Showing posts with label cowboy romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cowboy romance. Show all posts

6/04/2019

E.E. Burke's Best of the West: A Bride That Needs Saving


Get lost in a new heartwarming romance from New York Times Bestselling Author Linda Broday

He may be a wanted man, but all outlaw Jack Bowdre ever desired was a second chance. Now he’s on his way to jail, completely unaware that his unexpected—and unexpectedly beautiful—traveling companion is none other than Nora Kane…his mail order bride.

Unaware that Jack is her groom-to-be, all Nora sees is a scoundrel. But when their stagecoach crashes and the truth comes spilling out, they’re suddenly left to fend for themselves—and each other. The longer they’re together, the stronger their feelings grow. Hounded by desperate men bent on doing them harm, Nora and Jack will do whatever it takes to find their happily ever after...but first, they’ll have to shake the devil from their trail. 



Read an excerpt!

The barrel-chested marshal smiled at Lenora. “Sorry that you have to endure this a bit longer, ma’am. He’s little more than a savage animal.” He said that like the outlaw had a case of rabies or something. Dollard continued in a tone full of righteous contempt. “Why, he’s so mean the rattlesnakes won’t even come near him. I heard his own kin disowned him.”
Lenora’s gaze followed the outlaw’s long legs and lean form from which enormous power radiated, felt his deep irritation and anger to be cuffed to the marshal. She’d read about men like this one who lived outside the law in dime novels that were all the rage back East. But reading about one and coming face to face with one in the flesh were two totally different things.
Awareness sizzled between them and when he turned his gaze to her, a rush of heat flooded her cheeks.
His chiseled features appeared hewn from the hardest stone that the good Lord probably reserved for those like him who lived outside the law. The marshal appeared barely able to contain him. In fact, she got the impression the prisoner merely bided his time until an opportunity for escape came.
He glanced toward the window, allowing her to study him better. The outlaw had uncommon good looks with a hard, angled jaw that sported brown stubble. The rise high on his nose indicated it had been broken few times. Ha! She wasn’t surprised at that.
But most striking were his gray eyes—gunmetal gray. At times they stormed, and other times, like when the marshal shot warnings and threats, they became icy and hard. But amusement colored his gaze when he turned his attention to her.
Lenora thought about leaning across the space and slapping his brazen face. Except she’d never struck anyone even though she’d been sorely tempted a few times.
The way he glanced at the door then back to the marshal told her he was planning an escape.
Lenora stilled and held her breath, her pulse racing. Would he use her somehow in his escape plan? Maybe take her hostage? Oh dear. She glanced at the marshal, wondering if he’d pull his gun and shoot him if he tried anything.
The handsome outlaw lifted a finely arched brow. “Here in Texas they make you pay to gawk, ma’am. But I reckon this is the first time a gentle woman like yourself has laid eyes on a born and bred killer. Who knows? Maybe you can come to my hanging. Now that’ll be a real treat.”
Beneath his mocking tone, she saw the layer of sorrow, felt his heavy heart, tasted his bitterness. She couldn’t bear the thought of him swinging from a rope.


Where to get Saving The Mail-Order Bride 
AMAZON  |  APPLE  |  B&N  |  KOBO  |  IndieBound

Q&A

E.E.: What turns you off like nothing else?
Linda: Whiny people who sit around constantly complaining about how they feel, why they can’t have a happy life, how everything is against them. I just want to shake them hard.

E.E.: What’s something you’d like to tell your fans?
Linda: Thank you for reading my books, believing in me, supporting me, and leaving reviews. I couldn’t keep writing if it wasn’t for my readers and knowing they’re waiting for my next one. I’m so grateful for each one and love them dearly.

E.E. What one thing about your hero drives his heroine crazy? And what one thing about your heroine drives her hero nuts?

Linda: Jack Bowdre counts whenever he’s trying to keep his temper down and it drives Nora crazy. And Nora’s insistence on always looking on the bright side makes Jack climb the wall. These make for some funny scenes.

E.E.: How did you come up with the idea for your book?

Linda: I’m always trying to think of ways to get characters together and keep them there and one day me and another author were brainstorming and she said to handcuff them together. Yes! That’s one sure-fire way to get to know one another fast! And it works. I loved torturing Jack and Nora by making them unable to part after cross words. The handcuffs made them stay and work things out.

E.E.: When I want to relax, I ___________.

Linda: Go to the movies. There is nothing better than sitting in a dark theater and watching a story unfold on the screen. It’s pure magic for me and so entertaining. I’m a movie addict.

E.E.: Have you read any good books lately that you’d recommend?

Linda: Oh yes! The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson! Oh my gosh, this was such a gripping story about 1930s life in the Kentucky mountains for people whose skin is blue. These people really existed and they were ostracized and treated like trash because of it. The main character was a horseback librarian, taking books to people living in way back in the hills. This is based on historical fact and such an interesting book.

E.E.: What’s coming next?

Linda: In September, Longing for a Cowboy Christmas releases – an anthology with Leigh Greenwood, Rosanne Bittner, Margaret Brownley, Anna Schmidt, and Amy Sandas. These stories will put you in the holiday spirit.

Linda's Awesome Giveaway: A $25 Amazon gift card, Two copies of Saving the Mail Order Bride.

Enter the raffle and leave a comment: 

How long would you be able to survive in the open with only the clothes on your back, handcuffed to an outlaw, and a posse behind you?

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5/28/2019

Get Lost with Cowboy Rebel from NYT Bestselling Author Carolyn Brown

The next heartwarming romance in this USA Today bestselling series proves it's tough to resist a sexy cowboy with a Texas drawl and heart of gold!

Taggart Baker has always lived life on the edge, making the country song, "Live Like You Were Dying" his motto, after his best friend died in a motorcycle accident when they were eighteen. But after one bad brush with the law, he realized it was time to move on. Now he's looking thirty in the eye and running his own ranch next to the Longhorn Canyon spread in Texas. Still, no one would ever call him tame...


Trauma nurse Nikki Grady likes life slow and steady. She has too much drama in her job to want a man who's only going to create more headaches. But when her best friend's younger brother shows up in the ER after a bull-riding accident, something in his haunting crystal clear blue eyes draws her to him like flies to honey. The more time they spend together, the more Nikki begins to relish the idea of his cowboy in her life forever. But just as Tag is ready to ditch his wild ways for good, his past comes calling, threatening not only their love, but their lives.

Here's an excerpt:

Taggart, or Tag as the family called him, was one of those men who turned every woman’s eye when he walked into a place—even a hospital emergency room. The nurses, old and young alike, were buzzing about him before Nikki even got him into the cubicle. With that chiseled face, those piercing blue eyes, a cowboy swagger, and a smile that would make a religious woman want to drink whiskey and do the two-step, it’s a wonder he hadn’t already put one of those “take a number and wait” machines on the front porch post of his house.
“The doctor is on his way. He just finished stitchin’ up a patient with a knife wound. From the looks of you, I’d think you’d been in on that fight.” Nikki applied pressure to the cut with a wad of gauze.
The curtain between the cubicles flew to one side, and a white-coated guy came over to the bed. “What have we got here? I’m Dr. Richards.” He gently lifted the edge of the gauze. “Knife?”
“Beer bottle,” Tag said.
“Well, the first thing we have to do is shave off that scruff. Deaden it up and then shave off the area around it, Nikki. I’ll take care of the kid who thought he could ride his skateboard down a slide, and I’ll be right back,” Dr. Richards said.
“Yes, sir.” Nikki nodded.
The doctor had been instrumental in getting Nikki her first job as a registered nurse, and she really admired him. An older man with a white rim of hair around an otherwise bald head covered in freckles, he was the best when it came to stitches, in Nikki’s opinion. Tag was a lucky cowboy that Dr. Richards was on call that night. It could have been an intern doing the embroidery on his face, and it would be such a shame to leave a scar on something that sexy.
“You still going to go out with me even though I’m clean shaven and got a scar?” Tag asked her as she prepared to shave part of his face.
“If I don’t work, I don’t eat, and I’m real fond of cheeseburgers,” she answered.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” He winced when she picked up a needle to start the local anesthetic.
“That I don’t have time to take a number and wait in line behind all those other women wanting to get a chance at taming you,” she answered.
He wrapped his hand around her wrist before she started. “I’d move you to the front of the line, darlin’.”
“Well, ain’t that sweet.” She patted his hand and ignored the heat between them. “But, honey, you’re way too fast for this little country girl. Now be still and let me get this ready for Dr. Richards.”
Without blinking, he focused on her face as she sank the needle into several places to deaden the two-inch cut. Whispers of other conversations penetrated the curtains on either side of Tag’s cubicle, but heavy silence filled the space where Nikki put in the last shot.
“That all?” he finally asked, but his piercing blue eyes didn’t leave her face.
“Except for cleaning up around it,” she answered. “And you were a good boy. I’ll tell Dr. Richards to give you a lollipop before you leave.”
“It ain’t my first rodeo,” he said. “Did you call Hud?”
“Not yet,” she said.
“Then don’t.”
“With the amount of blood you’ve lost and the shot doc will probably give you for pain, you’ll need a driver or you won’t be released,” she said. “So it’s Hud or Emily. Take your choice.”
“You’re a hard woman, Nikki,” he said.
“And you’re a hardheaded man,” she shot back as she carefully shaved the scruff from around the wound.
“We ready to fix this cowboy up?” Dr. Richards threw back the curtain. “What’d the other guy look like?”
“Not a scratch on him, but he was limpin’. His woman tried to kick his kneecap halfway to Georgia,” Tag answered.
Dr. Richards chuckled. “And I bet you were defendin’ her in some way.”
Tag grimaced when he tried to smile. “Just helpin’ out the bouncer a little. Seemed like the thing to do since ‘Whoop a Man’s Ass’ was playin’ on the jukebox.”
“Well, looks like you was the one who got the whoopin’.” Dr. Richards chuckled and turned to Nikki. “Good job there, Nikki. Now it’s my turn. We could try glue and strips, but as deep as this is, stitches will do a better job.”
“You’re the doctor,” Tag answered.
“It’s up to you whether you shave your face clean when you get home, but if you don’t, you’re going to look a little like a mangy dog.”
“Looked worse before,” Tag drawled. “And probably will again.”
A lady in pink scrubs poked her head between the curtains.
“What do you need, Rosemary?” Dr. Richards asked the nurse.
“Sue Ann just arrived. Nikki handles her better than any of us. Would you mind if I help out here and she takes that job?”
“Go on,” Dr. Richards said. “I’ve got this.”
“Where is she?” Nikki asked as she pushed back the curtain. Rosemary had fast become her friend since they both worked the weekend shift. The woman was average in every way—brown hair, brown eyes, but her sense of humor and smile were infectious.
“I’ll show you and then get right back in there with Doc.” Rosemary led the way. “Lord have mercy.” She laid one hand over her heart and fanned her face with the other one. “That cowboy could melt my panties with those blue eyes.”

***

Carolyn Brown is a New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Publisher’s Weekly and #1 Amazon and #1 Washington Post bestselling author and a RITA finalist. Cowboy Rebel is her 97th published book on the market. She’s a recipient of the Bookseller’s Best Award, and the prestigious Montlake Diamond Award, and also a three-time recipient of the National Reader’s Choice Award.
Brown has been published for more than 20 years, and her books have been translated 18 foreign languages. They’ve also been published in both book club editions and large print, and many are available in audio format. She and her husband live in the small town of Davis, Oklahoma, where everyone knows everyone else, as well as what they’re doing and when—and they read the local newspaper on Wednesday to see who got caught. They have three grown children and enough grandchildren to keep them young.

When she’s not writing, Carolyn likes to plot new stories in her backyard with her tom cat, Boots Randolph Terminator Outlaw, who protects the yard from all kinds of wicked varmints like crickets, locusts, and spiders. Visit her at www.carolynbrownbooks.com.



Good morning to everyone! It’s a pleasure to be here today talking about Cowboy Rebel. This is Nikki and Tag’s story.

Taggart (Tag) Baker has always lived life on the edge, making the country song, "Live Like You Were Dying" his motto, after his best friend died in a motorcycle accident when they were eighteen. Trauma nurse Nikki Grady likes life slow and steady. She has too much drama in her job to want a man who's only going to create more headaches.

Nikki and Tag are with me today so y’all could ask them some questions today. Of course, you’re free to ask me anything you like, also, so if everyone has a cup of coffee or tea in their hands, let’s get this party rolling.

Question for Tag: What is it about Nikki that drives you crazy?

Tag: (With a smile and a wink toward Nikki). She’s the only woman that I’ve ever met that was immune to my charm. I thought I’d plumb lost my mojo, and that drove me crazy. She made me really work for a place in her heart and life.

Question for Nikki: What color would you make the sky if it couldn’t be blue anymore?

Nikki: The sky will always be the same shade of blue as Tag’s eyes to me. Even if tomorrow I lost my sight, I would still see the sky as the same color in my imagination. He was one of those bad boys that mama’s everywhere warn their daughters about, but his eyes told me that he was an old soul just looking for someone to help him get past the guilt of his past.

Question for Carolyn: What’s your favorite fairy tale?

Carolyn: Cinderella, hands down! That story shows us that even though we might be at the bottom of the heap, we can still dream big, and that our circumstances do not necessarily determine the outcome of our lives. I grew up poor, but I knew I wanted to write stories. My dream is being fulfilled every day.

Question for Tag: What is your “kryptonite”? What will bring you to your knees?

Tag: Nikki’s big brown eyes. If she’s crying or sad, I can’t stand it.

Question for Nikki: Did Carolyn tell your story just like you wanted it told?

Nikki: Yes, ma’am, she did. Somehow she even got my mother’s character down to a T. I have to admit that sometimes late at night, Tag and I’d wake her up to fuss about changes in the last scene, or to talk about what we thought should be written in the next one. But she always managed to work with us and get it told right.

Carolyn: Thank you again for having us, and for having some pretty good questions ready for us to answer. We’ve got to be going now to the next interview, but we’d love to hear what you all think of our story when you read it. 

But first, it’s our turn to ask questions. Nikki would like to know what you think of the cover. She thinks that Tag is a pretty dang sexy. What do you think? Tag wants to know if you like bad boy cowboy books. 

And I’d like to ask what is your favorite genre? Is it cowboy romance, women’s fiction, paranormal? 

I’m giving away a signed copy of Cowboy Rebel. Winner will be chosen from comments, so let us hear from you as readers!!