Rock Star Kisses (Romance on the Ranch Book 6) Read online

  Rock Star Kisses

  Romance on the Ranch Series

  Verna Clay

  This book is dedicated to classic rock lovers.

  Rock Star Kisses

  Romance on the Ranch Series

  Copyright © 2014 by Verna Clay

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.

  For information contact:

  [email protected]

  Website: www.VernaClay.com

  Published by:

  M.O.I. Publishing

  "Mirrors of Imagination"

  Cover Designer:

  Elaina Lee (For the Muse)

  Pictures:

  cowgirl (flashpackersphotos at CanStock);

  rock musician (lunamarina at CanStock)

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Preface

  It seems that most of the books in this series have had more than one romance in the storyline, and this book is no exception. When Freckles entered the scene, I knew I had to follow the same pattern. And what a kick she is! I'll not give a spoiler, but I will say that her hero is about to have his world turned upside down.

  As for Tessa Branigan, it's about time the girl found her happily-ever-after. She's been through a lot in her twenty-three years. She also needs to overcome her complex about her weight and see herself for the beautiful, caring, and compassionate woman that she is.

  I tried to bring many of the characters from past books into this one, which proved challenging. I had to go back and reread the stories and make charts to keep everyone straight. I calculated that the story time-lapse between the epilogue in Dream Kisses and the beginning of Rock Star Kisses is about twenty years. The actual years it has taken to bring this story from concept to book six, is about five.

  Regarding the next book in this series, Epilogue Three at the end of this book introduces the characters for book seven, Forever Kisses. Life has not been easy for the heroine because of physical challenges so she's protecting her heart from falling for our hero, but I don't think she's going to win that battle.

  Verna Clay

  Sequence of books in the Romance on the Ranch Series:

  Dream Kisses

  Honey Kisses

  Baby Kisses

  Candy Kisses

  Christmas Kisses

  Rock Star Kisses

  Forever Kisses

  Table of Contents

  Preface

  Chapter 1: Smacked

  Chapter 2: Back in Town

  Chapter 3: Lucky It Is

  Chapter 4: Off the Grid

  Chapter 5: Bodygraph

  Chapter 6: Old Friends

  Chapter 7: Hired Hand

  Chapter 8: Panic

  Chapter 9: Festival

  Chapter 10: Six Dogs

  Chapter 11: Close, but no Banana

  Chapter 12: Signed, Sealed, Delivered

  Chapter 13: Puppy Love

  Chapter 14: You Can Gallop, but You Can't Hide

  Chapter 15: Prying

  Chapter 16: Rockin' the Garage

  Chapter 17: Flower Power

  Chapter 18: Puppy Lost

  Chapter 19: Queen Witch

  Chapter 20: It's Her

  Chapter 21: What the Hell!

  Chapter 22: Groupie

  Chapter 23: In a Moment of Time

  Chapter 24: Seeing Red

  Epilogue One

  Epilogue Two

  Epilogue Three

  Author's Note

  Dream Kisses (excerpt) Romance on the Ranch Series

  Stranded in Oasis (excerpt) Oasis Series

  Novels and Novellas by Verna Clay

  Chapter 1: Smacked

  Tessa Branigan sat at a window table inside Dixie's Cuppa Joe Coffee Shop and watched the comings and goings in her hometown of Paxtonville, Colorado. She had forty minutes of her lunch break remaining. She spooned a bite of yogurt.

  She'd returned home five months previous after finally leaving her abusive ex. Even now she couldn't believe she'd been so blind as to marry the man who had taunted and teased her when they were children. After two years of marriage, she'd so despised him that in her divorce papers, she'd been adamant about changing her last name back to her maiden one. No way was she going to be saddled with the name of that low-life.

  Cecelia MacKenzie, the owner of the coffee shop and a close friend of Tessa and her family stepped to her table carrying a tall, lidded coffee. "Here's one for the road, kiddo. You can take it back to work with you."

  Tessa grinned and shook her head. "You know, don't you, that you wear invisible angel wings."

  Cecelia laughed. "Tell that to my daughter, Merry. Six years old and she thinks she knows everything. There are only two people she idolizes, her big sister and her father."

  Tessa started to respond when movement outside the window jerked her to attention. "Oh, no!" she cried and jumped from her chair.

  "What's wrong?" Cecelia called as Tessa ran toward the door.

  Tessa didn't pause or respond. She was focused on preventing an accident. Vaguely she heard chairs scraping as patrons turned to see what was happening beyond the windows.

  Outside, she shouted at a raggedy-looking dog, but he kept barging across the street. Flailing her arms at the approaching sports car, she tried to get the driver's attention. He appeared to be glancing at something in his passenger seat.

  The scene became surreal when the dog stopped three quarters of the way across the road just as the driver returned his attention forward. He slammed on his brakes, but it was too late. The dog got smacked by the fender of the car.

  Tessa squealed and raced to the large, reddish-brown animal that looked to be part golden retriever and maybe lab. She knelt beside the dog and assessed the damage. He was unconscious and his front leg appeared broken. She wanted to cry, but she could do that later. She reached into the pocket of her slacks for her cell phone and punched speed dial. Because she was usually the one answering the telephone at Tanner Veterinary Clinic, calls had been forwarded to voicemail during her lunch hour. So, instead of calling the clinic, she called Toby's direct line. Pick up. Pick up.

  The man driving the car was now kneeling beside her but she kept her eyes on the dog and prayed that Toby would answer his phone. The guy reached a tanned forearm out to touch the pooch, but she placed her hand over his to stop him. She warned, "Even though he's unconscious, he could awaken and bite you because he's hurt and scared. I'm calling the vet right now–"

  A voice sounded on the other end of her phone. "Hi Tessa, what's up?"

  "Toby, we've got an emergency. A dog was hit in front of Dixie's Cuppa Joe. He's unconscious and it looks like his right front leg is broken."

  "I'm on my way."

  Tessa disconnected the call, stuck the phone back in her pocket, and turned toward the man. "The vet's on his way." The guy was staring at her. Her mouth dropped open and she exclaimed, "Sean, what are you doing in Paxtonville? Last I heard you were on tour on the east coast."

  He replied, "Hi, Tessa," and shrugged. "I got a reprieve for a few months."

  Tessa couldn't believe she was talking to Sean Barfield, her teenage friend, and now a famous rock star.

  She asked, "Are you staying with your parents?"

  "I don't know. I just drove into town." His eyes moved back to the dog. "I sure hope he lives. I didn't see him. It's my fault because I spilled soda all over and was trying
to mop it up."

  Behind them, Cecelia repeated Tessa's earlier question, "Sean, what are you doing here?"

  "Hi, Cecelia. I wanted to surprise you and Dad. I've got some R and R time and was hoping to stay with the family for awhile."

  Cecelia knelt beside the animal, too. "Of course, honey. You're always welcome."

  One of Paxtonville's locals had started directing traffic around the scene and now motioned the vet's van around Sean's car. Toby Tanner braked and jumped out of the van, rushing toward the dog. When he saw Sean he said, "Hi Sean," but didn't pause in his mission. He assessed the dog by feeling for his pulse and then opened his bag. "His heart rate is good, his breathing is labored. I'm going to give him a pain shot and get him started on an IV. Tessa, you can put some of your training to use now, I'll need your help moving him onto the gurney."

  "Okay, Toby."

  Toby worked quickly and was soon giving Tessa instructions on how to lift the backend of the dog onto an emergency board while he lifted the frontend. The board was then placed on a gurney. Since being hired by the Tanner twins four months previous, they'd been training her to eventually become a veterinarian's assistant. She loved animals and the job had been perfect after being on the receiving end of an abusive marriage. She could shower the animals with the love she had wanted to give her husband.

  Chapter 2: Back in Town

  Sean Barfield ran a hand through his shoulder-length mahogany hair. His publicist had wanted him to dye it blond, but he'd adamantly refused. If he let the overbearing woman dictate his appearance, it wouldn't be long before she was dictating other aspects of his life. In retrospect, he regretted having had a fling with her. Granted, it had been short and all about sex, but if he could do things over, he'd have run the other direction as fast as he could when she started coming on to him. Even after he'd nicely explained that he wasn't interested in anything long term, she'd called his cell phone so frequently he'd finally blocked her number from ringing and told his manager to get another publicist. His manager had been pissed and started lecturing him on contracts. His life sucked.

  Watching Tessa help Toby lift the poor dog made him feel horrible. Actually, he felt horrible most of the time, but this feeling was worse than that. He had a soft spot for animals and if he didn't have to travel so much, he'd adopt a couple of dogs from a shelter and maybe a cat.

  Toby and Tessa got the mutt in the back of the van and Tessa climbed in with him. After Toby had the dog stabilized, he shut the slider and jumped into the driver's seat.

  Sean said, "I'll follow you."

  Toby nodded.

  The emergency situation had halted conversation and now his stepmom hugged him. "I'll call your father and let him know you're here."

  "Thanks, Cecelia. After I find out what's happening with the dog and pay the bill, I'll be over. Are you sure you don't mind me staying? My showing up is unexpected. I can check into a motel."

  Cecelia frowned. "I should box your ears for even suggesting that. Besides, once your presence was known, you'd have girls lining up outside the motel."

  As if to verify her words, they heard a teenage girl squeal, "Oh, my God, you're Sean Barfield!"

  Sean quickly kissed his stepmother's cheek. "I'll see you later," he said, and raced to his car to catch up with the emergency van.

  His stepmom called, "Toby's office is across from Biggie's."

  The veterinary clinic was only about a mile from downtown and easy to find since it was across the street from Biggie Bag-n-Save Big Mart. When Sean pulled into the vet clinic's parking lot, Toby and another woman were hurrying the gurney through a side door. Tessa was at the front door unlocking it. He sucked a breath and followed her inside. She had already disappeared into the back, so he sat and waited for someone to return to reception. He could hear muted voices coming from the treatment room, but couldn't make out what was being said. He decided that if the dog lived and didn't have an owner, he'd make sure to find a loving home for him. He drummed his thumbs on his Levis.

  Several minutes later Tessa returned. He jumped to his feet and rushed to the reception window and held his breath.

  She released a breath. "He's in shock, but it looks like he could survive. We won't know for sure for maybe a day or two, but Toby is optimistic. The dog has a fractured right leg, probably a concussion, and a small amount of internal bleeding. He's sedated so he's not in pain."

  Sean felt his body relax and stopped clenching and unclenching his hands. "Thanks, Tessa. I feel terrible about this. Give the dog whatever he needs; I don't care about the expense. In fact, I can pay right now. I'll give you extra too.

  Tessa waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "I'll get the paperwork started later." She gave a little chuckle. "I know you're good for it."

  Sean had always loved the one dimple in Tessa's right cheek and her outrageously curly brunette hair. She had tied the unruly locks at the nape of her neck, but some of the long curls had escaped and twisted like corkscrews around her face. She was as cute now as she had been at the age of twelve, and just about as round. Sean knew that as a child and teen she'd been bullied about her weight by a classmate, and that's why her marriage to the creep only a year out of high school had shocked him. According to his stepmom, everyone had been shocked. Only a few months ago he'd learned that she was divorcing the guy and had returned to Paxtonville.

  He said, "Are you sure I shouldn't leave some money?" He pulled out his wallet.

  "I'm sure, Sean. Anyway, it's easier if I bill you."

  He placed his wallet back in his pocket. "Do you know who the dog belongs to? I'd like to apologize."

  "Actually, I've never seen him before. You should probably run an ad in the newspaper describing him and letting readers know he's at the vet's. When people lose an animal they almost always check the classifieds."

  "Okay. But if no one claims him, I'll find him a home. I don't want him going to some shelter."

  "Maybe you'll want to keep him for yourself?"

  "Yeah, right. Believe me; he'd get just as sick as I am of traveling from town-to-town in an RV, no matter how extravagant it is."

  She tilted her head. "So, you're taking a break and visiting your family?"

  He shrugged. "Yeah. I've got three months of freedom." He placed his thumbs in his back pockets. "Hey, why don't we get together tonight for pizza? I'll wear a disguise. It usually works."

  Tessa laughed. "Too late. The news about the famous Sean Barfield hitting a dog in his sports car will already have spread like wildfire and everyone will be on the lookout for you and your car."

  He frowned. "Then why don't we get together at your place or my parents' house and have a pizza delivered."

  Tessa glanced down at some paperwork on her desk and shuffled her feet.

  Chapter 3: Lucky It Is

  The fact that the famous rock star Sean Barfield of the group Endangered Species was asking her out for pizza should have made her ecstatic. Most women would have swooned at the invitation, but Tessa wasn't most women. She liked Sean; he'd always been nice to her, and, in fact, he'd given her her first kiss. Granted it had been under the mistletoe at one of the Tanners' annual Christmas parties for disadvantaged children, but it had still been her first and she'd never forgotten it.

  However, and it was a big "however," she had sworn off men, even if they were just friends. Preston Tanner had asked her to dinner a few times, but she'd always found an excuse to beg off. His twin brother Toby seemed to understand her reluctance and didn't push her into meeting up with him outside of work, even though they had often shared ice cream at the DQ during childhood.

  She scooted some papers around on her desk and then glanced back up. "I'm going to have to pass. I've been taking online classes to get started on becoming a vet's assistant and I'm inundated with homework." It wasn't exactly a lie.

  "Ah, okay. Maybe some other time." He looked disappointed. They were both silent and then he said, "Do you suppose I could look in on the dog befor
e I leave?"

  "Oh, let me check. I'll be right back." She walked down the hallway and into a door that had ICU written on it. Toby was adjusting the IV and Midge, his assistant, was preparing a cage. Toby said to Midge, "We'll move him into the cage in an hour."

  Tessa said, "I only wish I had seen the car coming sooner. Maybe I could have prevented the accident."

  Midge put her hand on her hip. "There you go taking the blame for something you had no control over."

  Tessa ignored her remark and glanced at Toby. "Sean's in the waiting room and wants to know if he can see the dog." Her eyes moved to the sleeping animal. "We need to give him a name until we find out who his owner is or until he's adopted."

  Toby said, "Tell Sean to come on back. We'll let him name the dog."

  Tessa returned to the waiting area. Since the lunch hour was now over, a couple of people with appointments had arrived. Mrs. Fitzpatrick with her chubby Chihuahua, Chica, was breaking off a piece of cookie for him, something she had been warned to stop doing many times. The other appointment was Grady Granger with his ginormous cat named Godzilla unhappily staring out of his carrier.

  Tessa saw Sean standing in a corner with his back to the patrons and apparently reading a dog wormer poster. She cleared her throat and Sean glanced covertly in her direction. She said, "The vet would like to see you, sir."

  Sean nodded, covered his face to cough, and hurried toward the door Tessa held open. When it closed behind them he puffed a relieved sigh. She grinned and shook her head. Being famous and recognizable appeared to be a pain in the butt, although it was iffy that Lulu Fitzpatrick would have recognized him, being in her eighties, or Grady Granger, a died-in-the-wool cowboy. But anything was possible. Maybe they liked to rock out with the Endangered Species.