staying with a dear friend. She’s happy and well cared for.”

Jake didn’t know much about his stepmother’s friends, although he suspected they all worked at the same San Diego strip club Desiree used to manage, so he had good reason to feel uneasy.

Maybe Brianna was with Chloe—whoever she was.

“There’s no one else on my contact list,” the spokeswoman said. “Just you and Miss Haskell, whom I’ve already called.”

The hospital had notified someone other than Jake first?

He cursed, although he wasn’t sure whether it was at the news he’d just heard or the hammering in his head and the bile swirling in his gut.

“I’m sorry,” the woman on the line said. “Is there someone I can call for you? Perhaps a grief counselor from hospice?”

“No. This is just a…” He was going to say it was a shock, but he bit back the rest of his sentence. Desiree was his stepmother, and she lived…well, she used to live just an hour or so away from him. Her death and the fact that she’d been suffering from cancer for God-only-knew-how-long shouldn’t have come as a surprise. Not if she’d kept him more in the loop.

Of course, once his sixty-year-old father met her on a cruise ship, Jake and his wishes had been bypassed entirely. Talk about a midlife crisis. His old man’s had been a humdinger.

Gerald Braddock had always been conservative in everything he did, but he’d fallen head over heels for a former topless dancer, who was twenty-eight and young enough to be his daughter. And he’d married her faster than a spinning tassel on a pastie.