Texas Heat. Debbi Rawlins

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      “Step on up, cowboy. I promise not to bite,” Dory said

      She winked exaggeratedly at the men, who were lapping up her antics like thirsty dogs at the trough, rather than the kissing booth.

      “Looks as if you’re doing just fine without my business,” Clint replied, caught off guard by the realization that he wanted to kiss her. Not a token peck in front of the crowd, but one of those slow wet kisses that made his blood simmer.

      The knowledge shook him. When had he started thinking of Dory in those terms?

      “Chicken,” she taunted, her glittering eyes locked with his as she plucked the tickets from the hand of her next customer.

      Clint smiled. Oh, he planned on kissing her, all right. Later. Without an audience.

      In fact, if she was willing, he planned on doing a whole lot more than kissing.

      

      Dear Reader,

      These past two years have been a time for me to flex my writing skills. I’ve contributed to an anthology with two other authors, written two time travels and this ENCOUNTERS story. Of all the departures from my usual path, I had anticipated that the ENCOUNTERS would have been the easiest. Not so.

      What a roller-coaster ride Texas Heat was for me to write. I love ranch settings and fish-out-of-water stories, so no problems there. I’ve written in short format before, so again, no problem with that. The characters themselves are the ones who gave me trouble. It was too hard to let them go.

      As different as heroines Dory, Lisa and Jessica are, I totally adored each one from the start. I thought they found the perfect heroes, and I wanted to stay with them on their journeys. And soon you’ll meet Kate Manning again…I’m plotting her story now, and since she’s best friends with Dory, Lisa and Jessica, I think I just may have to find out what the ladies are up to. Well, time to get back to work.

      Enjoy!

      Debbi Rawlins

      Texas Heat

      Debbi Rawlins

      ABOUT THE AUTHOR

      Debbi Rawlins lives in central Utah, out in the country, surrounded by woods and deer and wild turkeys. It’s quite a change for a city girl, who didn’t even know where the state of Utah was until four years ago. Of course, unfamiliarity never stopped her. Between her junior and senior years of college she spontaneously left home in Hawaii and bummed around Europe for five weeks by herself. And much to her parents’ delight, she returned home with only a quarter in her wallet.

      Contents

      Prologue

      THE WILD, WILD WEST

      Chapter 1

      Chapter 2

      Chapter 3

      Chapter 4

      Chapter 5

      Chapter 6

      Chapter 7

      Chapter 8

      WILD AT HEART

      Chapter 1

      Chapter 2

      Chapter 3

      Chapter 4

      Chapter 5

      Chapter 6

      Chapter 7

      Chapter 8

      WILDFIRE

      Chapter 1

      Chapter 2

      Chapter 3

      Chapter 4

      Chapter 5

      Chapter 6

      Chapter 7

      Chapter 8

      Epilogue

      Prologue

      “I THINK THEY’RE HERE,” Maria, the Manning’s longtime housekeeper said as she stopped squeezing lemons and squinted into the sun streaming in through the window.

      Excited to see her college friends, Kate Manning yanked off her apron and started out of the large crowded kitchen when she remembered her engagement ring sitting on the windowsill over the sink. She grabbed the one-karat diamond solitaire and smiled wryly at Maria, when the older woman shook her graying head in mock disapproval.

      Kate had accepted the ring from her boyfriend of two years a month ago and had already misplaced it three times. No doubt a psychologist would have a field day with that information. Lately, Kate had been wondering herself what lay beneath the uncharacteristic absentmindedness. But not now. She didn’t have time to think about anything but the weekend’s festivities. Here at the Sugarloaf, her family’s ranch, the Fourth of July celebration was a Manning tradition that included neighboring ranches for fifty miles.

      She slid the ring onto her finger as she hurried through the sprawling ranch house to fling open the front door. The black Town Car she’d sent to the Houston airport for her friends pulled into the circular driveway and stopped several feet from the wraparound porch.

      Lisa Stevens stepped out of the car first, blond, beautiful, perfect figure, gorgeous hair, flawless skin…she hadn’t changed a bit since college. Or maybe Kate didn’t notice a difference because Lisa was the only one she’d seen since they’d graduated five years ago. A successful Chicago reporter, Lisa had tracked a lead to Dallas, and Kate had met her there for a night out. Naturally, Lisa had gotten her story. The woman could charm the fangs off a rattlesnake.

      Dory Richards was right behind her, a direct contrast in torn, faded jeans, a baggy dark T-shirt and black running shoes. She looked as if she hadn’t brushed her long brown hair in a week, but then she’d always looked that way. A perpetual tomboy, even the few times she’d dated in college, Dory had never bothered with makeup or the latest clothing styles.

      From the other side of the car, Jessica Mead rounded the hood of the car. Kate almost didn’t recognize her. The woman had totally transformed herself. Oozing sophistication and glamour, her hair was pulled into a fashionable French twist and her tailored sleeveless linen dress obviously hadn’t come off the rack. Absurdly high heels made her a good five inches taller than her college days of scruffy jeans and tennis shoes.

      “Kate!” Dory noticed her first, rushing to her and nearly knocking her over in her enthusiasm. “You cut your hair.”

      “Gosh, I did that over two years ago. I can’t believe it’s been five years. We swore we’d never let that much time go by.”

      Lisa and Jessica joined them in a group hug, and then they dragged their luggage from the trunk of the car into the foyer. Lisa had a medium bag, Dory a small one, but Jessica looked as if she’d packed for a week.

      “Very nice,” Lisa said, ducking her head to scan the formal living room off to the right. “Not exactly how I pictured a ranch house.”

      Kate chuckled. “We never go in there. My mom insisted that we keep one room pristine for unexpected company.” Her parents had been gone for thirteen years now, but neither she nor her brothers had the heart to swap out the stuffy, impractical furniture. “Now, the rest of the house…well…just remember I have two brothers who live here.”

      “Come on. Let’s see it.”