Vicki Thompson: Bachelor Father

The Lost Springs Ranch for troubled boys is at stake, and it’s a man’s duty to give back…

…So there’s going to be an auction!

Bachelor #3

Name: Zeke Lonetree, 31

Occupation: Ranger, U.S. Park Service

Biggest Achievement: Reintroducing wolves to Yellowstone National Park.

New York fashion editor Katherine Seymour thought a retreat in Yellowstone would be just the break she needed. But she hadn’t planned on falling into a rushing river…or being saved by a sexy Ranger…or having his child nine months later! But when her boss wins her a date with Zeke Lonetree at the Lost Springs Bachelor Auction, she’s forced to fess up…and introduce the man to his baby girl.

Sugar Spinelli’s

Little Instruction Book

I don’t always go by the book myself, so I admire a woman who can color outside the lines when necessary. After I saw Zeke Lonetree in the auction brochure, I figured a dark and mysterious type like him was bound to put a dent the size of a Cadillac in somebody’s checkbook. I was looking forward to watching someone else plunk down a wad of cash for a change.

Then, to everyone’s surprise, Zeke was pulled out of line. The editor-in-chief of that trendy fashion magazine Cachet phoned her bid in from New York City, of all places, and took him right out from under our noses! I wish I’d thought to do that for Twyla. Ducky and I could have saved ourselves all that maneuvering. Oh, well, live and learn. As Roy says, once your neighbor strikes oil, it’s too late to buy his farm.

Dear Reader,

We just knew you wouldn’t want to miss the news event that has all of Wyoming abuzz! There’s a herd of eligible bachelors on their way to Lightning Creek—and they’re all for sale!

Cowboy, park ranger, rancher, P.I.—they all grew up at Lost Springs Ranch, and every one of these mavericks has his price, so long as the money’s going to help keep Lost Springs afloat.

The auction is about to begin! Young and old, every woman in the state wants in on the action, so pony up some cash and join the fun. The man of your dreams might just be up for grabs!

Marsha Zinberg

Editorial Coordinator, Heart of the West

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Vicki Lewis Thompson is acknowledged

as the author of this work.

Author’s Note

Wyoming is rugged country indeed. And rugged country breeds rugged men—my favorite kind. Imagine a whole passel of these drop-dead-gorgeous guys being auctioned off to the highest bidder, and you have the Heart of the West series! I couldn’t sign up for this project fast enough.

From the beginning, I had my eye on park ranger Zeke Lonetree, and lo and behold, I got him! Er, I mean Katherine Seymour got him. Yeah, that’s it. Certainly I am not the one who spent days and nights in a secluded cabin with this bronze-skinned, beautifully muscled, tenderhearted love god with ebony eyes that look straight into your heart and make you want to scream Yes, take me! In this deal, Katherine gets to do the honors. I understand the rules. I’m the writer; she’s the heroine. That lucky ducky.

Because I’m the writer, I have to abide by the rules. But you don’t. If you want to slip into Katherine’s spot, be my guest. And have fun. You lucky ducky.

Happy fantasizing,

Vicki Lewis Thompson

For Marsha Zinberg—editor, friend and classy dresser

Contents

PROLOGUE

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

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

EPILOGUE

PROLOGUE

I’M GOING TO DIE. The rapids pulled her under again. Through the churning bubbles Katherine saw a tree root. She grabbed at it, but fists of water punched her away. Fighting to the surface, she gulped in more water than air. Then the current took over again and slammed her against a submerged rock. She ignored the pain and tried to get a grip on the mossy, slippery surface.

No luck. The water closed over her head. Air. She needed air. But she was so tired. So very...no, damn it! Flailing her arms, she broke the surface again and choked as she tried to breathe.

“Here!”

Rescue! The possibility ran through her like an electric charge. Nearly blinded by the water pouring from her hair into her eyes, she struggled to turn in the direction of the voice. There...just ahead...a branch being held over the tumbling water!

“Grab it!” yelled the man.

She had one chance at this, she thought. One chance at life. As the river swept her toward the branch, she offered up a quick prayer and reached for the branch with both scraped hands. Contact!

But the river wouldn’t let go. It tugged and pulled, trying to work her loose from her salvation.

“Wrap your arms around it! I’ll bring you in!”

Following his orders took faith. She had to loosen her handhold to wrap her arms around the branch, and she was sure she’d be swept downstream in the process of getting a better grip.

But she wasn’t. Inch by painful inch he worked her toward shore, until at last he could touch her hand. Once his fingers circled her wrist, she knew he’d saved her. Dizzy with gratitude, Katherine glanced up at the man who had just become the most important person in her life.

* * *

HE COULD HAVE MISSED HER, Zeke thought with a shiver. Headed back to camp with the string of trout he planned to cook for dinner, he could just as easily have cut through the trees instead of following the river. But an uneasy feeling he’d learned not to ignore had made him skirt the banks and check the rapids.

She’d scared the hell out of him. Adrenaline pumped through his system after he hauled her out of the water and she flopped facedown on a bed of wild grass.

He crouched beside her, his heart racing. “Was anyone with you?”

She gasped a few times. “No.”

He swore. Although he didn’t have to worry about looking for a drowning victim downstream, he wanted to shake this idiotic woman for traipsing around in the wilderness by herself. She’d almost paid the ultimate price.

But he’d saved her, and now he had to deal with the consequences of that. He’d deliberately left his cell phone at the ranger station, figuring he was off duty. Dusk was nearly upon them.

He leaned close to her. “Do you have a camp nearby?”

“No.” Her breathing was steadier, but she didn’t move from where she’d landed. “Lost my pack...in the water.”

Zeke recognized a New York accent. Lord deliver him from greenhorns who thought Yellowstone was a slightly more rugged version of Disneyland. He sighed. “Then I guess you’ll be spending the night with me.”

CHAPTER ONE

Nine months later

WHAT A CIRCUS. From the porch of the main house, Zeke surveyed the crowded grounds of the Lost Springs Ranch for Boys. In all the years he’d spent as a kid on this ranch, he’d never seen the place so packed with people. But that was the idea—to get folks involved in this bachelor auction Rex Trowbridge, an alumnus who was now on the board of directors, had cooked up to raise money for the ranch.

Zeke longed to stay where he was, comforted by the familiar feel of the porch rail under his hand. But he had maybe five minutes before he had to walk out to the arena and climb up on the auction block where a gang of ranch alumni were gathering. The aroma of barbecued ribs filled the air, and fiddle music rose above the buzz from the crowd. Even CNN had shown up to film the action, so it looked like Rex would get the corporate sponsors the ranch needed to survive.