A Cowboy's Heart (Hitting Rocks Cowboys)

by Rebecca Winters

  The hard part of this journey home was his question, and it had been torturing her all day. What else would stand in the way of your accepting my offer?

  Liz had one simple answer.

  Reva.

  Sadie had come right out and said it to Liz’s face, in front of Jarod, that Reva still had a stranglehold on him. Jarod hadn’t denied it. No one knew Connor better than his brother, so Liz knew what her answer would have to be.

  Connor had a cowboy’s heart.

  There’d been a million songs written about the one woman a cowboy couldn’t forget. It was the way a cowboy was put together. You couldn’t fight it.

  She’d wanted to see inside the cover. Now that the inside was exposed, it was time for her to move on. Her life depended on it.

  After they’d parked for the night, she went into the trailer and pulled out the sofa bed so he could lie down. Once she’d made him comfortable and fed him, she checked on the horses and cleaned the stalls. With that task out of the way, she showered and put on her pajamas.

  Flipping off the light switch, she used the ladder to reach the niche. But now the tables were turned, because she was exhausted and he was wide-awake, wanting to talk.

  “You’ve had enough time to consider my offer. What’s it going to be?”

  She’d prepared her speech. “I’m honored that you have enough faith in me as a vet to help get your business off the ground, but I’ve thought it over and want to work on the reservation. Once you advertise, you’ll find a great vet anxious to work with someone of your reputation. But not every vet wants to live on a reservation.

  “I love it there and would like to think I could make a meaningful contribution. The Crow love their animals and understand things about them I’d like to learn. Between my work there and at the clinic, I know I’m going to find fulfillment now that my barrel-racing days are over.”

  “In that case, before you go to sleep, there’s something I couldn’t give you in front of the others. If you’d come down for just a minute.”

  “It can’t wait until morning?”

  “I’m afraid not.”

  Puzzled, she threw off the covers and lowered herself to the floor.

  “Come over here.”

  “I can hardly see you.” She made her way to the side of his bed. He reached for her with his good arm and pulled her down next to him.

  “Hold out your hand.”

  When Liz did his bidding, she heard a tinkling before he put the charm bracelet in her palm. She let out a cry of surprise. “What are you doing?”

  “Since I can’t do it myself, I need you to put it on your wrist for me.”

  “But Ralph gave this to both of us to keep in your cab for luck—”

  “This bracelet is ours, and it did bring us luck, but instead of keeping it on the mirror, I want you to wear it. Put it on, please.”

  Liz felt all jittery. It took her forever to fasten it. “Okay. It’s done.”

  She felt his hand circle her wrist and feel for the individual charms. “Ah. There it is. I’ve found the heart. Grandpa said it meant love of country, but between you and me it represents my heart.”

  A strangely warm shiver passed through her body.

  “I lost it to you on the drive to Las Vegas. It happened that first magical night, while we were outside in the snow with our children wondering if they were enamored. Remember?”

  “Yes.” Her voice shook. “How could I ever forget one second of our time together?”

  “That’s when I realized I was enamored of you. The fact is, I’m so terribly in love with you, I can’t take another step without you. Wear this instead of an engagement ring until I can buy you one. If I thought you didn’t love me back, I’d never get over it. You do love me, don’t you?”

  That trace of vulnerability in his voice got to her every time. “Oh, Connor—”

  “Oh, Connor, yes? Or no?”

  “You know I do. I love you more than life itself and have done from a distance since the time I was a teenager.”

  “Now she tells me.” He let out a yelp of happiness.

  She tried to breathe, but he was squeezing her with his good arm. “When you asked me to drive to Las Vegas with you, I thought I’d die for joy and leaped at the chance to be with you, even knowing about Reva.”

  “I wanted you to drive with me and resorted to my first lie so you wouldn’t refuse me. Yes, I married Reva, but that was a time of life when I didn’t know who I was. Neither did she. It was a marriage that never took. Without substance, the physical side of it eventually fizzled. She’s my past. You’re my future, Liz Henson. Tell me you’ll marry me, or I won’t be able to handle it.”

  “I can’t believe this is happening.”

  “Say it,” he begged.

  “Of course I’ll marry you!”

  “And be my vet?”

  She laughed. “Yes.”

  “And be the mother of our children?”

  The tears had started. “Yes.”

  “And love me forever, the way I love you?”

  “Oh, yes, darling, yes, yes, yes!” Her whole soul was crying for joy.

  “Thank God. Lie down next to me. I need to feel your beautiful body against me. The night you came up to the niche and we ate the Snickers together, I wanted you so badly it terrified me.”

  “I wanted you, too. Way too much.” Her voice trembled.

  “You’re so beautiful, Liz. You have no idea.” He’d said those words to her in the hospital. It hadn’t been the drugs after all. “Come closer, sweetheart.”

  “I’m afraid I’ll hurt your arm.”

  “You’re the doc and know how to be careful. I’ll let you handle me. You’re the only one who can. But be warned that one day soon it’ll be my turn. For right now, just kiss me the way you kissed me in the pool. You lit a fire in me that’s never going to burn out. I love you and can’t wait to make you my wife.”

  With those words he transformed her world. “There’s nothing I want more,” she whispered against his lips after devouring him. “Do you have any idea how much fun it is to do what I want to you?”

  “Yup. Just keep it up.”

  Breathless and eager to accommodate him, she kept it up until the fire was blazing hot. “I—I’d better leave you alone,” she stammered, realizing she wasn’t being careful enough.

  “Don’t you dare move! Until we get married, and maybe for several months after, will you live with me in my trailer?”

  “I’m so glad you said that,” she cried into his neck. “It felt like home to me the minute we left my parents’ house. I’ve never known the kind of happiness I’ve had with you, Connor.”

  In his hunger, he leaned over to kiss her again, forgetting about his handicap. “Ouch—this arm.” He had to lie back.

  She chuckled in spite of the desire raging through her body. “That arm won you five gold buckles. Just be patient, and in six weeks all your body parts will be working again in perfect harmony.”

  “I have news for you, sweetheart. They’re all working right now.”

  “I know. I’ve got the same problem, so I think it will be better if I just hold you for what’s left of the rest of this night.”

  “Promise you won’t leave me?”

  “What do you think?”

  “I think I’m the luckiest man alive.”

  * * *

  AT NINE-THIRTY THE next night Liz pulled up in front of the Bannock ranch house. For once, they were putting Ralph before the horses they needed to put into their barns. They wanted to surprise him. The others wouldn’t be home until tomorrow.

  When she looked over at Connor, she saw such a different man than the one she’d left with two and a half weeks ago, she hardly recognized him.

&n
bsp; The lines and shadows of self-doubt, guilt and recrimination were gone. If you could ascribe such an expression to a man, his striking face beamed with excitement. “Let’s go break the news to him, sweetheart.”

  “I’ll grab one each of our gold buckles to give him for a souvenir.”

  His brown eyes glowed as he looked at her. “Trust you to know what will touch his heart more than anything.”

  “Your coming home safe and sound will be the answer to his prayers. These trinkets are just the icing on the proverbial cake.” She leaned across to kiss him long and hard before alighting from the cab.

  Montana had been visited with more snow, creating another fairyland. After she’d gone into the trailer for the boxes, Connor wrapped his good arm around her waist and they walked up to the porch. He kissed her again. “Remember being here?”

  “As if I could forget.”

  “It seemed so right that you and I were going off together to do what we loved.”

  “I thought the same thing.”

  “It was meant to be.”

  “Yes, darling.”

  He unlocked the door and they went inside. They crept down the hall to the den, but it was dark. “He’s gone to bed.”

  “Maybe we should come back in the morning.”

  Connor shook his head. “No...this news can’t wait.” As he grasped her hand, the housekeeper approached.

  “You’re home! I’m so sorry about your arm. You would have won the whole thing, Connor. Congratulations to both of you!”

  “Thank you,” they said before he kissed her cheek.

  “He’s going to be so thrilled, you can’t imagine!”

  “We’re the ones who are thrilled.” He grasped Liz’s hand and led her all the way back to Ralph’s bedroom. They found him lying propped up in bed. He was reading a book by the light of the bedside table.

  “Grandpa?”

  Ralph looked up. The book fell out of his hand. “It’s you. You’re home!”

  “I am. I brought someone with me.”

  He pulled Liz into the room with him. While Ralph stared at the two of them, they walked over to the side of his bed.

  “We have some gifts for you.” Liz handed him the two boxes, which he opened. “Those are yours to keep. You always had faith in us.”

  Tears spilled down his cheeks. “I heard your speech at the hotel. I’ve been crying ever since.”

  “We’ve got something else to tell you that’ll make you cry even harder. Show him, sweetheart.” She tugged on the sleeve of her pullover so Ralph could see the charm bracelet. “I’ve asked Liz to marry me.”

  His grandfather gasped.

  “We made it official last night with this bracelet you gave us. It brought us luck and love. The kind you had with Grandma. It’s the kind of love I’ve wanted with every fiber of my being. I know I’ve found it with Liz.”

  Ralph’s eyes shone. “I know you have, too. My little princess. I always wanted you for my Connor. My dream has finally come true.”

  “I’ve loved him forever.” Her words came out sounding like a croak.

  “Come here and let me give both of you a hug.”

  After he let them go, he said, “Who else knows?”

  Connor’s eyes danced. “No one. You’re the first. We’ll tell everyone tomorrow when they’re back.”

  “What are your plans?”

  “We want to be married at Liz’s church, but that’s as far as we’ve gotten. We want it to be soon.”

  “Where will you live?”

  “Here on the ranch. Until we build our own home, we’ll live in my trailer.”

  A big smile broke out on his face. “You’ve brought me such wonderful news, I might expire from too much joy.”

  “Oh, please don’t do that,” Liz cried. “We’re planning on you living a long time.

  “We want our children to enjoy their great-grandfather for as long as possible. But now we’re going to say good-night. We have to take care of our other children.”

  Ralph chuckled. “Your horses did themselves proud.”

  Connor nodded. “Especially Polly. She pulled through like a champion.”

  “I told her she had to do it for Connor, who couldn’t compete for himself. I’m positive she understood me.”

  Ralph winked at her. “You’ve always had special powers in that department.”

  Liz watched Connor give his grandfather another kiss. “We’ll come in the morning and have breakfast with you.”

  “Can’t wait. We’ll watch all the recordings and you can tell me everything that was going on behind the scenes. Especially the moment when that hooky honker pulled that stunt on you, son.”

  “He was a rank one, all right. Sleep well,” Connor said, before ushering Liz out of the bedroom.

  “What do you say we stall both horses in our barn for tonight? We’ll put Sunflower next to Firebrand so they’ll be happy.”

  “I was just going to suggest it. Who knows? Maybe they’re engaged, too.”

  He threw back his head and laughed that deep, rich male laughter she loved almost as much as she loved him.

  Once the horses were safely housed in the barn, Connor told her where to park his rig for the night. He helped her clean out the trailer stalls the best he could until they were able to go to bed themselves.

  After showering, she cuddled up to Connor’s solid, hard body. Talk about heaven. He only put on the bottom half of his sweats. It was too hard to deal with the top. “Darling? I’ve never seen Ralph so happy.”

  “Our news did it, all right. Can you imagine how happy everyone else is going to be when they hear?”

  “My parents will be overjoyed.”

  “So will the rest of my family. Now they won’t have to worry about me anymore.”

  “Mine won’t, either. When I told Mom I was driving with you, she almost had a heart attack for fear I’d be hurt. That was because she knew Sadie and I had always been pining for love of the Bannock brothers.”

  “Unfortunately, the Bannock brothers had been warned off your land. I hope lightning won’t strike me if I say Daniel Corkin’s passing was a good thing. He put me and my brother through hell.”

  “Speaking of Jarod, do you want hear something kind of spooky?”

  He plundered her mouth for a little while before he said, “I’m all ears.”

  “The first night I called Sadie from Las Vegas, she told me I was going to win because Jarod had seen a vision. When I asked if he’d had one about you winning, he said no.”

  “He’s a lot like his uncle Charlo. I’m glad you didn’t tell me, sweetheart.”

  She shivered. “I wonder why he told Sadie.”

  “They share everything. He probably told her not to tell you. But she did anyway, because she loves you and wanted to instill you with extra confidence.”

  “I’m afraid it did the opposite. For the rest of the time, all I did was worry about you. When Derrick told me you’d had an accident, it was like a nightmare come true. How specific are Jarod’s visions?”

  “Let’s ask him tomorrow.”

  “Maybe we’d better not, or we might get Sadie into trouble.”

  “Don’t worry about it. He loves her too much. I’m more inclined to believe he knew she’d tell you. Jarod wanted you to believe in yourself.”

  She cupped his face in her hands, kissing every feature. “With everyone believing in me, especially you, how could I lose? I fall more in love with you every minute. I wish—”

  “So do I.” His voice had grown husky. “Do me a favor and help me to love you any way we can until I can get rid of this sling.”

  “Well, as long as I’ve got your permission...”

  “You’ve got it, Mrs. Bannock to be. In s
pades.”

  * * * * *

  Watch for the next story in Rebecca Winters’

  HITTING ROCKS COWBOYS miniseries,

  THE NEW COWBOY,

  coming soon from Harlequin American Romance!

  Keep reading for an excerpt from A COWBOY MEETS HIS MATCH by Roxann Delaney

  We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin American Romance story.

  You love small towns and cowboys! Harlequin American Romance stories are heartwarming contemporary tales of everyday women finding love, becoming part of a family or community—or maybe starting a family of her own.

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  Chapter One

  Stretching out her legs in the tall grass, with her eyes closed and her back against the rough bark of a tree, Erin Walker smiled at the sound of a fish breaking the surface of the water. Content, she pulled in a breath of warm, June afternoon air and started to toe off her boots. But the sound of a second, a third and then a fourth splash followed, all louder and each sounding closer than the one before.

  That was no fish.

  She sat up straight, her heart rate increasing as she looked out onto Lake Walker, the large pond on the ranch near Desperation, Oklahoma, where she’d grown up. That was when she spotted the naked man, standing not twenty yards away in the pond.

  Erin felt an eerie flash of déjà vu but blamed it on the shock of the moment. Surely he hadn’t seen her. If he had, he would have left immediately. Instead, he stood hip deep in the water, his back to her, his arms stretched above his head, flexing muscles that would have caused a half-blind ninety-year-old spinster to suffer a case of the vapors.