Savage Cowboy Novella

Amanda

I might be young and naïve, but I’m not stupid enough to fall in love with my family’s enemy.You know that old story about the Hatfields and McCoys? Well, in our case, we’re the McCoys and they’re the Bryants. Fence line disputes, cattle crossing to the wrong land, you name it, they’ve been fighting about it. I’m not sure Chance Bryant realizes I’m a McCoy the first time he asks me out. That time I’m able to say no. But eventually I can’t ignore his charm, and I definitely can’t ignore those lines that fan out from his soulful brown eyes. We have to keep this a secret, though, because if my brothers find out, they’ll kill him.

Chance

I’m too old to play stupid rivalry games. I want Amanda, and she will be mine, no matter what.The first time I catch sight of the curvy new owner of the local bookstore, I’m a goner. I don’t care that I’m nearly a decade older than her or that she’s an innocent. I especially don’t care that our families have been fighting over trivial things for the better part of forty years. What I do care about is how it feels when I make her smile. And how those lush curves feel pressed against my body. I’ll do whatever I have to to claim this woman and make her mine, body and soul.

Savage Cowboy is the fourth book in the Whiskey Valley: Bryant Brothers series. If you love reading alpha cowboy, forbidden love, secret baby, small town romances, then you’ll love Chance and Amanda’s story. Each book in the series is a standalone.

Chapter 1

Chance

I’m making a fool of myself.

I don’t know what I’m thinking or why the hell I’m pacing up and down the sidewalk in front of the bookstore, but here I am. I should be home. I have an early day tomorrow, and I shouldn’t be here peeking in the store windows. Heck, every day is an early day for a rancher, but I can’t make myself leave.

I’m pretty sure I just met my future wife. It’s ridiculous to think, and just the thought seems to make my heart race in my chest. I’ve been a confirmed bachelor for a long time now, and this feeling that I have is ridiculous.

But here I stand.

“You’re going to wear a path into the concrete.”

I flip my brother Griffin the bird and keep my pace as I walk back and forth. 

He eventually shifts and stands right in my way so I have no choice but to stop and look at him. He’s laughing, and it’s obvious he’s enjoying this.

I figure the best defense is a good offense. “Congratulations, by the way.”

His smile gets even bigger, and I shake my head, still not believing what happened earlier. My brother, the man that always keeps to himself, just asked his girlfriend to marry him. He and Hailey met when she came to the Double B Ranch to study ranches for her next romance novel. She and Griffin fell in love, and tonight, of all nights, he asked her to marry him.

He nods his head at me. “Thanks, little brother.”

I grimace. I may be a little younger, but I’m definitely not little by any means. “Yeah, sure. I’m happy for you.” And I am happy for him. I’m being honest about that, but I’m not happy about getting the brush-off from Amanda.

“Sooooo, you know I only needed help carrying in a few boxes, right? You drove so you wouldn’t have to stick around.... but here you are... still here.”

I stop pacing and stare at him. “What? My future sister-in-law is making her big debut in Whiskey Valley. She’s signing books and getting to know the townspeople. Why wouldn’t I want to stick around for that?”

Griffin has the nerve to laugh. “Oh, okay! I thought you may have been sticking around for the bookstore owner.”

I look at him with my most innocent look, trying not to give away a thing. “Who? Amanda?”

Griffin barks out a laugh this time. “Yeah, Amanda. You know the young woman in there you’ve been following around like a lost puppy dog...”

I take a step toward my brother, and my hands fist at my sides. “First of all, I haven’t been following her around like a lost puppy dog. Second of all, I’m out here. I’m nowhere near her.”

He rolls his eyes. “Really? The only reason you’re out here is because she won’t give you the time of day and she turned you down when you asked her out. Are you out here licking your wounds or trying to come up with another tactic?”

I open my mouth to deny it and then slam it shut. It’s the truth... there’s no reason I should be denying anything at this point, and even though I know it’s crazy and I’ll probably regret it, I’m still going to do it. I’m going to ask my brother for advice. “Okay, what do you suggest I do?”

He lifts his chin at me. It’s dark outside now, and the only lights are the ones from the shop windows and the streetlamps. “She’s too young for you. You’re at least ten years older than her.”

I shrug my shoulders. “So what? She’s of legal age, and you know as well as I do that age doesn’t matter.”

Griffin crosses his arms over his chest and blows out a breath. “Okay, well I guess I need to bring out the big guns.”

When he doesn’t continue, I roll my hand in front of him as if to say Let’s get on with it. I keep looking in the window, and I swear I’ve seen Amanda peek out here a few times. Could she be looking for me?

“I think I know why she turned you down.”

My eyes widen, and I wait for him to continue. When he doesn’t, I swear I’m about to kick him in his shins. “Come on, Griffin. Get on with it.”

He looks in the window, spots his fiancée, and smiles before turning back to me. “Right. Uh, the reason she’s not interested.... she’s a McCoy.”

“What?” I ask him, shaking my head. “She’s a McCoy?” And then it hits me. She’s the only sister of the McCoy brothers. Her family is a big ranching family, and her brothers all compete on the circuit. And even though the McCoy ranch is right next to ours, I haven’t seen her since she was little and wore pigtails. There’s no way. “That’s not...”

But before I can get it out, Griffin is nodding his head, smiling like he just revealed one of life’s great mysteries. “It is. When Hailey was asked to do this, she was worried about how I’d react... you know since a McCoy owned the bookstore, but I told her that I’d never let a forty-year-old feud stand in the way of her career.”

The McCoys own the land next to ours. We’ve been feuding for years, even though it’s all seemed to have died down lately. I mean, we’re not friendly with each other by any means, but we’re not bringing out the shotguns anymore either.

I walk past my brother and look in the window. Now that I look at Amanda, I should have realized it on my own. She has the same brown hair and brown eyes as her brothers. I don’t know why I didn’t make the connection on my own.

She’s beautiful with her long brown hair and big brown eyes. She’s standing next to Hailey, and they’re talking as the last few guests are starting to leave. Both Hailey and Amanda are smiling ear to ear, and I can’t help but smile too.

My brother walks up next to me, looking in the window. “What are you smiling about?”

I shrug. “I don’t care if she’s a McCoy. She’s going to be mine, Griffin.”

Griffin puts his hand on my shoulder. “She’s not a cow, Chance. You can’t just claim her and think you can take her home with you. I was standing right next to you. She turned you down. She’s not interested.”

At that moment, Amanda looks through the window, and with me standing against the glass, she can obviously see me plain as day. She smiles and then seems to catch herself before looking away. “Oh, she’s interested all right. I just need to convince her is all.”

I start for the door, and Griffin stops me. “What do you think King’s going to say about you getting mixed up with a McCoy? And really, you think her family is just going to step to the side and let it happen? Because I’m telling you right now, none of this is going to be easy.”

I blow out my breath and put my hand on the door. I look back at my brother. He was wounded in the war, and we thought he’d never be happy again. But here he is, engaged and finally living life again. It wasn’t easy for him. I know it wasn’t. “Griff, you probably know better than anyone. Anything worth having isn’t going to be easy.”

With that, I open the door and head inside. One way or another, I’m going to find a way to get Amanda to say yes to me.