MEET THE FORTUNES!
Fortune of the Month: Oliver Fortune Hayes
Age: 37
Vital Statistics: Blue-eyed, exceedingly handsome aristocrat and single dad. Heâs just a tad ⦠uptight.
Claim to Fame: Sir Oliver is rich. Really rich.
Romantic prospects: Suddenly heâs got a toddler in diapers and a dog barely housebroken. Just how much are most women willing to take on?
âI can manage millions, but when it comes to my small Fortune, I havenât a clue. Shannon makes it all look so easy. She can handle baby Ollie and even get barking Barnaby to toe the line. But when Shannon and I are together, I feel as though Iâm losing control all over again. Sheâs too young for me, too exuberant, too ⦠Shannon. The logical part of me says I should hightail it back to London before anyone gets hurt. But thereâs another part that says, What if â¦â
****
The Fortunes of Texas: Cowboy Country:
Lassoing hearts from across the pond!
Chapter One
Shannon Singleton took a sip of the Superetteâs medium roast coffee and exhaled a happy sigh. Since returning to Horseback Hollow several months earlier, sheâd come to realize how much sheâd missed the town in north Texas where sheâd grown up.
The postage-stamp eating area of the Superette consisted of three orange vinyl booths and two tables, each adorned with a bud vase of silk flowers. Nice, but no comparison to the cute little coffee shop Shannon used to frequent when she lived in Lubbock.
Still, the location was bright and cheery. Thanks to a wall of glass windows, Shannon even had a stellar view of the large pothole in the middle of the street.
âI wish theyâd choose one of us and get it over with.â Rachel Robinson expelled a frustrated sigh and sat back in the booth.
Shannon enjoyed meeting her friend every Tuesday morning for coffee, but frankly was tired of obsessing overâand discussingâthe job they both wanted.
It was a bit awkward, being in competitionâagainâwith her friend. The other times Rachel had bested her, it had been over inconsequential things; like the last piece of dessert at the Hollows Cantina or the pair of boots theyâd both spotted at that cute little boutique in Vickerâs Corners.
This time was different. This time the outcome mattered. Professional positions in this small town an hour south of Lubbock were few and far between. And Shannon really wanted the marketing job with the Fortune Foundation.
In the four years since graduation from Texas Tech with a degree in business, all of Shannonâs experience had been in marketing. Rachel had readily admitted she didnât have experience in the marketing arena.
But that fact didnât mean squat. Just as with those pretty turquoise boots, it seemed whenever she and Rachel competed for anything, Rachel came out ahead.
âEarth to Shannon.â
Shannon brought the cup to her lips and focused on her friend. She and Rachel were both in their midtwenties, had brown hair and similar interests. But thatâs where the comparison ended. Shannon considered herself slightly above average while Rachel was stunning. âWhat? Rewind.â
âWouldnât it be cool if they hired us both?â Rachel smiled at the thought and broke off a piece of scone. The womanâs cheerful nature was just one of her many admirable qualities.
âI guess weâll find out...but not until the end of February.â Shannon added more cream to her coffee, her tone pensive. âI donât see why it has to take that long. They completed interviews last month.â
âItâs probably because theyâre just getting this office location up and running,â Rachel said, sounding way too understanding.