by Clay, Verna
"What should we do about these boys, Sarah?"
Sarah glanced at their sons and then back at Sage. "Umm, I think Daddy should demonstrate the technique of cleaning up toilet paper." Unable to keep a straight face, she covered her smile with her hand.
Sage set the boys on the floor and pointed in the direction of the bedroom. "You boys start cleaning up the mess while Daddy discusses something important with Mommy."
Grateful for their reprieve the boys ran off. Sarah heard Toby say, "I told you she wouldn't be mad." Preston pushed Toby and Toby pushed back. She looked at Sage and waited to hear what was so important.
He leaned in, "I was thinking that after the wedding we could steal away for a few days and pretend we're on our honeymoon again."
Sarah leaned back. "Oh, so you have to pretend you're on a honeymoon with me? What happened to the real thing?"
Sage didn't miss a beat. "How about we pretend first, and then follow-through with the real deal? That way we get to do it twice." He grinned and walked to the door, but turned to look back. "In fact, as soon as our bedroom is free of toilet paper, I'm putting the boys down for a nap. I think it would be a good time to test the waters of pretending versus reality. See which one we like best."
Sarah's heart hammered. "I'll help with the clean up."
Author's Note
Thank you for reading Book One in the Romance on the Ranch Series. After introducing Ann Hackstetter in Dream Kisses, I knew she and Jackson Martinez had to have their own book, Honey Kisses. I adore Jackson, and come to find out, he adores Mrs. Hackstetter. How they come to their happily-ever-after is fraught with heartache, mystery, deception, misunderstandings, and a secret thrown into the mix.
In Baby Kisses, Tooty Townsend is grown up and has her hands full as a single mom trying to make a living and raise Harris, her four year old. Reclusive author, Miles Brightman; pen name Maxwell Henry, is looking to hire a personal assistant while in Colorado finishing up his latest suspense thriller. Sarah Tanner recommended Tooty for the job and she's swallowing her pride to apply. Her mischievous little boy met Mr. Brightman at her best friend's wedding and asked him if he wanted to become his daddy.
As for Candy Kisses, the saga continues, only with a most unlikely heroine. I think you will be surprised when you read the excerpt to discover just who she is.
Read on for excerpts from Honey Kisses, Baby Kisses, and Candy Kisses.
Novels and Novellas by Verna Clay:
Western Romance
Contemporary:
Romance on the Ranch Series
Dream Kisses
Honey Kisses
Baby Kisses
Candy Kisses
Historic:
Unconventional Series
Abby: Mail Order Bride
Broken Angel
Ryder's Salvation
Finding Home Series
Cry of the West: Hallie
Rescue on the Rio: Lilah
Missouri Challenge: Daisy (coming soon!)
Fantasy Romance
Shapeling Trilogy
Roth: Book One: Protector
Fawn: Book Two: Master
Davide: Book Three: Prince
11:11: Countdown to 2012
The Theory of Everything
Far Into Yesterday (Novella)
Jazmine (Novella)
Sci-Fi Fantasy Romance
The Ordinaries (coming someday!)
Honey Kisses
Romance on the Ranch Series
Chapter One Excerpt
Pastor Porter boomed, "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."
Ann lifted a tissue to blot tears as she watched her only child, Jacob, kiss Julie Tanner, now Julie Hackstetter. Across the aisle, Julie's father and stepmother, Sage and Sarah, lovingly held hands. Sage lifted Sarah's hand to his lips and kissed it.
Pastor Porter asked the newlyweds to face the congregation. To everyone's delight, Jacob sneaked another kiss as the portly pastor announced, "I now present Mr. and Mrs. Hackstetter. Please congratulate our newlyweds in the foyer and then head on over to Lazy M Ranch for the reception. Everyone's invited!"
There was a little crackle over the speaker system and then Shania Twain sang, From this Moment. The happy couple descended the few steps of the chancel platform, followed by Julie's maid of honor, Tooty Townsend, and Jacob's best man, Bobby Joe Banyon. Julie's gown, a simple strapless A-line with lace overlay, matched her easy going personality, and Jacob, in a gray cowboy tux with black vest, looked striking. The pair had insisted on a small wedding, so there were no bridesmaids or groomsmen.
Beaner, a ranch hand from the Lazy M, and now an usher in the wedding, stepped to the first aisle and offered his arm to Ann. She placed her hand in the crook of his elbow. Sarah and Sage stepped into the aisle behind Tooty and Bobby, and Beaner led Ann behind them. The bride and groom waited just outside the entrance to the sanctuary ready to greet their guests. Ann took a position beside her son, and Sage and Sarah stood next to her.
Mr. and Mrs. Mercer, the parents of Julie's dead mother, and Mr. and Mrs. Carter, Sarah's parents, exited the sanctuary followed by Sarah's sister, Libby, on the arm of another ranch hand, Ned Waldo. Next, Ann's parents, Abby and Bert Baxter, and her grandmother, Molly Baxter, entered the foyer. The old cowpoke, Newt Tucker, escorted Molly, who was talking a mile-a-minute and gesturing with her hands to emphasize her words. He'd craned his bony neck downward so he could hear. Ann grinned at the sight of granny talking Newt's ear off. Of course, Newt could hold his own in spinning a tale. Between the two of them, they could probably talk nonstop for days.
Ann returned her attention to accepting congratulations from guests and tried to keep her emotions at bay. Her son was married. She blinked rapidly, wishing Jerry had lived long enough to see their son wed, and dabbed at her eyes again. Jacob bent and whispered, "You okay, Mom?"
"Oh, yes, Jacob."
He looked into her eyes and read her unspoken thoughts. "I know. I wish he was here, too."
Julie stepped around Jacob and hugged her. "I love you, Mom," she said to her new mother-in-law.
"I love you, too, Julie."
For the next half hour the bride and groom and family members greeted guests. Ann was exchanging pleasantries with Sally Higginbotham, a vocalist in the wedding, when she heard a familiar voice that shifted her heartbeat into triple rhythm. She wanted to look in the direction of the voice, but kept her gaze riveted on Mrs. Higginbotham's red lipstick teeth. She smoothed a hand down her pale green chiffon-over-satin, form fitting dress, with satin bolero jacket, and hoped it didn't make her look too matronly. Sarah and Julie had assured her the color contrasted beautifully with her olive complexion and set off her hazel eyes. She hoped so.
Jackson Martinez continued speaking, "Julie and Jacob. You're a fine looking couple. After you're back from your honeymoon and settled in, I'd like to invite you to the Triple T for dinner."
Jacob responded, "We'd like that Jackson. By the way, congratulations are in order for you, too, now that you own the Triple T."
"Thanks. Tommy always said he'd give me first dibs if he ever put it up for sale, and when he did, I didn't have to think twice."
Mrs. Higginbotham moved on and Ann chanced a glance upward at Jackson. He was looking at her with a little smile. Her face flooded with color. He continued talking to Jacob while still looking at her. "I'll check back in about a month. Give you time to get settled. I'd like you to come too, Annie, if you're still in town."
Ann smiled and nodded; afraid her voice would sound breathless if she spoke.
"Sounds good," said Jacob.
"It's a date," Julie agreed.
Jackson leaned over and kissed Julie's cheek. "You done good, baby girl."
"Thanks, Jackson."
The tall cowboy stepped in front of Ann. "Hello, Annie," he said, low and deep.
"Hello, Jackson. Thank you for coming to the wedding." Stupid thing to say, and damn, you do sound breathless.
> His little smile turned into a grin. "I wouldn't have missed it." For a second he just looked at her. "Hey, I like your hair that darker color."
Self consciously, Ann lifted a hand to a soft curl on her shoulder. "Thank you."
"Hello, my name is Pritzy Purvis." A beautiful young blond stepped up beside Jackson and possessively snuggled her hand under his elbow, interrupting the moment. She stuck her other hand out toward Ann."
Ann accepted the woman's gesture. "I'm happy to meet you Pritzy."
Pritzy said, "How does it feel being the mother of a grown man who has just gotten married?"
"It feels wonderful. And now I have a grown daughter, too."
There was an uneasy silence and then Jackson said, "Well, I guess we'll see you at the reception."
Pritzy gave her a sugar-coated smile and then looked up at Jackson, turning it into a sexy one. They moved on and the pastor's plus-sized wife stepped into their position squeezing Ann in a bear hug that swallowed her in folds of taffeta.
Baby Kisses
Romance on the Ranch Series
Chapter One Excerpt
Tooty drove her old Ford Ranger, gray in color under all the oxidation, to the front of Jacob and Julie Hackstetter's cottage. Parking in a cloud of dust, she sat for a minute and tried to calm her nerves. She was about to meet Maxwell Henry—the famous author. Sarah Tanner, Julie's stepmother, had explained his real name was Miles Brightman, and he was staying at the cottage while Julie and Jacob visited Maude and Clyde Hix in Alaska. Tooty had often heard stories about the former employees of the Lazy M Ranch and how they had struck it rich as gold prospectors. Now in their eighties and sixties, with Maude being the older, they still lived in the same cabin they'd built after moving to the wilds years earlier. Tooty understood her friends' desire to spend as much time as possible with the old-timers. They were going to have a blast.
Okay, you've stalled long enough. It's time to get the embarrassing part over.
Tooty bit her thumbnail and still didn't move to open her door. She remembered Miles from Julie and Jacob's wedding reception. He was the guy in the wheelchair. Actually, he was the hot older guy in the wheelchair. Even now, she cringed remembering their encounter. She'd gone in search of her mischievous four-year old and seen him checking out the man's wheelchair. When she'd approached, she'd heard Harris say, "Hi, my name is Harris and, hey, that's a really cool chair. Ya wanna take me for a ride?"
Rushing forward, she hadn't reached Harris in time to stop him from climbing onto the man's lap. The startled expression on the guy's face had said everything. He wasn't used to kids. Besides that, she didn't know how severe his physical challenge was and whether Harris could injure him. When she'd reached to grab her son off his lap, he'd said, "No, leave him." After that, he'd told Harris about his wheelchair and shown him how to operate it, both manually and with battery assistance. Of course, Harris had been fascinated and oblivious to his faux pas of just climbing on the guy's lap. With a mixture of mortification and gratitude, she'd stepped to the sidelines to watch.
The man had finally said, "Well, Harris, looks like your mother is waiting for you, you better hop off now."
That's when Tooty had stepped forward. As she'd bent to help her son down, he'd glanced from her to the man and said, "Hey, I need a daddy. You wanna marry my mommy? Don't you think she's pretty?"
Tooty had looked from her son's innocent brown eyes into the man's Mediterranean blue ones and literally froze. She'd seen his shocked expression and then a slight quirk of his lips, like he was trying not to laugh. Before he could say anything, she'd jerked Harris off his lap. "I'm really sorry. My son just says whatever pops into his mind."
Harris defended himself. "But Mommy, Grammy says it too. She says I need a daddy and you need a man. What's wrong with him?"
"Ah…ah…I'm really sorry." Knowing there was no way to salvage their fiasco, she'd simply walked away carrying Harris. She'd never been so embarrassed in her life. Every cell in her body had felt on fire—even her scalp.
Shaking the memory and inhaling a calming breath, Tooty forced her hand to the door handle. She was turning scarlet just thinking about meeting Mr. Brightman and she had half a mind to flip the ignition key, back the truck up, and peel out of the driveway, never looking back. Of course, she wouldn't do that. She needed to earn money, but, more importantly, she'd never forgive herself if she turned down an opportunity to work with a famous author—an author whose every book she'd read at least twice.
* * *
Miles shifted his wheelchair so he could see out the living room window. He watched the young woman step from her battered pickup. So this was the girl with the strange first name Sarah had referred. Her dark, strawberry blonde hair looked familiar. When she'd almost reached the porch, recognition slammed him and he groaned. It was the girl from the wedding; the one with the cute, but rascally little boy—the boy who'd ask him to marry his mommy and become his daddy.
Candy Kisses
Romance on the Ranch Series
Chapter Two Excerpt
Tooty listened to Miles' deep breathing and turned on her side to gaze at him, so serene and handsome while he slept. Slipping quietly from their bed, she rubbed her round belly and smiled. They'd finally gotten their girl. She'd already started decorating the baby's room with princess and fairytale castle wallpaper.
After checking on her boys, something she often did just because she loved watching their sweet faces in sleep, she walked to the large window in her front room and stared into a night splendidly lit by a full moon that showcased their fabulous property with outbuildings and a special park-like area for picnics and gatherings with family and friends, and now the boys' tree house. She loved her life, her family, and her home.
Remembering her struggles as a single, teenage mother, she felt forever grateful for the direction her life had taken after meeting her famous author-husband, Miles Brightman, pen name, Maxwell Henry; she wanted for nothing. Miles had often said he would build her the palace of her dreams if she so desired, but she'd never wanted to live anywhere but the home she had inherited from her distant relative, Beatrice Shipley. And Miles, even after living in a penthouse in New York, said this home meant more to him than the grandest mansion money could buy.
The baby kicked and Tooty smiled. Baby girl, you kick harder and more often than your brothers ever did.
A cloud passed in front of the moon and cast shadows across her property and her thoughts drifted to Monica. Her inclination had been to gloat over Monica's predicament, but her conscience had kicked in. The more she tried to dismiss the spoiled woman from her thoughts, the more she remembered how alone she had felt when she was facing the same circumstance. Although her parents had allowed her to remain in their home before and after Harris' birth, their emotional detachment had been hard on her. Harris had captured their hearts from the beginning, but they had remained aloof from their daughter. The stigma of Tooty's unwed pregnancy at the age of sixteen had been overwhelming and embarrassing for them in their small town. Over the years, however, and with the birth of Tooty and Miles' children, they had loosened up, although the unconditional acceptance Tooty longed for was still absent. Even so, she had never lacked for a place to live during those early years. It appeared Monica was homeless. Tooty sighed. I wonder if Sarah has any connections in New York.