Harlequin Romance Bundle: Crowns and Cowboys

by Judy Christenberry

  “Please tell me this is the hardest part,” she said, letting out a deep sigh.

  Rosemary just smiled.

  She handed the woman Daisy’s reins and led her out to the corral. “Just relax in the saddle and move with the horse. You’re going to start off real slow. Just walking around the corral.”

  Looking downright terrified, Marion squeaked out, “That sounds good to me.”

  Despite her fear, Marion caught on quickly and with each turn around the corral she got more comfortable.

  Just as Rosie got less comfortable.

  Right in front of her Jason led Doug around on his horse. Seeing him in the saddle made her remember the days and nights of the roundup. How they’d ridden side by side herding in the errant cows. How he’d looked after her after Wes had ridden in. How he’d kissed her…

  But those kisses hadn’t meant anything, she reminded herself sternly. She couldn’t lose sight of the truth, no matter how much she yearned for Jason to take her in his arms and kiss her for real.

  “You’ve got it bad for him, don’t you?”

  She was so caught up in her thoughts, she barely heard Marion’s question. “I—I don’t know what you mean,” she stammered to buy herself some time.

  “Jason.” She nodded ahead. “You’re in love with him, aren’t you?”

  Rosie faked a laugh. “That’s ridiculous! I could never love a man like him.”

  Marion smiled. “Funny, that’s just what he said.”

  Her curiosity piqued, in spite of herself, Rosie asked, “What do you mean?”

  “Jason told us all about you, and every time he said you could never love a man like him. Someone who’d taken away your family heritage.”

  Rosie barely heard everything Marion said. She’d been caught up in her first words. Jason told them all about her? She asked, “He—he talked about me?”

  “All the time. For weeks now you’re all he’s talked about. I think that’s why I get along so well with you. I felt like I knew you before I even met you.”

  “But I would think he’d had enough of me on the roundup. I was quite a responsibility for him.”

  Marion shook her head and then gripped the reins tighter when she slid a bit in the saddle. “That’s not how he described you, Rosie. Every time he said your name I swear I could hear birds singing and bells ringing,” she said on a high-pitched laugh.

  Rosie felt her cheeks redden and immediately put her head down. “I—I’m sure you’re exaggerating.” If Jason had had any interest in her at all, he’d have shown it, not walk away without saying goodbye and let weeks pass without contacting her. No, he only had interest in the ranch.

  The ranch that would soon be his. She’d just be a memory.

  Marion let out an exasperated sigh that had nothing to do with her horse or her no-doubt sore bottom. “Sometimes I don’t understand people! Do I have to lead them around like…like a horse?” Not giving Rosie a chance to ask what she was talking about, Marion called out to Jason in front of them.

  He turned and the sunlight lit his jaw, all that was visible under the brim of his tan cowboy hat. “What is it?”

  Marion stopped her horse and took on the voice she probably used in the courtroom. “Jason Barton, why have you not told Rosemary how you feel about her?”

  Jason’s head jerked up, and his face blanched. “What?”

  “I said, why have you not told Rosemary how you feel about her.” Marion seemed to be quickly losing her patience with her friend.

  “I…” Jason stopped, then tried again. But he still wouldn’t look at Rosie. “I didn’t think I should until after she made her decision about the ranch.”

  Rosie felt her heart pick up, her blood pound in her ears. Had she heard him right? “What are you trying to say, Jason?”

  He looked at her then and his eyes were as blue as the sky. “I wanted to tell you, Rosie, but Wes kept telling me to wait until the ranch was settled. I was afraid you wouldn’t believe me if I was still trying to buy the Bar G.”

  Her chest was so tight, she could barely draw the breath to say, “Believe you about what?”

  “That I love you.”

  “You love me?” She couldn’t believe her own ears.

  “Didn’t you guess, Rosie? I tried to tell you, but—well, things got in the way. The ranch got in the way.”

  “But I can’t keep the ranch. How would I know if you loved me or the ranch?” Her hands were shaking so much, she stuck them in her jeans pockets.

  Jason alit from his horse and strode toward her. Looking up at her, he asked, “You mean if I buy the ranch, then you’ll know I love you?”

  “I know that doesn’t sound right. But I thought if you were trying to get the ranch, you might not really care about me.” More than anything she wanted to reach out to him, to feel him against her, but she couldn’t trust her legs to get off Maggie. She was shaking so much, she feared they wouldn’t support her.

  “Damn it, Rosie, I’m in love with you. I’ve been in love with you since the first time I saw you in your jeans and boots. The more time I spent with you, the more I knew you were the one I wanted.” He bowed his head in a sheepish gesture. “I’ve been trying to figure out a way for you to keep the ranch so I’d know you love me and not my money.”

  “Jason, I love you, too,” she confessed. “I fell in love with you when you were trying to handle the roundup for me. You worked so hard when it wasn’t to your benefit. And you kissed me—”

  It was as if the mere mention of the word put him in mind of kissing Rosie. In one swift, sure motion he reached out and lifted her off the saddle, took her in his arms and kissed her.

  His kiss stole her breath, buckled her knees and she fell into his arms. He used his lips to tell her how much he loved her, and she did the same. She made a small moan when he pulled his mouth away.

  He smiled slyly. “I thought you hated it when I kissed you.”

  “Just when I thought you were pretending to like me to convince the cowboys we were together.” Her pulse was still racing so fast, she thought she’d pass out.

  “I guess I forgot to tell you I wasn’t pretending.”

  “I wish you had.”

  “Me, too. You kiss a lot better when you mean it.” And he took her mouth again, to prove it.

  “Why didn’t you call me, Jason?” she asked when she could.

  “Wes kept telling me to wait until he talked to you.”

  Her brows knit together. “He never talked to me about you. He tried to convince me to keep the ranch and try to make a go of it.”

  “He didn’t want you to go. No one did. I didn’t want you to go, either.” He lifted her chin up with a curled index finger and looked deeply into her eyes. “I want you to stay and take me on, too. Will you, Rosie?”

  “Oh, Jason, I love you so much.” She kissed him then, and he wrapped his arms around her even tighter, as if to keep her from leaving. Not that she’d make any effort to do so.

  “I think we’re going to be on these horses for a while, eh, Doug?” she heard Marion say.

  Breaking away from Jason, Rosie looked over her shoulder at the woman. She and Jason had been so caught up in each other, they’d forgotten their riders.

  Marion looked at them with feigned impatience. “I’m not getting down without some help.”

  She helped Marion down, as Jason did the same for Doug.

  “Thanks, Rosie,” she said with a smile.

  “Thank you,” Rosie replied. “If you hadn’t forced Jason’s hand…”

  “We women have to stick together.”

  Jason reached out then and grabbed Rosie’s hand, pulling her toward him. “This woman’s sticking to no one but me.” He took her in his arms, and glanced over at his friends. “Can’t a guy get some privacy?”

  Smiling broadly, Marion and Doug linked hands and started out of the corral.

  “You should take a good long soak in the tub,” Rosie called after them. She knew their musc
les would be screaming real soon.

  Marion looked over her shoulder and teased, “And what are you two going to be doing while we soak?”

  Jason laughed. “We’ll think of something.” And he pulled Rosie toward the barn.

  When they’d cleared the door they went into each other’s arms. “We’ve got a lot of talking to do, Rosie. A lot of planning. But first—”

  The barn door opened and Sara Beth came in, a stainless steel bucket in her hand. She started when she saw them in an embrace in a darkened corner of the barn. “What’s going on with you two?”

  Jason grinned. “We’re in love, Sara Beth! Isn’t it great?”

  Sara Beth’s face lit up in a big smile. “It’s wonderful! Wait until I tell Wes!”

  But Jason stopped her. “Wait. I want some time alone with Rosie before you tell him. He’s been keeping us apart.”

  “He has?”

  “Yeah. Every time I called, he kept telling me to wait. That’s why I’m here. I got tired of waiting.”

  Sara Beth shook her head. “I’ve got to do some things in here. You two go into the family room. You’ll be alone there.”

  Rosie and Jason did as she suggested. Before she could sit on the oversize sofa, he took her in his arms. “Rosie, you do believe me, don’t you?”

  “About what?”

  “That I’m not marrying you to get the ranch.”

  “I believe you. You’ve tried too hard to give it to me. I know you really love me.” Her eyes filled with tears of happiness.

  His lips covered hers, and Rosie knew she’d never get tired of kissing this man. No one else had ever aroused her as much with one kiss, never convinced her of his deep affection, as Jason. He moved into a big chair and sat down, pulling Rosie into his lap.

  She lay her head on his shoulder. “Jason this is so hard to believe.”

  He unzipped her coat and then his. “I’m working hard at convincing you, sweetheart. This is what I wanted to do every night on the roundup. But that wasn’t possible, with all the cowboys ready to jump to your defense if I made a move to hold you like this.”

  “Well, they’re kind of like my big brothers.”

  “Yeah, but will they accept me as your husband?”

  Rosemary stared at him solemnly. “I think so if you buy the ranch and then marry me. They’ll know you really love me that way.”

  “Done!” He kissed her again. “I could do this all day long.”

  “You wouldn’t get any complaints from me,” she said, a dreamy smile on her face.

  “So, when can we get married?”

  “I don’t even know that much about you!”

  “What do you want to know? You know I’ve been married before. She was interested in my money more than me. And she expected everything to be given to her. That’s what impressed me most about you. You were willing to work so hard for the ranch. You could’ve stayed home and sent Wes on the roundup, but you didn’t.”

  She played with a button on his shirt. “That’s what attracted you to me?”

  “No, honey. But that’s why I first got interested in you. When you came to my office, I noticed, uh, your charms. But my wife was beautiful, too. So I was determined to ignore any attraction I felt. But when you appeared in your jeans and boots, ready to get on a horse and chase after cows, I was a goner.”

  “Really?” Rosemary said, looking at him from under her lashes.

  “Don’t play coy with me, young lady! When did you fall for me?”

  “I was attracted to you when I saw you, too, but you were a millionaire. I needed your agreement to keep my ranch, but I didn’t expect you to work so hard for me to win. When you tried to care for me when I was sick, not letting me give up, fighting for me to keep the ranch, I knew I loved you, too, but I didn’t think you cared about me. I’ve been so depressed since I realized I couldn’t keep the ranch or you. I thought I had to let the two most important things in my life go away.”

  “If I had to move back to Denver, would you go with me?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she said at once, “but I’d rather stay here.”

  With a grin, he said, “Me, too.”

  She hit him with her fist. “Were you testing me?”

  “Yeah. But I had to ask. Now let’s start making plans.”

  “For what?” she asked, a little confused.

  “We love each other. The next step is to marry. You will marry me, won’t you, sweetheart?”

  Her answer took several seconds and didn’t involve any conversation until she finally said, “Of course I will.”

  “I’ll give you a little time if you need it. I know I’m rushing you,” Jason said.

  “I don’t need time,” she replied. “I always wanted to be swept off my feet!”

  “Good. Then let’s get married at once, unless you want a fairy-tale wedding?”

  “No. But I would like to go to Denver and do some shopping. Maybe Marion would return the favor and help me shop in her territory.”

  “I think she might. She and Doug have been trying to get me married for a while now. They were worried about me being alone.”

  “Well, you’re mine now, so don’t you forget it!”

  “No chance. How long do you need to shop?”

  “Probably a week.”

  “Okay, I’ll stay here on the ranch and see what I think needs to be done. You go to Denver with Doug and Marion. You can stay in my condo. But only a week. Then you come home and we get our license and get married. Because if you take longer than a week, I’ll come after you.”

  “Jason? Rosie? Wes wants to know what you’re doing all alone in there,” Sara Beth said from the door without opening it.

  “It’s okay, Sara Beth,” Jason called. “You can open the door.”

  Sara Beth did so but didn’t come in. “Wes is worrying about you two. Can you come reassure him?”

  “Yeah, we’ll be right there.”

  When they entered the kitchen, Wes was sitting at the table, with a frown on his face.

  Jason spoke first. “Wes, Rosie and I would like to get married. We’re hoping you’ll give us your blessing.”

  Wes stared at him. Then his gaze moved to Rosie. “You sure about this, Rosie?”

  “Oh, yes. I’m very sure.”

  “So you’ll get married next year?”

  Jason shook his head. “More like a week.”

  “Good. I don’t want you two spending too much time alone before the wedding. I promised her daddy.”

  Rosie hid a blush. “I don’t think you promised that to Dad!”

  “I promised him I’d take care of you.”

  “Good. Then you can give me away, just as if you were my dad. Is that okay?”

  “I guess so,” Wes agreed, but Rosie saw the pride in his eyes.

  “And you and Sara Beth will be grandparents for our children,” Jason said. “And we plan to have a lot of them.”

  “Oh, really?” Rosemary asked, since they hadn’t discussed that subject.

  Jason hurriedly corrected himself. “If my wife agrees.”

  With a smile, Rosemary said, “She agrees. And we’re going to pass our ranch to the next generation, just like Mom did.

  MELISSA JAMES

  Outback Baby Miracle

  TORONTO • NEW YORK • LONDON

  AMSTERDAM • PARIS • SYDNEY • HAMBURG

  STOCKHOLM • ATHENS • TOKYO • MILAN • MADRID

  PRAGUE • WARSAW • BUDAPEST • AUCKLAND

  Contents

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  EPILOGUE

  PROLOGUE

  Wallaby Station, Outback New South Wales
>
  HOW do you tell a man who’s never spared you a word beyond the occasional “G’day, miss” or “Nice day, Miss Robbins” that you can’t stop thinking about him?

  Especially when he wasn’t one of the eager men surrounding her?

  Laila excused herself with detached politeness. She’d walked away from eager men for most of the past seven years. Trouble was she’d never known, and probably would never know, if any of those men were attracted to her—or to her father’s wealth and influence.

  Brian Robbins had turned his grandfather’s scraggly thousand acres, given to him as a returning soldier from World War One, into two distinct one hundred thousand acre empires, with prize-winning racehorses and prime Angus cattle at the Hunter Valley enterprise, and the toughest Marino sheep here at Wallaby—and plenty of men wanted a piece of it.

  At twenty-five, Laila thought she had no illusions left. The only men she trusted were Dar, and her brothers Andrew and Glenn. How many of their warnings had turned out to be true?

  Then she’d seen him.

  The man she kept her gaze on as she threaded through the five hundred-thick crowd celebrating Dar and Marcie’s fifteenth wedding anniversary.

  He stood in a corner as bright-lit as the rest of the house, yet it seemed darker. She didn’t know if it was because he was the only man here in his working clothes—the Outback working-man’s uniform of worn jeans and plain cotton shirt, albeit clean—or the hint of a tortured soul hidden inside his masked expression.

  He was hurting tonight. Hurting in a way far deeper than the usual curt withdrawal he used when he cut her off. He was hurting so badly he couldn’t even hide it.

  How she knew that, she wasn’t sure—maybe because she spent so much time watching him. The fascination she’d felt from the first glance at him, straight-backed, black-haired and golden-eyed, sitting astride a horse like her girlhood dreams of a wild Cherokee warrior-lover, had only grown with every university break she’d come home. Even when she wasn’t home, no man—student, fellow worker or customer at the restaurant—could compare.