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      In the Arms of the Rancher

      By

       “A kiss. That will really seal the deal.”

      Reaching across her to set his glass next to hers, he drew her into his arms and captured her mouth with his own in a searing kiss.

      Seal indeed. The thought, recognizable if fuzzy, floated through Kate’s mind. Or was it she herself floating?

      The sealing kiss went on forever yet ended much too soon. When Hawk drew his mouth from hers, Kate found herself stretched out on the long couch, Hawk stretched out next to, or rather practically on top of, her.

      How did she get into that position when she didn’t remember moving? How had Hawk managed the move without her noticing? Did it matter at all?

      No. The answer was there, at the forefront of her mind. The only thing that mattered was she was there with Hawk, secure and safe in his arms.

      About the Author

      JOAN HOHL is a bestselling author of more than sixty books. She has received numerous awards for her work, including a Romance Writers of America Golden Medallion award. In addition to contemporary romance, this prolific author also writes historical and time-travel romances. Joan lives in eastern Pennsylvania with her husband and family.

      To:

      My new editor, Krista, and her assistant, Shana. Welcome to my imaginary world!

      Dear Reader

      Hello once again. I’m back with another story for you. If you happen to have read a previous book of mine titled Maverick, you may recognize the hero in this book as the Maverick’s friend Hawk McKenna. Well, it seems after playing a minor role in one book, Hawk decided he needed a book of his own. What’s a poor writer to do but obey her imagination? Besides, I really liked the character named McKenna my busy little mind came up with.

      So here, then, is Hawk’s story about a summer-weary rancher taking a vacation break in Las Vegas for a little R&R and some female company before winter sets in. Instead, he finds Kate, a beautiful female with man troubles.

      Although I’m writing this letter on a beautiful spring day in May, I know the holiday season is approaching as you hold this book, which I hope you will buy and enjoy, in your hands.

      Happy holidays to all and to all a good read!

       Joan Hohl

      Prologue

      He needed a break, and he was going to take one. Hawk McKenna stood in the sunlight slanting from the west onto the covered porch that ran the width of his ranch house, his hand absently resting on the head of the large dog next to him.

      Though the sun’s rays were warm, there was a nip in the early October breeze. It felt good to Hawk after the long, hot, hard but productive and profitable summer. Yet he knew that before too long, the mild autumn would be replaced by snowflakes swirling, driven by harsh, bitter cold winds.

      When the deep snows came, Hawk knew the work on the ranch would be just as hard as it had been during the summer. No, he thought, smiling wryly as he gazed around him at the valley in which his ranch was nestled, the work in the deep snows of winter entailed numb fingers and toes and being chilled to the bone. All things considered, he’d rather sweat than freeze.

      The idea of what was to come sent a shiver through him. He must be getting old, Hawk mused, stepping from the porch into the fading sunlight. But as he was only thirty-six, perhaps it wasn’t so much his age as it was tiredness. Other than a run into Durango, the city closest to the ranch, for supplies, he hadn’t been off the property in months.

      Nor had he been in any female company in all that time, other than that of his foreman Jack’s nineteen-year-old daughter and his wrangler Ted’s wife.

      Not exactly what Hawk had in mind for female company. Ted’s wife, Carol, while very nice and pretty, was…well, Ted’s wife. And Jack’s daughter, Brenda, was even prettier but far too young, and she was becoming a pain in the ass.

      A year or so ago, Brenda, who had hung around the ranch every summer since Jack had come to work for Hawk, had begun trailing behind Hawk. Her sidelong, supposedly sexy glances were beginning to grate on his nerves.

      He wasn’t interested. She was a kid, for cripes’ sake. Not wanting to hurt her feelings, Hawk had tried dropping subtle hints to that effect, to no avail. She had gone right on with the sly, intimate looks, at moments even deliberately making physical contact, while making the touches appear accidental.

      Frustrated, not knowing what to do other than be brutally honest by telling her to act her age and knock off her flirting, Hawk had approached Jack about her behavior. Treading as carefully as if he were negotiating a mine field, Hawk had asked him what Brenda’s plans were for the future.

      “Oh, you know kids,” Jack said, grimacing. “They want everything. They just can’t decide what in particular.”

      Hawk sighed. Not much help there. “It’s over a year since she graduated high school. I thought she was planning to go on to college?”

      “She now says she isn’t sure.” Jack gave him a probing look. “Why? Has she been making a pest of herself hanging around here?”

      Drawing a slow breath, Hawk hedged. “Well…she has been kinda getting underfoot.”

      Jack nodded his understanding. “Yeah, I noticed,” he admitted with a sigh. “I’ve been meaning to say something to her about it, but you know girls…They get so dramatic and emotional.”

      “Yeah,” Hawk agreed, although he really didn’t know girls, as in kids. He knew women, knew as well how emotional they could be. He worked hard at avoiding the dramatic ones.

      “I’ll talk to her,” Jack said, heaving a sigh before flashing a grin. “Maybe I can talk her into spending the winter with her mother, as she always did while she was still in school.” He chuckled.

      Hawk shook his head. Jack and his former wife had not divorced amicably. Although Brenda had spent only the summers with Jack while she had been in school, mere days after receiving her diploma, she’d taken off, telling her mother she wanted to be on her own, free.