Once Upon a Cowboy: contemporary fairy tale romance (Cowboy Fairytales Book 1)
Page 10
A sister. A half-sister.
"Her mother moved to America after the birth, and Father kept tabs on them for some time, but then the private investigator he'd hired lost them. Now, Father wants to find the girl. Before..."
Before he died. Alessandra's throat closed up. "I didn't think it was that close."
Eloise shrugged, her eyes on the window across. "The doctors say it might be as little as a year."
It wasn't nearly long enough. Being with Gideon had showed her that she could be brave enough to seek a deeper, reconciled relationship with her father, but... To only have such a limited time left brought a physical pain.
"Of course I'll help in whatever way I can," she said, a little hoarsely.
"I've two different investigators looking into finding her, but perhaps your man might have other contacts that would help."
Alessandra nodded. Her man. Yes, she'd enlist Gideon's help.
She wanted to get back to him now. To tell him of this new development. Talk through her muddled feelings about this revelation.
A sister.
WHEN SHE FOUND Gideon in the gardens, he seemed subdued. He glanced over his shoulder from where he stood near a stone bench in the rose arbor, and she saw his face was dark and brows were drawn. As she neared, she saw his suit jacket lying folded across one corner of the bench. And when he turned all the way around, she saw the tie he'd loosened around his neck.
She went to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "What's the matter?"
She could feel the tension coiled in him, the tightness of his muscles.
"Nothing." His arms came around her upper back. He leaned back slightly, to better look into her face. "How was your sister?"
"Fine. I've got something to talk to you about." She squeezed his waist. "Later." And raised her face for his kiss.
He obliged her for a sweet kiss, but pulled away too soon.
"Something is the matter," she said with a slightly exaggerated moue. She reached up with one hand to touch his face, resting her palm against his cheek gently brushing with her thumb.
"No. I'm just...nervous."
"Nervous?" Her Gideon? Not likely. He broke their embrace and motioned for her to sit on the bench.
She humored him, perching on the edge of the cool stone. The scent of roses surrounded them and made the moment impossibly romantic. He stood tall, and she craned her neck to look up at him. One hand rested in his trouser pocket.
"I had everything planned perfectly for tonight, but...I don't think I can wait."
Then he dropped to one knee, and her stomach dipped. He reached for her with his empty hand, as his opposite hand brought a small black box out of his pocket. All her swirling thoughts stopped.
So did her breath.
"Alessandra, I love you. I can't imagine my life without you in it. Would you do me the honor of marrying me?"
She squeezed his hand tightly as tears blurred her vision. She blinked them back. "I love you, too. And...I'm so sorry to ruin your moment, but have you spoken to my father?"
One corner of his mouth tilted up. "Just this morning."
Her breathing eased. "And...? What did he say?"
"He gave his blessing."
She threw her arms around Gideon's neck, almost toppling them both. "Thank God."
She peppered his face with kisses until he took her lips in a breath-stealing kiss. When they were both breathing hard, he pulled away and settled on the bench next to her.
"So that's a yes." It wasn't really a question, not the way he said it, slightly arrogant and more than a little relieved.
She leaned into his shoulder, watching as he pried open the black jeweler's box. "I would've married you anyway, without Father's blessing, but this makes it better..." Her thoughts, her words cut off as she caught sight of the ring. "Gideon..."
A large, sparkling diamond winked up at her, sunlight casting rainbows around it on Gideon's hands.
"It's too much." She didn't know the exact price tag, but a diamond like that must've cost his last two years' profits.
He cleared his throat. "I know we come from very different worlds, and I may never fit completely into yours, but I wanted to give you something fit for a princess."
He slipped it onto her finger, the metal cool against her skin. And because she was watching so closely, she noticed that his fingers were trembling.
She laced their fingers together, twisting the tangle of fingers to admire the darker tan of his skin against hers, and the sparkle of the ring.
"I love you," she said, looking into his dear face. "And I'm honored to be able to spend the rest of my life with you."
He steadied himself with a minute straightening of his shoulders, and she knew she'd said the right thing. Gideon might show the world a tough soldier, but she was the one who got to see the real man behind the facade.
That was the real treasure she valued. Gideon's heart.
EXCLUSIVE INVITATION
Are you a member of my new releases newsletter? This Christmas you can receive a special gift, available only to newsletters subscribers . A FAIRYTALE CHRISTMAS is a 50-page novelette and will not be released on any retailer platform—only to newsletter subscribers.
Find out what's happened with each of the FAIRYTALES couples. Alessandra and Gideon have a secret… Did Eloise get her happily-ever-after with Cody…? Will Pieter finally pop the question…? And more.
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DEAR READER
Thank you for reading ONCE UPON A COWBOY, the first book in my new series. I thought re-writing fairytales would be fun—I didn't realize how challenging it would be to connect contemporary characters to those old folk tales. I'd love to know whether you think this story worked, so please consider leaving me a review.
If you enjoyed meeting Gideon and Alessandra, I'm happy to report we're not done with them yet. They play a big part in COWBOY CHARMING, the next book in the series. Turn the page for a sneak preview.
Connect with me online:
@lacy_williams
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lacy@lacywilliams.net
If the boot fits…
There’s nothing glamorous about Ethan Townsend’s life. At twenty-five, he’s given up his college education and pretty much everything else to run the family dairy farm in north Texas and provide for his two spoiled stepbrothers. When he meets a real-life princess, he can’t help but be attracted to her beauty—even though he knows she’s way out of his league.
Princess Mia of Glorvaird is visiting the States to help manage her sister’s upcoming engagement ball. Bonus: she can escape the media blitz over her last—very public—breakup back home. When she meets hard-working Ethan, she realizes she’s been looking for love in all the wrong places.
Even though attraction sparks, how can Ethan expect to build a real relationship with a princess? Especially when his stepbrothers sabotage him at every turn?
Cowboy Charming is a contemporary western retelling of the Cinderella fairytale.
Click to buy now.
ALSO BY LACY WILLIAMS
TRIPLE H BRIDES SERIES (CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE)
Kissing Kelsey
Courting Carrie
Stealing Sarah
Keeping Kayla
Catching Cate
Melting Megan
COWBOY FAIRYTALES SERIES (CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE)
Once Upon a Cowboy
Cowboy Charming
The Toad Prince
The Beastly Princess
The Lost Princess
HEART OF OKLAHOMA SERIES (CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE)
Kissed by a Cowboy
Love Letters from Cowboy
Mistletoe Cowboy
Cowgirl for Keeps
Jingle Bell Cowgirl
Heart of a Cowgirl
3 Days with a Cowboy
Prodigal Cowgirl
WYOMING LEGAC
Y SERIES (HISTORICAL ROMANCE)
The Homesteader’s Sweetheart
Courted by a Cowboy
Roping the Wrangler
Return of the Cowboy Doctor
The Wrangler’s Inconvenient Wife
A Cowboy for Christmas
Her Convenient Cowboy
Her Cowboy Deputy
NOT IN A SERIES
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Dates
Santa Next Door
The Butterfly Bride
Secondhand Cowboy
Wagon Train Sweetheart (historical romance)
Marrying Miss Marshal (historical romance)
Counterfeit Cowboy (historical romance)
Copyright © 2016 by Lacy Williams
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Table of Contents
Exclusive invitation
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Epilogue
Exclusive invitation
Dear Reader
Cowboy Charming sneak peek
Also by Lacy Williams
Copyright