Cattleman's Honor

Cattleman's Honor
Pamela Toth

SINGLE…WITH CHILDRENRunning from a bad divorce Emily Major was looking for peace, quiet and a safe new life for her son. She was not looking for love, not even from a walking, talking cowboy fantasy like her new neighbor….But rancher Adam Winchester was used to getting his way, especially when it came to women. With sweet talk and persistence, this hard-as-nails single father was determined to win Emily's heart–come hell, high water or…teenagers. With their kids wreaking havoc on romance, could they be lovers and family? Just how far was Adam willing to go to make the land–and the woman–his?

“I’ve kept you long enough.”

“Another minute isn’t going to matter.” Standing so close, Adam seemed even larger than before, more solid without being the least bit threatening—except to her peace of mind. Emily tried to step back, but her butt bumped the fender of her truck. There was no room to retreat. If she didn’t get out of here, she was going to start batting her lashes and licking her lips.

With one hand he removed her sunglasses and set them on the hood of her truck. Emily’s breath snagged in her throat as Adam cupped her chin lightly. He was near enough for her to see that the green of his irises was only a thin band around the black of his pupils.

“I’m going to be damned sorry I did this,” he muttered. And then he bent his head toward hers….

Dear Reader,

A rewarding part of any woman’s life is talking with friends about important issues. Because of this, we’ve developed the Readers’ Ring, a book club that facilitates discussions of love, life and family. Of course, you’ll find all of these topics wrapped up in each Silhouette Special Edition novel! Our featured author for this month’s Readers’ Ring is newcomer Elissa Ambrose. Journey of the Heart (#1506) is a poignant story of true love and survival when the odds are against you. This is a five-tissue story you won’t be able to put down!

Susan Mallery delights us with another tale from her HOMETOWN HEARTBREAKERS series. Good Husband Material (#1501) begins with two star-crossed lovers and an ill-fated wedding. Years later, they realize their love is as strong as ever! Don’t wait to pick up Cattleman’s Honor (#1502), the second book in Pamela Toth’s WINCHESTER BRIDES series. In this book, a divorced single mom comes to Colorado to start a new life—and winds up falling into the arms of a rugged rancher. What a way to go!

Victoria Pade begins her new series, BABY TIMES THREE, with a heartfelt look at unexpected romance, in Her Baby Secret (#1503)—in which an independent woman wants to have a child, and after a night of wicked passion with a handsome businessman, her wish comes true! You’ll see that there’s more than one way to start a family in Christine Flynn’s Suddenly Family (#1504), in which two single parents who are wary of love find it—with each other! And you’ll want to learn the facts in What a Woman Wants (#1505), by Tori Carrington. In this tantalizing tale, a beautiful widow discovers she’s pregnant with her late husband’s best friend’s baby!

As you can see, we have nights of passion, reunion romances, babies and heart-thumping emotion packed into each of these special stories from Silhouette Special Edition.

Happy reading!

Karen Taylor Richman

Senior Editor

Cattleman’s Honor

Pamela Toth

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

In loving memory of my mother, Dorothea Coles,

who inspired and encouraged me.

PAMELA TOTH

USA TODAY bestselling author Pamela Toth was born in Wisconsin, but grew up in Seattle where she attended the University of Washington and majored in art. Now living on the Puget Sound area’s east side, she has two daughters, Erika and Melody, and two Siamese cats.

Recently she took a lead from one of her romances and married her high school sweetheart, Frank. They live in a town house within walking distance of a bookstore and an ice-cream shop, two of life’s necessities, with a fabulous view of Mount Rainier. When she’s not writing, she enjoys traveling with her husband, reading, playing FreeCell on the computer, doing counted cross-stitch and researching new story ideas. She’s been an active member of Romance Writers of America since 1982.

Her books have won several awards and they claim regular spots on the Waldenbooks bestselling romance list. She loves hearing from readers and can be reached at P.O. Box 5845, Bellevue, WA 98006. For a personal reply, a stamped, self-addressed envelope is appreciated.

Contents

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter One

Ignoring her teenage son’s glowering expression, Emily Major shut off the engine of her new pickup truck and slid out from behind the wheel. Heart pounding with excitement, she grabbed a bag of groceries and breathed deeply of the clean Colorado air. In front of Emily was a modest ranch house with a wide, inviting porch, the first home she’d ever had a say in choosing.

“Are you going to sit there all day?” she finally demanded through the open window of the truck.

David hadn’t wanted to come here from their home in L.A., but he hadn’t wanted his mother and father to get a divorce, either. Even though the breakup hadn’t been her choice, Emily suspected that David blamed her for it as well as for moving him to Waterloo.

David didn’t honor her with a reply. His arms were folded across his chest and his head was turned away. His bleached hair was hidden by a baseball cap, and the sun glinted on the small gold hoop in his ear.

Emily had no idea how to reach him anymore. The loving little boy who had believed she’d hung the moon had been replaced by a brooding stranger with a partially shaved head and a permanent curl to his lip. Sometimes the pain in his eyes, brown like her own, broke her heart.

It was for David’s sake that she’d uprooted the two of them and her business. She would do anything to keep her son safe, but he hated everything she did. Sometimes she wondered whether he hated her, as well.

With a sigh, Emily dug the new brass key from her purse and headed up the path to the house. She’d been here once before, after spotting the classified ad in a real estate magazine. She’d been desperate to get out of L.A., but David had of course refused to come with her to look at the property—just as he’d refused to believe she would consider moving to the American wasteland, as he called anything outside southern California.

They had spent last night in town, sharing a motel room equipped with sagging beds, a bathroom faucet that dripped all night into a rust-stained sink and a black-and-white TV with two channels. Now their suitcases and David’s motorbike were in the back of the pickup. The truck with the rest of their belongings was supposed to meet them here this morning.

When she’d driven through the center of the sleeping town late last night, David had made rude comments about the false-fronted buildings, the cowboy they’d seen walking down the wooden sidewalk and the community in general. Finally, Emily, exhausted by the long drive and the uncertainty gnawing a hole in her stomach, had lost her temper and snapped at David. He’d barely spoken since, but at least he’d stopped sneering long enough to wolf down a huge country breakfast this morning at the little café on the rustic main street. Beneath all the bravado and attitude, he was still a typical sixteen-year-old with a hollow void for a stomach.

“What are you doing?” he called out as she lugged the bag of groceries up the front porch steps.

Encouraged, Emily plastered a wide smile on her face and turned around. She pushed her sunglasses back up her nose with her free hand. Despite the cool breeze, the spring sunshine was dazzling. After the cacophony of noise in L.A., the silence here was a sound in itself.

“I’m going inside our new home. Why don’t you come and look around?” she invited with a sweeping gesture.