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From best friends... to bride and
groom?
Clay Gregory's known Megan Briggs
her whole life, and he's been plenty worried about her while
she's been getting medical treatment. Now she's back home and
hiding away on the family ranch.
Knowing the stubborn cowgirl won't
accept his help willingly, he invites her to a family wedding to
help him avoid his aunt's matchmaking!
He plans to remind Meg that she's
still the girl who can beat him in a horse race! But as she
steps out in her curve-hugging red dress, her skills on a horse
are suddenly the last thing on his mind...
Excerpt
"Clay!"
He jumped at the sound of his name, nearly dropping
the pen.
Megan stood at the junction between hall and kitchen
wearing jeans and a sweater and a towel wrapped around her head.
She looked anything but happy to see him. "Don't you knock?"
He forced a calming breath. "Since when have we ever
knocked?" He picked up the pen and began writing, trying to look
far more composed than he felt. His heart was beating a mile a
minute. As he scribbled the note he said, "And as a matter of
fact, I did knock. No one answered."
"I was upstairs."
He looked up. She didn't wear a speck of make up and
the dark blue towel contrasted with her flawless complexion. He
could smell the flowery scent of her soap or shampoo from where
he stood and it felt disturbingly intimate. "So I gathered. I'll
be out of your way in a minute. I'm just leaving a note for
Dawson."
He finished and ripped the paper off the tablet.
"Where is he, by the way?"
Megan's lips twisted and she looked away. "He didn't
come home last night. And he has my car."
Clay remembered the goofy way his friend had looked
at Tara Stillwell last night as she'd waited on them at the
Spur. Dawson had been interested in her for weeks, but Clay
hadn't realized the attraction went both ways so completely.
"Tara's a nice girl. He could do worse."
"Tara...you mean Tara from my graduating class?" She
finally moved from the doorway and into the kitchen.
"You didn't know?"
Megan shook her head, looking genuinely distressed.
"Not a clue. He never said a word to me about it."
"I guess you haven't been here to see," Clay
replied, unable to resist the slight dig.
Fire flashed in Meg's eyes as the towel slipped on
her head. With a look of annoyance she took it off. "I'm well
aware that I've been out of town," she snapped. "I don't know
why you feel you must continue to bring it up. And my family did
visit me, you know. If Dawson kept his personal life to himself,
I'm not totally to blame for that too."
Clay heard the sharp words but they bounced off him
at the shock of seeing her hair. It was short, sleek, and
lighter than he remembered, even though it was wet. A light
reddish brown that reminded him of Tinkerbell. Short and saucy
and cute.
But it was the cause of the change that felt like
lead in his feet, heavy and immovable. All her gorgeous dark
curls were gone. The woman in front of him seemed even more of a
stranger.anger.
Her wide, honeyed eyes looked into his. "The chemo,"
she acknowledged quietly. There was no resentment in the words -
just acceptance, and it damn near ripped his heart out.t out.
"Meg." The word came out like a croak; he hadn't
realized how his throat had closed over. Seeing her in boots and
with a shovel in her hand had been one thing. She had been
Dawson's little sister, Clay's old friend. It had been easier to
pretend that there wouldn't be physical changes after what she'd
been through.rough.
But this was evidence. Proof of what she'd suffered. Proof of
things changing when Clay wanted them to be the same as they'd
always been. Easy. Damn, it had always been easy with Meg, right
up until the time she got sick and everything changed.
"It's okay," she replied, folding the towel neatly.
"It's coming back in now, and it just takes some getting used
to. I like it. It's easy to care for."
She smiled but he caught the wibble at the edges.
For the first time ever he was glad she'd done her treatment in
Calgary. Yes, she'd have had support in Larch Valley, but he
wouldn't have been the man to provide it as much as he'd like to
pretend otherwise. Megan was a friend and he'd wanted to be
there for her, but he couldn't handle this sort of thing and he
hated what that said about him.
He'd had no choice but to watch his father waste away. He'd been
ten years old and there had been nowhere for him to go, no
escape. He'd idolized his dad, even when the big man had been
reduced to a shadow of his former self. Now Clay was torn
between resenting Meg for running away and being grateful that
he hadn't had to witness the harsh realities of her treatment.
It was over, but just the idea of Meg being completely bald
seemed unreal and made his stomach do a slow, heavy twist.
"I'd better get going." He put the note on the
counter and headed back for the mudroom and his boots.
"Is it really that ugly?"
Her soft voice chased after him and he stopped,
dropping his head. He couldn't leave knowing she thought... Oh
hell. How women thought was far beyond him most days but he was
bright enough to realize that he'd hurt her feelings by reacting
the way he had. She'd lost all her hair. Megan had never been
what he considered high maintenance, but he understood that she
had to be feeling insecure about her appearance. He wasn't
totally insensitive.
He turned back. "No," he said, the kitchen so
perfectly silent that his quiet response filled every corner.
She was absolutely gorgeous if he were being honest with
himself. The fact that he noticed was quite troubling. But he
wouldn't deny her the words. He wasn't that cold. "It's not bad
at all. You're as beautiful as you ever were."
It was the last thing he expected that would make
her cry.
Reviews
"Great characters bring life to
this beautifully written story
that explores trust, friendship,
and hope." RT Book Reviews
"...engrossing and a good deal
of emotion...I would recommend
this one for fans of Donna
Alward."
Maldivian Book Reviewer's
Realm of Romance
"...overflowing with emotion,
and is definitely a worth-while
read for any lover of Alward's
style, cowboys, or
best-friend-to-lover romances.
Alward writes consistently
beautiful romance novels and
How a Cowboy Stole Her Heart
is no exception - make this one
for your keeper shelf."
Siren's Song Reviews
"Keep your
hanky close, Donna Alward works
her story telling magic to tug
at our heartstrings with HOW A
COWBOY STOLE HER HEART."
Cataromance, 5 stars
"...a story so full of emotion
and one so beautifully written
that I couldn't help but fall in
love with the characters and the
author's writing."
Bookworldtravels
From How A Cowboy Stole Her Heart by Donna Alward
Harlequin Romance, October 2011
Copyright 2011 by Donna Alward
Cover art used with permission
This edition published by arrangement with
Harlequin Books S.A.
For more Romance information, surf to
http://www.eharlequin.com |
