A Cowboy Kind of Love
Heart of Texas, Book 6
By
Donna Grant
A dashing cowboy gets his second chance at romance in A Cowboy Kind Of Love, the next book in the Heart of Texas series by New York Times bestselling author Donna Grant.
Who wants to rodeo again?
Blurb:
Jace Wilder has been rebuilding his life since the love of his life, Taryn, up and left town unexpectedly. But when she mysteriously returns, Jace’s dependable world comes crashing down. Taryn is hiding a dangerous secret, and no matter how hard he tries, Jace can’t stay away—especially when Taryn is at risk. And especially when the attraction he thought he’d buried long ago is back and hotter than ever. Will he be able to trust Taryn again?
Taryn Hillman’s world fell apart one horrifying night, and it’s never been the same since. When she sees a small chance at untangling herself, she takes it, though it means returning to Clearview—and seeing Jace again. But when he vows to protect her, will Taryn take a chance, and this time, never let him go?
“A captivating romance novel with a sexy cowboy making this perfect for anyone who loves a steamy romantic read.”—Fresh Fiction on My Favorite Cowboy
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Book Excerpt
Jace came awake suddenly from the nightmare. He took a few moments to
make sure the dream had faded away enough that he wouldn’t get dragged back
into those memories. It had taken him a long time to pull himself from those.
Thankfully, they only bothered him occasionally now, which was much better than
when he had first been rescued, and the nightmares plagued him every time he
closed his eyes.
With his head feeling as if an entire football team took turns kicking
him, he saw the bright light from the window from behind his closed lids. His
mouth felt like cotton. He tried to swallow and realized that he was lying face
down on the sofa. That’s when he heard a jingle on repeat.
He cracked open one eye to find his best friend, Cooper Owens, sitting in
a chair opposite him, playing the stupid game on his phone that drove Jace
bananas simply because Cooper always had to leave the music on. Because it
annoyed Jace.
“Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty,” Cooper said without looking away from
the screen.
Jace shut his eye and wished he could go back to sleep. But first, he
needed to stop the pounding in his head. He used his arms to push himself up.
The effort that took told him that he had imbibed a little too much the night
before. The problem was that it took more and more each time he needed to numb
himself from the pain.
“What are you doing here?” he asked as he rolled onto his side.
Cooper didn’t immediately answer until he had won his level. Then, he
lowered the phone and looked at Jace. “Ryan. He didn’t think you should be left
alone. He got called to an emergency, so he phoned me.”
“Stop giving me that holier-than-thou look,” Jace grumbled. “I seem to
recall babysitting you when you got drunk.”
Cooper scratched his neck. “Yep. You sure have. But this is your second
time this week.”
“No, it isn’t,” Jace said. But the minute the words were out of his
mouth, he knew that his friend was right.
Cooper leaned forward and put his phone on the coffee table between them.
“I’d just crawled into bed with Marlee when Ryan called.”
It went unsaid that both Cooper and Marlee were irritated with Jace. Not
that he blamed them. He would feel the same in their shoes. Jace managed to
shift so he was sitting on the couch. That’s when he looked down and found
himself in nothing but his boxer briefs.
“You can thank Ryan for that,” Cooper said, not bothering to hide his
smile. “Apparently, you were adamant about getting naked. He somehow managed to
make you keep your briefs on, though I’m not sure I want to know how.” The
smile died as he licked his lips. “You’re spiraling out of control.”
Jace ran a hand down his face and closed his eyes. The phrase rode hard
and put up wet didn’t even come close to describing how poorly he felt. That in
itself should have been enough to make sure he didn’t drink that much again for
some time. But he knew it wouldn’t.
“Jace?” Cooper said.
He looked at his best friend, noting the seriousness on Cooper’s face. “I
know.”
“Do you? Because you’re worrying the hell out of me. We’ve been down this
road before.”
Thankfully, Cooper didn’t say her name. Jace never said it either—except
in his dreams. He leaned forward and propped his elbows on his thighs as he
dropped his face into his hands. “F*ck.”
The chair creaked as Cooper rose. Jace heard him go into the kitchen. A
moment later, Cooper returned and set something on the table. “Hair of the
dog.”
Jace immediately reached for the shot of tequila and drank it. He wiped
his mouth with the back of his hand and set the glass back on the coffee table.
The shot helped a little, but only time—as well as some water and food—would
mend what the alcohol had done. “Thanks.”
Cooper sat back down and released a sigh. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“Nope.” The last thing Jace wanted to do was rehash what had happened the
day before that’d sent him straight to the bottle. After all these years, he
should be over her. Why couldn’t his heart let her go? Why couldn’t he find
someone new? His three friends had. Was he destined to spend his life alone?
Maybe that was it. Perhaps he’d had his shot with her and had done
something to screw it up, which then caused her to leave. He’d never know since
she hadn’t said anything to him. He’d simply gone to her house one morning, and
she was gone. No trace left behind. Not even his friends in law enforcement
could find her.
“Maybe you need to go back to your therapist,” Cooper offered. “He did
wonders to help you get past everything that happened when you were a POW.”
Jace shot him a smile and said, “You sound like my mom.”
Cooper didn’t respond to the jest. “Because we’re worried.”
“I know,” he said and got to his feet. He moved too quickly, and the room
spun. Jace fell back onto the sofa and dropped his head onto the cushion. “How
many more times do I have to say that I’m all right before y’all start
believing me?”
“I think you’ve reached the limit.”
Jace twisted his lips as he stared at the ceiling. “Yeah. You’re probably
right.”
“You aren’t alone in this.”
But he was. Jace didn’t argue with Cooper because he knew what his friend
meant. However, Cooper, Brice, and Caleb all had women of their own now. Brice
was a father, as well. Their families came before anything else.
Jace lifted his head and met Cooper’s forest green eyes. “Go home to
Marlee and have breakfast with her.”
“It’s nearly one in the afternoon.”
Jace shrugged. “Then have lunch.”
“She’s with her parents. You and I are going to grab some food. Take a
shower. You need it.”
Jace made a face but got up—slower this time—and headed to his room. Once
in the shower, he stood beneath the spray for a long time before starting to
wash. As he did, his mind drifted. He recalled coming home the night before and
thinking he saw Taryn. She had looked so real, but he knew that wasn’t the
case. Jace tried to put it out of his mind as he finished bathing and dried
off.
He raked his hands through his hair and opted not to shave since the last
thing he needed was to put a razor in a hand that still shook from the effects
of the alcohol. He found some clothes and dressed before walking from his room
to find Cooper returning from feeding the cat on the back porch.
“You look better,” Cooper said.
Jace shrugged. “Showers can do wonders.”
“How’s the head?”
“Still pounding.”
“Your truck is at the bar. I’ll drop you by after you’ve gotten some
food. You always feel better after you eat,” Cooper said.
Jace couldn’t argue with him. After putting on his cowboy hat and
grabbing some sunglasses, the two of them walked from the house and were
immediately blasted by the Texas heat.
“It’s going to be a scorcher of a summer,” Cooper said when Jace made a
sound. “Especially if it’s this hot in June.”
Jace put on his sunglasses as he hurried to the truck. Cooper’s chuckle
didn’t help matters. The bright sun after a night of hard drinking was always
difficult to bear. A comfortable silence fell between them as Cooper drove to
one of their favorite places to eat. They didn’t speak until they were inside
the restaurant and greeted by the employees who knew them both by name.
In minutes, they were in their preferred booth at the back, their hats
hanging on hooks on the wall. After they ordered, Cooper put his arms on the
table. He looked Jace square in the eyes and said, “What happened yesterday?”
“Nothing.”
He shot Jace a dry look. “I know it wasn’t the date she left.”
Jace sighed loudly. “If you must know, it was the anniversary of the
first time I saw her.”
“You keep up with that?” Cooper asked incredulously. “I can’t remember
when I first met Marlee.”
“Bullshit. You can try that on anyone else. Not me.”
Cooper’s face broke into a grin. “All right. You’ve got me. I do know.
But only because it wasn’t that long ago.”
“Trust me. If Marlee left, you’d remember all sorts of dates. The day you
first saw her, the day you asked her out, the day you first kissed, the day you
first told her you loved her.”
“And the day she left,” Cooper replied in a soft voice.
Without bothering to answer, Jace looked out the window to the parking
lot. The pain had been unbearable yesterday, and it wasn’t much better today.
Especially not after the dream he’d had about her. That day with the ride out
to the river had been a perfect one. The weather had been temperate, the sky
the brightest blue he’d ever seen, and the river slow. They had made love in
the water before basking beneath the sun on a blanket. Then they had ridden
around the property, stopping to walk, talk, kiss and make love again.
Every day with Taryn had been special.
“It’s been almost five years. We may not be blood, but you’re my brother
in any way I look at it. I know you loved her, but it’s time to let her go.
It’s time to move on.”
Jace jerked his head back to Cooper. “Don’t you think I’ve tried?”
“I don’t think you’ve tried hard enough,” Cooper replied, though there
was no heat in his words. “I think you’re holding on because you believe she
was your one and only chance.”
“Maybe she was.”
Cooper rolled his eyes and sat back. “Now I’m the one calling bullshit.
If you really wanted to move on, you could.”
“Some people don’t.”
“After everything you survived while in the military—”
Jace glared at him. “Don’t finish that sentence.”
“Fair enough,” Cooper said as he raised his hands in defeat.
Jace shook his head, angry at himself for getting so riled up at his
friend voicing the very things he told himself. “I’m sorry.”
“No, you’re right. I shouldn’t have gone there,” Cooper said.
“You’re my friend, my brother. You’ve never hesitated to tell me the
harsh reality, just as I never spared you. I shouldn’t ask you to do it now.”
Cooper put his hands in his lap. “You’re one of the best men I know.
You’ve been through hell and back. And despite it all, you smile. If anyone
deserves to find happiness, it’s you. I want you to know that. Just because she
gave up on you doesn’t mean there isn’t someone out there who won’t. Someone
whose family accepts you and welcomes you into their lives. Someone who won’t
keep things from you or run off in the middle of the night.”
“There are things we probably don’t know.”
“Maybe.”
Jace narrowed his eyes at Cooper. Something in his friend’s voice caused
Jace to be wary. “What does that mean?”
“Nothing,” Cooper said with a shrug. “I’m agreeing with you.”
“No, you know something.”
Cooper spread his arms. “I don’t.”
“You contacted Cash, didn’t you?” Jace stated.
Cooper dropped his chin to his chest and blew out a breath. After a
moment, he looked at Jace. “I did.”
“When?”
Cooper briefly lowered his gaze to the table. “A couple of months ago.”
“And?”
“Cash was having problems locating her. And when Marlee found out that I
hired Cash, she chewed my ass real good for butting my nose into your business.
She said that if you wanted to hire someone, you could have. I realized she was
right, and I told Cash to stop looking for her.”
“Good.” But the more Jace thought about it, the more he considered hiring
Cash himself. He needed answers about why Taryn had left. Cash could give that
to him.
If he dared to look.
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