Dear Reader,
Welcome to the third and final book starring the Creed cowboys. First Steven and now his cousin, Conner, have settled down to married life, against all odds. But Connerâs twin, Brody, has never been one to put down roots; residents of Lonesome Bend, Colorado, know it will take a special woman to tame this restless spirit for good. Carolyn Simmons might be perfect for the jobâ¦too bad Brody is the opposite of everything she thought sheâd been waiting for!
I also wanted to write today to tell you about a special group of people with whom Iâve become involved in the past couple of years. It is The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), specifically their Pets for Life program.
The Pets for Life program is one of the best ways to help your local shelterâthat is, to help keep animals out of shelters in the first place. Something as basic as keeping a collar and tag on your pet all the time, so if he gets out and gets lost, he can be returned home. Being a responsible pet owner. Spaying or neutering your pet. And not giving up when things donât go perfectly. If your dog digs in the yard, or your cat scratches the furniture, know that these are problems that can be addressed. You can find all the information about theseâand many otherâcommon problems at www.petsforlife.org. This campaign is focused on keeping pets and their people together for a lifetime.
As many of you know, my own household includes two dogs, two cats and six horses, so this is a cause that is near and dear to my heart. I hope youâll get involved along with me.
With love,
Praise for the novels of Linda Lael Miller
âMiller tugs at the heartstrings as few authors can.â
âPublishers Weekly
â[Miller] is one of the finest American writers in the genre.â
âRT Book Reviews
âStrong characterization and a vivid western setting make for a fine historical romance.â
âPublishers Weekly on McKettrickâs Choice
âCompletely wonderful. Austinâs interactions with Paige are fun and lively and the mystery⦠adds quite a suspenseful punch.â
âRT Book Reviews on McKettricks of Texas: Austin
âMiller is the queen when it comes to creating sympathetic, endearing and lifelike characters. She paints each scene so perfectly readers hover on the edge of delicious voyeurism.â
âRT Book Reviews on McKettricks of Texas: Garrett
âA passionate love too long denied drives the action in this multifaceted, emotionally rich reunion story that overflows with breathtaking sexual chemistry.â
âLibrary Journal on McKettricks of Texas: Tate
âAll three titles should appeal to readers who like their contemporary romances Western, slightly dangerous and graced with enlightened (more or less) bad-boy heroes.â
âLibrary Journal on the Montana Creeds series
âMillerâs prose is smart, and her tough Eastwoodian cowboy cuts a sharp, unexpectedly funny figure in a classroom full of rambunctious frontier kids.â
âPublishers Weekly on The Man from Stone Creek
For Nicole Blint, with love.
Lonesome Bend, Colorado
RANCHING, BRODY CREED THOUGHT, shifting in the saddle as he surveyed the sprawling range land from a high ridge. It can mend a broken heart, this life, and then shatter it all over again, in a million and one different ways and twice that many pieces.
There were plenty of perils. Cattle starved or froze to death when a hard winter came around, which averaged once a year up there in the high country. Spring calves and colts fell prey to wolves and coyotes and sometimes bears, hungry after hibernating through the coldest months.
It was now May, and all was well, but come summertime, wells might dry up for lack of rain, and turn the grass to tinder, ready to blaze up at the smallest spark. Heâd seen wildfires consume hundreds of acres in a matter of hours, herds and houses and barns wiped out.
Year round, good horses went lame and pickup trucks gave up the ghost, and every so often, somebody drowned in the river or one of the lakes.
On the other hand, Brody reflected, the beauty of that land could heal, take a man by surprise, even though heâd called the place home all his life. That day, for instance, the sky was so blue it made Brodyâs heart ache, and the aspens, cottonwoods and pines lining the landscape were shimmering splashes of green, a thousand hues of it, ranging from silvery to near-indigo. The river wound like a ribbon through the valley, clear as azure glass.
After a few moments, Brody adjusted his hat and sighed before giving the gelding a light nudge with the heels of his boots. The buckskin, long-legged with a black mane and tail, picked his way cautiously down the steep slope that led to the waterâs edge.