Sneak Peek of A Bride for the Rancher

Chapter One

The golden script on the glass door spelling out Nelly’s Bakery glinted in the sun as Leah paused in front of it. Time had faded the lettering, but those words still created a sense of expectation.

Images flickered through her mind. She and Iris racing to this beloved bakery, clutching their hard-earned money, and expecting Nelly’s treats. She and Iris, older now, walking down this same street at lunch hour, reveling in their momentary freedom as lanky teenagers, sharing sugary doughnuts and gossip.

Even as pleasant moments surfaced, others crept in.

She and Galen—

Nope. Now was not the time to let those memories with their painful barbs return.

I may fumble, I may fight, but I finish.

The familiar mantra her foster mother instilled in her rang through her head. Leah yanked open the door, the buzzer’s metallic ring making her jump.

The scent of warm bread and fresh-brewed coffee wrapped around her. She breathed in. The hum of conversation soothed her, and the occasional burst of laughter eased the tension gripping her shoulders since she turned off the highway and into Kittering Creek.

Much better. You can do this.

The customers waiting ahead of her gave her a chance to look around, take in the changes. New glass cases held trays of tempting squares, cookies, cake slices, and delectable pastries. The oak shelves filled with plump loaves of bread behind the cases were also new, as was the chalkboard listing the various drinks available in colorful script.

Her phone dinged from her linen pants pocket. She tugged it out, then smiled at the message on her home screen.

“You here yet?”

Mom Manning.

Leah thumbed out a quick, “Just getting a latte,” then stepped forward as the line shortened.

“Hey, Leah, heard you were back.”

The well-known voice caught her attention while Anara Kittering slid a tray of mounded muffins into an empty spot. Her lips twitched into something too practiced, too tight, as she closed the door.

“You just get into town?” Anara lifted her shoulder to wipe a flour smudge from her chin, her blonde hair held back away from her face. “Iris said you were coming to help with the wedding.” She stood where she was, her face betraying a hint of displeasure.

At one time, Anara would have come around and hugged Leah. Would have joked about the bangs Leah had gotten. A mistake she still regretted and now felt committed to.

But though polite, Anara’s voice was cool.

“Sure am. Headed to see her next.” Leah’s expression tightened. “But for now, I’m here to see Mom Manning.”

Anara angled her head toward the coffee shop attached to the bakery. “I saw her come in. She’s sitting at the back table.”

Leah managed an uncertain nod.

Before she could add another weak comment, Anara walked to the back of the bakery.

And that was that. One Kittering down, a dozen more to go.

Leah took her place in the line. Anticipation flashed through her over seeing Mom Manning again. But first, a latte. Her head buzzed from the drive and, much as she hated to admit it, the tension of coming back to Kittering Creek.

The buzzer jangled again, and Leah flicked an automatic glance behind her.

And her heart flipped in her chest.

Galen Kittering. The one person she hoped she could avoid for a few more hours. She had barely managed the transition from city to town. Now, in the next few seconds, she had to blend a painful past she had buried with the present.

Galen dominated the space, tall, commanding, cowboy hat pulled low over his tanned face, stubble shading his lean jaw, his faded tan shirt tucked into equally faded blue jeans. Familiar, and yet time-etched changes on his face. Lines bracketed his mouth, fanned out from his eyes. He’d filled out from the lanky teen she knew and loved, and despite the time yawning between them, he still created an unwelcome flutter in her stomach. Seven years apart hadn’t diminished his effect on her. If anything, time only enhanced his appeal.

And then, hardest of all, was the shift in his expression when he saw her. Eyes narrowed and he pulled back.

His tight nod matched the one she just got from his sister. “Hey, there.”

Automatic greeting. Stilted. The bare minimum. Precisely what she expected, but it still stung.

“Hey, back.” She struggled to eke out a polite smile.

He drummed his fingers on his pants, still holding her gaze.

So, who looks away first?

Obviously, the guilty party.

Which would be her.

A Bride for the Rancher is available for sale on August 27. You can pre-order it before that or purchase after that. It will be available in e-book and paperback. Click on the cover to preorder before August 27.