Now she laughed, and Trent’s eyebrows shot up. “So that’s how you want to play it?” he asked.

  “Hey, you started it!” Marianne accused. “Now I’ve ended it!”

  “You ended shit. Come here.”

  She was back in his arms before she had a chance to escape. Trent leaned in for a kiss, and Marianne threw up her hands to ward off the exhibition—which only resulted in his jaw getting muddy and Trent transferring that mud to her when he kissed her anyway.

  “Guess we’ll have to hold off on that photoshoot.” Marianne laughed apologetically as she pulled away. “Sorry, Cheryl. My assistant brewer has been out here a long time today. He’s a little sun drunk.”

  Cheryl shook her head. “No way! This is some great stuff! Now I’ve got a whole reel of you guys looking fun and natural.” She tapped one nail against the viewing screen of her camera. “Our readers want to see authentic people. Country people. Movers and shakers who aren’t afraid to get a little dirty.”

  “Trust me, Marianne isn’t afraid to get dirty,” Trent volunteered. Marianne glared at him, but then he corralled her close under his arm, making it impossible for her to keep up the steely glare. Cheryl’s cellphone trilled. The journalist fished it out of her back pocket and gave them an apologetic look.

  “It’s my editor,” she explained. “Do you mind if I take this real quick?”

  “Not at all.” Marianne grinned. “Is your editor opposed to you staying for dinner?”

  “I’ve already booked a room in town,” Cheryl said. “I’m not going anywhere.” She took the call and disappeared around the front of the bar.

  “She seems nice,” Trent commented.

  Marianne elbowed him in the ribs. “You seem like you need a break from the sun. It’s making you goofy.”

  “Well, you seem like you’re damn beautiful. Maybe that’s why I’m acting this way.” Trent caught her chin in his hand, and Marianne’s breath hitched with anticipation—but he was only looking to swipe some of the mud from her cheek. His thumb swept her jawline, and she had to bite back what felt like a purr bubbling up in her throat. “Look how far you’ve come. Used to be you couldn’t stand the sight of dirt, much less having it on you.” He grinned, and his teeth were the most sparkling clean thing about him at present. Marianne couldn’t help but mirror him with a smile of her own. “This article is just the start. There will be plenty more publicity where that came from once the world gets a taste of you.”

  “They why don’t you shut up and get to tasting me?” she murmured. Trent’s thumb stroked down her cheek, but too softly to brush off any remaining dirt. She leaned into his touch as Trent leaned into her.

  She’d been searching all her adult life for that perfect ambrosia, the divine collision of texture and taste that made her lips sing with pleasure. Any good brewer knew that the best combinations often came unexpectedly, maybe even by complete accident—and as Trent’s lips merged with her own, Marianne finally discovered the crowning ingredient to pure, undiluted happiness.

  END OF WILD DREAM

  WILDHORSE RANCH BROTHERS WILD RIDE BOOK 3

  Wild Ride, July 27, 2023

  Wild Heart, August 3, 2023

  Wild Dream, August 10, 2023

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  BLURB

  Snowed in at Christmas with the one that got away…

  Olivia Wickham never forgot her passionate romance with a sexy cowboy, Tate McConnell. After a family emergency forced them apart, Olivia searched, but couldn’t find him…not even to tell him she was pregnant with his twin daughters. Now, years later, she and the twins are stranded in the wilderness, with a blizzard bearing down. When a handsome rancher shows up to rescue them, Olivia is shocked to see it’s Tate — the girls’ father.

  Time hasn’t dampened Tate’s attraction to the gorgeous Olivia. But he’s convinced himself he’s not cut out for family life, and it’s hard for a stubborn cowboy to change his ways. Still, the more time he spends trapped in a remote cabin with Olivia and his daughters, the more Tate begins to realize they may be just what his life has been missing…

  With Christmas around the corner, Olivia and Tate can’t help but feel like fate is offering them a second chance at love. But can they open their hearts enough to accept it?

  Grab your copy of Snowed In with the Rancher

  Available October 19, 2023

  www.LeslieNorthBooks.com

  EXCERPT

  Prologue

  Prologue

  Tate McConnell was a ranching man—he was used to the sun beating down on him from a clear sky stretching endlessly overhead, arching over cool green pastures rolling out for miles with not another living creature in sight, except for some cows.

  Today…well, the sun was out. There was that. But the sunshine was just about the only damn thing that felt familiar as he inched his way along the cruise ship’s long, zigzagging gangway, blessing the partial shade that the overhead canopy provided as he reached the top section. He felt a sharp elbow in his side from the woman pushing forward on his left, struggling to grab a kid who held a dripping ice cream cone in one hand. She yanked the kid back, the ice cream flew off and landed on Tate’s sneaker, causing the child to begin shrieking in distress.

  “Sorry,” the woman muttered as she dragged the child back to her family’s place in the boarding line, shoving people aside with those sharp elbows as she went.

  Tate tried to shake the ice cream off his foot, but as he was packed in among a multitude of people, all struggling to make their way up that narrow incline in what seemed like too small a space for the crowd it was supposed to accommodate, he didn’t have much room to maneuver.

  What had possessed him to accept this gift of a cruise from his dad and stepmom? “You need a vacation,” his dad had said. “Get out there and meet people,” both had told Tate. Why they thought he’d want to meet people, he didn’t know. He’d never really been the social type. It was why ranching suited him so well. Hours out on his own while he rode the fences and checked on the herd, letting his thoughts drift slow and easy—that was when he was happiest, when he felt the most settled and content. The idea that he needed a vacation from ranching was, frankly, ridiculous. And for that “vacation” to mean cramming on a boat with enough strangers to fill a small city? His stepmom might call it “a fun break,” but he was more likely to call it “hell on earth.”

  “It’s stupid crowded, isn’t it?” a silky feminine voice to his left said.

  The thought of making small talk with a stranger was nearly enough to make him cringe—but his manners wouldn’t let him just ignore her. Tate bit back a grimace before he turned to face her. But as his gaze focused, he actually found himself smiling.

  “It is,” he said, clearing his throat, which was suddenly hoarse and tight. He stared at her long enough that he figured he probably looked like a creeper, but she was gorgeous. Her ruby lips curled in a warm, inviting smile and flawless golden skin covered a slim, curvy frame, but it was her eyes that really caught his attention. Wide, thickly lashed, and so expressive that he felt like he could stare into them forever and never get bored.

  “You on board alone?” she asked.

  “Yeah,” he said, shifting to face her.

  She squeezed in next to him, putting them mere inches away from one another. She smelled like lemons and sunshine, and Tate’s heart gave a little flutter.

  “The cruise was a, uh, gift,” he told her as explanation for his solo status.

  “Nice!” she exclaimed. “I’m here alone, too. Once a year, I scope out all the biggest deals on vacations and pick one, then go for it.”

  Tate’s grin kept getting wider. He probably looked ridiculous, but he couldn’t help it. Her enthusiasm just made him want to smile. “That’s adventurous. I’m impressed.”

  She laughed, her entire face lighting up with a glow that made him want to lean in and bask in the residual warmth. “It’s once-a-year adventurousness. The rest of the time, I’m boring.”

  He chuckled. “What do you do the rest of the year?”

  “I work for a nonprofit. I finished my degree last year, so it’s my first real job. How about you?”

  “I’m a rancher. The opposite of adventurous.” He put his hand on her shoulder to keep her from being bumped by someone passing by with an overlarge shoulder bag. That one touch was all it took to short-circuit what was left of his inhibitions. Her skin was silky smooth like her voice, and warm like her smile, and a frisson of electricity shot through him as he reluctantly let his arm drop.

  “I’m Tate, by the way,” he said. “From Montana.”

  “It’s very nice to meet you, Tate from Montana,” she replied. “I’m Olivia from Washington.”

  They had to separate when their turn came to be screened to come on board—a process that gave Tate a whole new appreciation for how his cows must feel when he herded them together to vaccinate them—but they made plans to meet later for dinner. They grabbed take-out from the diner on the fifth deck and then headed over to the pool deck, curling up on pool loungers and watching the sun set as they scarfed down burgers and fries. And in that moment, with Olivia by his side, Tate thought that his dad had been right after all—a cruise might be the best thing he’d done in months.

  “Now, that was a meal,” Olivia said, leaning back on her chaise with a smile and a happy, sated sigh. In spite of his best attempts to be a gentleman, Tate couldn’t help wondering what else he could do to get her to make that sound again. He decided he wanted to find out the answer as soon as possible.

  “Glad you enjoyed it,” he said somewhat suggestively as he shifted so he could reach for her hand. She didn’t resist, and he held on while gazing into her eyes with longing.

  “I’ve enjoyed everything about spending time with you,” she told him softly.

  His heart clenched, and something else hardened in anticipation.

  “So, Olivia from Washington…would you like to have a drink in my cabin?” he asked, hoping like hell he hadn’t misread the situation. “Just a drink, if that’s all you want,” he added, in case he had misread it.

  “Which deck are you on?” she asked, tilting her head as she awaited his reply.

  “Four.”

  “I’m on three—your cabin is closer.”

  Then she stood and tugged him up. He pulled her into his arms and she giggled. His forearm banded across the dip in her spine, and he buried his other hand in her hair. “But let’s practice first.”

  Then he kissed her with everything he had, and as her pretty mouth gave way beneath his and his mind became a tangle of slick heat and warm skin, he thought he’d never been so damn happy.

  When they finally broke for air, she took him by the hand, and not wanting to wait for the elevator, they ran all the way to his cabin.

  Grab your copy of Snowed In with the Rancher

  Available October 19, 2023

  www.LeslieNorthBooks.com

  BLURB

  Home is where the heart is…

  Single mom and widow Amy Thorne loves her beautiful town. It’s her job to market her little corner of heaven, and right now, she’s promoting the town’s upcoming rodeo. Everything is perfect—until rodeo star Cal Pierce arrives.

  Astonishingly, the smoldering cowboy is the spitting image of her late husband. It all makes sense when she learns Cal is the son her mother-in-law gave up for adoption years ago. Although Cal might look like his half-brother, that’s as far as the resemblance goes. He’s terrified of commitment, and Amy knows she should keep her distance. If only her heart would listen…

  Just the thought of settling down makes Cal antsy. Problem is, Amy is starting to get under his skin. And the more time he spends with her, the harder it is to leave. But he knows it’s best for him to move on—and that’s exactly what he does. Until he realizes his heart might not be in rodeo anymore. In fact, it might belong to someone else entirely…

  Is it too late to come home to the one woman he can’t live without?

  Grab your copy of Cowboy's Unexpected Family (Thorne Ranch Brothers Book One) from

  www.LeslieNorthBooks.com

  EXCERPT

  Chapter one

  Just a favor for a friend. In and out.

  Cal pulled into the closest parking space he could find near city hall and shut off the engine, letting out a deep sigh. Darby Crossing, Texas looked like any other rural town, complete with a western apparel and hardware store, bank, diner, and of course, a local tavern. Small town life made him itchy, restless. Fortunately, he wouldn’t be here long—just long enough to do a favor for Rafael.

  He slid out of the truck, grabbed his Stetson off the front seat and put it on, tipping the brim down low. Making his way down the sidewalk toward city hall, he was somewhat surprised at how busy the area was for a midday afternoon. Cal nodded toward a couple of women as they approached. Instead of an answering friendly smile, they stopped in their tracks, silently watching him pass, their mouths hung open in a wide O. Cal frowned, wondering if there was something wrong with his hat.

  He checked the Stetson over but saw nothing out of the ordinary. Typically, when people recognized him, they smiled and waved. Especially the ladies. Cal continued toward the courthouse, more than surprised when two men stopped and stared, the one nudging the other furiously and gesturing toward Cal. Discreetly, of course, but Cal still knew the object of their attention. Him.

  “Howdy, ma’am.” Cal tipped his hat to an older woman coming out of the diner accompanied by what looked to be her grandchildren. She smiled, her mouth opening…and closing, without so much as a hello. Her expression had been one of shock but that made no sense at all. Fans typically called out a friendly greeting, even tried to approach him. They didn’t gape at him like he was a two-headed horse.

  Cal tried to shrug it off as he entered the small brick building that housed city hall. It looked like it might have been a one-room schoolhouse long ago since it still had the bell on top. The space now was divided into an entryway and two offices. No one was at the reception desk and he dinged the bell that sat on a mat with the note “ring for service.”

  “Be right there,” a woman’s voice called from one of the offices. The squeak of a desk chair, and the click of heels echoed on the floors before a woman appeared in the doorway.

  “Hello, I’m Amy Thorne,” she said, dropping a load of files on the counter and turning to face him. “How can I…oh—” The woman’s face turned white, one hand moving to cover her heart. She began to sway, reaching for the counter to steady herself.

  Cal rushed around the counter and took her arm, easing her into a nearby chair. He knelt beside her, their gazes locking. Eyes the color of Texas bluebonnets stared back him. Curly red hair framed her face in a beautiful contrast. She was about the prettiest woman he’d seen in a decade, and she was staring at him as if she’d seen a ghost.

  “Can I get you something? Glass of water?” Cal offered, unsure of what to do. His eyes dipped to her left hand where she wore a simple gold band. “Call your husband maybe?”