A Cowboy Returns. Kelli Ireland

      

      You never forget your first cowboy

      Eli Covington erased all traces of his cowboy upbringing to become a high-powered attorney. Then his father dies, and his brothers need him to rescue the family ranch. So, after fourteen years, Eli returns to the life he left behind—and the one woman he can’t resist.

      Veterinarian Reagan Matthews was furious with Eli for leaving her all those years ago, and yet she was never quite able to let him go. Their attraction is as incendiary as ever, and Eli is very good at stoking the flames. But Eli doesn’t belong in her world, any more than Reagan belongs in his. So until Eli leaves for good, why not take her pleasure where she can? Pleasure only her cowboy can provide...

      She should have said something...

      Eli’s hands wove through Reagan’s hair and kept her face turned up to his. “You never have to apologize for looking at me, Reagan. Ever.”

      “Things are different now, Eli. We both know it. If we can just get through—”

      His hands tightened in her hair the second before his mouth crushed down on hers. Lips and teeth and tongue, all demanding and wanting and wet heat. She ached with need and hunger, ached in a way she’d forgotten she could feel.

      Every thrust of his tongue demanded her response, refused to allow her to think, gave her no quarter except to touch him and move with him, to feel the hard muscle under his soft skin. She wanted everything he offered. Everything.

      Reagan had missed this ravenous sexual ache; she’d hungered for this fire that branded her. It burned her from the inside out and turned her reservations to ash.

      Eli freed one hand from her hair and, gripping her belt loop, yanked her closer.

      And, God forgive her, she fell willingly into her first love’s embrace...

Dear Reader,

      It’s with absolute pleasure I am able to introduce you to Harding County, New Mexico. It’s a land of grassy plains that give themselves up to the beauty of the Sangre de Christo Mountains, a range that is in some places sparse and in others the most beautiful country you’ve ever seen.

      When his father passes away, Elijah, the oldest of the three Covington boys, comes home after fourteen years away. He’s reunited with the beautiful Reagan Matthews, the woman he loved and left behind—the only woman he’s ever loved. And it’s an emotional, passionate, thoroughly satisfying ride!

      Having lived on a ranch myself in New Mexico after marrying my very own cowboy, I have to tell you that there are a few things in each of the Covington books that I’ve experienced firsthand, but I’m not telling which ones. Rest assured that every character and every situation is entirely a product of my imagination, though.

      The one thing I can tell you with certainty? New Mexico’s cowboys are every single bit as sexy as anything Texas has turned out.

      Happy reading,

      Kelli

      A Cowboy Returns

      Kelli Ireland

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      KELLI IRELAND spent a decade as a name on a door in corporate America. Unexpectedly liberated by Fate’s sense of humor, she chose to carpe the diem and pursue her passion for writing. A fan of happily-ever-afters, she found she loved being the puppet master for the most unlikely couples. Seeing them through the best and worst of each other while helping them survive the joys and disasters of falling in love? Best. Thing. Ever. Visit Kelli’s website at kelliireland.com.

      This book is for Vivian Arend, one of the absolute best mentors a writer could ever hope to find.

      Contents

       Cover

       Back Cover Text

       Introduction

Dear Reader

       Title Page

       About the Author

       Dedication

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       Extract

       Copyright

1

      ELIJAH COVINGTON NEVER thought he’d find religion on a commuter flight, but when the tiny plane plummeted the last fifty feet to the runway, he prayed. Little more than a closed-cockpit