Claiming the Cowboy's Heart
Read Claiming the Cowboy's Heart Online
Authors: Linda Ford
A Haven Out West
After witnessing her fiance’s murder, Jayne Gardiner won’t let herself be caught on the wrong side of a gun again. But a disastrous first lesson in self-defense has left her with a wounded cowboy. She insists on nursing the handsome stranger back to health—whether he wants it or not!
Getting waylaid by a wild shot has definitely put a hitch in Seth Collins’s step—and plans. Duty may call him home, but Seth can’t resist lingering on Eden Valley Ranch to teach the English beauty to shoot. And when a shadowy figure from Jayne’s past resurfaces, Seth’s sudden urge to protect her has nothing to do with duty.
Cowboys of Eden Valley: Forging a future in Canada’s west country
Jayne turned to meet Seth’s gaze.
“I very much regret that I am responsible for your pain.”
He studied her for a moment. “Who did you see shot to death?”
His question jolted through her, bringing all the memories of that day forward in a flash. “My fiance, Oliver.” She twisted the towel she held, knotting her fingers into the material.
“I’m sorry for your loss.” He lifted his hand and caught her fingers. His hand was large, work hardened and steadying.
She tore her gaze from their linked hands and stared into his eyes. Her imagination read a dozen things into his gaze—comfort, concern, perhaps even the offer of protection.
She jerked her gaze away, stepped back to hang the towel over the back of the chair. The last thing she wanted was to be taken care of by anyone. “I’ll be fine on my own.” Her words were firm, almost as if daring him to think otherwise.
Books by Linda Ford
Love Inspired Historical
The Road to Love
The Journey Home
The Path to Her Heart
Dakota Child
The Cowboy’s Baby
Dakota Cowboy
Christmas Under
Western Skies
“A Cowboy’s Christmas”
Dakota Father
Prairie Cowboy
Klondike Medicine Woman
*The Cowboy Tutor
*The Cowboy Father
*The Cowboy Comes Home
The Gift of Family
“Merry Christmas, Cowboy”
+The Cowboy’s Surprise Bride
+The Cowboy’s Unexpected
Family
+The Cowboy’s Convenient
Proposal
The Baby Compromise
+Claiming the Cowboy’s Heart
*Three Brides for Three Cowboys
+Cowboys of Eden Valley
LINDA FORD
lives on a ranch in Alberta, Canada. Growing up on the prairie and learning to notice the small details it hides gave her an appreciation for watching God at work in His creation. Her upbringing also included being taught to trust God in everything and through everything—a theme that resonates in her stories. Threads of another part of her life are found in her stories—her concern for children and their future. She and her husband raised fourteen children—four homemade, ten adopted. She currently shares her home and life with her husband, a grown son, a live-in paraplegic client and a continual (and welcome) stream of kids, kids-in-law, grandkids and assorted friends and relatives.
CLAIMING THE COWBOY’S HEART
Linda Ford
Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.
—Luke
12:7
To my sister, Leona, and my friend Brenda, as you struggle with so many challenges. Remember how much God values you.
Contents
Chapter One
Eden Valley Ranch, Alberta, Canada
August 1882
“I
didn’t expect it to be so heavy.” Jayne Gardiner held the pistol between her fingers. She couldn’t bear the cold feeling of the stock against her palm. Her hand trembled and the shiny steel barrel winked in the sun like an evil tormentor. Panic clawed up her throat like threatening flood waters. She struggled to push it back. She knew firsthand the destructive power of a gun.
She stiffened her spine. Fear would not be allowed to rule her life. She would learn to defend herself and those she cared about. She’d be ready to take action if ever another life-or-death situation arose.
Behind her, her friend Mercy laughed. “It won’t bite.” But then, Mercy lived for adventure. That’s why she’d accompanied them on this trip west. As if ready for an escapade, she wore suede riding pants that she’d purchased before they left Fort Benton on their journey to western Canada and the Eden Valley Ranch, and her mahogany hair was pulled back in a braid.
Beside her, Sybil twisted her hands in the fabric of her fashionable pinstripe blue walking skirt. She completed the trio that recently arrived from England. More reserved like Jayne, she wanted to come on this visit to Canada to get over her parents’ deaths.
Jayne had come to visit her brother, Eddie—owner and operator of the Eden Valley Ranch—and his wife, Linette, though some might think she’d come to put the past out of her mind. She tightened her lips. People who thought that would be wrong. She didn’t intend to forget the lessons her past had taught her.
Sybil shuddered, causing the golden curls that had escaped the elegant roll to bounce around her shoulders. Modern wisdom said a woman with curly hair would be of gentle temperament. Sybil lived up to the expectation. “I hate guns.”
Jayne sucked back an echoing shudder. Her brown hair was thick and straight, supposedly indicating a strong-willed woman. So far, she’d proven the statement false but she meant to change that starting now. “I hate what guns do but I want to learn to shoot one.” She studied the target placed about fifty feet away.
The young women were in a grove of trees that sheltered them from the wind and provided slices of shade depending on the position of the sun. They were far enough from the ranch buildings to not alarm Eddie, Linette, or any of the other caring people there who saw no need for Jayne to learn to shoot a gun. Eddie had said it wouldn’t serve any purpose. It wouldn’t bring Oliver back. And, he’d carefully pointed out, there were plenty of cowboys around the place should it be necessary to shoot a gun. What’s more, he’d said with utmost conviction, he didn’t think such an occasion would likely occur.
Jayne had tipped her chin and vowed she’d learn with or without Eddie’s help. It wasn’t some foolish notion of undoing the past. She would not allow herself to ever again feel as helpless as she did on that horrible day. The events had been burned permanently into her brain.
The day she had in mind had been sunny and warm after days of damp sky. Her fiance, Oliver Spencer, had suggested spending the afternoon together instead of abandoning her to her own amusements while he pursued his as so often happened. On several occasions, she’d objected mildly to the amount of time Oliver spent in gambling establishments. The promise of some quality time together, just the two of them, had caused her to laugh at his jokes, though, as usual, she failed to understand them. He must have thought her so innocent.
They’d been walking side by side along a street lined with shops inviting their business. She had glanced in one window and noticed a beautiful display of lace gloves and thought of purchasing a pair, but she hadn’t suggested a stop because she and Oliver were discussing the future. She didn’t want to distract him.
“We’ll live in the house with Mother and Father. There’s more than enough room. No need to own another house.”
Did he mean she would go from being under her parents’ direct supervision to being under
his
parents’? She wanted to be a woman with her own home. Of course, it made sense to start with. “Will we get our own home when we have children?” A hot blush had flooded her body at the intimate topic.
Before Oliver could answer, a man had jumped from an alley brandishing a gun and demanded Oliver give him everything.
Jayne had shrunk back into the recessed doorway of the building beside them and watched as Oliver emptied his pockets of quite a lot of cash.
“It’s all I have,” he’d said, his voice hard with anger.
The thief had jammed the money into his pocket. “You know that’s not all I want.” He’d waved the pistol. “Where’s the key?”
Jayne had glanced about, hoping for rescue but no one turned down the street toward them. No one noticed the robbery.
“I want it back,” the robber had growled.
Jayne had swallowed hard. People passed at the intersection a few yards away. She tried to call for help but her voice failed her.
Oliver had continued to say he had nothing more. He’d even turned his pockets out.
“Where is it? I can’t prove it but I know you cheated. You took everything I have.” The thief had lurched toward Oliver.
She’d never seen Oliver move so quickly. His arm slashed across the man’s wrist. The pistol dropped to the cobblestones and he’d kicked it toward Jayne.
“Pick it up. Shoot him,” Oliver had ordered as he and the thief tussled.
Jayne had stared at the gun just two feet away but she couldn’t move. She’d never touched a gun, let alone shot one. She didn’t even know how.
Oliver’s head had hit the ground with a thud and he’d lain stunned.
The thief had grabbed the pistol. A metallic click had rung through Jayne’s racing thoughts.
“Get up,” the thief had ordered.
Oliver had staggered to his feet.
“I’m done playing around. You know what I want. Give it to me.”
Oliver had swayed.
Someone from the nearby intersection had called out. “He’s got a gun.”
Then everything had happened so fast Jayne couldn’t say what came first. A shot had rung out. Oliver had pitched to the pavement. The thief had raced down the alley. A crowd had surrounded them.
Jayne had hovered in the doorway, too frightened to move while blood pooled around Oliver. Someone had leaned over him. A man had looked up, seen her and waved her forward. Her legs numb, her heart beating erratically, she’d managed to make the few steps and knelt at Oliver’s side. “You’ll be fine. You’ll be fine.” She hadn’t believed the words she’d uttered.
He’d caught her hand. He’d struggled to speak past the gurgling in his throat. Something about gambling and winning from the man who had shot him. Then his words ended in a gasp. Gentle hands had pried her away. Someone had taken her home.
