Loving A Cowboy (Hearts of Wyoming Book 1)
Anne Carrole
Dedicated to my daughter. I couldn’t be prouder.
Author’s Note
It’s been a labor of love bringing Chance and Libby together—that Chance is a stubborn one, and Libby, as you will see, isn’t having an easy time asserting her independence. They both have something to prove, and now, they finally have a second chance to prove it. Look for the next book in the Hearts of Wyoming series, which will be Ty and Mandy’s story, in Maverick Meets His Match, when Mandy has to make some tough choices to gain control of her late grandfather’s rodeo stock company after Ty, her grandfather’s protégé, takes over. Sparks fly, but it isn’t clear whether it will be a fire of passion or an inferno that consumes them.
If you love Chance and Libby’s story (or even if you don’t), please consider leaving a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads. I read every one of them, and they help me plan new books for the series. If you’re not on my mailing list yet, you can sign up on www.annecarrole.com so you can keep informed when new books are coming out as well as get some tidbits on wranglers, ranches, and rodeos.
Thanks for your support of the Hearts of Wyoming series. Enjoy the ride!
Hugs, Anne.
Chapter 1
Libby Brennan had never been good at waiting. Yet she’d come to the Cattleman’s Club, the best honky-tonk in Cheyenne, to do just that—wait. The place was jumping, packed, and noisy. She’d been lucky to find a table
“What makes you think he’s forgiven you for what you did, Libby? Few men would.” Older brothers sometimes have an unnerving ability to undermine a younger sister’s resolve.
Determined to stay positive, Libby mentally squared her shoulders and met the doubt-filled stare of the brother, sitting across from her.
“I’m not here to ask for forgiveness. I know I don’t deserve it. But I want to tell him, in person, before some notary assaults him. I owe him that—and a lot more.”
“What makes you so sure he’s going to show up?”
“Where better to celebrate hitting a million dollars in rodeo winnings?”
Doug shook his head and glared at her with the blue eyes they’d both inherited from their late mother.
She looked away, ignoring him, and scanned the room for what seemed like the twentieth time, hoping she’d spot Chance Cochran but dreading the meeting.
The atmosphere in the honky-tonk was upbeat, given the place was packed with well-heeled patrons who had come to Cheyenne for the annual rodeo, the city’s biggest event. The candles flickering on the polished black ceramic tables, which rimmed the dance floor, combined with the dim overhead lighting to keep the large space from feeling cavernous. She’d been lucky to get a table, as late arrivals now had to make do standing at the long, winding bar that snaked down the side. Through the mist of smoke that hung in the air, the room had become a hazy forest of cowboy and cowgirl hats.
When she finally saw a familiar tall figure weaving through the mob of rodeo fans squeezed into the nightclub, her heart thudded in double time to the beat of the country song blasting from the sound system that was giving the band a break.
“He’s here,” she announced, her mouth suddenly dry. “Leave.”
Doug rose, but he stood there like his cowboy boots were glued to the floor.
“Go!”
Reluctantly, Doug picked up the beer that had been sitting before him. “If you need me, I’ll be at the bar—if I can get near it.” He nodded toward the swarm of people trying to get drinks.
“Good luck,” he said. “You’re going to need it.” He ambled away, looking back over his shoulder several times.
Libby took a deep breath and turned her attention back to the lean, handsome figure who was walking closer and closer to where she was sitting. She caught the moment he spotted her, the moment his eyes rounded, his lips parted, and a frown appeared on his formerly smiling face.
Chance almost stopped breathing. The one person in the world he did not want to see was sitting a mere twenty feet away. He knew it had been a mistake to take on the Frontier Days Rodeo in Cheyenne. But hell, he’d been avoiding it for five long years, and this year he couldn’t risk his standing. He’d taken time away to enter the Stampede and he’d won big, but it wasn’t a sanctioned rodeo, so the hundred thousand he’d pocketed wouldn’t count toward his ranking for the big daddy of them all, the National Finals Rodeo. At least he’d finally cracked the million-dollar career earnings mark. Foolishly, he’d taken it as a good omen. The woman staring at him said he’d taken it wrong.
He continued walking toward her, barely acknowledging the congratulatory slaps on the back, and watched as her beautiful face flushed and her foot started shaking as it always had when she’d get nervous.