Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 100367 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100367 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 502(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 335(@300wpm)
I’m living on Tucker Hendrix’s ranch for the next year as a veterinary intern. But imagine my surprise when I walk onto the property on my first day and recognize the owner.
He’s the mysterious customer I used to flirt with at the diner all those years ago.
Now, the chemistry is hotter than ever, and all I can think about is his muscles and the fact that none of my scars bother him.
He’s seen everything that no one else has, and he’s not running away from me, or the fact that I’m a Lexington sister and we come from a monster.
In fact, for the first time in my life, a man is patient, gentle, and treats me like I’m the most important thing in his universe. Like he can’t live without me.
Like my scars aren’t the failure of a lifetime.
I’m starting to see a life for myself here with this man, on this gorgeous Montana ranch. His family has welcomed me into the fold as if it were a foregone conclusion.
But someone is hell bent on hurting me and making sure I don’t get the happy life I’ve worked so hard for.
Will they succeed? Or will Tucker and I come out the other side stronger than ever?
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
DARBY’S RECIPES
Darby’s Huckleberry Muffins
1 Cup White Sugar
3/4 Cup Butter
3/4 Cup Milk
1 Large Egg
1 t. Vanilla extract
1 3/4 Cups Sifted All-Purpose Flour
2 1/2 t. Baking Powder
1/2 t. Salt
1 Cup Huckleberries
1 T. All-Purpose Flour
Directions:
Step One
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease 15 muffin cups or line cups with paper liners.
Step Two
Beat sugar and butter with an electric mixer in a large bowl until smooth. Beat in milk, egg, and vanilla until well blended. Combine 1 3/4 cups flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl; stir into batter until just moistened. Toss huckleberries and 1 tablespoon flour in same bowl to coat. Fold into batter.
Step Three
Spoon batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full.
Step Four
Bake in preheated oven until the tops spring back when lightly pressed, about 15 minutes.
Step Five
Feed them to Tucker, who will devour them, and then you.
Darby’s Arnica Salve
Ingredients
3/4 C Arnica Oil
1/4 C beeswax pellets
1/2 t. Vitamin E oil
20 drops peppermint essential oil, or oil of choice for fragrance
Instructions
1. Using a double boiler, add a couple cups of water into the pot, then place a heat-proof bowl over the top of the pot.
2. Turn the burner on and allow the water to come to a boil.
3. Meanwhile, measure out the ingredients. Once the water is boiling, add arnica oil and beeswax pellets to the bowl of your double-boiler and stir consistently until the beeswax is melted (about five minutes).
4. Once the beeswax has melted, remove the bowl from the heat and let it sit for a few minutes on the counter to cool slightly.
5. Combine the vitamin E oil and essential oils, then pour into the oil and beeswax mixture.
6. Stir to incorporate all oils then pour into clean, dry pourable measuring cup.
7. Carefully divide the oil equally between four 2-ounce tins. Don’t forget to label your tins!
8. Let cool completely and store in a cool, temperature controlled cupboard.
How to use Arnica Salve:
-Rub on any sore joints or muscles.
-Apply to bruises or bumps.
-Rub on the back of the neck and along the jawline for tension headaches.
PROLOGUE
TUCKER
Five Years Ago
Imake the thirty minute drive over to Bitterroot Valley every Tuesday so I can have lunch at Kay’s Diner. Do I love the food there? Not particularly. Don’t get me wrong, it’s fine. But the cheeseburger and fries aren’t what’s brought me in here for the past year without missing a Tuesday.
I used to come in once a month with my friend Brooks Blackwell after we took a ride on our Harleys around the valley. We still have a standing ride day, but once every thirty days isn’t nearly often enough for me to see her.
The brunette with the kicking curves and glacier-blue eyes.
The woman whose stingy smile is etched in my mind and the only thing I see when I close my eyes.
Have I asked her out? No. But I will.
Eventually.
I’m in no hurry regarding most things in my life. I like to take my time, think things through.
For now, I like to come in here for lunch on Tuesdays, sit in my usual booth in the corner, and flirt with the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in my life.
I set the laminated menu aside, knowing exactly what I’ll order. When she walks over to me and her blue eyes brighten at the sight of me, I can’t help but smile at her.
“Well, fancy meeting you here,” she says sarcastically. Her voice is pure fucking sin. A little raspy, and a lot sexy. She rests her hand on her hip and immediately fills my mug with coffee. Her dark hair is up in a high ponytail, her gorgeous face is clean of makeup, and her lips quirk, making me want to bite them. “You’re late.”
I lift an eyebrow and check the time. “It’s 1:05.”
“Late,” she says again.
“Did you miss me?” I ask her, leaning back in the seat, taking her in. Fuck, she’s beautiful. Her cheeks darken a little as she tucks a few stray whisps of hair behind her ear. I want to do that. I want to feel that silk in my fingertips. Her Kay’s Diner T-shirt molds over her body perfectly, but not provocatively. There’s a tattoo peeking out of the sleeve on her right biceps, and I want to know what it is.
“Thought maybe you fell off that death trap out there.” She gestures at my bike with her chin.
“You’re worried about me.” I rub my hand over the scruff on my chin and smile smugly. “That’s even better. You could go for a ride with me, and I’ll show you that there’s nothing to be afraid of.”
A shadow slips behind her eyes, but before I can say anything, she shakes her head.
“Hard pass. Your usual today?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She nods and walks away to put my order in, and while I sip my black coffee, I watch her flit around the restaurant, taking orders, delivering plates, and closing out checks. Kay’s is a typical 1950s-style diner with a black-and-white checked floor, red vinyl seats, and a jukebox in the corner playing an old Madonna tune from the ’80s. There’s a long bar with red-topped stools, and the milkshakes rival Sundae’s over in my hometown of Silver Springs, but I’ll never admit to that out loud.