Patricia Johns - Her Twins' Cowboy Dad

A cowboy committed to bachelorhood

…until these little Montana Twins change everything

Thanks to his dysfunctional family, cowboy-to-the-bone Colt Hardin insists marriage and fatherhood aren’t for him. But then his uncle dies, leaving Colt the ranch he’s always wanted—and the herd to his late cousin’s mischievous twin toddlers. Now Colt must find a solution with their pretty mother, Jane Marshall. Can these little cherubs show Jane and Colt what a family can truly be?

PATRICIA JOHNSwrites from Alberta, Canada. She has her Hon. BA in English literature and currently writes for Harlequin’s Love Inspired and Heartwarming lines. You can find her at patriciajohnsromance.com.

Also by Patricia Johns

Montana Twins

Her Cowboy’s Twin Blessings

Her Twins’ Cowboy Dad

Comfort Creek Lawmen

Deputy Daddy

The Lawman’s Runaway Bride

The Deputy’s Unexpected Family

His Unexpected Family

The Rancher’s City Girl

A Firefighter’s Promise

The Lawman’s Surprise Family

A Baxter’s Redemption

The Runaway Bride

A Boy’s Christmas Wish

Her Lawman Protector

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk.

Her Twins’ Cowboy Dad

Patricia Johns

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-474-09629-4

HER TWINS’ COWBOY DAD

© 2019 Patricia Johns

Published in Great Britain 2019

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.

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www.millsandboon.co.uk

Version: 2020-03-02

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Was this what other people felt like when they had a family?

The door to the foyer opened and Jane appeared, her gaze landing on Colt with a look of surprise. She was beautiful standing there.

“Micha took off on me,” Colt whispered. “I wasn’t quick enough.”

“She does do that,” Jane whispered back, and she put one twin toddler down on the pew between them before reaching for the other. “Were you being a stinker, Michal Ann?”

Micha looked at her mother innocently as Jane scooped the toddler into her lap.

“I think you were,” Jane whispered, but there was a smile tickling the corners of her lips. “Be nice to him, Micha. He’s not used to this.”

Jane looked over at him and smiled, and he felt that sense of camaraderie again. It felt good coming from her. It wasn’t about pleasing a group or fitting in... It was just a moment between the two of them. Of all the people who had known him for years, Jane probably understood him best.

And that was dangerous ground...

Dear Reader,

Is marriage only a piece of paper? A lot of people argue that, especially if they’ve been hurt. But I believe that marriage is a whole lot more than just a legal arrangement. There’s something about those vows... Before you get married, you love each other deeply and you’d lay down your life for that other person. But after the vows, it’s like a circle closes. It isn’t only about emotion, but something deeper. Some people believe that marriage is a sacrament, and I understand that! Marriage is challenging. It’s beautiful. It’s holy. It deepens and develops us.

In this book, I wanted to look at marriage—not just the wedding day—and what it means to me. I hope you enjoy this story, and if you’d like to connect with me, you can find me online at PatriciaJohnsRomance.com. I’m also on Facebook and Twitter.

Patricia

The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.

—Proverbs 21:1

To my husband, whom I love more every day. The years together only make it sweeter.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

About the Author

Booklist

Title Page

Copyright

Introduction

Dear Reader

Bible Verse

Dedication

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

Extract

About the Publisher

Colt Hardin stood by a window on the second floor of an office building in downtown Creekside, Montana, cowboy hat under one arm, trying to calm his thoughts as he looked out over the street. The building itself was only three stories, but it was the highest one in that little ranching town. A few pickup trucks slowed to a stop at the streetlight, windows rolled down to let in the warm July breeze. One of the trucks had an old dog in the back, trotting back and forth along the truck bed. The light changed to green, and the trucks rolled forward again. Colt preferred trails and fields, horseback or the rattling old ranch truck. Town was just too busy for his liking.

Colt tapped his hat against his thigh, attempting to quiet that jitter inside him. Uncle Beau passed away a few days ago, and he had been called to the lawyer’s office for the reading of the will. If Uncle Beau hadn’t changed anything, Colt was inheriting it all.

Old Beau had been a complicated guy in life—a good rancher and a neighbor who could be counted on when weather went bad or times got tough. He was gruff, stubborn, often narrow-minded, but with a sensitive side that had surprised Colt more than once. But as kind as he could be to a neighbor, he was unmovable when it came to family. Once his mind was made up about someone, there was no changing it, and that character flaw had torn apart the family. It was only because those relationships were in tatters that Colt was set to inherit everything.