Christmas at Cardwell Ranch (Harlequin Intrigue, Band 1455) - Softcover

Daniels, B.J.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0373697228 ISBN 13: 9780373697229

Verlag: Harlequin Intrigue, 2013

Inhaltsangabe

New York Times bestselling author B. J. Daniels brings you back to Cardwell Ranch for more edge-of-your-seat intrigue.

AT CARDWELL RANCH, THE HOLIDAYS CAN BE BRUTAL… 

It had been years since Tanner "Tag" Cardwell's boots touched Montana soil. This Christmas he was determined to change that. Until a run-in with local Lily McCabe revealed dark secrets from his past and deep trouble for his future. 

Cowboys came and went in these parts. But Tag Cardwell  caught Lily off guard in more ways than one when the two  became entwined in a murder mystery. What was it about Tag?  The dreamy eyes… The rugged physique… The protection she  felt in his strong arms… 

But before they could lose themselves in each other they  had to trace a killer. Or risk finding a crime scene under the Christmas tree.

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author B.J. Daniels lives in Montana with her husband, Parker, and one springer spaniel named Dot. When not writing, she quilts, boats and always has a book or two to read. Contact her at www.bjdaniels.com, on Facebook at B.J. Daniels or through her reader group the B.J. Daniels' Big Sky Darlings, and on twitter at bjdanielsauthor.

Auszug. © Genehmigter Nachdruck. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.

Huge snowflakes drifted down out of a midnight-blue winter sky. Tanner "Tag" Cardwell stopped to turn his face up to the falling snow. It had been so long since he'd been anywhere that it snowed like this.

Christmas lights twinkled in all the windows of the businesses of Big Sky's Meadow Village, and he could hear "White Christmas" playing in one of the ski shops.

But it was a different kind of music that called to him tonight as he walked through the snow to the Canyon Bar.

Shoving open the door, he felt a wave of warmth hit him, along with the smell of beer and the familiar sound of country music.

He smiled as the band broke into an old country-and-western song, one he'd learned at his father's knee. Tag let the door close behind him on the winter night and shook snow from his new ski jacket as he looked around. He'd had to buy the coat because for the past twenty-one years, he'd been living down South.

Friday night just days from Christmas in Big Sky, Montana, the bar was packed with a mix of locals, skiers, snowmobilers and cowboys. There'd be a fight for sure before the night was over. He planned to be long gone before then, though.

His gaze returned to the raised platform where the band, Canyon Cowboys, was playing. He played a little guitar himself, but he'd never been as good as his father, he thought as he watched Harlan Cardwell pick and strum to the music. His uncle, Angus Cardwell, was no slouch, either.

Tag had always loved listening to them play together when he was a kid. Music was in their blood. That and bars. As a kid, he'd fallen asleep many weekend nights in a bar in this canyon listening to his father play guitar. It was one of the reasons his mother had gathered up her five sons, divorced Harlan and taken her brood off to Texas to be raised in the Lone Star State.

Tag and his brothers had been angry with their dad for not fighting for them. As they'd gotten older, they'd realized their mother had done them a favor. Harlan knew nothing about raising kids. He was an easygoing cowboy who only came alive when you handed him a guitar—or a beer.

Still, as Tag watched his father launch into another song, he realized how much he'd missed him—and Montana. Had Harlan missed him, as well? Doubtful, Tag thought, remembering the reception he'd gotten when he'd knocked at his father's cabin door this morning.

"Tag?"

"Surprise."

"What are you doing here?" his father had asked, moving a little to block his view of the interior of the cabin.

"It's Christmas. I wanted to spend it with you." Harlan couldn't have looked any more shocked by that—or upset.

Tag realized that surprising his father had been a mistake. "If this is a bad time…"

His father quickly shook his head, still blocking the door, though. "No, it's just that…well, you know, the cabin is a mess. If you give me a little while…"

Tag peered past him and lowered his voice. "If you have someone staying here—"

"No, no, it's nothing like that."

But behind his father, Tag had spotted a leather jacket, female size, on the arm of the couch. "No problem. I thought I'd go see my cousin Dana. I'll come back later. Actually, if you want, I could get a motel—"

"No. Stay here. Bring your stuff back later. I'll have the spare room made up for you. Your uncle and I are playing tonight at the Canyon."

"Great. I'll stop by. I haven't heard you play in a long time. It'll be nice."

Tag had left, but he was still curious about his father's female visitor. He knew nothing about his father's life. Harlan could have a girlfriend. It wasn't that unusual for a good-looking man in his fifties.

Tag tried not to let Harlan's reaction to him showing up unexpectedly bother him. Determined to enjoy the holiday here, he had made plans tomorrow to go Christmas tree hunting with his Montana cousin Dana Cardwell. He'd missed his cousins and had fond memories of winter in Montana, sledding, skiing, ice-skating, starting snowball fights and cutting their own Christmas trees. He looked forward to seeing his cousins Jordan and Stacy, as well. Clay was still in California helping make movies last he'd heard, but Dana had said he was flying in Christmas Eve.

Tag planned to do all the things he had done as a boy this Christmas. Not that he could ever bring back those family holidays he remembered. For starters, his four brothers were all still in Texas. The five of them had started a barbecue joint, which had grown into a chain called Texas Boys Barbecue.

He would miss his brothers and mother this Christmas, but he was glad to have this time with his cousins and his dad. As the band wound up one song and quickly broke into another, he finished his beer. He'd see his father back at the cabin. Earlier, he'd returned to find the woman's leather jacket he'd seen on the couch long gone.

Harlan had been getting ready for his gig tonight, so they hadn't had much time to visit. But the spare room had been made up, so Tag had settled in. He hoped to spend some time with his father, though. Maybe tomorrow after he came back from Christmas tree hunting.

As he started to turn to leave, a blonde smelling of alcohol stumbled into him. Tag caught her as she clung to his ski jacket for support. She was dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. Not one of the skiers or snowmobilers who were duded out in the latest high-tech, cold-weather gear.

"Sorry," she said, slurring her speech.

"Are you all right?" he asked as she clung to his jacket for a moment before gathering her feet under her.

"Fine." She didn't look fine at all. Clearly, she'd had way too much to drink. "You look like him."

Tag laughed. Clearly, the woman also didn't know what she was saying.

She lurched away from him and out the back door.

He couldn't believe with it snowing so hard that she'd gone outside without a coat. Hesitating only a moment, he went out after her. He was afraid she might be planning to drive herself home. Or that she had been hurrying outside because she was going to be sick. He didn't want her passing out in a snowdrift and dying of hypothermia.

Montana was nothing like where he lived in Texas. Winter in Montana could be dangerous. With this winter storm, the temperatures had dropped. There were already a couple of feet of snow out the back door of the bar before this latest snowfall. He could see that a good six inches of new snow had fallen since he'd arrived in town.

He spotted the woman's tracks in the snow just outside the door. As he stepped out to look for her, he saw her through the falling snow. A man wearing a cowboy hat was helping her into his pickup. She appeared to be arguing with him as he poured her into the passenger seat and slammed the door. The man glanced in Tag's direction for a moment before he climbed behind the wheel and the two drove off.

"Where did she go?"

He turned to find a slim brunette behind him. "Where did who go?"

"Mia." At his blank expression, she added, "The blonde woman wearing a T-shirt like the one I have on."

He glanced at her T-shirt and doubted any woman could wear it quite the way this one did. The letters THE CANYON were printed across her full breasts with the word bar in smaller print beneath it. He realized belatedly that the woman who'd bumped into him had been wearing the same T-shirt—like the other servers here in the bar.

"I did...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Harlequin Intrigue
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2013
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0373697228
• ISBN 13: 9780373697229
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 224
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Product Safety Manager; enquiries@harpercollins.ie; ; HarperCollins, Macken House, 39/40 Mayor Street Upper; Dublin 1; D01 C9W8; Irland