A Cowboy's Duty Read online

  Never Trust A Man!

  That’s what Dixie Cash learned from her mother. That and fathers don’t stick around. She’s pretty independent, and doesn’t need help from her baby’s daddy, sexy rodeo rider and ex-soldier Gavin Tucker. But he seems determined to do right by her. Just as Dixie starts to imagine that together they might be a family, tragedy strikes—and Gavin shows his true colors. She knew he wasn’t honorable!

  After what Gavin went through in Afghanistan, he was more than happy to lose himself in the rodeo circuit—and in sweet Dixie’s arms. But doing the right thing can be hard sometimes, and when Dixie—Gavin’s lifeline—doesn’t need him anymore, he’s at a loss. His heart still longs for Dixie, though he’s not sure he deserves a second chance....

  After a lengthy silence, Gavin said, “We need to discuss what happens next.”

  Dixie’s throat swelled with panic and she swallowed hard. She’d known from the get-go that Gavin was an honorable man and once he learned he’d fathered her baby he’d insist on doing his duty and marrying her.

  “Gavin—”

  “Dixie—”

  “You go first,” she said, bracing herself for a marriage proposal.

  “I’m not sure what the answer to our predicament is, but I do know that I’m not ready to marry and settle down.”

  Stunned by his confession, Dixie leaned against the workbench and stared unseeingly at the scattered supplies.

  “I want to do right by the baby, so I intend to help you financially.”

  Her face warmed with embarrassment. What an idiot she’d been to believe Gavin wanted to marry her. Shoving her bruised pride aside, she focused on the positive—he didn’t want to be involved in her life.

  Dear Reader,

  Welcome back to Stagecoach, Arizona! In A Cowboy’s Duty you’ll meet Dixie Cash and her six brothers—each named after a country-and-western singer. You’ll get a kick out of the crazy Cash brothers, but the cowboy who will steal your heart is Gavin Tucker. He’s a soldier cowboy—a special breed of man who’s paid a high price for defending his country.

  Many soldiers return from war suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Gavin’s an adrenaline junkie—feeding his addiction by competing in rodeo. The high he gets from busting broncs gives him the strength to keep running from his past, and as long as the past never catches up to him Gavin is able to keep his PTSD under control. A chance encounter with a female bull rider named Dixie Cash threatens the status quo. When Dixie turns up pregnant, Gavin must face his past before he can seek the future he’d always believed to be out of reach for him.

  Dixie and Gavin’s love story is about courage, trust and taking a leap of faith. I hope you enjoy accompanying them on their rocky road to Happy Ever After.

  For more information about other books in my Rodeo Rebels series, please visit www.marinthomas.com and drop by my blog, All My Heroes Are Cowboys, www.marinthomas.blogspot.com, where I always have something to say about the guys who wear Wranglers and Stetsons.

  Happy Ever After...The Cowboy Way!

  Marin

  Marin Thomas

  A Cowboy’s Duty

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Marin Thomas grew up in Janesville, Wisconsin. She left the Midwest to attend college in Tucson, Arizona, where she earned a B.A. in radio-TV. Following graduation she married her college sweetheart in a five-minute ceremony at the historic Little Chapel of the West in Las Vegas, Nevada. Over the years she and her family have lived in seven different states, but they’ve now come full circle and returned to Arizona, where the rugged desert and breathtaking sunsets provide plenty of inspiration for Marin’s cowboy books.

  Books by Marin Thomas

  HARLEQUIN AMERICAN ROMANCE

  1024—THE COWBOY AND THE BRIDE

  1050—DADDY BY CHOICE

  1079—HOMEWARD BOUND

  1124—AARON UNDER CONSTRUCTION*

  1148—NELSON IN COMMAND*

  1165—SUMMER LOVIN’: “The Preacher’s Daughter”

  1175—RYAN’S RENOVATION*

  1184—FOR THE CHILDREN**

  1200—IN A SOLDIER’S ARMS**

  1224—A COAL MINER’S WIFE**

  1236—THE COWBOY AND THE ANGEL

  1253—A COWBOY’S PROMISE

  1271—SAMANTHA’S COWBOY

  1288—A COWBOY CHRISTMAS

  1314—DEXTER: HONORABLE COWBOY

  1341—ROUGHNECK COWBOY

  1352—RODEO DADDY***

  1364—THE BULL RIDER’S SECRET***

  1382—A RODEO MAN’S PROMISE***

  1389—ARIZONA COWBOY***

  *The McKade Brothers

  **Hearts of Appalachia

  ***Rodeo Rebels

  To Lauren

  When we first met, you were quiet and shy. It wasn’t until I got to know you better that I began to see a strong, determined and resourceful young woman. A woman who is not afraid to rely on herself or face the unknown without flinching. Hold fast to your dreams—

  no matter how long they take to realize or what roads you must travel to achieve them. Believe in yourself, and there will be no limit to what you can achieve.

  Things turn out best for the people who make the best out of the way things turn out.

  —Art Linkletter

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Excerpt

  Prologue

  July

  Boot Hill Rodeo, Boot Hill, Arizona

  “Ready?”

  “I’ll never be as ready as you are.” Dixie Cash grimaced at her friend Shannon Douglas—one of the top female bull riders in the country.

  Shannon was forever on the lookout for a rough stock competition and when Five Star Rodeos had agreed to sponsor women’s bull riding in three summer events, Shannon had promised to find five women crazy enough to ride with her—Dixie being one of them.

  “Here.” Shannon held out a bank draft.

  “I feel bad taking your money.” Dixie shoved the check into the front pocket of her jeans.

  “You’re worth every penny.”

  When Shannon had mentioned the rodeos, Dixie had just been hired as a part-time receptionist for a construction company in Yuma. She’d wanted to help her friend but needed money to launch an internet business for her homemade organic bath soaps. Then Shannon had made Dixie an offer she couldn’t refuse—a thousand dollars per rodeo.

  “Looks like Veronica Patriot has set her sights on Gavin Tucker.”

  Dixie’s gaze followed Shannon’s pointer finger. Figures the blonde buckle bunny would target the handsome bareback rider. “If the cowboy knows what’s good for him he’ll avoid that tramp like the plague.” Dixie had run into Gavin—literally—at the Canyon City Rodeo in June when she’d tripped over his gear bag and knocked him to the ground.

  “The bull’s more of a spinner than a bucker,” Shannon said. “Stay centered.” The tan Charbray stood docile in the chute, but once freed all hell would break loose.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, turn your a
ttention to gate two. Dixie Cash is about to tangle with Bad Mamajamma.” The crowd stomped their boots against the bleachers and whistles filled the air.

  “If the Cash name sounds familiar it’s because Dixie’s got six older brothers who rodeo. Earlier today, Merle Cash took third in the saddle bronc competition.”

  While Shannon and a rodeo helper fished the bull rope from beneath Bad Mamajamma, Dixie pulled on her riding gloves and adjusted her headgear with its protective mask.

  Let’s get this over with. Dixie straddled the fifteen-hundred pound nuisance, found her grip then nodded to the gate man. The bull pounced for freedom, the first buck almost unseating Dixie. Anticipating a wild ride, she held her breath through the first of two tight spins, squeezing her thighs against the animal’s girth.

  Bad Mamajamma decided he’d had enough of Dixie and kicked out with extra force. As if she’d been shot from a cannon, Dixie catapulted through the air. She hit the dirt hard, but instinctively curled her body into a ball and rolled away from the bull’s hooves. The bullfighter stepped in front of Bad Mamajamma, affording Dixie an extra second to gain her footing. She ran for the rails and scrambled to safety.

  “Well, folks, Dixie Cash gave it her best effort.” The announcer discussed Shannon’s upcoming ride, but Dixie stopped listening when her boots landed in front of Gavin Tucker.

  “Good try,” he said.

  Try being the operative word. “Thanks.” Brilliant, Dixie. A cowboy with killer looks and nice manners goes out of his way to talk to you and you mumble “thanks”?

  “How long have you been riding bulls?” Gavin asked.

  “Started this summer.”

  A dark eyebrow lifted. “Gutsy gal.”

  More like crazy. For the life of her, Dixie couldn’t find her tongue. Turned out she didn’t have to. Veronica Patriot materialized out of nowhere and sashayed her way between Dixie and Gavin. She placed her French-manicured talons on Gavin’s chest and thrust her heaving bosom in his face. “Time to celebrate, cowboy.”

  Dixie despised Veronica. The woman had done a number on her brother Porter—used him to make another cowboy jealous then left him high and dry with a broken heart.

  “Sorry, I’ve got plans.” Gavin’s soulful brown eyes beseeched Dixie.

  “What plans?” Veronica propped her hands on her hips.

  Dixie had read her share of silent help me messages from her brothers. The look Gavin sent her begged her to rescue him from the clutches of the evil buckle bunny. What the heck.

  “Gavin and I have a date,” Dixie said.

  “Pardon?” Veronica frowned.

  “That’s right.” Gavin inched closer to Dixie and the scent of dust and faded cologne went straight to her head. When he rested his arm across her shoulders a little shiver raced down her spine. Gavin couldn’t have been more than six feet tall, but her five foot six inches fit perfectly tucked against him.

  Veronica’s gaze bounced between Gavin and Dixie. “What kind of date?”

  “A boy-girl date.” Dixie smiled sweetly.

  “Honey, a girl like you can’t handle a military man.”

  Dixie had heard that Gavin Tucker had been stationed in Afghanistan before he’d left the army. “What do you think, Gavin? Can I handle you?”

  He grinned.

  Disgusted, Veronica snorted like a pig and stomped off.

  “Thanks.” Gavin released Dixie and stepped back.

  Wishing he still had his arm around her, she said, “No worries. Veronica can be a pest.”

  “Are you celebrating later with your lady bull rider friends?”

  “Probably.”

  “I’m heading over to the Spittoon. Maybe I’ll see you there.”

  “Maybe.”

  Gavin walked off and Dixie couldn’t help but think he was exactly the kind of man she’d like to marry someday.

  * * *

  GAVIN STEPPED INSIDE the Spittoon, a bar on the outskirts of Boot Hill, and surveyed the crowd. The place was packed, noisy, and smelled like stale beer, dusty cowboys and easy women. And he hoped Dixie Cash was among the clientele—not that he thought she was a party girl. There was something about the petite, tomboyish cowgirl that drew him. She showed the same courage and spunk as the women he’d worked alongside in the army.

  He made his way to the bar, ordered a beer, then found a dark corner away from the crush of bodies. Keeping his back to the wall he searched for the blue-eyed brown-haired girl-next-door. He spotted her at a table next to the dance floor engaged in conversation with her friends. As if she sensed his scrutiny, their eyes connected and Gavin felt the subtle stirrings of arousal.

  A former soldier had no business being with a girl like Dixie—that fact in and of itself fed Gavin’s desire, and adrenaline pumped through his veins. If there was one thing he was addicted to, it was adrenaline. After six years of living on the edge...living with danger...he was drawn to taking risks. And Dixie Cash was definitely a risk.

  “Well, well, well.”

  Gavin jumped an inch off the floor. Damn. How the hell had Veronica Patriot snuck up on him? His temper flared but he counted to ten, as a therapist had once instructed him to do when he felt threatened.

  “What happened to your boy-girl date?” The buckle bunny narrowed her eyes.

  “Dixie’s—”

  “Here.” Dixie sidled up to Gavin and slipped her arm through his. She stood close enough that her soft breast pressed against his biceps.

  “You’re not his type.” Veronica sneered. “Besides, don’t girls like you have curfews?”

  “She’s right, Gavin. We should leave. It’s past my bedtime.” Dixie batted her dark lashes and suddenly Gavin’s jeans felt a size too small.

  Reminding himself that Dixie’s flirting was an act to help him out of a tight spot, he said, “Ready when you are.”

  “Don’t you want a real woman, soldier?” Veronica thrust her bosom out, flaunting her attributes.

  After a lengthy glare-down, Veronica stepped aside and Gavin led Dixie across the dance floor and out the door. It wasn’t until they were almost to his truck that he realized he still held her hand. He stopped and glanced over his shoulder. Veronica had followed them outside.

  “She doesn’t give up easily, I’ll give her that,” Dixie said.

  “How would you feel about leaving with me in my truck?”

  “I don’t know. Can I trust you?”

  “Sugar, if I harm one hair on your head, your brothers will hunt me down.”

  “You’re right. I’ll go for a ride with you.”

  Ten minutes later... “She’s still following us.” Gavin glanced between the road and the rearview mirror. Dixie’s stomach growled and he threw caution to the wind. “You up for Chinese takeout? We could eat at the motel. If Veronica sees us go into my room together maybe she’ll give up.”

  “I don’t believe that woman knows the meaning of surrender, but I won’t turn down a free meal.”

  Veronica trailed them to the restaurant and then the motel where she parked across the lot, facing Gavin’s room. Ignoring their stalker, he and Dixie sat on the king-size bed, ate chop suey and watched the old spaghetti Western, A Fistful of Dynamite.

  Near the end of the movie, Gavin peeked out the window. Veronica’s Mustang was gone. The woman had finally left him alone. He checked his watch—half past one in the morning. Time to drive Dixie back to the Spittoon so she could be on her way home. “Coast is clear.” He turned from the window.

  Dixie lay curled in a ball on the bed, her hands folded neatly beneath her cheek, her chest rising and falling in deep, even breaths. In sleep, she appeared innocent and cuddly and he wanted to lose himself in all her sweet goodness. But Gavin didn’t dare crawl onto the bed with Dixie and risk falling asleep. He couldn’t tak
e the chance he’d experience the recurring nightmare that had followed him home from Afghanistan. He lowered the volume on the TV and made himself comfortable in the chair. He’d gone many nights without a wink of sleep, but the longer he watched Dixie’s slumbering body the more exhausted he became.

  The sun streaming through a gap in the curtains woke Gavin at the crack of dawn. He wasn’t sitting in the chair—he was lying on the bed. Sometime in the middle of the night he’d crawled under the covers. He rolled away from the light and came face-to-face with a wide-awake Dixie.

  He held his breath, waiting for her to make the first move—she did. Her lips brushed his, then came back for more. One kiss turned into two...three...then clothes started flying off.

  Chapter One

  “Hello, Gavin.”

  The saccharine voice raised a warning flag inside Gavin Tucker’s head. Bracing himself, he stepped away from the bucking chute at the Piney Gorge Rodeo and faced Veronica Patriot with a groan. “Veronica.”

  The woman took buckle bunnying to a whole new level. She’d been pursuing Gavin since he’d joined the circuit back in May after he’d left the army. The middle of August had arrived and the blonde piranha showed no signs of tiring.

  Gavin adjusted the spurs on his boots, hoping she’d take his silence as a hint and mosey along. At first, he’d found Veronica’s infatuation amusing. He’d become accustomed to pretty women fawning over him whenever he’d worn his military uniform and the same held true for his cowboy getup—Wranglers, boots and a Stetson.

  Gavin’s ability to attract the opposite sex had come in handy during his furloughs from the army. One look at his combat boots and women had fallen into his bed willingly. He’d honed his survival skills on the battlefield and used them to pick ladies who wanted nothing from him but a good time and a goodbye. A sixth sense told him that Veronica had more on her mind than a quickie.

  “You don’t appear all that happy to see your biggest fan.” She puckered her glossy lips.

  A weaker man might tuck tail and run, but Gavin wasn’t easily intimidated. “I’m not interested in hooking up.” Ever.