New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Diana Palmer is back in Wyoming with a tale of love born in Big Sky Country...
Billionaire oilman Blair Coleman has always taken care of his business. After having been used and cast aside by a woman he thought he loved, his personal life is far from his first priority. He knows only one has ever truly cared for himâbut the irresistible blonde beauty is the daughter of his best friend.
Niki Ashton has seen her fatherâs friend wounded and sheâs seen him fight. Blair is the strongestâand most stubbornâman sheâs ever known. That very heart and passion makes him the man of her dreams, but whenever theyâve been in danger of getting close, Blair has always pushed her away.
It takes a possible tragedy to strip away all of Blairâs misgivings. Now itâs all or nothing: marriage, baby, family, forever. But will the choice be too much for Niki...or too late?
Praise for the novels of New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author
DIANA PALMER
âThe popular Palmer has penned another winning novel, a perfect blend of romance and suspense.â
âBooklist on Lawman
âDiana Palmer is a mesmerizing storyteller who captures the essence of what a romance should be.â
âAffaire de Coeur
âReaders will be moved by this tale of revenge and justice, grief and healing.â
âBooklist on Dangerous
âDiana Palmer is one of those authors whose books are always enjoyable. She throws in romance, suspense and a good story line.â
âThe Romance Reader on Before Sunrise
âLots of passion, thrills, and plenty of suspense... Protector is a top notch read!â
âRomance Reviews Today on Protector
âA delightful romance with interesting new characters and many familiar faces. Itâs nice to have a hero who is not picture-perfect in looks or instincts, and a heroine who accepts her privileged life yet is willing to work for the future she wants.â
âRT Book Reviews on Wyoming Tough
CHAPTER ONE
NICOLETTE ASHTONâS FATHER was always trying to get her to go out on dates. She loved rocks. Men, not so much. She was an introvert, shy and quiet with people she didnât know. She had a lovely face, a complexion like peaches and cream with long, soft, platinum-blond hair and eyes the color of a foggy September morning. Her figure was equally pretty. But she refused dates right and left. There was a man in her life. He just didnât know it. He thought she was too young. Sadly, that didnât keep her from longing for him.
Because of that, she kept to herself. Sheâd avoided dating all through college by going out with her girlfriends. But her friends said she needed involvement. They insisted that she needed to get out in the world and date somebody. They meant well. Perhaps she did need to get out more. It wasnât as if the object of her affections was ever going to reciprocate them.
So as the end of the semester neared, they set her up with this man. She didnât know him. He wasnât from Catelow, Wyoming, where she lived on her fatherâs cattle ranch. Her date was from Billings, Montana, where she went to college. At the moment, she wished sheâd never agreed to the blind date.
He was inconsiderate and frankly rude, especially when she insisted on being brought home to the family ranch, instead of going to her dateâs apartment. The ranch wasnât so far away, just about a twenty-minute drive. But Niki knew what was likely to happen if she agreed to go home with the man. However out of fashion it might be among her fellow college students in Billings, she didnât go with the crowd. Harvey, her date, refused to believe that any girl would refuse his advances. After all, he was a football star at the college both he and Niki attended, and he was very good-looking. He was used to women falling all over him. But Niki wouldnât.
âYou have to be out of your mind,â the young man, Harvey, muttered as he pulled into her driveway and raced up to the front steps of the grand Victorian mansion. âThere arenât any women left in the country who donât sleep around these days, for Godâs sake!â
âThere are some. Iâm one,â she said. âI agreed to go to dinner with you, Harvey. Only to dinner.â
He made an angry sound in his throat. He pulled up at her door. He studied her in the light from the front porch.
âYour old man home?â he asked.
âNot yet,â she said without thinking. âHe had a business meeting. But a friend of his is coming to stay with us for a few days. He should be here any minute.â It was a calculated lie. There was a friend, named Blair Coleman, who owned a multinational oil corporation. Niki had seen him infrequently when he came home with her father. In fact, sheâd had a flaming crush on him since she was seventeen, but he treated her like a child. So Blair Coleman was coming to stay. She just wasnât sure when. âI have to go in,â she added.