Bachelor Cowboy

Bachelor Cowboy
Patricia Knoll

First-time father!Sworn bachelor Luke Farraday's stubborn resistance to help or friendship–least of all from a woman–had been an infuriating puzzle to Shannon Kelleher since their first prickly meeting. Until Luke's sister left him temporarily in charge of his tiny baby nephew!To her amuesement, the usually independent tough guy was helplessly out of his depth–and desperate for Shannon's assistance. As she taught the reluctant "father" to feed and change little Cody, Shannon noticed a change in Luke. His defenses were melting&#151just like her heart. And slowly his story began to emerge….Marriage TiesThe four Kelleher women, bound together by family and love.

“Welcome to fatherhood.” (#u12bec7e4-e22f-588a-8d66-cf678bb80c38)Letter to Reader (#u0f370df7-6aab-5659-9d8b-b52379f68a8d)Praise (#u5f410100-cb7d-5bd1-a9b2-ccb0ff81c311)Title Page (#u3af505c8-08fa-599f-8324-fbd60f33e0fc)CHAPTER ONE (#u1e5f72d3-e56a-532c-bad7-c822d9bdc14e)CHAPTER TWO (#uee946623-b4de-5ca4-9bdf-4bfad84fc049)CHAPTER THREE (#u2ba55079-12ef-511a-843c-7df748a7bfcc)CHAPTER FOUR (#litres_trial_promo)CHAPTER FIVE (#litres_trial_promo)CHAPTER SIX (#litres_trial_promo)CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)

“Welcome to fatherhood.”

With a growl, Luke clapped his hat onto the hat rack. “This isn’t fatherhood,” he said, whirling back to face her. “This is only temporary. No way is this going to be permanent.”

“Well, no,” Shannon said carefully, taken aback by his vehemence. “You said your sister would be back for the baby.”

“That’s right.” He took a couple of frustrated turns around the room. “Then things will get back to being normal around here.”

Meaning lonely, Shannon thought. Even though she knew she should drop the subject, she was compelled to ask, “Don’t you ever have plans to be a father, Luke?”

“Heck, no. I like being a bachelor. I like it fine. I’m just not cut out to be a husband or father.”

Shannon’s heart sank, but this was too interesting not to pursue. “Mind telling me why?”

Dear Reader,

Bachelor Cowboy is the third book in my miniseries MARRIAGE TIES, about a family of strong women, the Kellehers. I have already told you the stories of Rebecca, in Another Chance for Daddy, and of Brittnie, in Wedding Bells. If you read these you are ready for Shannon’s story. If you are new to the series, welcome!

In the course of her job, Shannon clashes with sexy but stubborn Luke Farraday. It seems their differences won’t be resolved until Luke has temporary care of his baby . nephew, and Shannon is the one he turns to for help . . .

Later this year, look for Revolution: Marriage, the story of Mary Jane, the mother of these three women. Reunited with her high school sweetheart, she must come to terms with a secret she’s kept for more than twenty-five years.

Be prepared to laugh, and maybe to cry, but certainly to enjoy the strength and resourcefulness of Rebecca, Brittnie, Shannon and Mary Jane.

Happy Reading!

Praise for Wedding Bells:

“...an engaging tale.”

—Romantic Times

Bachelor Cowboy

Patricia Knoll

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

CHAPTER ONE

His backside looked good.

Shannon Kelleher stood beside one of the empty stalls in Luke Farraday’s barn and looked up to where he was perched on a huge beam that ran the width of the building. He was inspecting the underside of the roof, and she was honest enough to admit that she was inspecting him.

When she had first seen him, backlit by the June afternoon sun streaming in through the hay door, she’d caught her breath and stared, standing silently in the shadows. She hadn’t called out to announce her arrival for fear of startling him. She just wanted to look.

She liked what she saw, long legs, wide shoulders whose muscles rippled and lengthened as he reached up with a hammer in one hand. He was rapping loudly, methodically on the underside of the shingles, which explained why he didn’t seem to have heard her drive up.

His other hand was braced against a header joist to keep himself from falling. He was wearing boots, the heels notched over the edge of a beam. That position served to extend his legs and tighten the muscles all the way up.

Nice buns, she thought. Scientifically speaking, of course.

Shannon bit her lip to hide a grin. All right, maybe that was exaggerating a bit. She couldn’t actually see the muscles. Besides, human anatomy didn’t have a whole lot to do with her job as a range management specialist. Her areas of expertise were soils, grasses and water control. On the other hand, she appreciated anything that nature had put together beautifully.

Nature hadn’t exactly been sleeping on the job while assembling Luke Farraday. At least, that’s who she thought this man was. There was no one else around.

Shannon admitted that she should be ashamed of herself for ogling the man, especially considering how she hated that kind of thing herself. She had been on the receiving end of sexism more times than she could count and more often in the past year than ever before in her life or career.

Still, she wasn’t being lewd and lascivious. It was more like art appreciation, she thought, leaning against the stall railing and crossing her booted ankles. Like viewing Michelangelo’s David—with a Western theme. The only way it could get any better would be if he took his shirt off.

Besides, she thought, she deserved a little self-indulgent ogling because she’d been sick for a week with a middle-ear infection that had kept her flat on her back in bed. She still felt a little dizzy and weak, but she’d had to get back to work today. Things were piling up. Things that her boss, Wiley Frost, thought only she should resolve.

When Luke Farraday stopped testing the roof and stood staring up, Shannon felt she almost knew what he was thinking. The roof would need to be replaced by winter. The ranch had been allowed to run down by its previous owner, and Luke Farraday had taken on a big job getting the place into shape. Lucky for him, she could help.

Luke reached to place the hammer in his back pocket, and Shannon knew the show was over. She waited until he sat down on the rafter and dangled his feet over the edge before she spoke.

“Mr. Farraday.” She stepped out from the shadowed stall, and his head snapped up.

“Who’s there?” he barked, leaning over to look. His gaze swept the place until he located her.

Shannon hoped that the irate tone was because she’d startled him. She hugged her clipboard to her chest and walked to stand beneath the rafter where he sat.

When she tilted her head, her long black hair swept her waist. The motion made her ears ring, but she formed a warm smile anyway. “My name’s Shannon Kelleher. I’m with the natural resources office. I called your house but couldn’t get an answer, so I thought I’d just take a chance and see if you were here.”

“I’m here,” he said laconically. “What do you want?” As he spoke, he grabbed one of the thick posts that supported the barn roof. It had huge nails driven into it here and there down its length, and he used these as foot and handholds as he made his way to the floor. He moved as easily and gracefully as a trapeze artist from one nail to the next.

Eyes wide, Shannon watched him descend. When one nail broke beneath his weight and clattered to the floor, he grunted, felt for another foothold and continued to climb down.

When he reached the ground, she said, “Wouldn’t that be easier with a ladder?”

He shrugged. “If I had one, I would have used it.”

Shannon noticed a large hammer and more of the big nails at her feet. He’d improvised. She liked that, but it seemed risky. He was here all alone. What if he’d fallen, been hurt? Days might have passed before help arrived. She gave herself a mental shake. No point in manufacturing worst-case scenarios. She needed to concentrate on the reason for her visit.

Smiling, she glanced into his face, finally able to see him clearly. His eyes were deep-set under thick brows and were an unusual light brown. The pupils were wide due to the dimness in the barn. When he looked at her, Shannon had the eerie feeling that he was looking right into her soul. Disconcerted, she quickly glanced at the rest of his face, the square jaw that had a small scar running diagonally across it, the fullness of his lips, which were at odds with the angled cheekbones, and a Roman nose, which had a slight bump in it as if it had been broken.

His face didn’t match up to the rest of his body, but the physical imperfections only added character. This was a man who had worked hard, probably all his life, and expected to work hard for the rest of it, as well.

When his eyes met hers in a rapid, assessing glance, she experienced a moment of dizziness and placed her hand against the post he’d just descended.

“What do you want?” he repeated.

His impatient tone snapped her to the business at hand. Straightening, she indicated her clipboard. “I’ve been sent out to welcome you and let you know what services our natural resources agency can give to help you get the Crescent Ranch into shape.”