Kindle Edition
Books We Love
Books We Love
Category:
Romance
Publisher: Books We Love
ISBN-10: 1773625799
Type: Fiction
Pages: 249
Copyright: September 30, 2017
ISBN-13: 9781773625799
Price: $2.99 (eBook)
It's hard to claim love when it's given because everything Joe loved in the past has been taken away from him.
It’s 1870, and even in wild, west Texas, nothing is more important than family.
When Joe Dawson was just 15 years old, tragedy tore his family apart. He spent the next 7 years searching for his brothers and sisters, even as he found purpose for his own life on a ranch and with the Texas Rangers. He is afraid to claim love when he finds it because everything he has loved has been stolen from him. Yet through spring round-up, marauding Indians, stampeding cattle and the long cattle drive, his heart slowly heals because of the kindness of the rancher who rescued him and the love of the rancher’s daughter, who trusted him with her heart.
But until Joe is able to reclaim his family, he won’t allow himself to build a life with the woman he loves. It is through Sky’s love that Joe realizes the heart can find safety and joy in family, whether it’s family born or a family newly made.
Excerpt
He found Sky back behind the line shack, picking blackberries of all things.
“Caught you,” he said and she spun around, juice dripping down her chin. He longed to lick the sweetness, and her, especially when she sent him a grin.
“Every year we pick them, and every year I’ve forgotten how sweet they taste.” She dropped a few more into the bucket at her feet.
“You were sitting at the table eating a blackberry tart when you saw me take that loaf of bread off Bonita’s window,” Joe recalled as though it were yesterday. “You tattled on me.”
“I though sure Daddy would do more than holler at you all the way to the barn. I never did understand why he let you stay instead.”
“I was just an orphan and he felt sorry for me.” Joe shrugged. “I was happy when he let me work at the ranch instead of turning me in to the sheriff.”
“We had some fun back then, didn’t we?” Her smile faded as she took a step toward him.
Joe’s heart began to pound when she looked up at him with large eyes, shimmering with tears.
“You broke my heart when you left.” Her bottom lip trembled.
He couldn’t help himself. He reached out a hand and gently rubbed his thumb along her lip, feeling her breath against his skin.
“That wasn’t me,” he said softly. “That was a scared kid; trying to keep a promise he had no business making; wanting something he didn’t understand.”
“And now?” Her tongue peeked out and touched his thumb, shocking them both with the heat that flashed. “Do you know what you want now?”
Joe reached out and pulled her to him, lowering his mouth to hers. “God help me, but I do.”
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