by Donna Alward
Friendship?
Melissa Stone has done a fine job of avoiding her former best friend Cooper Ford. She was devastated when she discovered her husband was cheating on her, and felt doubly betrayed that Cooper had known all along.…
Forgiveness…
But she can’t ignore him forever—especially now that they’re working together on a charity project! And as she and Cooper get closer again, she confides in him her plans to start a family—alone.
Fatherhood!
Cooper wants to be there for her this time—but would he really consider being the father of her baby…?
They’re the rough Diamonds of the West….
The cowboys of Cadence Creek have trouble as their middle name. With chips on their shoulders the size of hay bales, these rough and rugged men think they need a woman the way they need a lame horse. Little do they know…
Don’t miss any of the action in Cadence Creek!
THE LAST REAL COWBOY
May 2012
THE REBEL RANCHER
June 2012
LITTLE COWGIRL ON HIS DOORSTEP
March 2013
A COWBOY TO COME HOME TO
July 2013
Dear Reader,
Do you remember your first love? Maybe not even your first real love, but that secret someone who made your heart beat faster, who made it difficult for you to breathe whenever they were around? What if that person was also your best friend? It would complicate things, wouldn’t it?
When I started this book I knew that Cooper and Melissa had had a past. They’d never been a couple, but she’d had a real crush on him when she was younger. But he’d also been her best friend, and she’d finally had to let go of her romantic notions and accept that he’d always just be…a friend. She’d moved on—without knowing that Coop’s feelings had changed.
Now they’re all grown up, and old feelings are back. More than just old feelings, really, because they’re not teenagers anymore. They’re older, wiser, not thinking so much about stealing a kiss behind the bleachers but about failed marriages and old wounds and how risky it is to give your heart to someone.
There was something really special about writing this story, and I think it was that Coop and Mel had always had a connection that went deeper than friendship or attraction. They had a past that connected their hearts in a way that time couldn’t erase.
I do hope you enjoy this latest Cadence Creek story—because I’ve certainly enjoyed exploring the town and the people who call it home. Come on in and make yourself at home. I’ve got a story to tell you….
Love,
Donna
Donna Alward
A Cowboy To Come Home To
A busy wife and mother of three (two daughters and the family dog), Donna Alward believes hers is the best job in the world: a combination of stay-at-home mum and romance novelist. An avid reader since childhood, Donna always made up her own stories. She completed her arts degree in English literature in 1994, but it wasn’t until 2001 that she penned her first full-length novel and found herself hooked on writing romance. In 2006 she sold her first manuscript, and now writes warm, emotional stories for the Harlequin® Romance line.
In her new home office in Nova Scotia, Donna loves being back on the east coast of Canada after nearly twelve years in Alberta, where her career began, writing about cowboys and the West. Donna’s debut romance, Hired by the Cowboy, was awarded the Bookseller’s Best Award in 2008 for Best Traditional Romance.
With the Atlantic Ocean only minutes from her doorstep, Donna has found a fresh take on life and promises even more great romances in the near future!
Donna loves to hear from readers. You can contact her through her website, www.donnaalward.com, her page at www.myspace.com/dalward, or through her publisher.
Recent books by Donna Alward
LITTLE COWGIRL ON HIS DOORSTEP *
SLEIGH RIDE WITH THE RANCHER
THE REBEL RANCHER *
THE LAST REAL COWBOY *
HOW A COWBOY STOLE HER HEART
A FAMILY FOR THE RUGGED RANCHER
HONEYMOON WITH THE RANCHER
*Cadence Creek Cowboys
Other titles by this author available in ebook format.
To my girlie girls, who have grown into an awesome pair of brainstorming partners. I’d still be stuck at the words Chapter One if it weren’t for you!
Contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
EXCERPT
CHAPTER ONE
COOPER FORD WAS six foot two of faded denim and plaid cotton, accessorized by an insufferable ego.
The smile slid off of Melissa Stone’s face as Coop pulled the door to the flower shop closed behind him, the little brass bell dinging annoyingly as he reached up and took off his hat. Oh, wasn’t he all charm and politeness. Melissa’s replacement smile was plastic and somewhat forced. Just what she needed at five o’clock on a Friday afternoon. To be face-to-face with the one man left in Cadence Creek who she wished would simply dry up and blow away.
“Afternoon, Melissa.”
She gritted her teeth at the sound of his deep voice, somehow musical even when saying the most mundane things. “Cooper.”
She refused to call him Coop like everyone else in town. Like she had years ago when they’d all hung out together, having a few beers around a campfire after a Sunday-night softball game. When he’d been the sort of guy she’d been proud to call friend. Now he was Cooper. If she thought he’d let her get away with it, she’d call him Mr. Ford. He deserved it.
But that would be a little too obvious. A very stiff “Cooper” sent the same message with a touch more subtlety—even if he did remain Coop in her head. The old days were gone. They weren’t friends any longer. To her recollection, this was the first time he’d ever deigned to darken the flower shop door.
He smiled at her. “Nice day out there. Cool, but sunny.”
Oh, this was positively painful. The weather? Seriously? She blinked, trying to ignore Coop’s big frame, which fit perfectly into his dusty jeans and the worn denim jacket that looked as if he’d had it for at least a decade. The edges of the collar and cuffs were white and slightly frayed. The jacket gaped open, revealing an old plaid shirt with a streak of dirt smeared across his chest.
One positive thing she could say about Coop: he wasn’t lazy. From the look of him he was straight off the ranch. From the smell of him, too—the pungent but not unpleasant scent of horses clung to his clothing.
“Forecast says frost maybe tonight.” She resisted the urge to tap her nails on the counter. The weather, she realized, was a safe topic. “What can I do for you, Cooper?”
He bumped his hat on the side of his leg. “I need some flowers.”
His gaze dropped to the green apron she wore when she was in her shop. The words Foothills Floral Design were embroidered on the left breast. Pockets lined the bottom, where she could keep her scissors and pocket knife and anything else she needed as she worked around the store.
Her cheeks heated. No big surprise that Cooper was staring at her breasts. He liked women, did Cooper Ford. When she’d been married, Coop had a new girl hanging off his arm every other month, it seemed. A r
eal love-’em-and-leave-’em kind of guy. She took a deep breath. “What kind of flowers?”
His gaze lifted to meet hers and she found herself drawn to the golden flecks in the hazel depths. He had lashes that were too long to be decent for any self-respecting man, which made his eyes quite pretty.
Pretty enough for him to get away with just about anything in this town, she reminded herself with disgust. Except with her. She knew exactly what kind of guy Cooper was. He’d definitely shown his true colors the day he’d betrayed their friendship.
“I don’t know,” he confessed with a sheepish grin. “Something big. Something that says I’m really, really sorry.”
Acid soured her stomach. Ugh. Apology flowers. And she could just imagine what the combo of Coop and a big bouquet would do to some silly doe-eyed girl who didn’t know any better. “Who’d you do wrong now, Coop?”
The words were out before she could think better of them and she couldn’t take them back.
His gaze sharpened, but he merely raised one eyebrow. It made her feel small, as she always did when she was reminded of what a fool she’d been three years ago.
Walking in on her husband, Scott, and his girlfriend had been the most humiliating moment of her life. It had made her one big cliché.
She’d thought it couldn’t get any worse, but then she’d discovered that Coop had known all along. He’d been aware that her husband—his best buddy—was having an affair. And he hadn’t said a single, blessed word to her about it. No heads-up. No...nothing.
The joke had totally been on her, and she’d never forgotten it. Even now, as she took the steps to truly move on—alone—his betrayal stung. There was sticking by your friend and there was doing what was right. Cooper didn’t choose right.
“I missed my mother’s birthday,” he replied, putting his weight on one hip and hooking a thumb in his jeans pocket. “I was out of town all week. But it was her sixtieth and so now I’m trying to make it up to her.”
Once more Melissa felt foolish. She didn’t like Cooper. Actually, the truth was more that she didn’t trust him. She didn’t respect him. She should just let it go, like water off a duck’s back, as the old saying went. She definitely should not let him get to her, especially after all this time.
“Oh,” she answered. “Then I’m sure I can help. Do you want it in a vase or paper?”
“Paper,” he answered. “She’s got a million vases around the house. And no roses. They’re too formal and old-ladyish. Something mixed.”
Melissa tended to agree. Not that roses weren’t great, and they were definitely a classic—elegant and timeless. But she secretly preferred something simpler, more wildflowerish and whimsical. “Colors?”
“Yellows. Maybe with some red and blue in it? Colorful and, well, large. It’s a big apology.”
He smiled down at Melissa and she nearly smiled back before catching herself. “Give me fifteen minutes or so,” she replied, jotting the order on her notepad. “You can come back and pick it up, yeah?”
He nodded. “It’ll give me time to go to the pharmacy and get a nice card.”
“Gee, nothing says ‘Happy Birthday, Mom’ like a last-minute card,” she replied drily.
He didn’t answer.
“Okay,” she said, putting down her pen. “Fifteen minutes.”
“Thanks, Mel,” he said, putting his hat back on his head.
Mel.
No one had called her that in ages. Certainly not Cooper, who she avoided as often as possible, which took some creativity in a town the size of Cadence Creek. Thankfully, he felt the same way, and even if they ended up at the same functions, they steered well clear of each other. Opposite ends of the room sort of thing. Definitely no eye contact or chitchat.
But hearing the shortened version of her name—Mel—took her back to the old days. The days when she’d thought she was happy, and she’d really been living in a fantasy world.
The bell chimed as he left, a cheerful sound that was out of key with her current dismal mood, a good portion of which had nothing to do with Cooper at all. She was getting tired of taking her temperature every darn day. Of getting her hopes up, only to be faced with disappointment. Of spending her savings on trying to get pregnant the nontraditional way. She was going to give it one more try, but she wasn’t holding out a lot of hope. Maybe she’d be better off filling out the paperwork for the adoption registry.
But deep down, she wasn’t ready to give up. The end of her marriage had also marked the end of her plans for a brilliant life. Plans that had included starting a family. Why should she give that up just because circumstances had changed? She’d done so many things on her own since the divorce, like start her own successful business. She was absolutely certain she could manage this, too.
She would be a good mom if given the chance.
But first she had to look after Cooper’s order. She was just getting out the red gerbera daisies when Penny arrived for her Friday-night shift. Penny was in eleventh grade at the high school and was the best worker Melissa had on staff. Most of the time she wished she could have her for more shifts, but Penny and her parents were firm on the eight-hours-a-week rule. Melissa got her Friday from five to nine and Saturday morning from nine to one and that was it.
Melissa hoped that if the planets aligned and things finally went right, she could offer Penny a lot more hours next summer—especially if Melissa was spending more time at home with a baby. Between Penny and Amy Wilkins, who covered a lot of the day shifts, Melissa had some breathing room in the schedule.
Penny’s arrival meant Melissa wouldn’t have to wait on Cooper when he returned. All she had to do was finish making up the arrangement before he came back.
Her fingers plucked bright yellow yarrow a little quicker at the prospect. Cooper Ford had nothing to do with her current life.
She made her own way now, and that was exactly how it was going to stay.
* * *
Cooper let out a breath when he was out on the sidewalk again. He’d finally gathered up the courage to go into her shop. This nonsense of avoiding each other had gone on long enough. Surely after three years she might have mellowed where he was concerned.
But nothing had changed, had it? Melissa still looked at him as if he were dirt beneath her heel. It had been a long time since she and Scott had split. But the truth was she still hated Scott, and she still hated Cooper’s guts because he’d known about the affair and hadn’t said a word.
He walked away from the flower shop, his long legs eating up the concrete as he made his way to the drugstore. The problem with Melissa was that she didn’t know the whole story. She thought Cooper had kept his mouth shut because he’d been looking out for his best buddy. “Their little club,” she’d called it. And she’d called him a lot more than that, too, words he would never have imagined coming out of that sweet little mouth. He’d taken all the verbal slings because she’d been right. Not in her interpretation of how it all went down, and definitely not right about his motives. But she’d been right that he should have had the guts to say something. God knows he wanted to. He’d come close so many times....
But all his life he’d been a coward where Melissa was concerned, and the day she’d walked in on Scott with another woman hadn’t changed anything. Cooper had had no right to her friendship after that. He’d failed her, and she would never know how badly he felt about it.
At the drugstore, he headed for the greeting card aisle. Without too much trouble he picked out a birthday card for his mother, but he paused as he passed by a smaller section of cards. Close to the thank-you notes were half a dozen with I’m Sorry messages on the fronts. They sported sappy pictures of flowers and cute puppies and kittens. He gave a dry chuckle as he picked one up and opened the flap. There were no words on the inside, just a blank space to write in a personal message.<
br />
He imagined what he’d write to Melissa. “I’m sorry for keeping the truth from you all those years ago,” maybe? It was true. But it wouldn’t be enough. Not for her. And there was no way in hell he was going to write “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about your husband’s infidelity, but I was in love with you and didn’t want to hurt you.”
Even if he were stupid enough to confess such a thing, it didn’t even scrape the surface of what had really happened.
He’d been between a rock and a hard place and it had marked the end of his lifelong friendship with Scott. Not that that mattered one bit to Melissa, he thought bitterly. Not once had she considered how he might be caught in the middle, between his two best friends.
He put the card back in the slot and went to the cash register. Once outside, he headed back to the flower shop, gearing himself up for another few minutes of pretending they didn’t have any past history at all.
But when he went back inside Foothills Floral, there was no sign of Melissa. Instead, a teenager with braces smiled at him and rang up his purchase.
He left and got into his truck, a crease forming between his brows.
It appeared he wasn’t the only coward.
* * *
The early September sky was the clear, deep blue that Melissa particularly loved, and it seemed to go on forever. As she got out of her car and shut the door, she took a deep, restorative breath. How she loved this time of year. Everything was warm and mellow after the brash heat of summer. The prairie was green and golden, the air crisp and the leaves on the poplars and birches were turning a stunning golden yellow. It reminded her of back-to-school days and how she’d loved filling up her new backpack and lunch bag and getting on the school bus as a girl. It reminded her of sitting on the bleachers during football season, cheering on the Cadence Creek Cougars and, in particular, Scott.
Well, that memory was a little tainted now, but she still remembered what it had been like to be nearly seventeen and in love with the handsome star of the team.
