Charlene Sands - Expecting The Cowboy's Baby

Cassie had recognized him right away. That smile, that handsome face.

Cassie stood frozen for a moment, taking note of the man Jake Griffin had become. From the look of him, he’d done a great job of keeping his body intact. Yards of hard muscle and his sure-enough attitude probably kept the ladies lining up.

Jake Griffin had been the first boy to disappoint her…leading to a world-class string of bad choices when it came to the opposite sex. Cassie had a penchant for attracting troubled men.

“I’d better get going,” she said. The fact that he didn’t recognize her did nothing for her ego.

“Hate to let you go before I’ve figured out how I know you,” Jake said.

But Cassie was praying that he wouldn’t remember her. If she hadn’t known him, she might have stayed to chat with the handsome calf roper. But she did know him, and alarm bells were ringing loud and clear in her head.

Dear Reader,

Experience passion and power in six brand-new, provocative titles from Silhouette Desire this July!

Begin with Scenes of Passion (#1519) by New York Times bestselling author Suzanne Brockmann. In this scintillating love story, a pretend marriage turned all too real reveals the torrid emotions and secrets of a former bad-boy millionaire and his prim heiress.

DYNASTIES: THE BARONES continues in July with Cinderella’s Millionaire (#1520) by Katherine Garbera, in which a pretty pastry cook’s red-hot passion melts the defenses of a brooding Barone hero. In Bed with the Enemy, (#1521) by rising star Kathie DeNosky, is the second LONE STAR COUNTRY CLUB title in Desire. In this installment, a lady agent and her lone-wolf counterpart bump more than heads during an investigation into a gun-smuggling ring.

What would you do if you were Expecting the Cowboy’s Baby (#1522)? Discover how a plain-Jane bookkeeper deals with this dilemma in this steamy love story, the second Silhouette Desire title by popular Harlequin Historicals author Charlene Sands. Then see how a brokenhearted rancher struggles to forgive the woman who betrayed him, in Cherokee Dad (#1523) by Sheri WhiteFeather. And in The Gentrys: Cal (#1524) by Linda Conrad, a wounded stock-car driver finds healing love in the arms of a sexy, mysterious nurse, and the Gentry siblings at last learn the truth about their parents’ disappearance.

Beat the summer heat with these six new love stories from Silhouette Desire.

Enjoy!

Melissa Jeglinski

Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire

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resides in Southern California with her husband, Don, and two children, Jason and Nikki. She’s also the mother of two very spoiled cats, Skittles and Snickers, who basically rule the house. When not writing, she enjoys Pacific beaches, sitting down with a good book and, of course, happy endings!

She loves to hear from her readers. Contact her at charlenesands@hotmail.com or enter her contests at www.charlenesands.com.

To my author friends, who inspire,

support and encourage me each and every day.

To Tanya Hanson—

new author, friend and “drive” buddy.

I enjoy our times together.

To Debbie Decker—

who always has a smile and a kind word.

Your bubbly laughter is contagious!

To Barbara McCauley—

whose advice, help and friendship

is always appreciated.

To Sandra Madden—

my first and only real critique partner.

Wish you continued success.

And to the authors I hope to meet one day.

You got me hooked!

LaVyrle Spencer, Sandra Brown,

Janet Evanovich and Kathleen Woodiwiss.

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

Cassie Munroe raced down the hotel’s hallway, her composure all but gone. A car breakdown on River Road miles away from your destination will do that to you, she supposed. Her Volkswagen Bug had run out of gas.

The last thing she wanted was to make a splashy entrance to her brother Brian’s rehearsal dinner. Shamefully, she admitted she didn’t want to make any sort of entrance. But she loved her brother dearly and wouldn’t dream of missing his special day, even if she was out of work, out of a date for the wedding and almost out of time.

She searched the gold-embossed lettering on the doorways of the ballrooms as she strode past and found the room she’d been looking for. This had to be it. Sunrise Room.

Standing just outside, she straightened her clingy red dress, ran her fingers through her short hair and took a deep, steadying breath. Grasping the handle, she thrust the door open and entered. She was more than halfway through the room before she peered up and saw the banner.

Laughlin River Stampede Rodeo Banquet.

The big bold sign at the front of the room caught her off guard. She stopped in midstep and paused. A room full of cowboys, seated at a U-shaped table, all looked up.

Big, bold, Stetson-wearing, silver-buckled, gorgeous cowboys—all looking at her with interest.

The room quieted.

Cassie pasted on a smile.

Heavens, she’d never seen a better-looking group of men in her life. She made a mental calculation. Seventeen cowboys, she estimated, but this was not the time for her silly habit of counting everything that could be counted. Sometimes having a flair for numbers had its disadvantages.

“You’re a bit early, honey. But don’t think a soul’s gonna mind,” one of cowboys called. She would have dashed out of the room if he hadn’t sounded so polite. “C’mon over here. We won’t bite.”

Male chuckles erupted all around.

Heat climbed up her neck. Suddenly, Cassie was aware of her attire. She’d wanted to look great today so she’d put on her most daring dress with a low-cut bodice and a hem riding high on her thighs. She’d slipped her feet into three-inch black stiletto heels and had her auburn hair highlighted and styled. Wasn’t every day a girl had to face her ex-fiancé and his new bride.

At her brother’s wedding, no less.

“Uh, no. Thank you,” she countered, trying to be just as polite. “I think I have the wrong room. I’m supposed to be at a wedding rehearsal.”

“Ah, now that’s a doggone shame,” the same voice cajoled. “I bet you want the Sunset Room, darlin’.”

The Sunset Room? Yes, that was it. The dinner was to be held in the Sunset Room, not the Sunrise Room.

Running out of gas on that hot desert road must have addled her brain. She’d marched along that road, greatly intimidated by the dry brush and saguaro cactus surrounding her, hoping to find some relief. Finally, after walking what she’d estimated as a good long mile and a half, she’d come upon a roadside emergency phone. A tow truck driver with an attitude had rescued her just in time for her to make the rehearsal dinner. He’d given her grief for running out of gas in the desert and she’d endured his lecture all the way into town. Now, here she stood in the wrong room, facing a bunch of good-natured cowboys and probably looking just as foolish.