Coulda Been a Cowboy. Brenda Novak

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      Praise for Brenda Novak’s Dundee, Idaho, series

      “Once again author Brenda Novak delivers a stunningly magical performance…. Novak’s fans will easily recognize her unforgettable style and characterizations from the first chapter.”

      —WordWeaving on A Family of Her Own

      “A powerful author, Brenda Novak is an expert at creating emotionally driven romances full of heat, sensual tension and conflict that satisfy not only her characters, but her readers as well.”

      —Writers Unlimited on A Husband of Her Own

      “Just when you think the last book of the Dundee series was the best and there couldn’t be another one done better, Brenda Novak goes and proves you wrong. She writes an emotionally packed story about characters and their situations you find yourself caring about…Brenda Novak has the gift of involving the reader in her story on all levels. Each book feels richer, more full-bodied…. There’s no need for her to change her voice or style. She seems to have found it and simply made it stronger.”

      —Once Upon A Romance.net

      “The Other Woman…continues with familiar, well-loved characters and a fresh story line that will grasp your attention and hold it. Ms. Novak packs a lot of drama and interwoven suspense in this gratifying romance, The Other Woman.”

      —CataRomance.com

      “Novak continues her loosely connected series set in Dundee, Idaho, with this emotionally intense story of one woman starting over again. Complex, realistically flawed characters and a love story with a dash of danger are beautifully blended in this excellent contemporary romance.”

      —Booklist on The Other Woman

      Dear Reader,

      

      Welcome back to Dundee, Idaho. Dundee is one of my favorite places to write about, so I’m happy you seem to enjoy getting to know all the characters who live in this small town. In Coulda Been a Cowboy, you’ll meet a professional football friend of Gabe’s—and a woman who really deserves a happy ending. What I like best about the story is the way Tyson Garnier’s heart softens and begins to change as he gets to know his son and the nanny hired to take care of him. I also enjoy watching two people who are an unlikely match get involved with each other and fall in love. I smile whenever I think of Tyson and Dakota, and I hope their story will make you smile, too.

      

      Many of you know I also write romantic-suspense novels. In February Dead Giveaway was published. In August Dead Right will hit bookstore shelves. (In fact, there’s an excerpt in this book.) If you like my stories, you might want to give these other books a try. To watch a video trailer that will give you a hint of what they’re all about, simply visit my Web site at www.brendanovak.com. There, I blog (if you’re interested in keeping up with the latest Novak happenings), have monthly draws in which I give away various things (everything from autographed books to chocolate to free registration for the biggest booklovers’ convention of the year). I also sponsor an annual online auction for diabetes research at my Web site (my son suffers from this disease), where you can bid on more than 600 items, many of which you can’t find anywhere else. It happens every May, so be sure to check it out!

      

      If you don’t have or use the Internet, feel free to contact me via snail mail at P.O. Box 3781, Citrus Heights, CA 94611.

      

      Happy reading!

      

      Brenda Novak

      Coulda Been A Cowboy

      Brenda Novak

      ABOUT THE AUTHOR

      Since her first novel was published in 1999, Brenda Novak has written twenty-four more books—between helping her five children with homework, taking them to music lessons, baseball, soccer and basketball, and helping her youngest son manage his diabetes. Other than watching one of her sons pitch a perfect inning or one of her daughters hit a home run, writing, reading and traveling are Brenda’s favorite activities.

      Winner of a Booksellers’ Best Award and nominated for Romantic Times BOOKreviews magazine’s Storyteller of the Year in 2005, Brenda writes dramatic, sophisticated stories, including her DUNDEE, IDAHO series and romantic suspense for MIRA Books. Look for her next romantic-suspense novel, Dead Right, in August 2007.

      To my sister-in-law Angel, who is as beautiful as

       her name suggests. Thanks for your enthusiasm for my books. You’ve provided me with a great deal of support and inspiration. Thanks, too, for your pure heart. It’s been a blessing to the entire family.

      May you find your own Prince Charming…

      CONTENTS

      CHAPTER ONE

      CHAPTER TWO

      CHAPTER THREE

      CHAPTER FOUR

      CHAPTER FIVE

      CHAPTER SIX

      CHAPTER SEVEN

      CHAPTER EIGHT

      CHAPTER NINE

      CHAPTER TEN

      CHAPTER ELEVEN

      CHAPTER TWELVE

      CHAPTER THIRTEEN

      CHAPTER FOURTEEN

      CHAPTER FIFTEEN

      CHAPTER SIXTEEN

      CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

      CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

      CHAPTER NINETEEN

      CHAPTER TWENTY

      CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

      CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

      EPILOGUE

      CHAPTER ONE

      Grandpa Garnier: If you find yourself in a hole,

       the first thing to do is stop digging.

      SHE SEEMED IDEAL: slightly overweight, older than the typical groupie and definitely on the frumpy side. All of which would keep things as simple as Tyson Garnier needed them to be.

      “What was your name again?” he asked. But he kept his voice down. God knew he didn’t want to wake the nine-month-old monster in the other room. He’d just spent twenty-four hours alone with said monster and would rather suffer the roughest tackle imaginable than flounder helplessly through another fifteen minutes.

      “Dakota Brown. I didn’t send you a résumé, if that’s what you’re looking for. Gabe posted a flyer at the grocery store, saying you’d be staying at his cabin for a couple months and needed a good nanny while you’re here, but I didn’t consider applying until he called me.” The woman met his eyes, but he had no idea what she was thinking. She certainly didn’t seem impressed with him or his fame—didn’t smile coyly, unbutton the top of her outdated blouse or bat her eyelashes. She treated him as he imagined she treated anyone else, which made Tyson even more hopeful that he’d found the right candidate. It was a major point in her favor that she hadn’t turned into an idiot just because he played football on TV.

      He set aside the stack of résumés he’d been studying. The name Brown was as ordinary as she seemed to be. But Dakota. That was unusual. Especially for a woman who looked to be of mixed race. Was she part Polynesian? Native American? Mexican? Tyson couldn’t tell. But her creamy café au lait skin was clearly her best physical asset.

      “And you have no children of your own?” He’d told Gabe Holbrook, who’d talked him into coming to Dundee in the first place, not to send him any potential nannies with children, but it didn’t hurt to double-check. The last