Count This Cowboy In

by Malone, Misty

  Sam thought a bit and had to admit he had a point. When her energy level was this high she did anything that came to her mind. That had been the problem when she'd fallen off the tree she was walking on early in their relationship. It had also been the ultimate cause of a skinned knee and elbow she'd gotten while exploring the old abandoned barn toward the back of the ranch, after she'd been warned not to explore or climb in the dangerous barn while she was so wound up. She'd gotten spanked that time, as well.

  She was still thinking about his words when he started spanking again. As if reading her mind, while he spanked he brought up past times when her exuberance had gotten her hurt. Each of those times he'd warned her, but she'd ignored his warnings. Even she could clearly see the point he was making.

  Understanding why he was spanking her and accepting the spanking were two different things, though. As much as she grudgingly admitted that maybe she did deserve this spanking, it still hurt. A lot! She tried, though. She really did. But she was soon struggling, trying her best to squirm off his lap and avoid his ridiculously large and strong hand.

  "Okay, Trevor, I get it now. I'm sorry."

  "I'm glad you're sorry and I hope you do get it now. But this spanking will end when I am convinced you've learned your lesson and not before. He continued a bit longer, but ended it sooner than he normally would have. He knew her excitement came from her newfound freedom to love her father again and that it was all behind her. He was as happy about both of those things as she was and could understand her exuberance. He couldn't let her carelessness go unpunished, but right now he didn't feel the need to be too harsh, either.

  With that in mind, he brought the spanking to an end, asking, "Are you going to heed my warning next time, Sweetie?"

  "Yes. I'm sorry, Trevor."

  He turned her over so she was sitting on his lap, even though she flinched when she made contact. He wrapped her in his arms the way he knew she liked so much after a spanking and told her, "I love you, Sam."

  She looked up at him with tears streaming down her cheeks and said, "I love you, too, Trevor. And you're right. I get wound tight and you try to warn me. I'm sorry."

  "It's over with now, Sweetheart. We're good again." He held her as she leaned against his chest and calmed down.

  Several minutes later she asked, "Am I ever going to learn to listen to you when you're trying to keep me safe?"

  "You're getting there, Honey. You're listening much better than you were."

  She smiled and snuggled back into his chest, only to shoot back up when he said, "Another few dozen good spankings, maybe a few with the paddle and you'll get there."

  "What?" She looked over and saw the grin on his face. "Oh, you," she said, hitting his shoulder.

  They talked and cuddled a bit more before Trevor said, "We better get going so we have time to shower before we go out to dinner. It takes a cowboy awhile to get all spiffied up, you know. Suits don't naturally just slide onto our bodies."

  She giggled. "And you think a dress with hose and heels feels natural to a cowgirl?"

  "Probably not," he admitted, "but I know this little cowgirl sure does look fine in them."

  They made it back to the barn, though she did a lot of complaining about how sore it was in her saddle. They brushed out their horses and went to get cleaned up.

  * * *

  Two hours later they were in a nice restaurant, sitting side by side in the center of a half circle booth, sipping wine. They had a nice meal, both using the night to relax and unwind from the last few days.

  After they finished their meal Trevor took both her hands in his. "Samantha Louise Simmerly, I love you."

  "I love you, too, Trevor. And thank you."

  "For what?"

  "For a lot of things. For calling Clay and asking him to look into this, for one thing. I feel so much better now. I owe you such a big thank you."

  "You're welcome, but I had to do that, Sam."

  "Had to?"

  "Yes, I had to. I've told you I want to take care of you and keep you safe and happy; remember?"

  Smiling, she said, "Yes, I remember."

  "This is keeping you happy, like I promised I would."

  "Wow, you take that very seriously, Trevor. That's a lot to do just to keep me happy."

  "I do take that responsibility seriously. Do you feel safer?"

  She didn't think long before saying, "Yes, I do."

  "Do you feel happier?"

  She didn't think at all before saying, "Yes, I do. I definitely do."

  He picked up her hands again and kissed them both as he said, "Good. Like I said, I love you. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife and letting me take care of you the rest of our lives?"

  Sam was shocked. She looked at him, trying to comprehend what he'd just asked. He went on to say, "But before you answer, I have to tell you something. I've wanted to ask you this for awhile now, but I had to wait until Friday was over."

  "Why?"

  "Because I want you to know before you answer me that you have enough money of your own that you can live comfortably, or you could even buy a ranch of your own. I know you wanted to run your family ranch and have the best herd of cattle in Texas and now you can buy one and run it if you want. I wanted you to have that money in hand before I asked you so you wouldn't think I asked you to marry me, knowing you'd be coming into money. The money has nothing to do with it at all. I needed to make sure you know that, Honey."

  "Oh, Trevor, I would never have thought that. I love you, too and I know the money wouldn't matter to you."

  He smiled and reached into his pocket, pulling out a ring box. He opened it and said, "I'll ask again, Sam. Will you please do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

  "Samantha Louise Nottingham. Yeah, I like the sound of that." She giggled.

  "Samantha Louise, if you don't answer me pretty soon ––"

  "You'll what?"

  Her mischievous smile was adorable. "I'll show you what happens to little brats."

  She looked at him with pure love in her eyes. "Yes, Trevor, I would love nothing more than to be Mrs. Trevor Nottingham."

  He leaned over and kissed her passionately, before taking out the ring and putting it on her left hand. When he looked up at her again he saw tears streaming down her cheeks. "Honey?"

  She assured him, "It's happy tears, Trevor. This has been the happiest week of my life. I feel like I got my dad back and two days later the man responsible for that asked me to marry him. What a week!"

  He put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him in the booth. "It has been quite a week, hasn't it?"

  She leaned against his shoulder, completely comfortable. After a bit she asked, "Trevor, are you sure you want to marry me, even after this afternoon? I'm not too much trouble?"

  Running his fingers through her hair, he said, "Honey, if anything, this afternoon just makes me want to marry you sooner. And no, you will never be too much trouble."

  "Why would this afternoon make you want to marry me sooner? You like spanking me, don't you?" she whispered, looking around to be sure no one was listening.

  He chuckled as he said, "No, Honey, I don't. At least not that kind of spanking. But this afternoon just showed me how much I need to keep an eye on you to keep you safe. And I do intend to keep you safe." He leaned down to kiss the top of her head.

  After a pause she asked, "What do you mean that kind of spanking? There's more than one?"

  "Oh, yes. After we're married I'll show you the kind of spanking you can earn when you're good."

  "What? Are you crazy?"

  "Nope. You just wait and see, little one. There's another kind of spanking and you'll love it. I promise."

  She looked doubtful, but said, "I don't know. You've never lied to me, so I'll wait and see, but I don't know."

  He chuckled. "You'll see."

  Sam lifted her left hand to admire her ring again. "It's beautiful, Trevor. Thank you."

  "I'm glad you like
it. I told the jeweler I wanted a beautiful ring for a beautiful lady."

  She snuggled in against him and said, "That is so sweet." After a bit she said, "Trevor, I know what I want to do with my money."

  "You do, already? There's no rush, you know, Sweetheart. You can take you time to decide."

  "I don't need any time. I know exactly what I want to do."

  "Okay. What do you want to do with it?"

  "I want to buy the ranch you've been looking at and make it part of The Circle N."

  "Sam, no. That money is for you. The Circle N is doing fine now since you stopped the Hendersons from stealing from it."

  "I know it is, Trevor, thanks to your good management. But I want to do this. The money doesn't really mean much to me. The ranch I grew up on would have, but that's already gone and I feel good now that I know the new owners love it like I would have. But that's not my home any longer and my dream's changed."

  "It has?"

  "Yes. You were right earlier when you said I wanted to run the ranch I grew up on and start a breeding program and have the best herd of cattle in Texas. But this is my home now. What would mean something to me now is taking that money and buying this ranch and together we can expand on the breeding program you've started on The Circle N and together we can have the best herd of cattle in Oklahoma. That's my new dream."

  Trevor was speechless and just pulled her to him. She gave him that mischievous grin he was beginning to love and asked, "So, cowboy, are you in my dream, or not?"

  He smiled and said, "Brat. Count this cowboy in!"

  Misty Malone

  Misty has dreamed of writing romance novels where handsome men are willing to take the young ladies they love in hand. She's following that dream now. She and her husband and their son live in the midwest.

  Don’t miss the exciting breakout novel by Misty Malone and Blushing Books!

  The Strange Healing

  Please enjoy Chapter One of The Strange Healing, by Misty Malone!

  The Strange Healing

  Chapter One

  Heath strolled lazily toward his sister and her husband, carrying his flip-flops so he could enjoy the sand between his toes. He was grateful that his brother-in-law, Phil, who was a close friend, had talked him into this day at the beach. He’d been under a great deal of stress lately, and this day of leisure was turning out to be a good healer for him.

  The quiet day of relaxing was just what he needed, with no concerns or problems on his mind. Except for the lady who’d been sitting motionless on the beach a few hundred feet from them. He noticed her when they first put their blanket down. She was a lovely young lady, but she looked sad as she sat alone, staring into the ocean. He knew people occasionally went to the beach to think things through, but this little lady seemed lost. He’d glanced over her way several times, but he’d hardly seen any movement from her at all. He was starting to worry, wondering if he should go check on her, just to be sure she was okay.

  “Rather than stare at her all day, why don’t you go introduce yourself?” Phil’s words startled Heath, and he looked to his friend, who was smiling. “I’ve seen you watching her ever since we got here. She is pretty, and she seems to be alone, so go introduce yourself. You need a good woman, and she looks like she needs a friend for dinner tonight, so go talk to her.”

  Heath smiled at his good friend. “Will you and your meddling wife stop matchmaking for this one day?”

  Heather grinned innocently and asked, “Whatever do you mean by that?” He frowned at her, and she laughed when she saw his eyebrow rise. “Okay, maybe we have suggested a lady or two that would be worth getting to know, but what do you expect? You’re my big brother, after all, and you’ve spent so much time helping me all these years, I just want to repay you, if I can.”

  Heath gave his sister a hug. “Heather, I appreciate that thought, I really do. But I’m sure if there’s a woman out there for me, I’ll find her on my own. I’ve been too busy to look, but things are slowing down now, so give me a chance, okay? And I’m not really your big brother.”

  Heather returned her brother’s hug, and reluctantly agreed. “I guess I can back off a little. But you are my big brother. You were born seven minutes before me, so that makes you my big brother. Like it or not, you’ll always be older than me, so get used to it, old man!”

  Heath shook his head as he looked over at Phil. “Do you let her get away with that kind of behavior, that sassy mouth all the time?”

  Noting the grin on Heath’s face, Phil smiled as he said, “Not always. Today’s a day to relax, though. It takes way too much energy to get her over my knee and hold her there while I teach her some manners.” Seeing the smug look she gave her brother as she stuck her tongue out at him, Phil grabbed her arm and quickly whirled her around and landed a sharp swat on her bottom. “Of course, I could be persuaded to rethink that plan.”

  “Ouch,” Heather cried, as she turned to look at her husband. She noted the serious warning in his eyes and quickly said, “Sorry, Heath.” She saw the smile on Phil’s face and the sparkle return to his eyes, and turned back to her brother. “I know you’ve been busy, Heath, and I’m glad things are finally slowing down for you. I’ve watched you work so hard for so long, between college and your job, and you spent an enormous amount of time helping me when Mom and Dad died. You pulled me through that, even though I know you were hurting just as much. I just want you to be happy now.”

  “Thank you, sis.” Heath kissed his sister on her forehead and assured her. “I appreciate everything you just said, but I can find my own date. I promise.”

  “Yeah, I know that. But you introduced me to Phil, and I’ll never be able to thank you enough for that.”

  He smiled at both of them. “But that’s different. I knew he was perfect for you.”

  Phil smiled, while Heather punched her brother in the arm.

  Smiling at his wife, Phil said, “You’re hitting your brother like you want me to exert the energy to spank you after all. Is that what you want?”

  Her eyes were wide as she said, “Absolutely not!” She knew he was teasing, and she added, “What am I going to do with you two brutes?”

  Phil laughed. “Well, this brute’s going to go get us some water from the stand over there. Can I trust you to behave while I’m gone, or do I need to drag you with me?”

  Lying back down to enjoy her rare day of relaxation, she assured him, “I’ll be a little angel while you’re gone, just like normal.”

  Both men laughed. Heath asked, “Want some help, Phil?”

  “No, I got this. You stay here and come up with a good opening line to introduce yourself to the little lady you’ve been staring at all day.”

  As Heath watched his friend leave to get the water, he turned to look again at the mysterious lady just a little ways up the beach. Two men approached her just then and he wondered if she’d been waiting for them all this time. As they got to her, though, he saw the lady jump, as if she’d been startled. Instantly concerned, he watched as the three talked a couple minutes. She appeared upset, and he decided to slowly wander down in that direction to be sure there was no problem.

  Just as he stood, one of them, a tall, thin man, grabbed her arm and pulled. She pulled back, trying to get her arm free, and tried to plant her feet in the sand. The second, shorter man grabbed her other arm and they started to pull her through the sand. Heath didn’t like the looks of that at all and took off running toward them. Just then she screamed and he picked up his speed as he yelled, “Hey, let her go!”

  Heather heard her brother yell, and looked over in that direction. She saw what was happening and immediately ran to get her husband.

  Heath watched the two men pull harder and drag the lady toward the path leading to the road. He yelled again to no avail. He got close enough and grabbed the taller one, pulling all three to an abrupt stop. “I don’t believe the lady wants to go with you two, so let go of her,” Heath demanded.

  Jerking his
arm free of Heath’s hold, the guy growled. “This is none of your business, and if you know what’s good for you you’ll leave.”

  Glancing quickly at her terrified look, Heath knew that whatever was going on, she didn’t like it. He told the man, “I just made it my business. Now let her go.” He easily ducked as the man took a swung at his jaw. He quickly turned around and was able to knock him to the ground while he was off balance. That bought him enough time to deal with the shorter man who was approaching, fists first. Again he was able to duck the first blow, then land a solid blow of his own, knocking the man backward and off his feet.

  He quickly whirled around and caught the taller man with a solid punch to his gut as he ducked to avoid his fist again. As the man doubled over, Heath turned to square off with the shorter guy, devising a plan in his mind as to how he could handle both of them at once, when he heard the taller man behind him groan. As he landed another punch, which knocked his sparring partner down again, he turned and was glad to see Phil standing over the taller assailant.

  “You okay, Heath?”

  “Yeah. Thanks, Phil. You okay?”

  “I’m fine.” Turning to the two men, who were staring at each other now, both still in the sand, Phil asked, “You two want to take us both on now, or are you ready to leave, like he told you to do?”

  As the two ran off, Heath turned to the lady, whose eyes were still filled with terror. He could see her trembling, and without thinking, he pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her. “Are you okay?”

  She immediately started crying, and he held her tight, trying to assure her. “It’s okay now, sweetheart. They’re gone, and you’re safe.” He just held her while she cried hysterically.

  Heather had gotten there and asked, “What happened? Is everyone okay?”

  No one said anything for a minute, and finally Heath said, “I think we’re all okay. I’m not sure exactly what happened.” Pulling the crying little lady away far enough to look into her eyes, he asked, “Ma’am, are you okay? Did they hurt you?” He didn’t get any response. He quietly tried again, “Did you know them?” The only response he got was a groan as she shook her head.