by Ally Nelson
Deeply touched by her lover’s sentimental gesture, Ashley returned Tom’s kiss with passion. When it had come time to renew the lease on her apartment, Tom had surprised her by asking her to move in with him. It had been three months after their first real night together – the night when she had given herself to him in every way – and they had taken turns sleeping over at each other’s place. Sharing a home, Tom had said, would be more practical in many ways. And it was. Ashley had continued to go to school and to work, and Tom had continued to write, and during that period of adjustment they had discovered a mutual respect for one another. The difference in their ages had ceased to matter as they found common ground for the seeds of love to take root.
“You said you didn’t want to read it until it was finished,” Tom said, when they separated again. “I suppose you’ll be disappearing for a few hours, now that it’s here.”
“It can wait a little while longer,” Ashley said, smiling. “After all – I already know how it ends.” Reaching up, she pulled him down for another kiss, one they both knew would lead them right into the bedroom for several hours of intense desire.
A Billionaire Rancher to Marry
By: Erin Walsh
A Billionaire Rancher to Marry
© Erin Walsh, December 2015 – All rights reserved
Published by Steamy Reads Publishing
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, including electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events are purely coincidental. This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only.
This book may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, please return it to the seller and purchase a copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.
Warning
This book contains graphic content intended for readers 18+ years old.
If you are under 18 years old, or are not comfortable with adult content, please close this book now.
Chapter One
Amanda heard distant gunshots and ran out of her room into the living area. Her sister Leah called out from the back room, running down the hall.
“Are they doing it again?” Leah was wearing a dress as usual. This one was blue with white trim and she had her long blond hair in a bun. Her eyes were wide with a fear, a look they had almost gotten used to.
“It sounds like it.” Amanda answered. She went to the cabinet and opened it as she looked back at Leah.
“Come on, let’s go.”
Amanda took down their fathers Winchester long rifle and smaller short range rifle. She handed the short range to Leah and kept the Winchester for herself. She was the better shot, having been a tomboy for all of her life. As always, Leah was hesitant about taking it but knew the reality of the situation and took the gun. They went out of their little house and heard several more shots. They were closer. Closer than they had ever been.
“Dammit!” Amanda swore softly and grabbed Leah's arm taking her over to the water along the small barn they had in the front. She pulled her down and then knelt next to it so she could rest the barrel of the Winchester on the middle fence to help her aim.
Another shot blew off, proving that whoever was doing it was getting nearer and coming from the post road that led to their inherited ranch. For several months someone had been killing their sheep, causing a loss of profits that would soon force them to sell their farm. They were already having trouble keeping up with the bills.
Amanda was more angry than afraid. A part of her had hoped whoever it was would give her a clean shot at them. Now it looked like they might and she was getting excited. Her heart began pounding faster. She glanced back at her beloved sister and bit her lip.
Leah wasn't made for this sort of life. It suited Amanda just fine though. Amanda was not a dressy type of gal. If there was work to do she had no problem doing it. She knew, however, that she was looked at by others in the community. She also knew Leah was thought of as the good, traditional sister. She always wore dresses, was great at taking care of the house, but was not able to run the ranch properly. Amanda believed one of them had to do it, so she did. Their father had left the property and all profits from it to the two of them and she did not want anyone else to take care of it.
“You ok Leah?” Leah nodded with a deep breath and cocked her gun, settling herself for what was to come. Amanda nodded, proud, and cocked her rifle. She pushed her thick Auburn hair back from her face and sighted along the post road, waiting.
She heard the scream of sheep after the next shot and then three riders came around the bend, heading for the ranch. They wore bandanas over their faces and their clothes were nondescript brown. The sort that any farmer in the state might wear. She gazed in on one and as he raised his gun towards the sheep near the house, she fired.
The man flew off his horse with a cry, hitting the dirt and rolling backwards. When he came to a stop he didn't move. The other two had jerked the reins of their horses off to the side and were down behind the thick shrub along the road, and quickly hid out of sight. Their horses neighed and snorted, confused as to what they were supposed to do.
Both Amanda and Leah fired into the bushes and almost immediately, a shot hit their fence, causing them to hunker down further.
“Oh shit!” Amanda chanted as she waited for the last shot and then popped back up to fire several into the bushes and heard accompanying male cursed coming from where she had shot.
“I think I got another one!” she called to Leah, trying to comfort her.
Leah was keeping her head down now and not coming up. She could hear her crying. Amanda didn’t like anyone upsetting her sister but focused on the remaining shooters. Before she could, however, shots began peppering the fence and water trough. She felt her cheek burn, grazed by what she thought was fence splinters as she pressed herself tighter to the ground.
Amanda heard hooves thundering closer and realized these were coming from behind them. Suddenly the hoof sounds were almost on them and she heard Leah cry out. Amanda rolled and brought her gun up to defend them if needed.
They heard some screams and a brief shot or two as a group of men rode past the bushes, wheeling their mounts around towards the villains hiding place. One of the men dropped from his horse drawing his pistol and advanced on the spot. After a moment he called to his companion.
“Both dead!”
“This one too,” said his companion, who had road over to check the man Amanda had shot.
Amanda stood and gestured the terrified Leah to join her. Amanda noticed blood running down her own cheek and took out a cloth she kept in case of injury. The cut was along her temple, just missing her eyes.
She called to the men. They walked over and Amanda could tell who the leader was. He walked with a brave, determined step. His dark clothes were of a finer cut and leather as well as his colt pistols. As he got closer, she could see his chiseled features and as he took off his cowboy hat, she saw his hair was black as coal with dark eyes. Quite handsome, she thought to herself. The cowboy gestured to the other man.
“Go back and check on their sheep herders and make sure they are ok.” With a nod and an appreciative glance at the two women, he went back to his horse thundering back the way they had come.
The remaining cowboy studied them for a moment. He looked longer at Leah, but Amanda was used to that. Even though she thought they were both quite beautiful, Leah got the most attention. Of course Amanda was wearing leather pants and riding boots with a leather vest over her blouse. It was
just easier to work this way and she privately thought it made her curvier figure look good, compared to Leah's more slender appearance in her skirts and petticoats.
“Are you ladies ok?” the man asked. His voice was the rough voice of a man who spent a lot of time on his horseback, shouting directions over the winds on the plain. An attractive man, Amanda thought wryly. Leah obviously thought so too from the look on her face as she gazed up at him. Leah turned to Amanda and only then that she noticed Amanda's wound.
“Good God Amanda, are you ok!” She moved over to her and Amanda waved her off. Even though the wound still burned and hurt, she figured it could be worse. Leah wasn't so easily pacified.
“Let me see darling, I will never forgive myself if you have been terribly hurt.”
Amanda forced a smile.
“It is fine Leah, really, it is just a scratch. We have a guest, sister.” She reminded her pointedly. Leah turned back to the concerned looking cowboy.
“It looks like my sister was hit sir.” Amanda stopped her from going further.
“We are just fine sir, thanks to you and yours. I’m Amanda Morgan and this is my sister Leah. How can we repay you?”
He nodded and smiled politely.
“I’m Jake Blackrock. I recently moved into my father’s ranch, just south of your land.” “The old blacksmith place?” Leah asked.
“Yes indeed. The old blacksmith. He retired and went back east. I have decided to expand the property to ranching and was originally on my way to see if you ladies possibly have any sheep for sale? Then me and my man heard the gunfire. Are you sure you are ok, Miss Amanda?”
He smiled down at her. She reassured him. She knew it was a bit more than a scratch but did not want a fuss. He accepted her reassurance and turned back to Leah.
“Was it you my dear who shot that dastardly man over yonder?” Leah blushed and giggled slightly shaking her head.
“Not at all Mister Blackrock. That would be my sister, Amanda. She is a much better shot than I. She usually takes care of things outside the house, I take care of things inside.” He turned to her and bowed.
“My apologies Miss Morgan.” Amanda could not help smiling at his charm.
“There is nothing to apologize for. The shot could’ve came from either of us. You or your man are a good shot too, it seems.”
He smiled lightly.
“It was me actually, although Henry is a good shot as well.”
Amanda nodded and smiled. Jake turned back to Leah. He could take it as well as dish it out Amanda decided.
“Do you know why you ladies were beset by villains like this?”
Amanda let Leah explain the happenings of the past several months. She turned and scanned the horizon, looking for any other possible threats while taking her second and last clean to replace the one she had been using. It was blood stained, more than she would have thought, and her wound was beginning to hurt more. She forced herself to ignore it. She would be fine; it was just a scratch.
“I would suggest you ladies keep a few of your hands for riding the border of your land as a precaution.
“Initially we were but the loss of our sheep has been resulted in a substantial loss of revenue and we have had to cut back on our ranch hands,” Amanda told him with a disgusted tone of voice. She knew Leah and herself were not in a winning situation.
“Hmmm, it seems someone may be trying to force you to sell. Not an unknown situation in the west these days. How well do you know your neighbors?”
“Well enough,” Leah said. “They were friends of our fathers and have always been cordial. The Johnson’s own the property to the east, the Marsten's to the north with Mr. Elkland to the west of us. I really can't imagine they would have anything against our family.” Amanda had been making discreet inquiries in town, but had heard nothing as yet. Jake Blackrock was thinking along those same lines.
“Maybe not, but an increase in land could mean an increase in profits. For many men, business is business, regardless of the personalities involved. I will ask around as well if you don’t mind.”
Leah was smiling at the offer and Amanda was fine with it as well. It could be that with the increased inquiries about the theft of their sheep, the culprit would finally back off.
Blackrock had ridden off, promising to return and purchase some sheep. Leah rounded on Amanda demanding to treat her wound.
“This is more than a scratch sister. I don't know if I can fix this!”
“Try anyway and if not, we can ask for the doctor.”
Leah cleaned it and put on a new cloth to help keep it clean. From looking at the wound in a mirror, it looked to Amanda that she was grazed by a bullet. She did not tell that to Leah – it was bad enough that her sister was upset by it. Fortunately, the crease the bullet made did not seem to require stitches. Once it was bandaged, Amanda felt better and convinced Leah she would be fine.
* * * * *
The rest of the day went well for the both of them, given what had happened. They ended up selling some sheep to Blackrock and he promised to look in on them from time to time. Leah of course was enchanted by him.
“Isn't he just charming Amanda?” she questioned as they both were making dinner.
“Indeed, he is. Handsome too, I noticed,” she told her with a grin. Her attempt to smile caused a tug at her wound so she eased up on it.
“He seems interested in you!” Leah said.
“I mean he is handsome, but I am not interested in a man right now. You can have him!”
Leah giggled a little. Amanda always found her sister’s shyness around the topic of men and dating adorable. Naive, but adorable. Leah was two years younger and Amanda was only twenty-two years old herself. Unlike Leah though, Amanda had had a few discrete encounters with gentlemen out of curiosity, mostly, so she was not as inexperienced as Leah. The two-year age difference had always seemed a big difference to Amanda.
“Do you really think I should throw my cap at his feet Amanda?”
Amanda shrugged as they placed the food on the table.
“Actually I don't think you will have to, Leah. I would wager he will be pursuing you my dear. He seemed quite smitten with your lovely self.”
Only time would tell, Leah thought.
Leah said the evening prayers and they began to eat dinner.
Chapter Two
Amanda heard gunshots and rolled out of bed. She almost called out for Leah but remembered she was in town, making the final arrangements for her wedding. She moved quietly to the front of the house and once again grabbed her father’s Winchester. This time she stayed inside and went to the window.
The sun was just coming up and lightening the area as she waited. There was another shot and then silence. She cocked the gun, looking everywhere for a sign of the gunmen. After a moment she could see him coming from the west over field from the direction of Elkland's homestead. Then she saw the second man, traveling behind him.
She wanted to make sure they were sheep killers before she killed them.
They were in the clearing not far from the post road on that side, away from any brush when one took aim at one of her sheep. That was all she needed.
Amanda fired once, cocked the gun, fired again. Both men were thrown from their horses to the ground. She gazed at them to see if any of them were still alive. She heard rapid hooves and saw three riders come pelting up the post road
Amanda was in her nightgown, but opened the door anyway and shouted to them what happened, pointing to the men she had shot. They hurried over immediately and she ran back to her room to change.
It was the first time in three weeks that they had had any trouble and thought that theft was over for good. Apparently they were wrong.
I guess not, she said softly to herself and she pulled on her britches. Once she was dressed she tied back her hair and took a quick look in the mirror. The bullet wound was now a pink scar that ran from the corner of her eyes back across her temple into her hair. She had a feel
ing the scar was going to be permanent. This was a slight blow to her vanity, but she shrugged it away as she had more important matters to deal with.
Amanda made sure her blouse was buttoned up far enough to cover any immodest views of her ample cleavage and went out to see the men out front.
“Well ma’am, they are dead, that’s for sure?” Rodney, her chief hand asked as she walked up to the bodies.
As usual the men didn’t have any distinguishing marks that she recognized either. She had hit the man on the right dead in the heart. She frowned slightly because she initially wounded the one on the left which explained why he moved some afterward, Amanda thought, taking him longer to die. He looked strange to her. His head was at odd angle. She crouched down to look closer.
“I think his neck broke in the fall Miss Amanda. At least that's what it looks like. You shot ‘em off their horses, right?” She glanced back at him and nodded.
“Send someone to Blackrock and inform them we got two more, and that no one here was hurt.”
“Will do.”
“Thanks Rodney.” Amanda went back inside.
Amanda decided to take her mind off what had just happened. There wasn't anything else to do around the house and she began to think about her sister’s upcoming nuptials. Yet the second man she shot remained in her mind. He had to have been in agony. Amanda shook her head trying to dispel that thought. It was not easy, especially since there was something else that was bothering her about the incident but she could not put her finger on what it was.
Her sister’s wedding was to be held at Jake Blackrock's ranch; a big and much fancier place than the Morgan sisters’ home. Amanda was the maid of honor and also the bridesmaid. All of their childhood friends had moved away and they had few others in town so she got to play dual roles in the wedding which she considered to be an honor.
Blackrock had moved fast, and after only a month of courting Leah, he had proposed to her as Amanda knew he would. Her sister was beautiful and would make the perfect wife for him, she thought. Jake liked Leah's meekness and abilities in the home, all of those things Amanda lacked. Fortunately, Amanda liked herself that way, or at least tried to convince herself.
