Cowboy At Arms

Cowboy At Arms
Carla Cassidy

A Cowboy to the RescueWhen single mum Trisha Cahill fled her deadly ex, she never expected to feel safe again. Yet Dusty Crawford is the protector she’s always yearned for. She can’t deny her attraction to the rugged cowboy, but how can she start a new beginning with evil lurking in her past?Dusty has been intrigued by Trisha since she and her infant son arrived in Bitterroot, Oklahoma. When her life is threatened by a stalker, he won’t hesitate to act as guardian. Trisha may be running from more than her past, but Dusty will go to any extreme to keep her safe…

Praise for New York Times Bestselling Author Carla Cassidy (#ulink_c88ef3dc-24d8-58e1-ba5d-525437d6cd4a)

“Solid storytelling and sympathetic, genuine characters will draw readers in from the start … this is one amazing read.”

—RT Book Reviews on A Real Cowboy

“Carla Cassidy has made this an extremely hard book to put down. The pages just flew past! A very talented and colorful author!”

—Fresh Fiction on Mercenary’s Perfect Mission

“Cassidy delivers with a one-two punch of intriguing suspense and tantalizing romance. A sure bet, this romantic read will have readers rooting for a reunion.”

—RT Book Reviews on Scene of the Crime: Baton Rouge

“[An] action-packed romantic suspense starring an amazing female and her deceiving beloved.”

—The Best Reviews on Deceived

“[A] taut, fast-paced romantic thriller … romance shines.”

—Publishers Weekly

Cowboy at Arms

Carla Cassidy

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

CARLA CASSIDY is a New York Times bestselling author who has written more than one hundred books for Mills & Boon. 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.

Contents

Cover (#ue0d76058-977e-59e3-ba07-2598560654ed)

Praise (#u214ca0b9-2424-5f75-ae04-352ba4d89faf)

Title Page (#uc2dc0d6c-482d-59cd-a110-3cd1ea32bf17)

About the Author (#u0d66fe6e-dcb8-5afa-8b1b-96e3c8167333)

Chapter 1 (#u6fff22fc-3ddd-5b55-99a6-2c4c2134dfa7)

Chapter 2 (#u2a56677f-6267-5091-b0d9-990617a76ddb)

Chapter 3 (#ufb054d11-6ce8-522b-9c0e-6eaa84cbb1eb)

Chapter 4 (#ua8602e44-8564-518b-98ff-e10060181516)

Chapter 5 (#uf5c339b1-83f6-511b-996d-13457399bfcd)

Chapter 6 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 7 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 8 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 9 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 10 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 11 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 12 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 13 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 14 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 15 (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 16 (#litres_trial_promo)

Epilogue (#litres_trial_promo)

Extract (#litres_trial_promo)

Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter 1 (#ulink_3ad81e7c-db1c-547b-8f25-e001c93fea34)

Man up, Dusty Crawford commanded himself as he stared at the front door of the Bitterroot Café. It was almost nine o’clock on Friday night and the summer sun just barely skimmed the horizon in its downward descent.

As darkness slowly fell, the interior of the brightly lit café became more visible. He’d waited to arrive until late enough in the day that the dinner hour would be over and the popular eatery would be less crowded.

He’d wrestled stubborn cattle and faced more than one marauding cougar over the years, and yet the thought of the beautiful blonde waitress inside the café had him nearly shaking in his boots.

He turned his head at the sound of several doors slamming nearby. He narrowed his gaze as he watched three cowboys amble from the parking lot toward the café’s front door.

Zeke Osmond, Greg Albertson and Shep Harmon all worked on the ranch next to the Holiday spread where Dusty had worked and lived since he was fourteen years old. For the most part all of the men who were part of the Humes ranch were mean and liked nothing more than to stir up trouble wherever they went.

The Humes men were suspected of all kinds of mischief on the Holiday land, including tearing down fencing, setting nuisance fires and the occasional cattle disappearance.

As they went inside the building, Dusty shoved thoughts of them out of his head. He needed to focus on the reason he was here. After a little over six months of small talk whenever he ate at the café, tonight he was here to ask Trisha Cahill out on an official date.

He took off his black cowboy hat and set it on the passenger seat and then raked his hand through his hair. Drawing a deep breath for courage, he finally left his pickup truck and headed for the café door.