by Tracy March
“Unbearably?” He grinned.
“Irresistibly.”
He lifted his scruffy chin, and gave her a flirty smile. “Mission accomplished.”
Lindsey shook her head and smoothed her hand over her gauzy mint green dress that laced up the front. Holly had picked it out for her when they’d gone shopping in Carbondale, and Lindsey immediately loved it. She’d paired it with some stylish Western boots, and left her hair long and loose.
Carden’s house looked like something out of a fairy tale in the snowy landscape, alight in the dark, snowflakes falling. Lights glimmered inside and out, and smoke rose from the chimney.
“You’re looking smokin’ hot yourself, birthday girl.”
Lindsey looked at him coquettishly. “Mission accomplished.”
Carden aimed a lazy, sexy smile her way, pulled the truck into the garage, and got out. He made his way to the passenger side, opened the door for Lindsey, and offered her his hand.
“Thank you, kind sir,” she said as she stepped out of the truck.
He dipped his chin.
“Where’s Blue?” Lindsey asked.
“Enjoying a play date with the other dogs in the kennel.”
“Aw,” she said. “I was hoping to share my cupcake with him.”
“We’re having cupcakes?” Carden winked. He led her up the steps, and into the house.
The smell of delicious food filled the air, along with a tinge of wood smoke. Instrumental music played low. Carden led her down the wide hallway, his hand lightly at her back.
Lindsey couldn’t get enough of his touch—no matter when, no matter where. “I hope—”
“Surprise!” A chorus of voices called out.
Lindsey’s heart sprang into her throat. She flattened her hand against her chest as she scanned the happy faces.
Milly and Merri.
Travis and Emily.
Holly, Fred, and Dean.
Darlene.
Even Stella and Tansy and Oscar. And a middle-aged couple Lindsey didn’t recognize.
“You guys…” Lindsey cut a look at Carden.
“Happy birthday,” he said, and everyone applauded. “There are some special people here I’d like you to meet.” He led Lindsey over to the middle-aged man and woman. The man was tall, slim, and handsome, with brown hair going gray. He had his arm around a strikingly beautiful dark-haired woman with blue eyes. “Mom, Dad,” Carden said, “this is Lindsey.”
Lindsey’s heart hammered. She’d been prepared for a quiet night with Carden and now she was meeting his parents. Thank goodness she’d worn something decent.
The woman took Lindsey’s hand between both of hers. “We’re so happy to meet you. I’m Karen, and this is Charles.” She nodded toward her husband. “We’ve heard so much about you from Stella and Carden.”
Lindsey wouldn’t dare ask what. Carden pressed his hand more closely against her back, and cut her a mischievous look, complete with raised eyebrows.
“You did a very impressive job with the museum,” Charles said. “We toured it today.”
“Thank you,” Lindsey said. “That means a lot.”
“I think you might’ve missed some folks.” Carden clutched Lindsey’s shoulder and turned her around to see more happy faces.
“Mom! Dad! Grandma!” Lindsey’s mouth dropped open and she covered it with her hand as they gathered her in for a group hug. “I’ve missed you so much.”
“We’ve missed you, too,” her mom said.
They released her after a long moment, and Becca stepped out from behind them.
“Becca—no way!” Lindsey drew her in for a tight hug, tears welling in her eyes. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
“Me, too.” Becca smiled.
Lindsey caught Carden’s loving gaze.
“Happy birthday,” he said.
Beaming, Lindsey swiped a tear from beneath her eye. “I don’t guess I need to introduce you.”
“Not hardly,” her dad said. “We’ve gotten to know Carden pretty well while we’ve been planning all this.”
Lindsey’s grandma kissed her cheek, and glanced at Carden. “Got yourself a sexy cowboy there.” She winked.
“Grandma,” Lindsey said incredulously, but it was all in good fun.
While Lindsey and Carden greeted everyone, Henrietta and a few hired helpers made the rounds, passing hors d’oeuvres and serving flutes of champagne for a birthday toast. The atmosphere was warm and festive and simply perfect.
“This is the best birthday present I’ve ever gotten,” Lindsey said to Carden.
He leaned in close and whispered, “Darlin’, I’m just getting started.”
Was this all a dream? Lindsey couldn’t believe that she was here with him, with so many family and friends—old and new. That they were in love, and everyone knew it.
They joined Milly and Merri next to the stone fireplace—the warmest spot in the house. “You two had us worried there for a while.” Milly’s silver dress matched her hair, and her eyes sparkled in the firelight.
“But we knew there was magic between you.” Merri pursed her pink lips, several shades lighter than her magenta dress.
“I won’t argue with that,” Carden said. “I’ve been spellbound by this girl since the second I laid eyes on her.”
Lindsey couldn’t get over the surreal feeling of having Carden say such things to people about her. “Aw, that’s sweet.”
The sisters shared smiles and one of their knowing looks.
Henrietta stopped and gave Carden and Lindsey flutes of champagne. She slipped Carden a spoon and nodded. Stepping up on the fireplace hearth, he took Lindsey’s hand and gently tugged her up to join him. He clinked the spoon against his glass, getting everyone’s attention.
“First, I’d like to thank everyone for coming tonight—from near and far—and for keeping this a secret so Lindsey was surprised.”
Lindsey shook her head. “I had no idea.”
“It means a lot to me that you’re here,” Carden continued, “and I know it means a lot to Lindsey.” He put his arm around her and pulled her close. “So let’s make a night of it—relax, celebrate, and enjoy.”
Lindsey loved the way Carden captured everyone’s attention. They seemed interested in every word he said.
“And now a toast in honor of the birthday girl.” Carden gazed at her, one corner of his mouth quirking up, and lifted his glass. “To the girl who brightens my days like a sunrise, and warms my nights like a fire.”
Lindsey glanced at Holly, who stood slack-jawed, listening to Carden. Becca had gone doe-eyed, too. Lindsey could totally relate.
“Here’s to true love,” Carden said. “Lindsey has made me believe it’s possible.”
There wasn’t a dry eye to be found among the moms, grandmothers, or Milly and Merri. Even Henrietta dabbed at a tear.
“Happy birthday,” Carden said to Lindsey. He tapped his glass to hers, and took a sip of champagne. Gathering her to him, he kissed her.
The applause, whistles, and chatter faded into the background as they kissed, keeping it appropriate for an audience, even though it felt as if just the two of them were there. Carden pulled away and pressed his forehead to hers.
“Thank you,” Lindsey said, although words weren’t near enough to show her gratitude.
He set his sultry blue gaze on hers, leaned in close, and whispered, “My pleasure.”
To Mike, for taking me to Thistle Bend
Acknowledgments
I’ve fallen in love with a lot of places in my life, but I became completely smitten with Crested Butte, Colorado, when my husband and I vacationed there several years ago. Perhaps it’s because his family has roots there, and that makes the place more special than most. Or because life slows down to a manageable pace there, making me think peaceful living might truly be possible. Or maybe it’s the serene beauty of the majestic mountains, glimmering lakes, dramatic storms, and spectacular sunsets. I think it’s all of the above that in
spired me to write about a fictional town called Thistle Bend, modeled loosely on Crested Butte. Thanks to everyone there for sharing your special town with me.
I’m sincerely grateful to Sue Grimshaw and the fine folks at Penguin Random House for believing in me and Thistle Bend. Your guidance made this story shine. There aren’t enough words to thank my sweet friend Nancy Naigle for her support and understanding, and especially the laughs that keep us keeping on.
I thank my eighty-year-old mom for being my biggest cheerleader, and my niece, Jess, for brightening my life every day. As always, all my love and gratitude goes to my husband, Mike, whose patience knows no bounds, and generosity has no limits. Thanks for loving me, and making our dreams come true.
BY TRACY MARCH
Thistle Bend
Should’ve Said No
Just Say Maybe (coming soon)
PHOTO: CAROL E. HAYES
Award-winning author TRACY MARCH writes romantic thrillers influenced by her interest in science and politics. She also writes lighthearted romances inspired by her real-life happily ever after.
Always up for travel and adventure, Tracy has flown in a stunt plane, snowmobiled on the Continental Divide, ziplined in the Swiss Alps, and been chased by a bull in the mountains of St. Lucia. She loves Nationals baseball, Saturday date nights, and Dairy Queen Blizzards—and rarely goes a day without craving pizza.
Tracy lives in Yorktown, Virginia, with her superhero husband, who works for NASA.
Get in touch with Tracy online:
TracyMarch.com
Facebook.com/AuthorTracyMarch
@Tracy_March
The Editor’s Corner
Thirty days hath September, April, June, and November…wait, it is November, and Loveswept is releasing some of our best books of the year! Check out these fabulous romances:
New York Times bestselling author Marquita Valentine releases her second new novel in her Boys of the South spin-off series, Take the Fall, with When We Fall, in which a small-town sweetheart takes a chance on the bad boy who’s always been her hottest fantasy. Another Loveswept New York Times bestselling author, Tracy Wolff, introduces her new Hotwired series with Accelerate, in which an unassuming passenger is taken for the ride of her life. New York Times bestselling author A. Meredith Walters releases a powerful romance akin to The Fault in Our Stars, with Butterfly Dreams. Then, welcome to Thistle Bend! A charming series debut from Tracy March, Should’ve Said No introduces a small town where old secrets are revealed—and wounded hearts are opened to new love. And in a short novel, Rebecca Rogers Maher’s Rolling in the Deep, two kindred spirits share a winning lottery ticket—and discover what it really means to get lucky.
Sports fans were introduced last month to the Aces Hockey series by Kelly Jamieson with Major Misconduct, and this month Jamieson releases a holiday romance, Off Limits. Book two in the Recovered Innocence series by Beth Yarnall features a San Diego investigative team with a soft spot for lost causes and a passion for redemption in Vindicate. And Taking It Off, by USA Today bestselling author Claire Kent introduces you to Matt Stokes, the sexy-as-sin male stripper and club owner who knows what it really means to bare everything. Jessica Lemmon’s irresistible Lost Boys series kicks off with Fighting for Devlin, the story of a good girl who plays by the rules—and the bad boy who brings out her wild side. And in Cecy Robson’s O’Brien Family series debut, two total opposites find that the flames of desire are still smoldering in Once Kissed.
For historical romance fans, Sharon Cullen’s The Reluctant Duchess ignites as a shy country girl and a hotheaded duke surrender to dangerous temptations. Then it’s on to Scotland for USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Haymore’s Highland Knights and the first book in this new series, Highland Heat, an electrifying tale of class warfare, fierce loyalties, and forbidden love.
I don’t want this month to end! But the good news is December is upon us, with more fabulous Loveswept titles. Until then…
Happy Romance!
Gina Wachtel
Associate Publisher
Read on for an excerpt from
Just Say Maybe
by Tracy March
Available from Loveswept
Chapter 1
Bryce Bennett sprang up off the seat of the rented mountain bike, standing on the pedals and flexing his knees as he blazed along the narrow ridge trail, pounding across a section of large, loose rocks, sending one tumbling over the edge of the thousand-foot drop-off. The craggy Rocky Mountain peaks in the near distance sloped drastically down to the vast green valley below. A sapphire river cut a wavy path through its center, shimmering in the early June sun, miniature from this height.
Bryce white-knuckled the handlebar grips, keeping the bike steady as he pedaled up a steep, bumpy rise. The achy sting in his quads reminded him there’d been way too much business in his life lately—not nearly enough adventure. Forget that rides like these tested his thirty-one-year-old body in ways they hadn’t when he’d been seventeen.
He sucked in a deep breath of super-thin air, craving oxygen.
Fat chance of getting much of it at this altitude.
Arriving in Thistle Bend, Colorado, from sea level just yesterday hadn’t given him nearly enough time to acclimate, but he’d been too amped to ride the Wild Rose Ridge trail to resist the temptation. He’d been told that the trail was a not-to-be-missed ripper when he came to the area a month ago to check out the abandoned lodge a couple miles down near the trailhead.
Helluva piece of work—all stone and timber and glass…And almost mine.
The building needed a big-time reno, but Bryce had something to prove—and something to set straight. The idea of owning a place with such spectacular potential pushed the rush he was riding to an off-the-charts level. Flirting with the edge of a deadly drop-off while shredding miles of treacherous trail totally kicked ass, but having his name on the deed of his second adventure travel lodge killed. His heart thundered faster.
He pumped the pedals, picking up speed on a flat run along the ridge before the next daunting rise, his hair whipping at the back of his neck. Dust kicked up from the tires and branches of low, scrubby bushes scratched his calves. He glanced down over the mountainside, awed by the view. Fueled by the risk. Times like these made him feel alive.
Times like these are why I’m alive…
As the delinquent teenage son of a single, overworked mom, Bryce had spent enough time in juvie to call the godforsaken place his second home. The joint hadn’t been much less miserable than the tiny apartment he and his mom had shared in Poquoson, Virginia. She could’ve afforded a better place in a nearby town, but she’d sacrificed because the school system was better in Poquoson—as if Bryce could’ve cared.
Laboring up another lung-blowing climb, Bryce shook his head, picturing his sweet mom’s face, regretting all the trouble he’d caused her. If it hadn’t been for that summer when he was seventeen and she’d sent him to an adventure sports camp, he would’ve never straightened up. His mom had charged the admission fee on her credit card. It had taken her three years to pay it off. Even so, she never missed an opportunity to tell Bryce it was worth “every red cent” since his camp experience turned both their lives around. A rueful smile stretched across his face. He could never make everything up to his mom, but he’d spend forever trying—or at least as long as he was lucky enough to have her around.
Bryce exhaled at the top of the rise, then charged along the rocky downhill payoff, the trail dancing nearer to the mountain’s crumbling edge. Patches of pink wildflowers flashed like a strobe as he flew past, barreling toward the blind curve ahead. He took it as wide as he could, peeling around to a sick view that took his eyes off the trail. He’d never seen anything so—
His front tire hit a deep pit, stopping him cold. Bryce leapt from the bike as it tumbled forward, grateful that the edge had given way to an outcropping of boulders until he landed on one, hard—mostly on his knees and elbows. His sunglasses flew off and skitt
ered across the rock as pain ricocheted into his hips and shoulders. His phone popped out of his backpack and tumbled toward the drop-off. Bryce clenched his teeth, watching helplessly, amazed that it stopped inches before plunging over. He rolled onto his back and stayed there, getting his bearings, sucking in air…taking inventory.
Knees. Hips. Elbows. Shoulders.
He unclasped his helmet and put his forearm over his eyes, shielding them from the intense sun.
Definitely bruised, but nothing broken…
He couldn’t count how many times he’d fallen off a mountain bike. Gotten hit in the head with a surfboard. Capsized his kayak in wicked whitewater rapids.
“Pay to play, Bennett,” he muttered.
“Are you okay?”
Had he imagined that sexy female voice? He hadn’t hit his head, but it had been a while since he’d heard someone inquire about his well-being in such a sweet and soothing tone. An alluring fantasy started shaping up in his mind. He debated whether to open his eyes or let it play out.
“Oh, man,” the woman said, sounding worried.
He dragged his forearm away from his eyes, shaded them with his hand, and focused. Dressed in hiking gear, the woman kneeling next to him had a knockout oval-shaped face with high cheekbones, a perfect nose, and very kissable lips, puckered with concern. Her auburn ponytail stuck out from the back of a green baseball cap and fell in front of one of her slender shoulders. Bryce blinked and tugged in another oxygen-depleted breath, convinced she was a post-trauma vision, holding half a sandwich with a bite taken out of it and smelling like…peanut butter?
Maybe I did hit my head.
He propped himself up on his elbows and she drew back a little. The girl was definitely not a vision, because things would’ve gone a little differently had Bryce’s psyche been calling the shots.