âI think you just like looking at me.â
The humour left Rebeccaâs eyes. âDonât flatter yourself.â
If Trevor hadnât struck a nerve, she wouldnât be half this upset. âSomeoneâs got to.â
She tossed her head. âYou can leave anytime now.â
âNot,â Trevor continued, answering the challenge in her golden-brown eyes, âbefore I do this.â
She had time to get away. They both knew it. Even as they both realised she didnât really think he would do it. And it was the dare that had him stepping forwards and wrapping an arm around her waist. He heard her soft gasp of surprise â and delight? â as he cupped his other hand beneath her chin and tipped her lips up to his.
The first contact was brief, like the flash of a sparkler.
âWhat was that for?â Rebecca asked, dazed.
âBlowed if I know,â he murmured, bending his head once again.
This book is dedicated to
Lukas Frederick Gerhardt, the âThird Musketeer,â
and the proof that wishes do come true.
Welcome to the family, little guy.
The joy youâve brought us is indescribable.
And one more thing: if your two older brothers try to
give you the businessâ¦you give it right backâ¦
CATHY GILLEN THACKER
married her school sweetheart and hasnât had a dull moment since. Why? you ask. Well, there were three kids, various pets, any number of cars, several moves across the country, his and her careers and sundry other experiences (some of which were exciting and some of which werenât). But mostly there was love and friendship and laughter, and lots of experiences she wouldnât trade for the world.
Dear Reader,
All parents want their children to be happy and have a good life. For Texans Luke and Meg Carrigan, this means marriage and a family. They didnât plan to become involved in their offspringâs romantic lives, but, after years of watching their three daughters and one son lose in love, Luke has decided to become more proactive, and Meg is reluctantly putting in her contribution, as well.
Rebecca Carrigan, arguably the most headstrong and independent of the lot, is the fi rst to get the full attention of her parents when she comes back to Laramie to start her own alpaca ranch.
Rebecca tells Trevor McCabe there is no way she is going to date him, no matter what her matchmaking parents have â or have not â arranged. Thatâs fine with Trevor â there is no way he is going to date Rebecca, either!
Unfortunately, life has a way of happening when Rebecca and Trevor are busy making other plans. Before they know it, their lives and fortunes are hopelessly entangled, and their emotions soon follow suit.
I hope you enjoy this book as much as I enjoyed writing it. For information on this and other books, please visit me at www.cathygillenthacker.com.
Best wishes,
Cathy Gillen Thacker
Chapter One
âI take it youâve heard the rumors,â Luke Carrigan said as he ushered Trevor McCabe into the study of his Laramie, Texas home.
Who in the county hadnât?
Tired of his three daughtersâ well-known aversion to commitment, Luke Carrigan had vowed to take a hand in introducing them all to âsuitableâ men, in what Trevor figured was a vain hope they would soon settle down and have families.
What was it about their parentsâ generation, Trevor wondered, dropping down into the wing chair Luke indicated, that made them think marriage was essential to a personâs happiness? He was content living the single life, and saw no reason to change his own circumstances.
âDonât worry, thatâs not why youâre here,â Luke continued.
Trevor held back a sigh of relief.
Luke sat down behind his desk. âI did want to talk to you about Rebecca, though.â
Trevor tensed. Lukeâs second-to-oldest child had been two years behind him in school. The two of them had nothing in common thenâor now. He vaguely recalled Rebecca Carrigan as a rah-rah type who had always been busy organizing something.
âShe has a tendency to go off onâwell, letâs just call them tangents.â
Trevor didnât know what Luke was getting at, but he was willing to hear the noted family physician out and settled more comfortably in his seat. âLast I heard Rebecca was in Asia.â
âActually, sheâs been all over the world with the tour company she worked for.â
Trevor shrugged his broad shoulders. âThatâs one way to travel the globe.â
âDonât get me wrong. Iâm very proud of how hard Rebecca has worked since she graduated college. Even more delighted with the staggering amount of money she has saved in the past six years.â Luke paused and looked at Trevor, his eyes full of parental concern. âWhat worries me is what she plans to do with it.â
Trevor grimaced. âDr. Carrigan, I really donât think this is any of my business.â
âYou may change your mind when you hear what my second-to-oldest daughter has planned.â
Trevor doubted it. Honorable men did not step in the middle of other familiesâ contretemps.
âYou know that small ranch youâve had your eye on?â