A Cowboyâs Second Act
After nearly being mowed down by an entire parade led by his former girlfriend, Joel Darwood wonders if Briggs, Idaho, is the ideal place to raise his young daughter. Making a home in the tiny ranching town means confronting his pastâand the powerful feelings he still has for ornery, unforgiving Callaghan Grant.
Six years later, Callie still isnât over the lover with the smoking blue eyes and sexy swagger. But how can she forget the pain Joel and her former best friend caused? Still, her heart goes out to the widowed rancher, whoâs set on being the father his rabble-rousing five-year-old needs. Is it time for Callie to move onâwith her dream cowboy back in her arms where he belongs?
Callie stood only a few feet away from Joel.
She was so close he could almost reach out and touch her, but he controlled his desire.
âThey have a sense about them, horses do. It was a tough day, Joel, and Iâm sure theyâre glad to be home.â
âWe all are. Thank you for keeping yourself and my girl safe this afternoon. Iâll be forever grateful.â
Callie smiled and he wanted to drop to his knees right there. A mere thank-you didnât seem like enough. Not only was he grateful for his daughterâs safety, but he now realized just how grateful he was for Callieâs safety. He couldnât handle it if anything happened to either one of them.
âNot a problem. I was only doing what Iâd been trained to do from years of driving a truck on my ranch.â
He took a step closer, hoping she wouldnât move away. He felt drawn to her, as if heâd lost all power over his emotions.
Dear Reader,
I love writing about the characters that inhabit the small town of Briggs, Idaho. They never cease to amaze me, especially the children.
Each time I sit down to write a new book, I think I know my characters inside and out, but somewhere during the course of writing their story they take on their own identities. Suddenly, the past I carefully designed for each character doesnât meet their needs, so they up and change it. Whatâs even more surprising is when they change a secret desire I clearly thought they needed. Most of the time, it turns out to be something completely different than what Iâd planned.
Thatâs the writing processâ¦at least for me.
This story took on a darker tone than most of my books, with a deeper meaning. I wanted to delve into betrayal and loss, but I never expected to also take on abandonment, forgiveness and, eventually, acceptance.
Thatâs not to say all the humor is gone. Itâs not. But this time, itâs wrapped in a bit more drama than I had originally intended.
I hope you enjoy A Cowboy in Her Arms as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Please come visit me on Twitter, @maryleoauthor, or at Facebook.com/maryleoauthor, and while youâre there, please sign up for my newsletter.
All my best,
Mary
USA TODAY bestselling author MARY LEO grew up in South Chicago in the tangle of a big Italian family. Sheâs worked in Hollywood, Las Vegas and Silicon Valley. Currently she lives in San Diego with her husband, author Terry Watkins, and their sweet kitty, Sophie. Visit her website at maryleo.com.
For Kathryn Lye, who has always believed in my work, and championed each of my books. Youâre simply the best!
Prologue
Joel Darwood tried to take in what Mrs. Bradshaw was saying about his daughter, Emma, being disruptive to the class, causing the teacher to have to reprimand her after she bonked Jimmy Slater in the head with her baguette during lunch. He knew exactly where this conversation was heading. This was the third preschool his daughter would be expelled from, and she wasnât even five years old yet. What would happen when she was in regular school?
âFortunately, no one was hurt during the attack,â Mrs. Bradshaw said, looking as though the baguette could have caused immeasurable damage.
âIt was a baguette, still fresh from this morning when I picked it up at the bakery down the street. I hardly think we could consider it a weapon.â
âMaybe so, but she struck him.â
âJimmy is a full two inches taller than Emma, and if I have the story right, he swiped her Juicy Juice box and was taunting her with it.â
Mrs. Bradshaw grinned, seeming self-righteous as she intertwined her fingers, then rested her hands on the desk in front of her. âThatâs hardly a reason to smack him with her lunch. Plus, as you know, this isnât the first time Emma has disrupted the class. There were two other incidents that were far worse.â
âI wouldnât call asking for seconds on orange slices or refusing to go outside for recess when it was windy and snowing disrupting the class.â
âIt might not have been so bad if she had simply told her teacher she didnât want to go outside, but she inspired the entire class to rebel. Her behavior is quite unacceptable. Emma needs to learn how to follow rules, and so far, your child demonstrates signs of becoming a rabble-rouser, something we cannot abide here at Mission Academy. Therefore, Iâm afraid, Emma is no longer welcome at the academy.â