The Bull Rider Meets His Match
TESTING THE LIMITSRodeo star Grady Owen has a new challenge. No-nonsense Alexa Benjamin is tougher than any bull he’s ever faced…but she sure is a whole lot prettier! Not that Grady has time for much between caring for his twin nieces, rebuilding his family‘s farm and training. Trouble is, the more he tangles with Lex, the more he wants to win her heart.Lex is drawn to Grady…in spite of herself. But ever since her bullfighter father died in the ring, she’s determined to never need anyone again. She’s afraid, and Grady is all about facing fear head-on. Taking a chance on this bull rider is unthinkable…but so is the idea of letting him walk away!
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TESTING THE LIMITS
Rodeo star Grady Owen has a new challenge. No-nonsense Alexa Benjamin is tougher than any bull he’s ever faced...but she sure is a whole lot prettier! Not that Grady has time for much between caring for his twin nieces, rebuilding his family’s farm and training. Trouble is, the more he tangles with Lex, the more he wants to win her heart.
Lex is drawn to Grady...in spite of herself. But ever since her bullfighter father died in the ring, she’s determined to never need anyone again. She’s afraid, and Grady is all about facing fear head-on. Taking a chance on this bull rider is unthinkable...but so is the idea of letting him walk away!
“Maybe you’re playing a game, but I’m not.”
Lex closed the distance between them, pointing a finger at Grady.
“Yeah, you are, and we need to be honest with one another.”
“Here’s some honesty.” She reached out and yanked the towel off from around his shoulders, trying to startle the calm expression off his face. Why should he feel calm when she didn’t? He didn’t look massively startled by her unexpected action, but his eyes did narrow a little, so she plunged on. “We are not going out. We are not kissing one another. We are going to retreat to our neutral corners and stay there.”
She wadded up the towel and jammed it back at him.
“Whatever. If you need me, I’ll be in my corner.”
“Why would I need you?”
“One thing I’ve discovered in life, Lex, is that you never know who you might need.”
“And that’s where you’re wrong. I will never need you.” She meant it from the core of her being. Because needing Grady would put her in a very vulnerable position.
And Lex did not do vulnerable.
I have a confession—my favorite type of heroine to both read and write about is one that may not be all that easy to love at first. She’s tough and prickly and pushes people away. Why? Because beneath that prickly exterior is a whole lot of vulnerability. And vulnerability is scary. My heroine, Alexa Benjamin, is such a woman. She was raised by her single bullfighter father and grew up on the rodeo circuit, watching her dad prevent disaster—until he had his own disaster in the form of a heart attack while saving a bull rider. Lex isn’t afraid of much...except for losing someone else she loves.
Enter Grady Owen, a bull rider who not only drives Lex crazy with his cocky attitude, but also challenges her on many levels. Lex loves a good challenge and enjoys engaging with Grady...right up until she realizes that her feelings for him are changing, growing deeper, keeping her up at night. She will not allow herself to become involved with someone she may lose, and Grady isn’t the kind of guy who’s going to give up without a fight. The battle is on.
This is my first Mills & Boon American Romance book and I’m so thrilled to be part of the line. I write what I know—small towns, cowboys, rodeos and ranches. Mills & Boon American Romance is the perfect place to do that. I had so much fun writing The Bull Rider Meets His Match, and I hope you enjoy reading Lex and Grady’s story.
I love hearing from readers. Please feel free to contact me via my website, jeanniewatt.com, or my Facebook page, facebook.com/jeannie.watt.1.
Happy Reading!
Jeannie Watt
JEANNIE WATT lives in a historic Nevada ranching community with her husband, horses, ponies, dogs and cat. When she’s not writing, Jeannie loves to horseback ride, sew vintage fashions and, of course, read romance.
I’d like to dedicate this book to
Kathleen Scheibling, who guided me through my first Harlequin sale many years ago. Thank you, Kathleen! It’s good to be working with you again.
Contents
Alexa Benjamin had yet to see a bull rider who didn’t walk as if he owned the world, and the guy coming up the front walk of her best friend’s house? He looked as if he were in charge of the universe. Never in her twenty-eight years had she encountered anyone as sure of himself as Grady Owen. Nor anyone quite as irritating.
Lex stepped back from the window, gave her shoulders a roll then started toward the front door to head off trouble. Grady had just hit the top step when she walked out onto the porch and took a stance. When he saw her, his expression shifted from good-natured to hard so quickly it would have been comical if she didn’t suspect that he was there to screw up her best friend’s life. Again.
“Lex. What a pleasant surprise.” But there was no hint of friendliness in his gray eyes.
“Same here,” she said, folding her arms over her chest as she studied the man who was not going to get into the house. Like all bull riders, Grady was one tightly packed unit: average height, lean and wiry. Lex knew if she reached out and ran a hand over his arm, or any part of his body for that matter, all she would feel would be sinew and muscle. Sometimes, in the past, she’d felt a subtle urge to do just that, to touch his fascinatingly hard body. But Grady had always had that effect on her. He drove her crazy with his self-absorbed attitude and cockiness, yet a small part of her found him interesting. She’d reminded herself on more than one occasion that some people found major disasters interesting, also.
