Marin Thomas - No Ordinary Cowboy

Looking For Redemption…

Lucy Durango can’t ever bring back her brother, killed in a drunk driving accident. But she’s doing her best to honor his memory and to atone for her part in his death. She also can’t seem to stop her feelings for Tony Bravo, the cowboy who broke her heart the same night her brother died. But if she gets close to Tony again, she risks losing her whole family this time—because they blame Tony for their tragic loss.

As a U.S. border agent, Tony sees his fair share of danger. But nothing stops his heart like seeing Lucy once more. Her family’s anger toward Tony meant he and Lucy lost any future together. But Lucy has a hold on his heart again…and he’s not at all sure he wants to let go of her this time.

Lucy strode through the cowboy ready area toward the exit.

When she turned a corner, she plowed into a solid wall of muscle.

“Lucy?”

Tony? It had been two years since she’d stood this close to Tony Bravo, and his masculine scent—a hint of soap, cologne and pure male musk—brought back memories of the clandestine hours she’d spent in his arms the months prior to her brother’s death.

“You okay?”

“I’m fine.” The heat from his touch sent tiny shivers racing down Lucy’s spine as she lost herself in Tony’s gaze.

“You here alone?” he asked.

The guarded question didn’t surprise her. It wasn’t long ago that her father had directed the sheriff to bar Tony from the church during her brother’s funeral.

“Yes, I’m by myself.”

The corner of his mouth rose, and a tiny ache gripped Lucy’s heart. Michael’s death had torn them apart, and when Lucy had needed Tony the most, he’d disappeared. After the shock of her brother’s passing had worn off, Lucy acknowledged that things had worked out for the best between her and Tony. If he learned what she’d done—rather hadn’t done—the night Michael had died, Tony wouldn’t want to be with her anyway.

Dear Reader,

Welcome back to Stagecoach, Arizona, for the final book in my Rodeo Rebels series. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about these Wild West heroes and heroines as much as I’ve enjoyed writing about them. No Ordinary Cowboy is a story about border patrol agent Tony Bravo and his former lover Lucy Durango.

The two share a special bond—they both feel tremendous guilt over the death of Tony’s best friend, who also happened to be Lucy’s brother. Michael’s death ended Tony and Lucy’s relationship, and when the book opens two years later, Tony believes the only way he’ll be able to move on with his life is if he takes a job transfer out of state. Lucy, on the other hand, is trying to make amends for the role she believes she played in her brother’s death by honoring his memory through her small-town cowboy taxi service. When Lucy encounters a financial roadblock that threatens to shut down her business, she turns to the very man her father blames for Michael’s death—Tony Bravo. Tony and Lucy’s path to Happy Ever After is a tumultuous journey not only for them, but for their families, as well. Both Tony and Lucy embark on a road to redemption, which they discover leads to each other.

I love to hear from my readers. You can reach me through my website, www.marinthomas.com, where you’ll find the latest news about my upcoming books.

Happy Ever After…The Cowboy Way!

Marin

No Ordinary Cowboy

Marin Thomas

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Marin Thomas grew up in Janesville, Wisconsin. She left the Midwest to attend college in Tucson, Arizona, where she earned a B.A. in radio-TV. Following graduation she married her college sweetheart in a five-minute ceremony at the historic Little Chapel of the West in Las Vegas, Nevada. Over the years she and her family have lived in seven different states, but they’ve now come full circle and returned to Arizona, where the rugged desert and breathtaking sunsets provide plenty of inspiration for Marin’s cowboy books.

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To Kimberly Nichols, who submitted the highest “name the dog” bid through New York Times bestselling author Brenda Novak’s 2012 Online Auction for Diabetes Research. Thank you, Kimberly, for helping out this worthwhile cause!

Madeleine, aka “Maddie,” was a joy to write in this book, and I hope I did justice to her real-life namesake. The dog in No Ordinary Cowboy possesses your Maddie’s best characteristics—she’s wickedly smart, has a great memory, can be stubborn on occasion and is devoted to those who love her. I wish you and your Maddie much happiness!

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

Epilogue

Excerpt

Chapter One

“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time for the chuck wagon races here at the Yuma Good Ol’ Days Rodeo!”

Lucy Durango ignored the announcer—her attention remained glued to Shannon Douglas, a former high-school classmate who’d climbed onto the back of Sidewinder. Shannon wrapped the bull rope around her left hand while several cowboys perched on the rails, ready to lift her to safety if the bull reared.

The pungent scent of manure, livestock and sweaty cowboy saturated the warm April air as Lucy inched closer to the chute. I must be nuts. Time would tell if the idea she’d come up with for her Pony Express fundraiser was brilliant or just plain idiotic.

“Before we kick off our next event, we’ve got a special treat for you.” The announcer gestured toward the bull chutes. “Shannon Douglas, a resident of Stagecoach, Arizona, is here this fine Saturday afternoon to prove cowgirls can ride bulls as well as cowboys!”

Half the fans cheered—the other half booed. Lucy had been to enough rodeos in her lifetime to understand some men would always object to women competing in roughstock events. The cowboys who surrounded Shannon’s chute supported her, their words of encouragement ringing loud and clear.

One of the men helping Shannon was C. J. Rodriguez, an up-and-coming rodeo star. The Stagecoach Gazette had run a feature story about Shannon and C.J. touring the country together to promote women’s bull riding. Lucy thought Shannon and C.J. made an interesting couple—the tomboy and the rodeo Romeo.

“Shannon is sponsored by Wrangler—” the announcer said “—and recently returned from rodeos in New Jersey and New York.”

Sidewinder balked, and C.J. reached over the rails, grabbing Shannon’s arm to keep her from sliding beneath the bull.

The blood drained from Lucy’s face. Was she out of her mind? Probably.

No, definitely.

“Ladies and gentlemen, Shannon Douglas will be riding Sidewinder, a bull from the Pat McLean Ranch in Solvang, California. Sidewinder’s a four-year-old veteran who twists like a snake when he bucks.”

The chute door released, and Sidewinder exploded into the arena, the force of the move throwing Shannon forward, her face narrowly missing the bull’s sawed-off horns. Sidewinder had been aptly named—his midsection bent into a tight coil, then unwound in a violent burst of energy as he kicked out with his back legs. Shannon defied the odds and clung to the bull. When the buzzer sounded, the bullfighters sprang into action, distracting the animal. Shannon launched herself into the air, hit the ground hard then bounced to her feet and sprinted for the rails. Once Sidewinder lost his rider, he settled down and trotted off to the bull pen.