The Cowboy Lassoes a Bride, Kate Pearce [online e book reader .TXT] 📗

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The Cowboy Lassoes a Bride

Kate Pearce

ZEBRA BOOKS

KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP.

www.kensingtonbooks.com

All copyrighted material within is Attributor Protected.

ZEBRA BOOKS are published by

Kensington Publishing Corp.

119 West 40th Street

New York, NY 10018

The Cowboy Lassoes a Bride copyright © 2019 by Kate Pearce

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

To the extent that the image or images on the cover of this book depict a person or persons, such person or persons are merely models, and are not intended to portray any character or characters featured in the book.

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

Zebra and the Z logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

ISBN-13: 978-1-4201-5351-4 (eBook)

ISBN-10: 1-4201-5351-X (eBook)

Table of Contents

Also by

Title Page

Copyright Page

THE COWBOY LASSOES A BRIDE

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

THE COWBOY LASSOES A BRIDE

Kate Pearce

Books by Kate Pearce

The House of Pleasure Series

SIMPLY SEXUAL

SIMPLY SINFUL

SIMPLY SHAMELESS

SIMPLY WICKED

SIMPLY INSATIABLE

SIMPLY FORBIDDEN

SIMPLY CARNAL

SIMPLY VORACIOUS

SIMPLY SCANDALOUS

SIMPLY PLEASURE (e-novella)

SIMPLY IRRESISTIBLE (e-novella)

The Sinners Club Series

THE SINNERS CLUB

TEMPTING A SINNER

MASTERING A SINNER

THE FIRST SINNERS (e-novella)

Single Titles

RAW DESIRE

The Morgan Brothers Ranch

THE RELUCTANT COWBOY

THE MAVERICK COWBOY

THE LAST GOOD COWBOY

THE BAD BOY COWBOY

THE BILLIONAIRE BULL RIDER

THE RANCHER

The Millers of Morgan Valley

THE SECOND CHANCE RANCHER

THE RANCHER'S REDEMPTION

THE REBELLIOUS RANCHER

THE RANCHER MEETS HIS MATCH

Anthologies

SOME LIKE IT ROUGH

LORDS OF PASSION

HAPPY IS THE BRIDE

A SEASON TO CELEBRATE

MARRYING MY COWBOY

CHRISTMAS KISSES WITH MY COWBOY

Published by Kensington Publishing Corporation

To all the Morgan Ranch readers

who were worried about HW and Sam—

this one is for you.

Chapter One

Morgan Ranch, California

“Samantha Bernadette Kelly, you come right back here!” HW Morgan bellowed at her retreating form. “I’m talking to you!”

Sam took a quick look over her shoulder as she booked it to the barn. Her beloved blond cowboy was standing in the center of the drive in front of the ranch house, and he definitely wasn’t happy. If she could reach her horse, she could get away from him for a few hours and let him cool off.

Not that he’d do a thing to her, but she wasn’t ready to answer his question yet. She needed time to think. She hurried into the barn, where she’d already saddled Dollar, and went into the stall.

“Where exactly do you think you’re going, Sam?”

She almost squeaked as HW spoke from behind her. He must have moved really fast and was now regarding her over the half door of the stall. He wasn’t even breathing hard. She peered at him over Dollar’s back with renewed respect.

“I’m going for a ride.”

“Right now? When I just went down on one knee, and asked you to marry me?” HW asked.

“Yes.”

“But—”

She held up her hand. “I need to think about it, okay? I’m not saying no. I’m just . . . having a hard time getting my head around the idea.”

“Because last time you got engaged the marriage was called off?” HW was trying to be reasonable, and she loved him even more for the effort. “Okay, I get that.”

“I do love you, though.” Sam added reassuringly.

He stepped back, his hands held high. “Okay. I’ll get out of your hair then.”

He walked away leaving Sam clutching Dollar’s reins and staring after him. She’d expected him to talk her out of it and argue it through until they reached an agreement like they always did. But maybe she was asking too much this time?

She patted the horse and squeezed out of the stall behind his rump. “Don’t go anywhere, I’ll be back.”

Dollar snorted as if he didn’t believe her and whisked his tail. She carefully locked the door and went looking for HW. It didn’t take her long to find him. He’d gone up into the hayloft and was sitting on a bale of straw, blond head down, hands twisted in front of him staring out over the ranch his family had owned for 150 years.

Her heart actually hurt at the sight of his dejection. Sam bit her lip and approached him, taking the seat next to him on the prickly bale.

“I’m sorry.” Sam put her hand on his denim-clad thigh. “I panicked.”

He didn’t speak, but he managed a nod, so Sam pressed on. “I’m not afraid of loving you, I’m just scared that the moment I commit everything will go wrong. And I know you’re nothing like that jerk who two-timed me, and that your word means something, but I guess I’m gun-shy.”

“Please go on.” He waved a hand at her. “You’re winning my argument for me.”

Sam took a deep breath. “Okay, then.”

“Okay to what, exactly?” HW turned to face her, his expression wary. “Us being on the same page, or okay to marrying me?”

“Both.” Sam stared