Forever Kisses (Romance on the Ranch Book 7) Read online

  Forever Kisses

  Romance on the Ranch Series

  Verna Clay

  This book is dedicated to those who have forgiven much.

  Forever Kisses

  Romance on the Ranch Series

  Copyright © 2015 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: Cabin (Hunzy at Canstock);

  Man and Woman (nameinframe 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

  After writing Rock Star Kisses, I knew I had to continue the saga immediately with Toby Tanner, the twin brother of Preston from that story. I also wanted to revisit Sean and Tessa Barfield. I just couldn't let the characters go.

  My intent in writing Forever Kisses was to take a man who has everything—family, career, looks, money, friends—and bring a woman into his life who hasn't been so blessed, a woman who shakes up his perfect world. Thus, Dovie Juniper enters the cast of characters in the Romance on the Ranch Series.

  I hope you enjoy Toby and Dovie's romance.

  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

  Prologue

  Chapter 1: Crossing Paths

  Chapter 2: Drenched

  Chapter 3: Slight Omission

  Chapter 4: Not Cookin' with Grease

  Chapter 5: Tactical Planning

  Chapter 6: Eat Crow

  Chapter 7: Flatfoot and Sally

  Chapter 8: Meet the Kids

  Chapter 9: Signed and Sealed

  Chapter 10: What Now?

  Chapter 11: Understanding

  Chapter 12: Fear or No Fear?

  Chapter 13: Picnic

  Chapter 14: Heart-to-Heart

  Chapter 15: Flashbacks

  Chapter 16: Selections

  Chapter 17: Loaded and Rollin'

  Chapter 18: Wagon Master

  Chapter 19: Cry of the West!

  Chapter 20: Interview of a Lifetime

  Chapter 21: Meadow Magic

  Chapter 22: Burn

  Chapter 23: Butch Rhapsody

  Chapter 24: Date Night

  Chapter 25: The Shadow Returns

  Chapter 26: "Barn" Bitches

  Chapter 27: Cabin Fever

  Chapter 28: Unavoidable

  Chapter 29: Phone Call

  Chapter 30: Goodbye and Hello

  Chapter 31: Forever Kisses

  Epilogue

  Author's Note

  Fragile Hearts (Excerpt)

  Branded in Oasis (Excerpt)

  Novels and Novellas by Verna Clay

  Prologue

  Introduction to Toby Tanner's Story

  Toby did some fancy footwork before twirling and dipping the cowgirl in his arms. The live band at Boot Bustin' Barn this week was really good. He'd always loved good music, good food, and good women, with women being first on his list.

  The cowgirl named Patti who was visiting friends in town, snuggled up to him when the band ended the Garth Brooks hit, Friends in Low Places, and whispered in his ear, "I'm here for two more days. It's too bad we didn't meet sooner. Maybe we can spend some time getting better acquainted before I leave?"

  If ever Toby had heard a pick-up line that was it. The woman was beautiful, curvy, sexy-as-hell, but he wasn't interested. For the past six months, his love life had gone steadily downhill. The fact that his twin brother Preston was now married and always had a grin on his face, when he'd had the reputation of being somewhat of a stick-in-the-mud, and his good friend Tessa had also married and wore the same shit-eating-grin, had Toby reevaluating his life. And damn but he was tired of superficial relationships with women.

  He inwardly sighed and said, "Darlin', you're gorgeous, but I'm in no frame of mind to be any fun." He pointed across the room. "Now, that cowboy over there at the billiards table, the one wearing the red shirt, his name is Grady Granger, and he's one hell of a good time. He's probably more of what–"

  The cowgirl jerked backward, squinted at him, looked over at Grady, looked back at him, and said, "You are one big A-hole, mister," before stomping on his instep and walking away in a huff.

  Toby grimaced, shook his head, and thought, Grady, I gave it my best shot.

  Dovie watched the interaction between the tall, handsome cowboy and the equally tall and pretty cowgirl. She was surprised when the cowgirl leaned back with a look of surprise and then stomped down on the guy's foot. He must have said something pretty awful to garner that response since the girl had been all over him before.

  Reaching for her journal, Dovie jotted some notes by the light of the candle burning on her table and sighed. She was a people watcher and writer of a popular blog. For the past two weeks she'd been traveling Colorado doing research on the cowboy lifestyle and blogging about it with humor and insight. She had interviewed a couple of cattle ranchers, a former rodeo queen, a western two-step dancers' club, and a female wanna-be country and western singer, but it had been while she was stopped at a rest stop with her window rolled down, that she'd heard a conversation that changed her itinerary and pointed her back in the direction she'd come. The conversation had been between two cowgirls.

  "Julie Sue, I think we should visit Dora and her sister Jolene, in Paxtonville."

  "Why? What's in Paxtonville?"

  "Don't tell me you don't know."

  "I don't feel like playing word games. You need to spell it out, girlfriend."

  "Some pretty famous people live there."

  "Yeah, how do you know?"

  "I read the blogs and rag mags, and besides, Dora told me. Are you ready for the list?"

  Julie Sue sighed and said with disinterest. "Yeah, shoot."

  "Okay. There's that famous rodeo star, Dirk Branigan."

  "Really? Who else?"

  "That gorgeous model who's old now, but still hot; Sage something-or-other. His wife is also kinda well known as the writer, Mims Murphy."

  Julie Sue was looking more interested.

  Her friend continued, "There's also that other writer Maxwell Henry who writes all those suspense novels and some romances, too. I think his wife is a poet. And then there's that artist who paints all that mystical stuff. The one that's really reclusive. And, are you ready for this?"

  Julie Sue cocked her head and waited.

  "Sean Barfield lives there with his wife."

  Julie Sue squealed. "Sean Barfield! I love his music! He wrote Heaven for Me which is a crossover into country and western." She grabbed her friend's arm. "Are you sure all those people live there?"

  "I'm only telling you what Dora told me. We've got a week to kill, so why not stop in and visit Dora and Jolene?"

  "Okay. I'm convinced. Let's go."

  At the time, Dovie had thought, I'm convinced, too.

  Dovie was brought back to the present when the waitress who'd introduced herself
earlier as Sally, stopped by her table again. "Can I get you a refill on that coke?"

  "Ah, no ma'am, but thank you."

  Sally smiled and moved on to the next table and Dovie slipped her journal into her purse using her good hand and looped the strap around her prosthetic arm. Next, she pushed her chair back and reached for her cane to balance herself as she stood. As she turned around, a man stumbled backward a little and then righted himself.

  "I'm so sorry!" she gasped, and looked up into the eyes of the gorgeous cowboy who'd pissed off the sexy cowgirl.

  His slow smile did things to Dovie's stomach and she quickly glanced away. A long time ago she'd learned to quell any attraction to men. They simply weren't interested in a woman who was missing her left arm below the elbow and right leg above the knee, thanks to genetic Meromelia. She felt so flustered she didn't know whether to turn back around to her table or try to go around him.

  He laughed and said, "My brother says I'm the biggest klutz ever born and I'm beginning to think he's right. I'm sure sorry about almost squashing you."

  Dovie exclaimed, "Oh, no. It was my fault. I wasn't paying attention. I'm the one who should be apologizing."

  The cowboy's grin turned lopsided. "It's sweet of you to take the blame, but I'm not buying it. How about you let me buy you a refill of whatever you're drinking to make up for my klutziness?"

  Dovie's throat closed up and she couldn't breathe. Men never asked to buy her a drink, especially hot looking ones like him. "Umm, I was just on my way out. Thank you, though."

  "Then let me see you safely to your car."

  Her eyes widened and he lifted his hands. "I swear I'm a pillar of the community. I'll even get Sally the waitress and Justin the owner of the bar to vouch for me. Hell, everyone in town knows me. They'll all tell you I'm the local vet."

  Dovie sucked a breath. "You know everyone in town?"

  "I do."

  "Do you think you could get me an interview with a man named Sage Tanner and his wife Sarah. I think he's a famous model and his wife is a writer. You see, I have a blog site and I'm researching cowboy country and its unique lifestyle. I heard some ladies talking about him and I did a little internet research and found out that the Tanners own a ranch outside of Paxtonville. I'm only asking for a half hour of their time. I was going to call their ranch tomorrow, but if you could pave the way for me, it would be much appreciated." She was blabbering like an idiot and shut her mouth.

  The cowboy ran a hand through his mahogany hair. He seemed to think about her request for a second and then gave her another lopsided grin. "I might be able to help you out."

  "Really!"

  The girl with the cane gave Toby such a brilliant smile he almost took a step backward. Her eyes had slanted upward and were the color of espresso. In contrast to her blonde hair, the effect was stunning. A pretty rosy hue colored her cheeks and her hopeful expression was more than he could stand. Hell, she could ask him to get her an interview with the governor and he'd do his damndest to do it; an interview with his parents—no sweat.

  He tried to affect a serious expression. "Give me your phone number and I'll call and let you know whether they agree."

  She chewed the corner of her lip and Toby enjoyed watching the sight. He saw Sally walking past and said, "Hey, Sally, am I the local vet?"

  Sally glanced from him to the woman, and back to him. She said dryly, "You were still the doc last time I took Rambler in. Has anything changed?"

  Toby laughed. "Nope. I hope you've cut back on the table scraps."

  Sally quickly averted her eyes and walked away.

  Toby said, "And by the way, my name is Toby."

  The woman kept gnawing on her full bottom lip and Toby kept enjoying the sight. She reached into her pocket and retrieved a business card. "My name is Dovie Juniper. Like I said, I write a blog." She handed him the card. "My phone number is on there. I'll be in town for three or four days. I'm available anytime for an interview. If you can get one, I'll be sure to put in a plug for your vet business. Now I've really got to head out. Thank you, Toby."

  Toby inclined his head. "Ma'am, like I said, I'll see you safely to your car." He waited for her to move past him.

  In the parking lot he followed her to a nondescript van. She turned and said, "Thank you, again."

  "Ma'am, I'll stay until you're safely driving down the road."

  She pushed the fob on her key ring to unlock her door and he opened it. She said, "I need to lay my cane in the passenger seat."

  "Yes, ma'am. I'll do it for you." He placed one hand on her back to steady her and held his other hand out for her cane. She seemed to hesitate before handing it over. When she lifted her other hand against the door frame, her sleeve slipped backward, and although her hand and arm appeared almost normal, he realized the limb was prosthetic. Damn!

  She saw the direction of his gaze and must have noted his surprise, because she stiffened and said, "My right leg is also prosthetic. But I assure you, I'm perfectly capable of getting into my own car."

  "I didn't think otherwise," he replied. He waited for her to climb into her seat, but she suddenly appeared flustered and when she lifted her good leg into the van, the prosthetic one seemed to give, and she started to topple.

  In an instant, Toby grabbed her up and held her in his arms. "Whoa," he said.

  His face was so close to hers his eyes were drawn to the tiny mole at the corner of her right lip. His gaze moved upward to eyes that looked like they were about to overflow with tears.

  "Please put me down," she whispered.

  For a second, he couldn't move. He just wanted to kiss that mole and then move his mouth to those full lips. He mentally shook himself and gently set her in the driver's seat. She reached to close her door, but he said, "I've got it, Dovie."

  She started her van and backed out of the parking space as soon as he shut her door. He watched until the vehicle was out of sight and then headed for his truck. Although it was Saturday night, he'd lost all interest in having a good time.

  Chapter 1: Crossing Paths

  Forcing herself to inhale multiple deep breaths, Dovie scolded herself for being such a klutz. And then she remembered how the cowboy had endearingly called himself a klutz. Yeah, well you're the klutz and I'm the idiot.

  In her misery, she missed the turnoff to her motel with the generic name of Paxtonville's Finest Motel, located on the western fringe of town. She had to drive a mile until she was able to turn onto a country road and make a u-turn. By then, she'd calmed herself by talking aloud in a rational tone. "So what if he seemed interested in you at first. You know your prosthetics turned him off when he saw them. That's how it always goes. It's obvious the guy has women falling at his feet, although why that cowgirl stomped on his foot is a mystery. He's probably a jerk. Yeah, that's it. He's a loser so it's no skin off your nose that he'd never look twice at you."

  She reached her motel and turned into the parking lot. Maybe she should scratch this town off her list and move on tomorrow. She had some interesting leads in Cortez and Denver. Yeah, she'd stop at that cute coffee shop—Dixie's Cuppa Joe—and order a latte for the road in the morning.

  Feeling better, she exited her car and entered her room. After performing her nightly ritual of cleansing and moisturizing her face, she removed her prosthetic arm and leg and stretched out across her bed. Even though she didn't want to, she replayed the entire scene with the cowboy and when she fell asleep, she dreamed of him scooping her onto his horse and charging into a blazing orange sunset.

  The next morning she hopped on one leg to the bathtub, sat on the side of it and turned on the facets before lowering herself into the water. After that she fitted herself with her prosthetics, dressed, checked out of her motel, and banished visions of her silly dream that kept infiltrating real life.

  Driving through town, she smiled at how quaint it was and almost changed her mind about leaving. She pulled into a vertical space for handicapped parking, grabbed her cane, an
d carefully stepped to the ground.

  It was a few minutes after eight when she walked into the busy coffee house. There were two baristas making drinks and a pretty, middle-aged woman operating the cash register. The woman greeted the next customer in line by name.

  Dovie joined the line of customers. When the elderly lady at the head of the line turned and saw her using a cane, she exclaimed, "Honey, you go in front of me!"

  Inwardly, Dovie groaned. "No, ma'am. I really don't mind waiting my turn."

  The woman was not to be deterred and replied. "No. No. No. My mama would turn over in her grave if I didn't insist you go first."

  The man directly behind the elderly lady had already started moving aside, as did everyone behind him. He said with a drawl, "Here, little lady, you mosey on up to the counter so Cecelia can take your order."

  By now patrons seated in the coffee shop were looking at her. She hated garnering attention. Just then, the door opened, which took the attention away from her. The cowboy who had insisted she go in front of him, said, "Howdy, Toby."

  Dovie got that panicky feeling she hated and kept her back to the door.

  Toby called, "Hey, Jackson, how's the extra acreage working out?"

  Dovie didn't know what to do when the man named Jackson returned his attention to her and motioned her forward while answering Toby's question.

  "I just got repairs done on five miles of fencing and I'm moving part of my cattle over today."

  Slowly, Dovie edged forward and suddenly the cowboy from the previous night was standing beside her. "Dovie," he said, "It's good to see you again."

  Everyone in line and everyone in the coffee shop were now staring at them. She reached the counter and choked out, "Hello again." To the woman named Cecelia running the register, she said, "I'll have a mocha latte to go."

  Toby said, "I've got it," and reached for his wallet.