âDonât try to sweet-talk me,â Dani warned
âWhy not?â Jack demanded, kissing the dimples at the base of her spine.
She jumped as if shot. âStop that!â She batted him behind her back without turning around.
Smoothing his palms over her hips, he let out a gusty sigh. âThis could be habit-forming.â
âListen!â Leaping up, she kept her back to him while she pulled on her clothes. âWhat just happened was a huge mistake. The truth is, I have no intention of getting serious about any man until Iâm at least thirty.â
âWho said anything about getting serious?â Frowning, he sat up. âThat doesnât mean I intend to stop living, though.â A significant glance at the bed conveyed exactly what he meant by âliving.â
âWhatever,â she snapped. âI intend to forget this ever happened. I suggest you do the same.â
âI donât think I can do that,â he said, tracing the line of her jaw with his finger. And then he added what was obviously intended as a challenge. âI donât think youâll forget it so easily, either.â
Dear Reader,
There are lots of ways to start over. My favorite is to tack a sign on your door declaring that youâve âGone to Texas,â and then just take off.
Really. During the frontier days, thatâs exactly what discouraged Southerners and Yankees alike used to do when they flat gave up. Maybe they were dodging creditors or the law, but often they just wanted a fresh start. Whatever their reasons, theyâd hang that sign, often abbreviated to G.T.T. and go.
Which is exactly what the Keene triplets do when they receive an unexpected inheritance: a dude ranch in the Lone Star state. Saying goodbye to Montana, Dani, Toni and Niki pack up and travel south with their beloved grandma. No pioneers ever had higher hopes of building new and better lives.
Only wise old Grandma dreams that new life will include so much love and laughter.
Welcome to Hard Knox, Texas, where the men are handsome, the horses are fast and the women are smart enough to appreciate bothâeventually. The Wranglerâs Woman is the story of the âsmartâ sister, but weâve still got the âniceâ sister and the âprettyâ sister to go! Look for Almost a Cowboy in April and The Cowgirlâs Man in May.
So welcome to the Bar-K Dude Ranch, folks. Yâall come back, hear?
Ruth Jean Dale
This book is dedicated to everyone whoâs ever wanted to pull up stakes and start over. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!
ALL THE INTERESTING STUFF happened at the Elk Tooth Community Center.
The picturesque log structure at the edge of the little Montana town served as the site for parties and wedding receptions, political meetings and club gatherings, summer youth programs and holiday galas.
Tilly Collins, aka Mrs. Santa Claus each December for as long as anyone could remember, had seen them all during the past fifty years. But sheâd never seen anything quite like the outpouring of woe on this particular occasion. And understandably so: a town as small as Elk Tooth could hardly enjoy saying goodbye to three of the most eligible women in the entire state of Montanaânot to mention their always-ready-with-a-cookie-and-a-smile grandmother.
âCare for a cup of punch, Tilly?â
Mason Kilgore, the middle-aged photographer who also served as part-time manager of the local chamber of commerce, handed over a small paper cup. Tilly took it with a smile of thanks.
Mason shook his gray head in apparent disbelief. Sitting on the folding chair next to hers, he said mournfully, âI sure do hate to see you and the girls leave. I go out of town for two weeks and look what happens.â
âSurprised us, too,â Tilly admitted with a chuckle. âWe had no idea what happened to the tripletsâ no-account pa after he deserted them and their mother all those years ago. This inheritance came out of the clear blue sky.â
Mason grimaced. âI canât hardly blame them for wanting to claim a deluxe-type dude ranch, but in Texas?â
âEven in Texas.â She nodded for emphasis. âItâs the only decent thing Wil Keene ever did for his girls.â
âWhen are you folks leaving?â
âTomorrow morning. Weâve sent what we need ahead. Me ânâ the girls will drive down pulling a horse trailer.â Now it was Tillyâs turn to make a face. âDani wouldnât go anywhere without that horse of hers.â
âDonât blame her. That Appaloosa is worth a lot of money and sheâs smart enough to know that.â
Tilly sought out Danielle across the crowded room. Oldest of the twenty-five-year-old Keene triplets, Dani was universally acknowledged to be âthe smart oneâ of the bunch: the sister with the quick wit, the sharp tongue and the overdeveloped work ethic.
Dani stood near the punch bowl, deep in conversation with the middle-aged owner of the ranch where sheâd worked for the past several years. Her brown eyes gleamed with intelligence as she nodded in understanding. Cute as a button, she wore the local costumeâdenim and bootsâand sheâd let wavy hair the color of chocolate fall free to the middle of her back.