The Colton Bride. Carla Cassidy

      

      Bestselling author Carla Cassidy brings danger and deception to Dead River Ranch for the Coltons of Wyoming

      Ranch foreman Gray Stark and heiress Catherine Colton may live together on Dead River Ranch, but they’re from different worlds. She made that clear when she broke his heart years ago. With their passionate, complicated past, marriage is not an option. Until he finds out that she—and her unborn baby—are targets.

      Making Catherine his wife is the best way to ensure her safety. But as desire resurfaces, it wars with the danger that hovers close. Is Gray ready to face his biggest threat yet to keep Catherine safe…and by his side…forever?

      “Why did you leave, Gray? Why did you just disappear from the ranch, from my life, nine years ago?”

      His gaze left Catherine’s face and focused someplace over her shoulder. “First love, teenage fantasies.” He looked at her once again, his eyes dark and unreadable. “What we had was just the lust and the wonder of young love. I did you a favor by leaving here and letting you get on with your adult life.”

      “It didn’t feel like a favor at the time,” she said softly, remembering the aching pain he’d left behind. However, there were certainly bigger issues at the moment.

      “Water under the bridge, right?” he said. “We can’t go backward, Catherine. We need to figure things out here and now. We need to make sure that you’re covered at all times. And the only way I can do that is if you marry me.”

      The Coltons of Wyoming: Stories of true love, high stakes…and family honor.

      Dear Reader,

      The excitement and dysfunction of the Colton family makes the best kind of reading—addictive and a definite guilty pleasure.

      There’s also nothing better than a Colton marriage…unless the bride is unwilling and the groom is reluctant. Add in a heavy dose of desire between the two and a kidnapper determined to claim the new bride for ransom and you’ve got a roller coaster ride!

      I hope you enjoy reading The Colton Bride as much as I enjoyed writing it.

      Keep reading!

      Carla Cassidy

      The Colton Bride

      Carla Cassidy

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      CARLA CASSIDY is an award-winning author who has written more than one hundred books for Mills & Boon. In 1995 she won Best Silhouette Romance from RT Book Reviews for Anything for Danny. In 1998 she also won a Career Achievement Award for Best Innovative Series from RT Book Reviews.

      Carla believes the only thing better than curling up with a good book to read is sitting down at the computer with a good story to write. She’s looking forward to writing many more books and bringing hours of pleasure to readers.

      MILLS & BOON

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      Contents

       Chapter 1

       Chapter 2

       Chapter 3

       Chapter 4

       Chapter 5

       Chapter 6

       Chapter 7

       Chapter 8

       Chapter 9

       Chapter 10

       Chapter 11

       Chapter 12

       Chapter 13

       Chapter 14

       Chapter 15

       Chapter 16

       Chapter 17

       Chapter 18

       Chapter 19

       Excerpt

      Chapter 1

      The three Colton sisters sat in the parlor area of Catherine’s bedroom suite, each of them pretending to carry on a casual conversation while ignoring the reason they were gathered together.

      The pregnancy test Catherine had just taken was in the adjoining bathroom and none of them had looked at it yet to see the results.

      The suite was three rooms: the sitting area, the bedroom and the bath. All were decorated in a splendor of pinks and black with silver accessories. This was Catherine’s haven, the place she felt most safe and secure, but at the moment her nerves screamed inside her.

      “Jim Radar’s bull got himself all tangled up in a mess of barbed wire this morning. It took me hours to get him unwound and cleaned up,” Amanda said. At twenty-eight, Amanda had a successful large animal veterinarian practice and a six-month-old daughter, Cheyenne, who was the love of her life. “I gave Jim a lecture about the dangers of barbed wire, but I think it went in one ear and out the other.”

      “How’s the barn project coming along?” Catherine asked her younger sister, Gabriella. Gabby had a dream of turning an old red barn on the property into a center for troubled teens. She was not only devoted to her project but also planning a Christmas wedding with Trevor Garth, head of security here at the Dead River Ranch.

      “Slowly,” Gabby admitted, her green eyes sparkling with happiness. “I keep getting distracted by wedding plans. It’s already October and that