Mary Leo - Falling for the Cowboy

This Cowboy’s Off-Limits…

Single father Blake Granger—Doc Blake to his young patients—knows trouble when he sees it. But he needs a fill-in assistant pronto, and gorgeous Maggie Daniels is his only option. The big-city girl surprises him, though, when she takes to life in Briggs, Idaho, quicker than expected. And—more important—she’s taken to him and his adorable tomboy daughter.

Or Is He?

Maggie never pictured herself living in close proximity to cows. But her weak-kneed attraction to the heartthrob of every female within wooing distance is wreaking havoc with her future plans…especially with a dream job waiting back home in California. Is her destiny really to move to a small ranching town? Could she really be falling for the cowboy?

“I bet you were all about curls and frills,” Blake teased

He slowly pulled Maggie in closer. She didn’t resist. Then, as if they’d done it a thousand times, he leaned in and gently kissed her neck, up and down each side, murmuring as he went. She felt a shiver race down her spine. “I was a tomboy…” She sighed, knowing she should stop this. She needed to stop this—she’d gotten too involved in his life already.

But she didn’t.

He pulled back. “You?”

She nodded, grinning. “I’ve never admitted this to anyone, but my favorite pair of shoes were my cousin Emma’s cowboy boots. They were two sizes too big. I wore them anyway.”

He went back to kissing her neck, brushing her hair out of the way with his hands. A rush of heat played on her skin. Her body tingled.

“You’re the most fascinating woman I’ve ever met,” he said, merely brushing her lips with a kiss, tormenting her with his touch.

She pushed a few inches away from him, thinking she was going to end this, before they went any further. Instead she asked, “Are you going to kiss me on the mouth, or what?”

Dear Reader,

This is my first book for the Harlequin American Romance line, and I’m so excited to be with the series! What a treat to have found a new home. I’ve published with Harlequin before and had a great time writing those romances, but recently my heart has wandered into cowboy territory, and I’m so glad it did.

This love affair all began while I was attending a Zane Grey conference with some friends at Mormon Lake, Arizona. While there, I became fascinated with not only the works of Zane Grey, but with the mystique of the American cowboy. As the first evening wore on, and we were serenaded by old-time cowboy singers, I was introduced to Doc Miller, a real-life cowboy, pediatric dentist. He completely fascinated me with his fringed suede jacket, his dusty cowboy boots and hat, Wrangler jeans, a creamy tan-colored shirt and his absolute love of everything cowboy. He carried a cloth bag filled with kiddie toys and handed them out to everyone he met, including me. I chose a bright pink ring with a monster light-up plastic diamond, which I’m wearing right now…and did so while writing this book.

It wasn’t long before Doc Blake was born, along with city girl, Maggie Daniels, and the fictional town of Briggs, Idaho.

I hope you enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoyed discovering it.

You can visit me at www.maryleo.netwhere I’ve posted a picture of my ring along with a few shots of the spectacular Teton Valley in Idaho.

Best,

Mary

Falling for the Cowboy

Mary Leo

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mary Leo grew up in South Chicago in the tangle of a big Italian family. She’s worked in Hollywood, Las Vegas and in Silicon Valley. Currently she lives in San Diego with her husband, author Terry Watkins, and their sweet kitty, Sophie.

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For Catherine and Henry Nardi, who invited my husband and I to Zane Grey’s West Society Annual Convention where I was introduced to Doc Miller (Doctor Stephen Miller), a pediatric cowboy dentist who is the inspiration for my character, Doc Blake. And for Terry Watkins, the love of my life, who buys me chocolate, makes me laugh and takes me on road trips.

To the incredibly supportive members of the RWASD Writing Challenge. I could have never written this book without you guys. You’re simply the best!

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

Excerpt

Chapter One

Doctor Blake Granger, known to the locals as Doc Blake, the town’s one and only pediatric dentist, took a monster bite out of a cake doughnut covered in sprinkles, then he closed his eyes for a moment, enjoying the complete bliss of early-morning sugar.

His sweet blitz had begun when he ordered a large coffee, black, and dumped in two packets of real sugar. He knew better than to mess around with refined sugar after having spent years warning his patients, “sugar rots your teeth.” The statement rattled around the heads of most good dentists, but Blake was in an ornery mood this fine September morning and the mere idea of sugar—white, tooth-toxic sugar—seemed more important than his next breath.

He had snuck out of the main house at daybreak hoping to enjoy the crisp fall air, the fine dusting of snow that capped the Teton mountain range to the east of the ranch, and to slip off to Holey Rollers, the new doughnut shop, before anyone noticed he was gone.

So far, his plan seemed to be working.

Some of the pastel sprinkles clung to his mustache, while others trickled down his chin and settled on his flannel shirt. Earlier he’d knocked off two jelly doughnuts, a chocolate glazed twist and a mini cinnamon roll for good measure.

While he wiped away the evidence of his sugar fix with a paper napkin, he tried to remember the last time he’d indulged like this. Nothing came to mind. This kind of feather-headed behavior usually wasn’t part of his makeup. His teeth were in grave peril, and if any of his patients saw him toying with the dark side of tooth decay they’d be throwing his own lectures back at him.

Fortunately, most of his patients preferred a Happy Meal to a cup of coffee and a doughnut.

Now he was sitting outside at one of the small ornate metal tables in front of the doughnut shop, enjoying his doughnut, a strong cup of coffee and the Briggs Daily Journal, another indulgence he rarely had time for, when an unfamiliar voice interrupted his revelry.

“Doctor Granger?”

“Yes, ma’am. That’s me,” he said, looking up at the face of a smiling woman standing next to his table.

Blake put his paper down and stood. The woman, dressed in a snug black business suit, was drop-dead gorgeous: long raven hair, crystal-blue eyes and a smile that could give a dying man reason to live.

She held out a hand, all businesslike, and for a moment Blake didn’t know what to do. It was as if spring mud had flowed into his brain and covered all the working parts.

He hesitated, then came to his senses and took her hand in his. Just touching her sent a spark through his body. He wanted to pull back, but she had one of those professional tight-gripped handshakes, giving him no choice but to surrender to her touch.