by Liz Isaacson
He’d presented her with a dozen red roses at lunchtime and given her a German chocolate cupcake with a chocolate-dipped strawberry topper when she’d left the ranch after work. She just wanted to eat pizza and curl up with him on the couch. Maybe talk about the last documentary he’d watched or what the weather was like in London.
Anything but what he’d seen online.
“I just think you should know that I don’t care who she was,” Cal said, clearly wanting to talk about everything Trina didn’t.
She turned to face him and crossed her arms. “You aren’t impressed with her serve? Her multiple Grand Slam wins? Her millions of dollars?”
He didn’t even blink. “Nope.”
“What do you like about her?”
“That she came here.” He gave her a sexy smile and extended his hand toward her, an invitation to go with him. And because Trina loved him and wanted to be near him, she slipped her fingers in between his and let him lead her out to the front porch.
He sighed as he sat on the top step, drawing her down with him. “I don’t care about the serve, or the titles, or the money.”
“I know you don’t.” She leaned her head against his shoulder, glad for an easy place to land when things got hard.
“I do want to see the trophy room in your house in California.”
She tensed. He’d done more than look her up online. He’d read articles. “It’s boring,” she said. “All this gold and silver the light glints off of. Bad for the eyes.”
“What are you going to do about that house?” he asked.
“I don’t know. Sell it, I guess.”
“Because you’re staying here, right?”
She looked over to him at the nervous undertone in his words. “Cal, of course I’m staying here.”
“I live in a two-bedroom cabin,” he said. “It’s not a house in the hills. Not even close.”
She lifted her chin and glanced down the gravel path toward the homestead. “Hills are overrated.”
He chuckled and lifted her knuckles to his lips. “I’m so glad you came to Three Rivers,” he murmured, moving his mouth to her wrist.
“Me too,” she said.
“I may not be glad about how we got here, but the important thing is that we did. We survived.” He looked at her, and she caught a desperate edge in his eye.
“We sure did,” she said.
“So money or no money, titles or no titles, fame or no fame, I’m glad you’re here.” He gave her a small smile and dropped his gaze to the steps in front of him.
She stood, an idea blooming in her head. “Come on,” she said, tugging on his hand to get him to come with her.
“What?” he asked as she towed him back into the house.
She glanced around, but could only find the television as a source of music. “You don’t have a radio?” she asked.
“A radio? No, I don’t have a radio.”
“We’ll use my phone.”
“For what?” he asked as she hurried over to where she’d left it on the kitchen table. She swiped and tapped, typed in a website, and made sure the volume was turned up all the way.
The first notes of the ballad came through the speakers, and Cal’s gaze turned hot. “I’m wearing the boots,” she said with a smile. “I want to dance.”
He took her easily into his arms, and she melted into his embrace. She’d spoken true when she’d said being with him just felt right. They swayed to the music they’d first danced to at the masked ball, the magic between them just as powerful now as it had been then. And despite some bumps and bruises along the way, Trina truly felt like a princess who had gotten her prince.
Like this book? Please leave a review now!
Join Liz’s list and never miss a new release or a sale on her books.
Want to read more? Start FIFTEEN MINUTES OF FAME, the next novel in the bestselling Three Rivers Ranch Romance series! Read on for a sneak peek at the first chapter!
Sneak Peek! Fifteen Minutes of Fame Chapter One
Navy Richards drew in a deep breath as the ticket attendant made his way toward her. He seemed nice, fatherly, probably bored to death. He punched tickets and made small talk, but Navy didn’t feel any of the man’s calm energy. She gripped her ticket to Three Rivers, Texas for all she was worth, wondering for the hundredth time if she’d decided correctly.
Yes, she thought, reassuring herself for the hundred and first time. She needed a break from her insane job as a pediatric nurse. Needed a break from the dozens of dating apps she had uninstalled just the previous night. Needed a break from her perfect younger sister, her gorgeous husband, and their new baby—which Navy had helped deliver and then care for while her sister sat in the hospital bed like a celebrity.
Familiar jealousy, bitterness, and frustration rose through her throat, and Navy didn’t like it. She didn’t want to feel that way about her only sister. About anyone. She’d prayed more often than she’d doubted her decision to take the leave of absence and move hundreds of miles away for six months.
Her feelings would subside for a few days, and then they came back—seemingly stronger and louder than before.
“Ticket?”
Navy pulled herself from her thoughts and extended her ticket toward the attendant. She had to force her fingers to loosen so he could take it and punch it. He didn’t linger with her, didn’t ask her why she was going to Three Rivers—a small speck of a city—on a bus, didn’t ask her how long she was staying. A sting started behind her heart, and Navy sighed as she leaned her head against the window and watched the Texas wilderness roll by.
She couldn’t help her fantasies of finding and marrying a good man. She’d been working hard at it, going out with everyone who asked, signing up for every available dating app, kept as many evenings free as possible. At this point, she’d probably been out with every available bachelor in Austin.
“Time for a change,” she whispered to her faint reflection in the glass. And so what if the change she wanted included a matchmaker? Why did Lexie get to dictate to Navy how she found her perfect catch? But her younger sister had definitely had plenty to say about Navy’s decision to travel to Three Rivers and meet with an eighty-three-year-old matchmaker. None of it was nice. Or supportive. Or what Navy wanted to hear.
After all, not everyone could get married, live in a quaint brick home with a white picket fence, and have a baby whenever they wanted by age twenty-eight. Oh, no. Navy was several years older than that and had practically handed Lexie her husband on a silver platter.
She eradicated the thought of Scott before it could sour her mood further. She drew in another breath, prepared for anything once she arrived in Three Rivers.
Eight hours and two very stiff legs later, Navy disembarked from the bus in Three Rivers, Texas. The night air tasted wonderful. She turned in a circle, drinking in the bright lights of the bus station and the way she felt so free here.
Navy beamed at the park across the street, but it darkness didn’t offer her a particularly nice welcome. Maybe coming here to meet with a matchmaker was a dumb idea. But it could also incite the change Navy needed in her life. Legend or not. Myth or not. Fantasy or fact. Navy didn’t care. She believed in the magic of this place, and she wasn’t going to let Lexie’s poisoned lectures influence her.
The bus rumbled away, leaving Navy alone on the sidewalk, all of her bags with her. Reality descended, and she put on her backpack, shouldered her purse and then another bag, and tilted the wheeled suitcase behind her. The fact that she could fit her whole life into a few bags had surprised and saddened her, but now she felt liberated. She crossed the street without looking for traffic, because it seemed the downtown area where she’d arrived had already closed for the evening.
As she arrived at the fountain, she did notice one establishment with bright lights still on. The restaurant also boasted loud country music when the front doors opened and a couple spilled onto the street. They didn’t glance in her direction, and in
the next moment, the lights dimmed and left Navy to herself.
The stories about how women came here to find their true love had given Navy more hope than she’d had in five years. And that couple? Maybe it was a sign that she’d find her happily-ever-after in this place she’d never dreamed of visiting.
Her own aunt had convinced her that the trip to Three Rivers was warranted. She’d found her husband after a meeting with the very person Navy had an appointment with the following day. She looked around the park, imagining the tea lights her aunt had detailed, the summer dances that brought out all the cowboys from the nearby ranches.
Navy sighed, thinking maybe she’d meet the just-right man for her too, somewhere in Austin in a park like this, after her meeting tomorrow morning.
A smile stole across Navy’s face, and she unburdened herself from her baggage. She cast a quick glance around to see if anyone was watching. She didn’t think nine-thirty was late, but apparently for this small town, and it being a weeknight, it was.
She twirled and danced her way down the sidewalk, a low hum in the back of her throat. A sense of wonderment and magic infected her, and she just knew tonight was the first night of the rest of her life. That she’d just finally done something to find the right person.
A gasp of desperation ended her dance and she stilled next to her suitcases. She didn’t want millions of dollars. She didn’t need a big mansion. She spent fifty hours a week cradling and caring for babies, and she wanted one of her own. She wanted a husband to gaze at her with so much love, the way the new dads did in labor and delivery. They could live in a basement for all she cared.
Please let this work, she said to the stars before bending and collecting her belongings. She’d told the people she was renting a cottage from she’d be there by ten, and she had a few blocks to walk before arriving.
Thank you, she thought through every step. Thank you for giving me this opportunity in Three Rivers, Texas.
The following morning further proved to Navy that she’d moved into a shack. Last night, the darkness had obscured the grime, the fact that the linoleum cracked in front of the stove and peeled where it met the carpet.
She’d rented the “cottage” from natives of Three Rivers for further luck in her quest to find a husband. The Shepherd’s had met her on the front porch and helped her carry her bags out to the cottage, which sat in a corner of their large, impressive yard. A rutted dirt lane led back to the cottage, and Navy needed to find some mode of transportation besides her feet.
Or maybe she wouldn’t. She had her laptop, and the cottage did have electricity and Internet, so she was pretty set. She wasn’t planning to work while in town, as she’d only be here for six months. Really, she needed an escape from her life, a vacation to reset herself. So that when she returned to Austin she’d be ready to be the kind of woman a man couldn’t resist.
She left the cottage and it’s lukewarm showers in favor of the late March Texas sunshine. Nothing could ruin today. Because today, Navy was meeting with Nancy Redd, the matchmaker who had promised Aunt Izzie that she’d marry a cowboy and live on a ranch. Navy wasn’t sure if ranch life was what she wanted, necessarily, but she believed Nancy could give her a push in the right direction.
Aunt Izzie and Uncle Marvin had lived here in Three Rivers for about a decade after their wedding. Then they’d moved to Dripping Springs, a small town about an hour west of Austin, to be closer to family. Uncle Marvin had worked at Three Rivers Ranch, which Navy’s cousin Heidi owned.
As she approached the address she’d been given, Navy’s heart pounded with anticipation. Her footsteps slowed as she contemplated what Nancy would tell her. Her throat turned dry at the horrifying thought that perhaps there wasn’t a match for her on this earth.
The house came into view, and it was obviously well kept. Clipped, green grass went right up to the street, where a mailbox stood straight and strong. A two-story house in pale blue boasted a bright red star above the front window. Rose bushes lined the sidewalk to the porch and along the front of the house. The only thing that seemed out of place was a birdhouse that looked like it had been put together by a bottle of Elmer’s glue, a vat of popsicle sticks, and gallons of finger paint.
She gave the ugly lawn decoration a wary glance. Something drew her toward it and she stepped across the grass to examine it further. It sat up between a rose bush bearing peachy-colored blossoms and one with pink the color of lemonade. She couldn’t quite reach the birdhouse, but she didn’t really want to touch it.
“You like that birdhouse?”
Navy spun toward the masculine voice and took in the form of a man several inches taller than her and wide enough to block the sun. He wore a cowboy hat the color of graphite and a dark beard salted with loads of gray. Instant attraction sprang through her system at his maturity, at the scent of his cologne as it stuck in the air surrounding them.
He watched her with a pair of dark, dangerous eyes, clearly waiting for something.
She jolted to attention as embarrassment rushed to her face, heating it to the color of the red roses at the end of the line. “Oh, the birdhouse.” She looked at the hideous thing again. “It’s…did their grandson make it?”
He tilted his head to the side, confusion evident in his expression. “What do you mean?”
“It’s crafty.”
“Crafty?”
Navy got the impression that she’d said all the wrong things. “It looks…unique.”
He crossed his arms, which only served to make his muscles that much more impressive. “It is unique. One of a kind, in fact.”
“That’s a relief.” Navy added a short burst of laughter to her statement in an attempt to smooth things over with this man. “Well, I have an appointment, so I should get going.” She hooked her thumb over her shoulder and backed away from the man for a few steps before turning around completely.
She felt the weight of his stare on her back, but she hadn’t come here to impress a surly cowboy with strange questions about a clearly dysfunctional birdhouse.
No, she’d come here to find her soul mate, and there was only one person who could help her do that. So with a determined breath, she rounded the house and entered the door on the side, just as instructed.
Read FIFTEEN MINUTES OF FAME today. Available in Kindle Unlimited.
Leave a Review
Like this book?
Tap here to leave a review now!
Join Liz’s newsletter to stay updated with new releases, get free novels, access to exclusive bonus content, and more!
Join Liz’s newsletter here.
Tap here to see all of Liz's books.
Join Liz’s Reader Group on Facebook.
Read more by Liz Isaacson
Stay in Three Rivers and experience more of the town! Read about some newcomers to the town in FIFTEEN MINUTES OF FAME.
Love ranch life and want more of it? Perfect! Read HER BILLIONAIRE COWBOY, Book 1 in the Steeple Ridge Romance series.
Want to know the start of Grape Seed Ranch? Read the introductory novelette, CHOOSING THE COWBOY.
Secret Sweetheart, Quinn Valley Ranch
Chapter 1
Betsy Quinn drew in a deep breath, the scent of brown sugar, maple, and the salty ham filling her nose. It was the best smell on the planet, and she couldn’t help bending down to smile at the meat candy currently baking in the oven.
The kitchen at the farmhouse buzzed with activity, as the family Christmas Eve dinner was about to start. She smoothed her hair off her face and glanced at the timer on the oven. She had twenty minutes before the ham needed to be basted again.
She could easily run out to the blacksmith shop to see Knox. She tried to push the idea away, but it already had her heart beating a little faster, and while the kitchen radiated heat, the temperature inside her was what spiked.
Everyone seemed busy enough. She could sneak away. After all, Georgia already had, and her chicken noodle soup sat on the back burner of the stov
e, just taking up space.
“Rhodes,” she said, turning to her brother as he got something out of the double-wide refrigerator. “Do you need me to go get Granny and Gramps?”
“No, I’ll go grab them. I need to get my presents from my cabin anyway.” He barely looked at her. The only time Betsy found the spotlight among her family was during mealtimes. It shouldn’t matter so much to her, but providing good food and getting complimented on it really meant something to her.
Betsy backed up a step, almost expecting Cami to say something to her. Ask her where she was going. Something. Her younger sister didn’t even look her way.
So Betsy spun on her heel and hurried into the mudroom off the side of the kitchen. She shoved her feet into a pair of snow boots that were two sizes too big and put on her coat. She hustled outside as she zipped it up, because she only had a few minutes.
The glowing, yellow lights in the buildings on the ranch brought a sense of comfort to her she hadn’t known she needed. She’d felt unsettled these past few months, and in the quiet moments before she went to bed, she allowed herself to admit the exact date everything in her life had been put in a blender and then turned on high.
The day Knox Locke had been hired at Quinn Valley Ranch.
She’d immediately gotten his number, as she had all the ranch hands’ numbers. She texted them in a group so they’d know if she’d have lunch at the homestead that day or not. She’d been immediately entranced by his dark green eyes, a more subdued version of his twin’s.
Betsy’s steps slowed. She couldn’t date her sister’s boyfriend’s brother. Could she?