DO YOU NEED A COWBOY FIX?
New York Times bestselling author Vicki Lewis Thompson is back with more â¦
Sons of Chance
Chance isnât just the last name of these rugged
Wyoming cowboysâitâs their motto, too!
Saddle up with:
SHOULDâVE BEEN A COWBOY
August 2012
COWBOY UP
September 2012
COWBOYS LIKE US
October 2012
Take a chanceâ¦on a Chance!
Dear Reader,
When I was in college, my dad happened to be the Dean of Students, which created a massive problem for any guy who wanted to date me. Most boyfriends are a little nervous dealing with a girlâs father, but if that father has the power to destroy an entire college career, the stakes go way up.
I gave top cowhand Clay Whitaker a similar problem. He has a major attraction to the only daughter of Emmett Sterling, foreman of the Last Chance Ranch in the Jackson Hole area of Wyoming. As a former foster kid, Clay cherishes the ranch as his last chance for a real home. The family treats him as one of their own, and Emmett is the father heâs never had. Getting cozy with Emmettâs daughter Emily has the potential to ruin everything.
Yet Clayâs a hot-blooded cowboy with a taste for risk. Something tells me he will go for it, despite the high stakes. I fell in love with this guy, as I do all my heroes, but he has a special place in my heart because he started with so little and has so much to lose. Well, and he also looks amazing in a pair of jeans â¦
Welcome back to the SONS OF CHANCE series! It should be illegal to have this much fun!
Forever yours in cowboy country,
Vicki Lewis Thompson
New York Times bestseller VICKI LEWIS THOMPSONâs love affair with cowboys started with The Lone Ranger, continued through Maverick, and took a turn south of the border with Zorro. She views cowboys as the Western version of knights in shining armorârugged men who value honor, honesty and hard work. Fortunately for her, she lives in the Arizona desert, where broad-shouldered, lean-hipped cowboys abound. Blessed with such an abundance of inspiration, she only hopes that she can do them justice. Visit her website at www.vickilewisthompson.com.
To Rhonda Nelson, friend, top-notch painter of walls, and valued source of story ideas.
Thanks for my freshly painted walls and your excellent suggestion for Clayâs job description.
Jackson Hole, Wyoming July 21, 1961
CARRYING HIS COFFEE MUG, Archie Chance joined his wife, Nelsie, for their evening ritual of rocking on the front porch, gazing at the mountains and discussingâ¦whatever came up.
Archie settled in his chair and took a sip of his coffee before broaching the subject on his mind. âWhat do you think about frozen semen?â
Although some women might have been taken aback by such a question, Nelsie didnât bat an eye. âAre you fixing to freeze yours?â
That made him laugh. How he loved this woman. âNope. Donât think there would be much call for my semen considering that Iâve only been able to produce one son in all these years.â
âThatâs because you go for quality and not quantity.â
Archie gave her a smile. Their son, Jonathan, now fifteen, had turned out pretty damned well, if Archie did say so. The boy lived and breathed ranching just as Archie had hoped he would. There was no question that Jonathan would take over the Last Chance when the time came.
âSo whose frozen semen are you interested in, then?â Nelsie asked.
âGoliathâs. Iâve been reading about folks shipping frozen bull semen all over Godâs creation and making money doing it. Seeing as how the Last Chance is still a cattle operation and Goliath fetches a hefty stud fee, I wondered if I should look into it.â
Nelsieâs rocker creaked softly as she appeared to ponder that idea. âGoliath might not take to having his semen collected.â
âI know.â
âI would imagine he prefers to impregnate cows the old-fashioned way.â
âToo bad. Itâs the sixties. Times are changing. Goliath needs to change with them.â
Nelsie turned to gaze at him. âAnd you need more money to get this horse venture off the ground.â
âYeah.â He cradled his mug in both hands and watched the fading light play across the flanks of the Grand Tetons. âItâs a hell of a lot more expensive than I thought it would be, Nelsie, and it may take years, but someday the Last Chance is going to be known for raising the finest paints in Wyoming.â
July, present day
THE STALLIONâS SCREAM of sexual frustration ricocheted off the walls of a shed that smelled like fresh lumber and honest sweat, both human and horse. The Last Chance Ranch baked under a sun that shone with uncharacteristic ferocity. Clay Whitaker, whoâd recently been put in charge of the ranchâs stud program, wiped his face on his sleeve.
The new shed could use an air-conditioning unitâhumans would appreciate it, at least. The horses probably wouldnât care, judging from the ardor of Bandit, the black-and-white paint that claimed a higher stud fee than any other stallion in the Last Chance Ranch.