Today on
First Kiss Friday, we welcome romance author, Ana Morgan, and an excerpt from her Historical Western
Romance, “Stormy Hawkins (Prairie Hearts Series Book 1).”
Land speculator Blade Masters
wants to convince Stormy Hawkins’ father to retire so he can buy their South
Dakota cattle ranch. He’s bought jeans-and-boots-wearing Stormy a fancy dress
and escorted her to the Founders Day dance. Last year, everyone laughed at her
clumsiness. Blade intends to change that, starting with a first kiss:
First Kiss Excerpt
Wearing his best shirt and the
jeans that didn’t have rips from barbed wire, Blade sat on the leather couch
sandwiched between Running Bear and Brownie.
Brownie was gussied up in pressed
corduroy slacks and wide suspenders. A thick coat of new polish on his boots
reflected the late afternoon sunlight.
Running Bear’s deerskin vest was
embroidered with green vines and colorful flowers. Blade didn’t feel
comfortable asking if his dead wife had done the intricate beadwork. For all he
knew, the big man was handy with a needle and thread. He was good at everything
else.
Running Bear stretched out his
legs and scuffed the sole of his boot across Brownie’s boot toe. His eyes
gleamed devilishly. “So sorry.”
Brownie glared at him, and then
returned his focus to the stairs. “What’s takin’ so long up there?” he yelled.
Privately, Blade seconded the
question.
Three knocks sounded from the
hallway upstairs. A door opened and shut. Then, it was silent again.
“Crimeny.” Brownie jumped up and
paced around the sitting room. “She knows I need to tune my fiddle. Now we’re
gonna be late, and—”
Zed rapped on the upstairs wall
like a majordomo. He wore ironed pants, a bright yellow shirt, and a tailored
black jacket. He started down the stairs.
A step behind him, Stormy
followed.
Blade leaned forward and gripped
his knees.
She looked lovelier than a
pampered St. Louis Society debutante. The flowing skirt of the emerald dress
swirled around her legs. The top hugged her curves, breasts to waist to hips. Unbraided,
her hair shimmered like the western sky at sunset, and her eyes shone with a
vulnerability that made him ache to be her protector.
“Saying goodbye to your heart,
Little Brother?” Running Bear asked softly.
~~
~
As soon as he rode onto the field
next to Prosperity’s schoolhouse, Blade knew his plan would work.
Twenty teams and wagons had
already formed a wide semi-circle, and more were pulling in behind the Hawkins’
buckboard.
Women
in dancing dresses arranged platters of food on long tables. A short distance away,
men dipped tin cups into an open barrel and toasted each other. Roughhousing
children raced around poles topped with glowing lanterns, ignoring their
mothers’ shouts to stay clean.
Ginny
Dunn waved as Zed set the buckboard brake.
Carrying his weather-beaten
fiddle case, Brownie rushed toward a cluster of musicians, tuning their
instruments.
Running Bear walked toward the
food tables with cloth- covered baskets.
Blade dismounted and helped
Stormy down from the back of the buckboard. Tonight, everyone would see her in
a new light. The gossip would spread like a wildfire.
To
enhance his plan, Zed had suggested Stormy wear her mother’s light blue cape to
protect her dress during the ride into town. With her dress hidden until she
started to dance, she’d stun the townspeople who usually mocked her.
He pulled her into the shadows
cast by a tall-sided wagon. “Time for another dance lesson, Stormy.”
She nodded without looking up at
him. He could tell she was nervous, eyeing the growing circle of wagons and
people.
He understood her fear of
ridicule. He’d quit St. Louis in the middle of the night, rather than endure
Society’s gossip about why Miss Candace Kennedy had discarded him for his
younger brother, Jared.
He went on. “Waltzing requires
communication and leadership. I am the man, your superior. You are a woman,
my—”
“What?”
“Good. I have your attention.” He
faced her, picked up her hand, and slid his work-roughened fingers across the
silky small of her back. “Put your hand on my arm. When it’s time to go
backwards, I will do this.” He raised his elbow slightly. “When I want to go
forward, I will press like this.” He pushed his fingertips against her back.
Her mouth formed an ‘o’ of
astonishment.
“All you have to do is follow my
lead. Step forward, step to the side, step together.” Fighting her stiff-legged
hesitancy, he pulled her along. “Think of it this way, Stormy. We’re a steer.
I’m the head, and you’re the tail.” He waited a moment to let the description
sink in.
She smiled half-heartedly.
“Let’s try again. This time,
we’ll go backwards. Back, side, together.” He lifted his arm. “You’re doing
great. Now a quarter turn.” He pivoted as he stepped forward.
Her nose crashed into his chest,
and she hopped back. “I can’t do this. I’ll never be good at dancing.”
“Just turn off your thoughts and
listen with your body.” “I don’t know how.”
“You can do anything you set your
mind to, Stormy. You’re a smart, talented, beautiful woman.” To convince her,
he lowered his head and brushed his lips against hers.
The soft rush of her sigh warmed
his cheeks. Mesmerized, he pulled her close and bent to truly kiss her.
Before his lips reached hers
again, he came to his senses. She was engaged, and his heart was off limits—for
life.
“Stormy Hawkins” is available through:
Connect
with the author
Great excerpt, Ana. Love the build up to the kiss.
ReplyDelete