SAM
A Men of Clifton Montana Novel
Book 7
Susan Fisher-Davis
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Erotic Romance
Sam Men of Clifton, Montana Book 7
Copyright © 2016 Susan Fisher-Davis
First E-book Publication: July 2016
Cover design by Amy Valentini
Edited by Romancing Editorially
All cover art copyright © 2016 by Susan Fisher-Davis
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER: Blue Whiskey Publishing
Dedication
To the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Department in MT for answering any questions I had for them.
To Ariya Xie/photographer at Xie4to-graphy for the amazing photo—you know I had to have it the minute I saw it.
To Matt Oubre for being SAM—you are absolutely perfect for him.
It took me almost two years to find the right cover for this book. Every time I thought I’d found one, I’d change my mind and now I know why. It was because I was waiting for this one.
To my editor, and friend, Amy Valentini, who if it hadn’t been for her SAM would have never gotten his own story. When she edited my first book, JAKE, she told me I’d better get a woman for SAM because that man was hot. Who knew so many readers would fall in love with him?
To my betas, Toby, Kelli, Dedee, & Kelly—you four ladies are the best and I treasure your friendship, and input.
Special shout-out to these amazing authors: Tiffany J. West, Cynthia Noble, Kris Nacole, Jacqueline Anne, Rhonda Lee Carver, Kathleen Ball, Chandra Crawford, Lorraine Britt, Susan Storm, Gloria Herrmann, Holly J. Gill, Renee Vincent, Tamara Hoffa, Stacy Pritt, Sherri Good, Becky McGraw, Lynda Cox, Mary Smith, Dawn Sullivan, and D’Ann Lindun—you ladies ROCK.
I love you all and I’m proud to call you my friends.
To Malinda Diehl for going the extra mile.
To Genevieve Lowe for letting me steal your name.
To Penny Culberson––just because.
To my husband Rob for putting up with me staying in my cave all day and rarely emerging.
I love you.
To all of you reading this—I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I wouldn’t be here without you. I love my readers and love getting feedback from you.
This story was to be the end The Men of Clifton, Montana series but I’m adding one more. I’ve had my favorites along the way, but none of them got to me as much as SAM did. He will always have a special place in my heart. I hope you enjoy his story as much as I enjoyed writing it. Don’t worry for you’ll see those Men of Clifton pop up in The Callahans and The Beckett Brothers too.
Thank you all for your support.
Enjoy SAM!
Prologue
Tessa stood in the cabin at the window and stared out at the snow. Covering everything it touched, it fell in a heavy blanket over the wilderness surrounding the quaint cabin. Leaning against the sill, she sipped her coffee thinking about everything that had happened in the last six months, and that tomorrow she was starting a new job in the small town of Clifton, Montana.
It was time she returned to work. After being in Kalispell, Montana for six months doing nothing but staring out the windows, it was time for her to come out of hiding and start living again. With the help of family and a good friend who was like family, she’d found a job in Clifton at the animal hospital. Trained as a veterinarian, she needed to get back to doing what she loved and that was caring for animals. Although she specialized in equine veterinarian medicine, she took care of all animals. Dr. Will Carter had hired her on the spot and in addition, had offered her the opportunity to buy the hospital when he retired in a few more months. Something she hoped to accomplish.
Tessa worried her bottom lip as she thought about everything that she’d had to endure and change, but couldn’t help worrying if she would be safe there. Was it possible she could still be found?
Shaking the thought from her head, she decided that if she hadn’t been found in the six months she’d been hiding with the help of her aunt Lil, a good friend and her godmother, maybe she was finally free. If changing her name, her location, and her world meant being safe then it was all worth it. Small town life had never been her thing but she might just have to change her mind on that. As long as she was safe, she’d stay put and make a new life.
Walking to the sink, she rinsed out her cup and got ready for bed. She was going to have a long day tomorrow and was grateful Lil had allowed her to stay at her cabin, but also glad for the use of the SUV in the garage. With the snow coming down as heavily as it was, she’d need it tomorrow. Lil had done so much for her and made all the arrangements for her to start her new life in Clifton, Montana as Tessa McGuire. It was a small town and not very impressive, but the few folks she’d met already seemed to have big hearts. She only hoped she’d fit in and be safe.
Chapter One
Sheriff Sam Garrett stood in his office staring through the blinds toward the animal hospital. She was in there. He’d seen her walking up the street and then entering the hospital. She was so beautiful. Blowing out a frustrated breath, he took a seat behind his scarred oak desk. He’d been sheriff for four years now and another election was coming in November. He really hadn’t decided on running again yet, although he did love the job. Muttering under his breath when he heard his dispatcher/secretary Betty Lou Harper clear her throat, Sam glanced up to see her standing in the doorway.
“What is it Betty Lou?” he grumbled. He seriously loved the woman but she could drive an insane person sane.
“Don’t take that tone with me, Sam Garrett. I just wanted to know if you were going to get lunch at the diner.”
Sam glanced at the clock. “I didn’t realize it was that late.” He stood. “Yes, I’ll get something. What do you want me to bring back for you?”
“I don’t want anything. You just need to eat, Sam.”
“Betty Lou…” Sam growled.
“Someone needs to take care of you. You don’t have a wife.” Betty Lou shrugged.
“By my choice. Christ, Betty Lou, let up.”
“Stop swearing, Sam.”
Taking a deep breath, he ran his hand down over his face then strode around the desk and grabbed his Stetson. After slamming it on his head, he moved past Betty Lou and headed out the front door. The woman was goi
ng to drive him insane. She was worse than his own mother about him settling down with a wife. There wasn’t a woman he wanted to settle down with, much less marry. Stopping in his tracks, he glanced toward the animal hospital. Well, not one who wanted to settle down with him anyway. Sam blew out a breath of frustration and walked toward the diner. Many people stopped him along the way, either to complain about something or just to say hello.
Mentally groaning, he almost crossed the street to escape when he saw Lacey Cosgrove barreling down on him with a big grin on her face.
“Hello, Sam,” she said as she halted in front of him.
Sam touched the brim of his hat. “Lacey. How are you today?”
“Wonderful. How about you, Sheriff?” Her fingers ran over his bare arm. She started walking them up his arm when he wrapped his fingers around her wrist.
“I’m on my way to lunch.” He smiled in as pleasant a way as possible.
“Too bad I’ve already had lunch or I’d join you.”
Sam didn’t recall asking her to. “I’ll see you later, Lacey.”
“Will you, Sam?”
Damn! He could have kicked himself for not thinking she might take him literally. “Figure of speech.”
“Anytime you want to see me is fine with me, Sam. Anytime.”
“Have a nice day,” Sam said and walked away. Lacey Cosgrove had been after him for as long as he could remember. It wasn’t that she wasn’t pretty, she was, but there weren’t too many men in Clifton who hadn’t already sampled her charms. He swore as his eyes shifted toward the hospital again.
Damn it. Why did she hate him? From the minute they’d met, she’d looked at him as if he was a bug on the bottom of her shoe and he didn’t know why. He’d wanted her from the first moment he’d seen her. He’d wanted to wrap her long black hair around his hand, pull it to his face, and inhale. Tessa McGuire stood tall and had the most beautiful dark brown eyes. Her lips looked so kissable that Sam couldn’t help but think about tasting them. All the time. Hell, he wanted to taste her. All over. Every damn inch of her soft looking skin.
Christ, now his cock was getting hard. Sam stopped and took a deep breath then exhaled. He sure as hell didn’t want to walk into the diner with a hard-on. Pulling the glass door open, he heard the attached bell tinkle. He nodded to some of the patrons then took a seat on the nearest red vinyl stool at the counter. Connie, the owner, came over to him.
“Hi, Sam…what would you like?”
“Burger and fries please, Connie.”
The Clifton Diner was small but had the best burgers and fries for miles around. The smell of frying onions permeated the air. Connie set a glass of ice water in front of him, making him smile. She knew it was all he drank. That or coffee, and then coffee only in the mornings. Sam spun on the stool and gazed around the room. He smiled at the people who waved at him. When he spotted Joe Baker, he tensed up. Joe Baker was a drunk who enjoyed using his wife as a punching bag but Mary never pressed charges. It wasn’t long ago that Sam had had a run-in with him over his cattle being on Trick Dillon’s land and Sam knew it was going to come to a head one day.
Baker weaved through the tables and stopped in front of Sam. “Garrett.”
“That’s Sheriff Garrett to you, Baker.”
Joe Baker laughed. “You love telling me that.” He stared at Sam for a few seconds. “You have a nice day…Sheriff.”
Sam muttered under his breath as Baker walked out the door. He spun back around on the stool then glanced toward the door when the bell above it rang again. His heart hit his stomach when Tessa entered the diner. Her eyes met his but she quickly looked away, and took a seat on a stool a good way down the counter from his. Sam didn’t understand why she hated him so much.
Connie returned and set his food in front of him, the aroma making his stomach growl. He hadn’t realized he was so hungry. Picking his burger up, he took a bite and almost groaned. Connie smiled at him before walking toward Tessa. Sam watched as Tessa smiled at Connie when she offered to take her order, and his heart slammed into his ribs. Would she ever smile at him like that? Mentally shaking his head, he seriously doubted it. She avoided him like the plague and it really pissed him off.
After he finished his lunch, he paid for his food and left the diner. He stood outside for a few minutes. It was a beautiful day. Late-spring was warming up the little town of Clifton and it was more than welcome after the rough winter it had just gone through. Sam lifted his gaze and looked at the blue cloudless sky, the sun sitting up there all alone warming the ground. Putting his aviator sunglasses on, he turned when the door behind him open and Tessa stepped out. She hesitated when she saw him, but then nodded her head at him.
“Doctor McGuire,” Sam said as he put his fingers to his hat.
“Sheriff,” she said to him and the sound of her voice shot right to his dick.
Desire made him want to hear that soft voice whispering in his ear while he buried himself deep inside her. Son of a bitch! His cock was growing again. After giving her a terse nod, he crossed the street to head back to his office—to hell with embarrassing himself in front of her.
****
Tessa McGuire watched as the sheriff crossed the street as if the hounds of hell were chasing him. She didn’t blame him for wanting to get as far away from her as fast as possible though. She’d treated him like dirt since the first minute she saw him. Her breath had left her body when she’d turned to meet him. She’d thought him the sexiest and most gorgeous man she’d ever set eyes on. Sam Garrett had just grinned at her with perfect white teeth. Her gut had told her to turn away because she knew she could never get involved with him.
Instead of being friendly, she’d frowned at him, and in reaction to her cold greeting, he’d narrowed his eyes at her. After she spun away from him, she’d heard him huff and then leave the clinic. That had been on the day she’d moved some of her things into her new place of employment as a veterinarian.
Eighteen months ago, she’d purchased the Clifton Animal Hospital from Dr. Will Carter when he had retired. She’d been in Clifton for two years now and she’d avoided Sam Garrett as much as she could. Her attraction to him was so great that she couldn’t take the chance of being around him. No matter how hot he was and how she’d love to know him better, she couldn’t chance it. Getting involved with any man, especially a man like Sam was out of the question. There was something about him that made it way too easy to fall in love with him, and she couldn’t allow that to happen so she stayed away from him, and let him think she hated him. If she allowed herself to get involved with him and he found out her secret, he would end up hating her.
Tessa was not having a good day. As if running into Sam at the diner wasn’t bad enough, now she'd lost a mare, her first, and it was killing her. The foal survived but now he was in danger of losing his life if another mare refused to nurse him or the owner, Ryder Wolfe, didn't feed him. Tessa shook her head. Surely, Ryder would take care of it. The man loved his horses. It was just such a time consuming project. Ryder had frozen colostrum on hand so he should be able to feed the foal but time was critical, as the foal would need colostrum within the first two hours of life. After eighteen to twenty-four hours, the foal would no longer be able to absorb the antibodies through his gastrointestinal tract. With orphaned newborns, the easiest method to get them to nurse was with a bottle. Their natural instincts were to suckle, so they readily were willing to nurse from a bottle.
Tessa wiped the tears from her face as she drove back to town from Ryder’s place.
What kind of veterinarian are you? You're not supposed to cry over the loss of an animal.
Her dream of being an equine vet had come true right after she graduated and a large equine hospital in Pennsylvania had hired her, and then when the opportunity for her own practice opened up, eighteen months ago, she jumped on it. At first, she wasn't thrilled with the small town of Clifton but after being here for a while now, she loved it and the people in it—well, all the
people but perhaps, one.
Her hands gripped the steering wheel, her jaw clenching as she thought of him. The man drove her crazy and as far as she could tell, he didn't like her either.
She glanced in her rearview mirror and swore aloud when she saw blue and red lights flashing. Speak of the devil. Tessa pulled over, got her license, proof of insurance, and registration out, and then put her window down. Glancing in the side view mirror, she saw him get out of his big SUV patrol cruiser, put his black Stetson on, and walk up alongside her car. Tessa bit her lip to hold back a groan. She handed her information out the window before he could ask for it.
"You in a hurry today, Doctor McGuire?" Sam Garrett asked in that deep voice of his that drove her nuts, even though she didn’t want it to.
Tessa refused to look up at him. Way up. The man topped six foot five, and every inch was mouth-watering. "I didn't realize I was speeding, Sheriff.”
"Ten miles over the posted limit," he murmured. "I'll be right back."
"Take your time," Tessa mumbled.
Her eyes went instinctively to the side view mirror and watched his retreating backside—those broad shoulders. Why was he so hot? That dark brown, almost black hair was sexy enough but those beautiful blue eyes could make any woman want to jump his bones. She watched him take his hat off before getting back in his cruiser. His hair touched the collar of his khaki shirt. That wasn’t very professional, but then neither was the way his jeans hugged his butt.
She tapped her fingers on the steering wheel. What was taking so long? Knowing Sam, he was deliberately taking his time just to irritate her. He was the only person in town who called her Tessa. Everyone else called her Tess or Doc Mac. Not Sam, though. He had to be different, and too damn good-looking for her peace of mind. He was the sexiest man she’d ever laid eyes on. She gritted her teeth so hard that she was surprised they didn't shatter.
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