Janice Combes has two loves, bucking bulls and Dirk
Knowlton. But Dirk only has eyes for a dazzling rodeo queen. How can Janice
ever compete while mired ankle-deep in manure? Exchanging playful banter with
Dirk is all Janice can expect—until the stormy night he knocks on her door
dripping wet and needing a place to crash.
Different Dreams…
Dirk Knowlton is living the cowboy dream. Life
should be good—roping, branding, backing broncs, riding bulls, but there's a
void he can't seem to fill. After getting hung up by a bull, he wonders if this
is really the life he wants. Restless and rebellious, he bolts…but there’s a
certain cowgirl he can’t forget.
When a battle-scarred Dirk returns to his Montana
ranch he's determined to hang on at any cost. Janice has come back home to lick
her own wounds. When old dreams turn to dust, can two wary hearts take another
chance on love?
“Evicted from your room?”
“Yup. And there aren’t any others available in all
of Casper.”
“I know,” she said. “It’s why I’m camped out here.”
She paused to digest what he’d left unsaid. “So you and Rachel?”
He shook his head with a scowl “We’re done now.
Quits.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Nope. History. Case closed.”
“It’ll blow over.”
“Don’t think so. It was her idea to boot us. Said
she didn’t give a shit if I had a room tonight or not. Then I couldn’t even try
finding anything outside of town because my asshole brother took my keys so I
wouldn’t drive. My next move was to pilfer a blanket and pillow and camp out
under the stars in my truck bed, but then it started pouring on me.”
“So you came here. How’d you do that with no
wheels?”
“Walked.”
“Three miles in the pouring rain? No wonder you look
like something the cat dragged in.”
“Can I crash for a coupla hours? Maybe just camp out
in the back seat of your dually? All I need is to get warm and dry again.”
Janice’s mouth went dry as sawdust. Dirk Knowlton.
Cold. Wet. Here. Now. Wanting a bed? She’d give her right arm to warm him up.
Heck yeah.
Misreading her silence he mumbled a curse. “Sorry,
Janice. It’s my damned head. I’m not thinkin’ right. It’s still throbbing like
hell. Haven’t been myself all night. M’pologies for being such a dumb-ass and
imposing on you—” He turned to the door.
“No! Wait. It’s not that.” She grabbed his sleeve.
“I was just thinking of your injuries. You don’t need to make matters worse by
sleeping all cramped up in the truck.” She gnawed her lower lip and then
blurted. “Y-you wanna just stay here instead?”
“Here? That’s mighty generous but there isn’t a
whole lot of room for both of us.” He glanced up at the gooseneck with a frown.
“If you’ll just gimme a blanket, I’ll take the floor.”
“You don’t need to do that,” she said. “The bench
here flips down over the table and converts into a single. It’s really narrow
and not very comfortable, but still better than the truck. Warmer anyway.
Besides you need to get dry.”
“You sure about this?” he asked.
“Yeah.” She smiled. “What are friends for? I’m sure
I’ve got a shirt for you too.”
“Thanks, Red. That would be great.”
Red? The single syllable rippled warm and tingly,
all the way to her toes. He followed up with a lopsided grin that stopped her
in her tracks. She turned to the small cabinet that served a dual function as dresser
and closet and shut her eyes on a sigh—but the same air stuck in her throat the
minute she turned back around.
He’d shed the denim jacket. And the black tee. His
bare torso with well-developed pecs and a mouthwatering six pack greeted her.
He was drying his face with his discarded shirt. Janice tore her gaze away and
cleared her throat. “Here.” She thrust an extra-large Dixie Chicks T-shirt into
his hands, a souvenir from their Top of the World Tour. “I—I can get you a
towel too.”
He eyed the shirt skeptically. “No thanks.”
“What? You don’t like female musicians?”
“Don’t like their politics. Natalie should just shut
up and sing.”
“Ah.” She nodded slowly. The shirt was from the tour
that caused the “incident.” A lot of her friends had since thrown out their
Dixie Chicks CDs, but Janice still loved their music. “I Can Love You Better”
was her favorite. The lyrics, she’s got you wrapped up in her satin and lace.
Tied around her little finger…but I can love you better, perfectly summed up
all the heartbreak and frustrations of unrequited love; all her secret feelings
for Dirk. She only wished she could show him now that he was here. In the
flesh. A big strong, blue-lipped and teeth-chattering fantasy come true.
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