That Mccloud Woman. Peggy Moreland

      What had come over him? Letter to Reader Title Page About the Author Dedication Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Copyright

      What had come over him?

      Jack swallowed hard as Alayna’s soft protest echoed around him. He opened his hand and looked at his palm, still feeling the warmth, the softness of her breast.

      

      He closed his hand into a fist, his lips thinning. He didn’t want to get involved with her. Even less, to hurt her. She was an angel. A woman who deserved a man who was willing to give her the children that she wanted so desperately.

      

      “I’m sorry,” he mumbled. “I—” But he couldn’t think of an explanation for his actions—nothing but the truth, which was that he wanted her. Needed her. He yearned for her softness, her compassion.

      

      But what did he have to give her in return?

      

      Jack pushed himself to his feet. He strode down the pier, the weathered planks pitching beneath his feet as he all but ran from her. From temptation.

      

      From himself.

      

      From memories that haunted him.

      Dear Reader,

      

      The joys of summer are upon us—along with some July fireworks from Silhouette Desire!

      

      The always wonderful Jennifer Greene presents our July MAN OF THE MONTH in Prince Charming’s Child. A contemporary romance version of Sleeping Beauty, this title also launches the author’s new miniseries, HAPPILY EVER AFTER, inspired by those magical fairly tales we loved in childhood. And ever-talented Anne Mane Winston is back with a highly emotional reunion romance in Lovers’ Reunion. The popular miniseries TEXAS BRIDES by Peggy Moreland continues with the provocative story of That McCloud Woman. Sheiks abound in Judith McWilliams’s The Sheik’s Secret, while a plain Jane is wooed by a millionaire in Jan Hudson’s Plain Jane’s Texan. And Barbara McCauley’s new dramatic miniseries, SECRETS!, debuts this month with Blackhawk’s Sweet Revenge.

      

      We’ve got more excitement for you next month—watch for the premiere of the compelling new Desire miniseries THE TEXAS CATTLEMAN’S CLUB. Some of the sexiest, most powerful men in the Lone Star State are members of this prestigious club, and they all find love when they least expect it! You’ll learn more about THE TEXAS CATTLEMAN’S CLUB in our August Dear Reader letter, along with an update on Silhouette’s new continuity, THE FORTUNES OF TEXAS, debuting next month.

      

      And this month, join in the celebrations by treating yourself to all six passionate Silhouette Desire titles.

      

      Enjoy!

      

      Joan Marlow Golan

      Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire

      Please address questions and book requests to:

      Silhouette Reader Service U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269 Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

      That McCloud Woman

      Peggy Moreland

      

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      PEGGY MORELAND published her first romance with Silhouette in 1989. She’s a natural storyteller, with a sense of humor that will tickle your fancy, and Peggy’s goal is to write a story that readers will remember long after the last page is turned. Winner of the 1992 National Readers’ Choice Award, the 1997 Golden Quill Award, and a 1994 RITA finalist, Peggy frequently appears on bestseller lists around the country. A native Texan, she and her family live in Round Rock, Texas.

      To my college roomies, Melissa Gerland Dillard, Brenda Bryant Medlin and Cyndi Lumpkin Clanton. In spite of the miles and the years, you are all still cherished friends.

      One

      With nowhere to go, and in no hurry to get there, Jack Cordell dumped a second spoonful of sugar into his coffee and slowly stirred, killing time.

      The town he’d stopped in for lunch was a small one, the diner he’d chosen a mom and pop type place that boasted home-style cooking and a blue plate special for $4.95. Though the price of the food mattered little to Jack, the appeal of a home-cooked meal did. After six months on the road, eating cardboard-flavored food, his stomach had been ready for something with a little sustenance to it.

      Though crowded and noisy when he’d first arrived, the diner was nearly empty now, the only sound the rattle of pans from the kitchen and the occasional squeak of the waitress’s crepe-soled shoes on the worn linoleum as she went about her duties, clearing off tables after the noon rush. The woman looked to be on the downhill side of fifty, full breasted, thick waisted and with a tongue as sharp as the pencil tucked behind her ear. She wore her hair piled high on top of her head, a metallic gold clamp of some sort holding her bottle-red hair in place. She worked with an efficiency of movement that said she was an old hand at slinging hash.

      The dusty plate-glass window on Jack’s right offered him a bird’s-eye view of the diner’s empty parking lot, the bank across the street and the post office beside it. With a slight turn of his head, he had a clear shot of the entire downtown area. All two blocks of it. Though he’d spent the last five years in Houston and was accustomed to its towering skyline and traffic-clogged expressways, Jack had grown up in a town about the size of Driftwood, and found the small town appealing, almost peaceful.

      And it had been a long time since Jack had known any peace.

      As he stared at the big, lazy-branched oak that shaded the bank’s entrance, a weariness settled on his shoulders. He was tired of running. Tired of living out of his truck, eating his meals out of grease-stained paper sacks. Tired of the monotony of chasing a white line, his only companion a fifth of whiskey he kept tucked underneath the front seat, while he tried to outrun his guilt, his grief—and when he couldn’t outrun it, drown it. Neither seemed to work. The guilt still weighed heavily on him, the grief a cancer eating away at what remained of his heart.

      He knew he had a home to go to, a business to tend. But the idea of