“Missy,” he said, because her name was a meal. And his favorite. “I don’t want to date you.”
He heard her indrawn breath. “You don’t?”
Connor dropped his head, until his mouth was right there, so close to hers.
“No,” he said as if it were a love word. Because they were all love words. “I want so much more than that.”
This time when he kissed her—there in front of the Christmas tree he had every intention of decorating with her, year after year—it felt like the first time.
Better.
Because this time, it was forever.
10
Six months later, Missy Minton lived up to her scandalous reputation by moving out of her mother’s house at last and shacking up with that Connor Kittredge.
Everyone was appalled.
In the sense of being delighted, that was, because there wasn’t much folks around Cold River liked better than two hometown kids finding their way back to each other in the end.
Connor was pretty fond of the story himself.
“You know I have every intention of marrying you,” he said the day she moved in, after he carried her inside, laid her out on the bed, and removed every article of her clothing. By way of christening the cabin that was now theirs.
And which she’d already put her stamp on, so it was more cozy and less … fish and game.
Her smile was wide and bright and all his. “I know.”
“I’m happy to marry you right now. I love you, Missy. I think maybe I always have.”
“I love you too,” she said. “I know I always have. I’m so glad you were here when I was finally ready to come home.”
And for a long while, there was only that.
Loving her, with his mouth and his hands, his body and his personal commitment to finding every last bit of that fire that had always raged and raged between them.
Much later, they lay side by side in that bed that was now theirs.
“You can’t ask me to marry you for at least a year,” she told him.
“If this is about your ex,” he began, feeling remarkably less calm than he had a moment ago.
“What? Never.” She scowled at him, tucked up in his arms. “Please do not defile our home by mentioning him. What’s the matter with you?”
“You’re the one who said we need to wait a year to get married. What other reason do we have to wait?” He sighed. “You should know I’ve spent some time in the graveyard, having discussions with your father. It’s taking some work, but I think I’ve talked him around.”
He wasn’t kidding. And it was worth every time he’d felt silly while he stood there, laying out his case to a gravestone, because her eyes got soft and wide.
“Have you really?”
“Of course,” he said gruffly. “Hank was the kind of man who would appreciate being asked for his daughter’s hand.”
“He was,” Missy whispered. “And he would have loved telling you no a few times, just to keep you honest.”
“He would have made me very, very honest.” He pushed her hair back from her forehead. “But if even he approves, why do we have to wait?”
“Connor. Please.” Missy smiled at him, big and wide and wicked, the way he’d always loved her best. “What’s the point of living in sin if you don’t do it for long enough to horrify as many people as possible?”
He laughed. “Somehow I don’t think you’re taking to small-town life in quite the way you should.”
The truth was, whether she was reacclimating to small-town life or not, she was fantastic at her job. She’d been working at the Grand Hotel since right after New Year’s, and Douglas Fowler had been heard to say—in as close to emotional terms as a man like him was likely to get—that it was almost like having a family member taking over. That was how good she was, in his estimation. She was deserving of his highest possible accolade.
Connor wasn’t surprised at all.
“I told you,” Missy said then, rolling over on top of him and sliding her body against his. “I have no intention of ever forgetting who I am.”
They would never be conventional, Connor understood. They would do some things out of order, do other things solely to please themselves, and make the old ladies like Lucinda Early tut at them.
Truth was, Connor couldn’t wait.
“I wouldn’t let you forget,” he told her, kissing her again. And then again, because she was his, and he was hers, and everything flowed out of that and always would. “I love who you are, Missy Minton.”
And he had a lifetime to show her.
So that was what he did.
Also by Caitlin Crews
The Cold River Ranch Series
THE LAST REAL COWBOY
COLD HEART, WARM COWBOY
A TRUE COWBOY CHRISTMAS
Praise for A True Cowboy Christmas
“Readers willing to brave the emotional turmoil like a frigid winter day will be rewarded at the very end with Christmas warmth and love.”
—Booklist
“Get yourself a cowboy for Christmas this year!”
—Entertainment Weekly
“A True Cowboy Christmas will fill you with many emotions.… This is a good Christmas theme storyline, where love overcomes even life’s toughest, beat-in lessons.”
—Fresh Fiction
“Crews hits the mark by concentrating on personal development and internal struggles, minimizing outside drama. The story flows smoothly, is loaded with charming characters, and is full of wit. These mature, thoughtful, caring protagonists will win the heart of any romance fan.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Full of emotion, humor, and small-town charm. Caitlin Crews delivers everything I want in a cowboy!”
—Maisey Yates, New York Times bestselling author of Claim Me, Cowboy
“Caitlin Crews writes cowboys you’ll swoon over, heroines you’ll root for, and families that will grip your heart.”
—Nicole Helm, author of Cowboy SEAL Redemption
Praise for Cold Heart, Warm Cowboy
“Cold Heart, Warm Cowboy is definitely a feel-good cowboy romance.… Will warm your heart through and through. An excellent read.”
—Affaire de Coeur
“A fascinating read … If you love rodeo-riding, stubborn cowboys, heroines who don’t give up even when the odds are against them, an adorable little boy, and a love that won’t die, then you have to read Cold Heart, Warm Cowboy!”
—Fresh Fiction
Praise for The Last Real Cowboy
“Romance fans will eagerly devour this high-heat love story.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A thoroughly entertaining and deftly crafted romance novel by an expert in the genre.”
—Midwest Book Review
USA Today bestselling, RITA-nominated, and critically acclaimed author Caitlin Crews has written a lot of books: from women’s fiction, chick lit, and work-for-hire young adult novels to Harlequin Presents. These days her focus is on contemporary romance, from small town to international glamor, cowboys to bikers, and beyond. She sometimes teaches creative writing classes both online at mediabistro.com and at UCLA Extension’s prestigious Writers’ Program, where she finally utilizes the MA and PhD in English Literature she received from the University of York in York, England. She currently lives in California with a husband, who draws comics and animation storyboards, and their menagerie of ridiculous animals, or sign up for email updates here.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Chapter 1
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
Sweet Nights with a Cowboy
Also by Caitlin Crews
Praise Page
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
First published in the United States by St. Martin’s Paperbacks, an imprint of St. Martin’s Publishing Group.
SECRET NIGHTS WITH A COWBOY
Copyright © 2020 by Caitlin Crews.
“Sweet Nights with a Cowboy” copyright © 2020 by Caitlin Crews.
All rights reserved.
For information address St. Martin’s Publishing Group, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.
www.stmartins.com
eISBN: 9781250625502
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St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition 2020
Secret Nights with a Cowboy Page 34
