I know sometimes it’s hard to keep up with what’s happening with me, but my last Western for the year will be released on September 11th! And I think it’s one you will really enjoy. Sorry, no wild menages, but it does have a fun, suspenseful plot, starting with a bank robbery and ending with a bad guy staring down the hero at a police roadblock. In between, there’s tons of sweet of lovin’ as the hero and heroine learn to trust each other again. Below is a short snippet from one of my favorite scenes—the first kiss.

Enjoy it, and if you have time or inclination, you can pre-order the book now.  It’s available now at both Samhain and Amazon.com. If you happen to head to Amazon, do an author a favor and “like” and “tag” the book so other readers can find it when they search for sexy Westerns! Thanks, y’all!! ~DD

Seeking sanctuary could be the hottest mistake she ever made.

The TripleHorn Brand, Book 1

A lifetime ago, Zuri Prescott kicked the dirt off her boots and ditched her small-time small town for the glam city life—and lived to regret it. When she’s framed for a bank job, she lights out for home, seeking refuge with her old high school sweetheart while she figures out her next steps. Only she discovers that the boy she left behind is the last man she should trust.

Sheriff Colt Triplehorn knows trouble when he sees it, especially when it comes in the form of a familiar trespasser, caught naked between an angry bull and her underwear. Sure she’s up to her usual no good, he grants her sanctuary at his ranch—the better to keep an eye on her, and purge her from his system once and for all.
Reconnection is sweet and hot, but the heat can’t hide the truth. When Colt inevitably finds out what Zuri’s running from, it’s too late to put the fire out, and he’s got a career-compromising choice on his hands. Follow the letter of the law, or follow his heart.

Product Warnings: When a sheriff captures the girl who got away, expect revenge so hot it leaves brands on two lonely hearts…

Zuri bit her lip. Colt didn’t look happy to see her. But why should he? It wasn’t like she’d been any more than a convenience for him in high school. The girl from the wrong side of the tracks with the scandalous family—she’d never really stood a chance at being anything other than his little bit on the side.

She could still remember standing in the gym, her heart pounding as she stared up at him, telling him she had her bags packed and she was heading east to start her life. Her stepfather had shown her the door that morning, his duty done. She didn’t have any place to go but away—unless Colt offered her another option.

But his face had hardened, his jaw sawing closed, a muscle rippling along the strong, square edge.

“What were you gonna tell me?” she’d asked past the lump lodged at the back of her throat.

“Never mind,” he’d said, pulling on a tight smile and walking her to her car.

With that, she’d had the answer to the question that had lingered between them their entire senior year. He didn’t love her enough to ask her to stay. And besides, she’d had big plans. Plans that didn’t include staying in this one-horse town, no matter how handsome her boyfriend was. Or how sweet his lovemaking.

Staring back at him now, she didn’t know why she hadn’t fought harder to hold onto him. The promise his lean, rangy body had held had been fulfilled. His broad shoulders and thickly muscled arms stretched the pale blue cotton of his work shirt. His waist tapered to well-hewn hips and thighs. His face, however, had undergone the most changes, losing its youthful softness. It was now honed to sharp, masculine edges. Lord, he made her mouth water.

She wondered if he’d been disappointed in the lack of change in her own body. She was still long and skinny, her breasts unimpressive swells that hardly needed the bra that had floated down the center of the river when she’d confronted the angry bull.

Colt knelt beside her clothing, tucked a finger under her skirt and raised it. “This all you have to wear?”

Light shone through a large jagged tear where the bull’s sharp hooves had ground the navy, summer-weight wool skirt. Zuri’s shoulders slumped.

“Do you have something else to put on?”

She shook her head, and Colt stared for a long moment. Then he dropped the ruined skirt to the ground and picked up the blouse. It was grayed from her time in the floodwaters and smudged by the bull’s abuse. Colt shook his head. He dropped the blouse too, heaved a sigh, then stood and began to unbutton his shirt.

“Where are your shoes, Zuri?” he asked, his voice rough as gravel.

“Guess I lost them,” she said, feeling like her mouth was stuffed with cotton.

“You gonna tell me what’s goin’ on?”

She sucked her bottom lip between her teeth because it had started to tremble, but managed a nod, even though she knew she’d wait and see whether she could trust him with all her woes.

“Here,” he said, holding his shirt out for her take.

Only problem was, she’d have to stand and walk out of the water to get it. Read the rest of this entry »