A Cowboy's Charm

by Vicki Lewis Thompson

  A Cowboy’s Charm

  The McGavin Brothers

  Vicki Lewis Thompson

  A COWBOY’S CHARM

  Copyright © 2018 by Vicki Lewis Thompson

  ISBN: 978-1-946759-44-3

  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.

  This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Ocean Dance Press, PO Box 69901, Oro Valley AZ 85737

  Cover art by Kristin Bryant

  Visit the author’s website: VickiLewisThompson.com

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  But Wait, There’s More!

  Also by Vicki Lewis Thompson

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Gas fumes. Which likely meant the Harley’s fuel tank had sprung a leak, dammit. Quinn Sawyer had been riding enough years to be relatively confident of the diagnosis. At least Eagles Nest was less than five miles down the road, but a fuel tank leak would complicate his visit.

  He’d planned on spending a couple of days with his daughter before heading back to his ranch in Spokane. A leaking tank would require extending his stay. Not a huge issue, and Roxanne always complained his trips were too short. But although she’d never admit it, having him around interrupted her graphic design work.

  He had another, more immediate problem, though. Roxanne lived in an apartment over a bakery. She had no covered parking, let alone a sheltered spot where he could work on his bike. He’d personally maintained the 1983 Harley since buying it fifteen years ago. He knew her mechanical quirks and didn’t trust another soul to work on her. That put him in a pickle.

  The bike malfunction notwithstanding, his heart lifted as he parked in front of Pie in the Sky and took off his helmet. Spending time with Roxanne was always a good thing. He’d solve this little inconvenience one way or another.

  Every month Roxanne painted something seasonal and festive on the bakery’s front window. Last month’s theme had been April showers, and this month a riot of colorful wildflowers bloomed on the plate glass. The cheerful decoration and the aroma of freshly baked bread wiped out any lingering irritation over his mechanical issues.

  Then Roxanne rushed out of the bakery to greet him and lit up his world. She looked so much like her mother—same long dark hair and warm brown eyes. Anne used to love wearing yellow, and Roxanne had on a shirt the color of the sun. Anne would have been so proud of the amazing woman her daughter had become.

  “That’s my dad! Right on time!”

  “Can’t keep my best girl waiting.” He hugged her and stepped back. “You look great. Being in love agrees with you.”

  “It does.” She smiled. “And you grew a mustache! What’s up with that?”

  He shrugged. “Something different.”

  “I like it. Dashing. By the way, Michael got the night off so he can have dinner with us.”

  “Excellent.”

  “Want to come in and have coffee and pie before we take your stuff upstairs?”

  “That sounds terrific, but first let me check out my bike. I’m pretty sure the fuel tank’s leaking.”

  “Yikes.”

  “I hope I’m wrong.” He crouched down next to the Harley and inspected the tank. “But I’m not.”

  “Can you fix it?”

  “I can, but I need a place where I can work on it.“

  “And wouldn’t you know, I don’t have one. Neither does Michael. But surely we can figure out—”

  “Hey, you two!”

  Quinn scrambled to his feet and almost knocked over his bike. Par for the course when Kendra McGavin showed up. That blue-eyed woman made him lose his cool. “Hey, Kendra.” He also tended to smile like a goofball because she was so pretty.

  She nudged back her tan Stetson. “You grew a mustache.”

  “Um, yeah, I did.” He hadn’t expected a little fringe of facial hair to attract so much attention. It wasn’t like he went for a handlebar or anything.

  “Looks nice.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I told him he looks dashing,” Roxanne said.

  “I’ll go along with that evaluation.” She gestured toward his Harley. “When I walked up you were studying your bike. Is something wrong?”

  “Afraid so.” He was mighty glad to get off the subject of his mustache. “Fuel tank’s leaking.”

  “Whoa. That can’t be good.”

  “It’s not. I’ll have to fix it before I leave.”

  “You intend to fix it yourself?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Dad never lets anyone else work on his Harley.” Roxanne shoved her hands in the back pockets of her jeans. “Unfortunately I don’t have a garage where he can do the repairs.”

  “How about a vacant stall in my barn? Would that be a good location?”

  Quinn gazed at Kendra. What a fascinating idea. “Yes, but—”

  “Could you ride it out to my ranch?”

  “Better not. It could catch on fire.”

  “Oh. Then let’s not have you do that. Could we get it in the back of my truck?”

  He shook his head. “Not easily, and even if we could, it’s a dicey prospect if your truck bed isn’t set up for hauling a bike. Stabilizing it would be—”

  “What about a horse trailer? You could load it easier and you could tie it down.”

  “It works in a pinch, but I doubt you drove into town pulling a trailer.”

  “I could go get one.”

  “That’s putting you to a heap of trouble.”

  She smiled. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but you’re in a heap of trouble if you can’t find a place to fix your beloved bike.”

  Her smile discombobulated him, but he vaguely realized there were other issues connected to this deal. “You have a point. It’s just that if my bike is out at your ranch....”

  “You’ll be stranded there?”

  “Yes, ma’am, and I have no intention of imposing on you.”

  “I guarantee you won’t be imposing. How long do you think the repair will take?”

  “If I can solder the tank to suit me, then a day or two. But I might need to locate a replacement, which could take a little longer.”

  “Then my ranch is your answer. I have a small cabin you can stay in and you can borrow a ranch truck when you need transportation.”

  “It sounds like a great solution, Dad.”

  He took a deep breath. “I have to admit that it does. Thank you, Kendra.”

  “My pleasure.” She looked at Roxanne. “I’ll bet you planned on having dinner with your dad tonight, though.”

  “I did, but—”

  “Why don’t you come out to the ranch for the evening? Michael, too, if he
’s free. Cody and Faith built a great new fire pit and I’m all about grilling these days.”

  “Only if you’ll let us bring steaks and dessert.”

  “Deal. I’ll be back in no time with that trailer.” She hurried down the sidewalk toward her truck.

  Quinn watched her go, her dark hair swinging with her brisk stride. “She’s something else.”

  “Yep.” Roxanne sounded funny, like she was trying not to laugh.

  He glanced at her. “What?”

  “Nothing.” Her brown eyes sparkled. “See? Problem solved.”

  “Guess so.” One problem, anyway. Staying out at Kendra’s had the potential to create several more.

  But even if the solution was problematic, he wanted to go. He’d been intrigued by Kendra ever since they’d met by chance at the bakery in February. Then he’d driven down in March for a Guzzling Grizzly celebration and she’d been wearing a bear suit. She sure could make him laugh.

  Since then he’d traveled to Eagles Nest twice to deliver his scratchboard art to the GG because Michael had suggested displaying and selling it there. Both times he’d had lunch with Kendra and they’d had fun talking. As friends.

  No doubt she’d offered her cabin and her barn in the spirit of friendship, too. But a casual lunch was one thing. Living at her place for a few days took friendship to a whole other level, one that made him a little short of breath.

  No one had affected him that way in more than thirty years. He hoped to hell he wouldn’t do anything stupid.

  * * *

  Now she’d done it. Adrenalin pumping through her system, Kendra hopped in her truck, started the engine and shifted into reverse. In the nick of time she checked her rearview mirror, saw the hood of a car behind her and shifted her foot from the gas to the brake.

  Backing into someone would be damned embarrassing, especially when she’d just offered to ferry Quinn’s precious motorcycle to her ranch. She still couldn’t believe she’d done it, either. That’s what she got for behaving like a teenager with a crush.

  He’d mentioned he’d get to town around three and he’d be riding his Harley. Early on she’d figured out that the guy was punctual. Like some groupie, she’d manufactured a reason to go to the bakery at three in hopes she’d get a glimpse of him cruising in on that hog.

  Easing carefully out of her parking space, she pointed the truck toward the ranch and headed home to fetch a trailer. This incident was her son Trevor’s fault. Last fall he’d painted a picture of a potential sweetheart for her now that her boys had all found true love. He’d be a cowboy who’d ride into Eagles Nest on his motorcycle. And he’d have a mustache.

  Now Quinn had one. On top of that, she’d gone and invited him to stay at her ranch. If she’d given herself any time to think about it, she wouldn’t have. It was audacious, even for her. But when someone—specifically a broad-shouldered, Harley-riding cowboy—presented her with a problem, she hadn’t been able to resist trying to solve it.

  Her solution was brilliant if she did say so herself. But now she’d have Quinn Sawyer in residence for at least a couple of days. No question that he’d be a distraction, one she didn’t need with Cody and Faith’s wedding coming up in ten days.

  Ah, but those gray eyes…

  He had a way of looking at her that gave her goosebumps. She liked his salt and pepper hair, thick and touchable. And his hands. He had great hands, artistic hands as it turned out. She wouldn’t mind being a fly on the wall when he created his scratchboard art. Had he brought any of his materials with him?

  Quite likely not.

  She respected his determination to fix his vintage bike himself. She plain respected him, truth be told. Fate had handed him a task very much like hers—raising a passel of kids alone after a beloved partner had died. Quinn had soldiered on, doing the job the best he could and putting his children above every other consideration.

  That would have bonded them even if he hadn’t been gorgeous. But he was. The visceral tug when she’d first seen him at Pie in the Sky in February had repeated itself each time they’d met. It had grabbed her again today. Exciting. Scary, too.

  She drove into the clearing at the end of the graded dirt road. Wild Creek Ranch lay before her—the rambling log house where she’d grown up and where she’d raised her boys, the original hip-roofed barn and the newer, more modern one that had been built last year. The one-room log cabin that dated back to the eighteen-hundreds was partially hidden by tall pines.

  Her boys plus their respective sweethearts had helped her spruce up the area in preparation for the wedding. Anything that needed painting had been taken care of. Weathered rails on the corrals had been replaced. Pots of red geraniums sat on the porch. It was a good time for Quinn to visit.

  She drove toward the newer barn and the collection of horse trailers. She could hitch up by herself if necessary, but she wouldn’t mind some help.

  Luck was with her. Cody emerged from the new barn and waved. She rolled down a window and called to him.

  He sauntered over. “Did you talk to Abigail about the cake?”

  “Not yet. Something came up.” Faith and Cody had decided to forgo the traditional white frosting in favor of chocolate. Kendra had offered to deliver the request in person to Abigail, owner of Pie in the Sky. She could still do that before loading Quinn’s bike.

  Cody pulled out his phone. “I’ll just text her. I was planning to do that anyway until you—”

  “Never mind. I can mention it to her when I go back.”

  “Why are you going back?”

  As she explained, his eyes widened. He and his brothers had asked if her lunches with Quinn constituted dating. She’d said they didn’t. Now she’d invited him to the ranch. Quite likely they’d read something into that development.

  Cody’s expression indicated he already had. “How long will he be staying?”

  “He doesn’t know for sure. Depends on how the repair goes. A few days. I’d like to borrow your trailer to haul his bike, if that’s okay.”

  “Of course. You’d better take some rope so he can tie it up good and tight, though.”

  “I was planning on it.”

  “Then let’s get you hitched up.”

  “Thank you.” She put the truck in gear and Cody guided her as she maneuvered it into position under the trailer’s coupler. Then she hopped down. “I’ll go fetch that rope.” She retrieved it from the barn and walked back to the tailgate.

  Cody had the hitch locked and was attaching the electrical connections. “I reckon you must like this guy if you’ve invited him to stay here.”

  “I like him well enough to do him this favor. He needs a place to fix his bike and we have an empty stall. And an empty cabin.”

  He hooked the safety chains in place and stood. “I’ll toss the rope in the trailer if you want to go put on your blinkers and see if the electrical works okay.”

  “Thanks.” She handed him the rope and went to test the connection.

  “Works perfect!” Cody called out. His long strides brought him up to the cab of the truck. “Nobody’s been in that cabin for a while. Want me to give it a quick airing and put some sheets and towels in there?”

  “That would be great.”

  “You know I have to spread the word about this.”

  She laughed. “I can’t very well keep it a secret. Oh, and I invited Roxanne and Michael to come out for a barbeque tonight. Do you and Faith want to join us?”

  “Wish we could. Would be interesting. But we’re due at Mandy and Zane’s tonight. Mandy needs one more fitting before she’s done with the wedding dress.”

  “Are you going to see it, then?”

  “Absolutely not. Zane has some chores he needs help with at the raptor center. I won’t lay eyes on that dress until our wedding day.”

  “That’s sweet.”

  “I’m a sweet guy.”

  “Yes, you are. Well, I’d best be off.” She climbed behind the wheel.

  “U
m, Mom?”

  “What?”

  “Is there any chance Quinn will stick around until the wedding? Because we could fit him in, but we’d need to know ahead of time because—”

  “He won’t be here that long. He has a ranch to look after and its foaling season.” She smiled at her youngest son, the baby of the family. She still hadn’t quite accepted that he was getting married. “He’ll want to make that bike road-worthy as soon as possible so he can be on his way.”

  “Alrighty.” Cody nudged back his hat. “It’ll be weird having someone staying at the ranch who’s not family.”

  “What about when Olivia was here for a couple of nights after the forest fire? Was that weird?”

  “Well, no, but that was an emergency and she’s your accountant. We know her. Besides, she’s family now that she and Trevor are together.”

  “We put Badger up last Christmas when he came to visit Ryker.”

  “Yeah, but that’s Badger. He’s been like family from the get-go. I just mean—”

  “I know what you mean.” She gazed at him. “Don’t worry. Quinn’s simply a friend.”

  “A new friend.”

  “That, too.” She put the truck in gear. “See you soon.”

  As she drove away, she glanced in the rearview mirror. Cody had already pulled out his phone to start alerting his brothers about this unexpected development.

  Inviting Quinn to the ranch had been a spur-of-the-moment decision on her part, a minor shift in the status quo. But Cody wasn’t acting like it was minor. Not surprising. He’d never seen her take an interest in a man before. But Quinn was only a friend and this visit was no big deal.

  Chapter Two