The Cowboy Who Broke the Mold (15 page)

“As much as I appreciate the thought, son, a man needs to propose for himself.”

Carrie steeled herself against the inevitable.
Here it comes, the big brush-off.
She took comfort in the fact that with an audience he would surely have to let her down gently. If those sexy dimples on either side of his smile were any indication, he was going to try to keep things light.

“There’s something I need to say first, Daddy.”

Spared by the timely interruption, Carrie looked straight into Brandy’s stormy blue eyes. The girl wore a look of grave intensity.

“I didn’t mean what I said to you earlier,” she said in a painful rush.

“Yes, you did, and it’s okay,” Carrie replied softly. “You’re entitled to your feelings. I know you’ve been hurt in the past, Brandy, and that you’re afraid I’m go- ing to steal your father away from you. But nothing could be further from the truth. No matter how unlov- able you try to make yourself, what terrible stunts you may pull, or how horribly angry you get, I’m going to still love you—and your brother—and your father. I’m going to love you no matter what until all that scared old junk around your heart finally dissolves. Regardless
of what happens between your father and me, I’m just going to keep right on loving you.”

A strangled cry emanated from somewhere deep in- side the girl as she stepped into Carrie’s open arms and was welcomed into her heart.

Carrie looked at Judson through a sheen of tears.

He doubted whether he deserved this beautiful woman, but if it took the rest of his life, he intended to prove just how much he loved her in return. His voice lost its ragged edge. Its husky timber filled the crowded room.

“I don’t exactly know how everything will exactly all work out, but I just know that I love you and I want to marry you.”

Did Carrie hear correctly? Was this simply the ram- blings of a delirious man who had suffered a serious blow to the head? Carrie looked deeply into his eyes for any sign of hesitancy—or remorse. The lust glitter- ing in those piercing orbs was tempered by the light of love. Their feelings for one another were as crystal-clear as the stars peeking down at them from the darkened sky. There was no need of words. Peace and content- ment and joy such as she had never known before welled up inside her. Nothing in her life compared to standing in the midst of this family, basking in their love and acceptance.

If a child of twelve was brave enough to face her fears, could Carrie do any less than pluck out the mis- givings Scott had planted in her heart with his cruelty and infidelity? What kind of a person would hold on to agonizing pain rather than grasp at a chance for true happiness? Only a coward.

“Say yes,” Cowboy prompted in a loud whisper.

Yes, there was nothing she wanted more in this world
than to marry him. Yes, she wanted to be a part of Brandy’s and Cowboy’s lives. Yes, she wanted to give him more children. Yes, she wanted to be his wife in every sense of the word.

Yes, Yes, Yes!

Judson’s lips claimed hers with infinite promise. He was tender as he dragged her against him and gave her a taste of his passion. With a mouth hot on hers, Carrie moaned a soft surrender as the deep ache inside her burst into an iridescent glow pulsing in every cell in her body. The need was there and would be forever.

Nothing that felt so totally right could possibly be wrong. Her heart, her mind, her soul already belonged to this man. Joining their names legally was just a nat- ural progression of that love.

Scattering kisses upon the rugged surface of his face, she pressed her yielding softness against his hard body and trailed an erotic path down the strong cords of Jud- son’s neck along the scars that lashed the top of his shoulders.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” he purred in a feral, deep tone that sent a tugging ache low in Carrie’s stomach.

“Yes,” she answered, sealing it with another kiss.

Tossing his hat into the air, Cowboy sent up a rodeo grandstand cheer. Brandy merely smiled the smile of a blossoming young woman learning that love takes the courage to let go. Already she felt it returning to her manifold.

Carrie was certain that everything was going to be all right. Together they had taken the first—the hardest— step toward healing the family circle. The cycle of pain was broken at last. Though the past was written in a pattern of scars, the future was embodied in the ring that Judson would soon slip on her finger.

A ring of love, of joy, and of hope.

She would marry this man, and their lives would be forever entwined. Through the good times and the bad. Drawn out of the shadow of fear into the light of love, they had slain the frightful demons of the past together. The future was spirited by love and trust.

As long as no secrets lingered between them, no ob- stacles could tear them apart. Like the hallowed ground of Judson’s Native American ancestors, their love was a sacred place where no intruders could tread. At long last Carrie found what she been seeking all her life. It was her most cherished dream, finding a heart and mak- ing it home.
Home,
the place where mind and soul and body come together in perfect Harmony.

Watch for another strong, rugged hero in Cathleen’s next novel, 100% PURE COWBOY, coming February 1998 from Silhouette Romance.

eISBN 978-14592-7316-0

THE COWBOY WHO BROKE THE MOLD

Copyright © 1997 by Cathleen Galitz

All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office. Silhouette Books, 300 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017 U.S.A.

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