A True Cowboy Read online

  Did she have everything figured out?

  No. But it didn’t matter. She wasn’t alone anymore.

  “I know you didn’t come here for a sermon,” she said. “We need to get back anyway. I’m a little hungry and I could use a slice of Mom’s pumpkin pie.”

  William grinned. “I’m so glad it agreed with the baby. I could barely gag down a couple bites of mine, let alone eat both pieces.”

  “I just have to figure out how to convince Mom to make more without telling her my reason why.”

  William touched her arm gently. “I know your mom is a bit much with the way she hovers. But maybe she would surprise you with her reaction about the baby. One more person for her to love and care for.”

  She liked the warmth radiating from him. In truth, some of her restored faith came from the love and support William had given her. But she also knew that it wasn’t so simple. Yes, she could count on William now, before he knew the truth about her baby’s parentage.

  Danica Favorite loves the adventure of living a creative life. She loves to explore the depths of human nature and follow people on the journey to happily-ever-after. Though the road is often bumpy, those bumps refine imperfect characters as they live the life God created them for. Oops, that just spoiled the ending of Danica’s stories. Then again, getting there is all the fun. Find her at danicafavorite.com.

  Books by Danica Favorite

  Love Inspired

  Double R Legacy

  The Cowboy’s Sacrifice

  His True Purpose

  A True Cowboy

  Three Sisters Ranch

  Her Cowboy Inheritance

  The Cowboy’s Faith

  His Christmas Redemption

  Love Inspired Historical

  For the Sake of the Children

  An Unlikely Mother

  Mistletoe Mommy

  Honor-Bound Lawman

  Visit the Author Profile page

  at Harlequin.com for more titles.

  A TRUE COWBOY

  Danica Favorite

  And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

  —1 Corinthians 13:13

  For the Badgers, who put up with my craziness while writing this book. I’m richly blessed to have you as friends, and I love that you accept me for who I am. Thanks for all you’ve given me.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Epilogue

  Dear Reader

  Excerpt from Her Secret Hope by Lorraine Beatty

  Chapter One

  William Bennett hadn’t had such a bad week in all his life. As he looked around the large dining hall at the Double R Ranch, where everyone else was celebrating all the things they were thankful for this Thanksgiving, he felt out of place.

  He and his parents had been invited for the holiday, but William wondered if coming to Columbine Springs, and the Double R Ranch, had been the right decision. People were lined up at the buffet, filling their plates, and even though everything looked delicious, William hadn’t been able to bring himself to eat.

  His twin brother, Alexander, was on the other side of the room celebrating his engagement. Everyone else seemed happy about that fact, and William guessed that he was happy for his brother, too. No, he was happy. After spending a few months in Columbine Springs, Alexander had recently returned to Denver only briefly to get his things to move back here permanently, having been offered a cabin on the ranch. Alexander had been completely twitterpated over this woman, Janie, and her son, Sam. William just hadn’t expected an engagement to come so soon, considering Alexander wasn’t one for long-term relationships. He’d been too focused on his career to date.

  Not William.

  He’d always planned his life around having a family, and look where it had gotten him. Alone on Thanksgiving.

  As if he knew exactly what William was thinking about, his dad came over to put his arm around him.

  “Great celebration, isn’t it, son? I’m glad we managed to convince you to come. Pity Hailey couldn’t make it.”

  Right. Because he still hadn’t told anyone that Hailey had dumped him for some rodeo cowboy because he was so masculine, and William was just a boring guy in a suit. Oh, and Hailey was expecting the guy’s baby.

  William might be a boring guy in a suit, but at least he didn’t spend most of his time living out of the back of his horse trailer, like Hailey’s cowboy boyfriend.

  Making the situation even worse was that Hailey was William’s boss’s daughter. And suddenly, William’s position was made redundant. Which meant he hadn’t just lost his fiancée, but his job, as well. It was a good thing William had plenty of savings.

  Talk about awkward conversations that didn’t need to overshadow his brother’s happiness. William didn’t answer his father, and instead drained the remainder of his coffee.

  “I need a refill—be back in a second.”

  He wandered off, not wanting to rain on anyone’s parade.

  What was it with cowboys anyway? He didn’t see the appeal.

  But apparently, a lot of women did. The Double R Ranch, a place William had never imagined he’d set foot on, seemed to be swarming with cowboys. Almost every guy here today wore a cowboy hat.

  Weren’t cowboys supposed to take their hats off when indoors?

  Though the criticism made him feel mildly better, it didn’t ease the discomfort in his spirit. William had done everything right in his life, but somehow, it hadn’t helped him keep the woman he loved, or his job.

  William reached for the coffee carafe.

  Hadn’t his life been in enough turmoil already? He’d recently found out that his father wasn’t his biological father; that honor went to some rodeo cowboy his mom had had an affair with. That was the whole point of being here. While the rodeo cowboy was dead, the man’s father, Ricardo Ruiz IV—or Ricky, who owned the Double R—was alive, and wanted to get to know William and his brother. Actually, Ricky wanted to get to know all of his son’s misbegotten offspring. Why, William didn’t know. So far, it seemed to be creating a whole lot of chaos in everyone’s lives.

  Funny how a few days ago, that had been the biggest of William’s problems.

  “Hey, watch it!”

  He looked over at the woman he’d just bumped into, pouring coffee all over her.

  “I’m sorry. I’ve got a lot on my mind, and I wasn’t paying attention,” he said. “Again, I’m really sorry.”

  But instead of looking like she accepted his apology, the woman turned a strange shade of green, and ran for the door.

  Wow. It was bad enough that he’d been so cruelly rejected by his fiancée, but now he was scaring women off so bad, they literally ran from him.

  But he had just dumped a pot of coffee on her. The least he could do was make sure she was okay and hadn’t suffered any serious burns as a result of his carelessness.

  The cold drinks were in a trough filled with ice, so he used his empty cup to get some and grabbed a bottle of water.

  When he got outside, he didn’t see her, or anyone, for that matter. They’d gone out a side door that appeared to be more of a service entrance than anything else. But she couldn’t have gone too far.

  A gu
st of wind blew through, and William was glad he’d kept his suit jacket on. Yes, it had meant he was overdressed for the occasion, since everyone else was in Western wear, but he hadn’t known the dress code. Not that it would have made a difference. William didn’t own any Western wear. A fact that probably added to his boringness.

  What was it Hailey had said? He was the safe choice for a woman who needed stability, which was fine until she’d realized she was going to die of boredom. Something like that.

  And what was wrong with safety and stability anyway?

  A noise by the bushes drew William’s attention to a figure, hunched over, mostly hidden by the evergreen foliage.

  The woman he’d dumped coffee on.

  He walked toward the bushes. “Miss? Are you okay? I’m sorry about the coffee. I brought some ice and water if you think that might help.”

  The woman crawled out of the bushes and lay on the rocks. “I’m fine. Please, just go. Forget this ever happened.”

  He took a good look at her. She’d been getting sick behind those bushes. Her now pale skin was evidence of someone who was truly ill. William might be responsible for a lot of things in this world, but even he wasn’t capable of causing this level of illness in someone.

  “Are you okay? Can I get someone for you?”

  She shook her head. “No.”

  The sound of laughter came through the windows.

  “Surely someone in there...”

  She shook her head. “Please, no. I meant to come as a surprise, and now I don’t think I can do it.”

  He didn’t want to be here, either, but he also hadn’t known what other option he had. He could hear his dad in his mind, telling him he always had a choice. But sometimes your choices didn’t really feel like choices at all.

  “What’s your name? Is there anything I can do to help?” he asked. She looked a mess, and talking to her, it was obvious she wasn’t well.

  “It’s Grace. I’ll be okay. Just go.”

  The look on her face told him she wasn’t okay.

  “I’m William,” he said, giving her a smile that would hopefully make her feel more comfortable. “I don’t feel right just leaving you here.”

  A thought occurred to him. “Do you think it’s something you ate? Should I warn people?” Suddenly, he was glad he hadn’t eaten anything at the Thanksgiving dinner. His stomach had been too tied up in knots, and even now, he wasn’t sure he could choke down anything.

  “No,” she said. “It’s not the food, and it’s nothing contagious. That’s why I don’t want you to go in there and tell anyone. I don’t want anyone to be worried.”

  He held out the bottle of water to her. “Will this help? Or make it worse?”

  This time, instead of her usual refusals, she burst into tears.

  Clearly, William had no idea what he was doing when it came to women. He gingerly reached forward and touched her arm, hoping that it would be somewhat comforting to her. What were you supposed to do when your only obligation to someone was that you just dumped coffee on them, but clearly their problems were way bigger than that?

  “I don’t know what’s wrong, but I’m sure everything will be okay,” he said, trying to sound encouraging, knowing he probably didn’t.

  “I’m pregnant,” she said. “Okay? I’m pregnant.”

  She accepted the water and took a small sip. At least it was progress.

  And her pronouncement did explain the vomiting, and probably the tears. The guys he played basketball with all said that when their wives were pregnant, all they did was cry. William didn’t know. He’d never been in the situation before, and while he’d hoped that he and Hailey might someday have a child, obviously that wasn’t in his future, either.

  “So I guess you’re not happy about being pregnant?” he asked, not sure if he was helping or hurting the situation, though that seemed to be how his entire encounter with this poor woman had been.

  For a moment, she stopped crying. Looked up at him. Her face was such a mix of emotions, that even if he’d known her, he wasn’t sure he’d have been able to tell what was going on in her head.

  “This was definitely not part of the plan,” she said. Then she squared her shoulders. “But I’m keeping my baby.”

  The words came out with such force that he imagined someone else must have suggested not doing so to her. And probably not in a nice way.

  “I’m not here to judge. But I do want to help. Should I call the baby’s father?”

  Obviously the wrong question, because she burst into tears again. Now that he thought about it, her response to his question about being happy about the baby should have clued him in that maybe this wasn’t the ideal situation.

  “Okay, I get it. No father. But you’ve got to let me do something.”

  She looked up at him, tears streaming down her face. “What? What could you possibly do for me? I’m alone and pregnant, and I can’t bear the thought of telling my mother how much I’ve let her down.”

  In a way, it made sense. Everything made sense. She’d probably come home for Thanksgiving, hoping to find a way to tell her mother, and everything here was overwhelming. Just like William felt. Thinking he could do this, being a mature adult about meeting a family he hadn’t known he had and didn’t want. He thought he would find a way to tell his family that his fiancée had broken up with him. But how was he supposed to do that when his brother had just announced his own engagement and was so happy?

  William took a deep breath. “I know it’s not the same, but I’m afraid to tell my family something, too.”

  That at least got the tears to stop.

  “Oh yeah? What?”

  William took a deep breath. Funny thing was, he hadn’t ever actually admitted it out loud. But there was safety in this young, vulnerable woman who had just confessed her own secret to him.

  “My fiancée dumped me for some cowboy she’s been having an affair with.”

  He sighed, feeling the weight lift from his shoulders at having said the words. “She’s pregnant with his baby. She said she needed a real man.”

  He hadn’t thought he was going to share that last piece. Still wasn’t sure why it slipped out. But ever since Hailey had said it, those words haunted him.

  Grace looked up at him. “Sounds like you’re better off. At least you weren’t already married.”

  He’d thought about that one, and yes, he did take some comfort in it. He’d seen enough of his friends go through rough divorces. But it didn’t mean his heart wasn’t broken.

  “I guess that’s the silver lining,” he said. “What about you? I know you’re going to keep the baby, but have you thought about what else you’re going to do?”

  It would be good to have an answer to the question, not just about long-term plans, but he was kind of hoping she might clue him in to what she might be doing in the next few minutes, so he could get her to a safe place.

  She shook her head. “The baby’s father was my boss. Getting one of his employees pregnant doesn’t exactly look good on the company plan. I know I could technically get him in trouble for firing me, but it wasn’t that great of a job to begin with, and I certainly don’t want to work for him anymore. Still, my finances are a mess, and I don’t know how I’m going to support a baby.”

  Basically the same situation he was in. “I understand. My ex’s father was my boss. I’m also out of a job.”

  “Funny how easily your life gets ruined by someone you thought you loved,” Grace said, looking forlorn. “But you’re right. It is comforting to know I’m not the only one.”

  As she took another sip of water, some of the color returned to her face. “I can’t go back in there.”

  He scooted closer and put his hand on her arm. “Sure you can. I’ll go with you. Maybe, since we know we’re not alone anymore, it won’t be so bad.”

/>   The thought strengthened him more than he could have imagined. He wasn’t the only person to fall in love with someone who wasn’t as committed to the relationship. What kind of guy would leave his pregnant girlfriend alone, anyway?

  Probably the same kind who’d get someone else’s fiancée pregnant.

  However, instead of looking encouraged, Grace shook her head again. “You don’t understand. My mom is a strong Christian. She raised me better than this. She’s going to be so disappointed in me.”

  “I’m sure she loves you. She might be shocked initially, but she’ll get over it. You should let her help.”

  As he spoke, he thought of how telling her mom applied to his own situation. His family had always been supportive of him, and he couldn’t see that changing now.

  “To be honest,” he continued, “part of why I don’t want to tell my family is that my brother just proposed today at the dinner. I hate overshadowing his happy news with my depressing circumstances.”

  Grace looked up at him. “You’re Ricky’s long-lost grandson! Whenever I talk to Mom on the phone, she’s always going on about Ricky’s search for his family. My mom is Wanda, Ricky’s live-in housekeeper. I grew up here on the ranch. We’re practically family.”

  The excitement in her voice brought a sinking feeling to his stomach. “I guess. This didn’t come as welcome news to me. It’s weird, learning that the man you always thought of as your father isn’t, and that your mom cheated on your dad. I know it’s not Ricky’s fault, but it doesn’t feel right, being here.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said. “I understand it came as quite the shock. If it helps, I grew up here on the ranch, and Ricky is one of the best people I know.”

  Another Ricky fan. Alexander couldn’t stop singing his praises, and William supposed it wasn’t Ricky’s fault that his son fathered a bunch of kids people were just finding out about. But it didn’t make things easier.

  “I’m sure you’re right,” he said. “Ricky might be okay, but I’m not sure I want to know anything about his son. I have zero respect for people who cheat, or would be with someone who was with someone else. How could my mom do that to my dad? And Hailey? If I was so boring, why not break up with me, then go chasing after some cowboy? And that cowboy? Why would he even think about going for someone who was engaged? That just tells me what low-class people they are.”