Fayrene Preston: The Barons Of Texas: Tess

Cover Page

Excerpt She Loved Nick. The idea astounded her. She didn’t even know how to love, perhaps because she’d never been truly loved. Yet there was no doubt. She was definitely in love with Nick. Right from the first, the signs had been there—all of them in big, bright, red neon letters. How could she have missed them? There was the way he’d mesmerized her on the night of her birthday and the way her body had melted against his when they’d danced. There was the way she’d so easily acquiesced to the idea of flying to some unknown destination for dinner and the stunning fact that she’d turned down Des’s offer for her. Drops of rain began to fall. She didn’t care. The rain was cool. Her skin was hot. She wanted Nick.

Dear Reader Dear Reader, Welcome to Silhouette Desire—where you’re guaranteed powerful, passionate and provocative love stories that feature rugged heroes and spirited heroines who experience the full emotional intensity of falling in love! Wonderful and ever-popular Annette Broadrick brings us September’s MAN OF THE MONTH with Lean, Mean & Lonesome. Watch as a tough loner returns home to face the woman he walked away from but never forgot. Our exciting continuity series TEXAS CATTLEMAN’S CLUB continues with Cinderella’s Tycoon by Caroline Cross. Charismatic CEO Sterling Churchill marries a shy librarian pregnant with his sperm-bank baby—and finds love. Proposition: Marriage is what rising star Eileen Wilks offers when the girl-next-door comes alive in the arms of an alpha hero. Beloved romance author Fayrene Preston makes her Desire debut with The Barons of Texas: Tess, featuring a beautiful heiress who falls in love with a sexy stranger. The popular theme BACHELORS & BABIES returns to Desire with Metsy Hingle’s Dad in Demand. And Barbara McCauley’s miniseries SECRETS! continues with the dramatic story of a mysterious millionaire in Killian’s Passion. So make a commitment to sensual love—treat yourself to all six September love stories from Silhouette Desire! Enjoy! Joan Marlow Golan Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire Please address questions and book requests to: Silhouette Reader Service U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269 Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

Title Page The Barons of Texas: Tess Fayrene Preston www.millsandboon.co.uk

About the Author FAYRENE PRESTON published her first book in 1981 and has been publishing steadily ever since. The Barons of Texas: Tess is her first novel for Silhouette Books, and she is delighted to be on board. Fayrene lives in north Texas and is the mother of two grown sons. She claims her greatest achievement in life is turning out two wonderful human beings. She is also proud to announce the arrival of her first grandchild: a beautiful baby girl. Now she has even more to be thankful for.

Dedication This book is dedicated with many, many thanks to: R. G. Font, Ph.D., CPG, PG, EurGeol President, Geoscience Data Management

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Epilogue

Copyright

The idea astounded her. She didn’t even know how to love, perhaps because she’d never been truly loved. Yet there was no doubt. She was definitely in love with Nick.

Right from the first, the signs had been there—all of them in big, bright, red neon letters. How could she have missed them?

There was the way he’d mesmerized her on the night of her birthday and the way her body had melted against his when they’d danced. There was the way she’d so easily acquiesced to the idea of flying to some unknown destination for dinner and the stunning fact that she’d turned down Des’s offer for her.

Drops of rain began to fall. She didn’t care.

The rain was cool. Her skin was hot. She wanted Nick.

Dear Reader,

Welcome to Silhouette Desire—where you’re guaranteed powerful, passionate and provocative love stories that feature rugged heroes and spirited heroines who experience the full emotional intensity of falling in love!

Wonderful and ever-popular Annette Broadrick brings us September’s MAN OF THE MONTH with Lean, Mean & Lonesome. Watch as a tough loner returns home to face the woman he walked away from but never forgot.

Our exciting continuity series TEXAS CATTLEMAN’S CLUB continues with Cinderella’s Tycoon by Caroline Cross. Charismatic CEO Sterling Churchill marries a shy librarian pregnant with his sperm-bank baby—and finds love.

Proposition: Marriage is what rising star Eileen Wilks offers when the girl-next-door comes alive in the arms of an alpha hero. Beloved romance author Fayrene Preston makes her Desire debut with The Barons of Texas: Tess, featuring a beautiful heiress who falls in love with a sexy stranger. The popular theme BACHELORS & BABIES returns to Desire with Metsy Hingle’s Dad in Demand. And Barbara McCauley’s miniseries SECRETS! continues with the dramatic story of a mysterious millionaire in Killian’s Passion.

So make a commitment to sensual love—treat yourself to all six September love stories from Silhouette Desire!

Enjoy!

Joan Marlow Golan

Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire

Please address questions and book requests to:

Silhouette Reader Service

U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269

Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

www.millsandboon.co.uk

published her first book in 1981 and has been publishing steadily ever since. The Barons of Texas: Tess is her first novel for Silhouette Books, and she is delighted to be on board. Fayrene lives in north Texas and is the mother of two grown sons. She claims her greatest achievement in life is turning out two wonderful human beings. She is also proud to announce the arrival of her first grandchild: a beautiful baby girl. Now she has even more to be thankful for.

This book is dedicated

with many, many thanks to:

R. G. Font, Ph.D., CPG, PG,

EurGeol President, Geoscience Data Management

Tall, lean and bronzed, the man stood at the edge of the terrace watching her, just as he had for the last fifteen minutes. Tess Baron tried to ignore him and focus instead on her party guests, but she found it virtually impossible.

Something about his stillness compelled her attention. It was like lightning caught in a bottle, an electric tension that would be safe only as long as it was contained. And he didn’t strike her as the type of man to contain his energies for long.

This was her birthday party. She knew everyone here. Everyone, that was, except him.

She skimmed the crowd, wondering who had brought him, but everyone was either dancing or mixing. No one looked as if they’d brought a guest, then forgotten him. Besides, she reflected ruefully, it would be impossible to forget him.

Behind him, the sun was slowly setting into the Gulf of Mexico, its great orange ball searing the water with its heat as it dipped lower and lower. Silhouetted against the elemental tableau, with the sun surrounding him, the man looked larger than life—a sun god.

At that moment she wouldn’t have bet money against the possibility that he had lassoed the sun down from the sky.

She exhaled a long breath, reminded herself that she didn’t have a quixotic bone in her body, and forced her focus elsewhere. At least everything else about her party was going well.