Sixteen-year-old Lew Kelly grew up idolizing his enigmatic ex-gunfighter father. Everyone thought Lew's habit of practicing his quick draw was a harmless amusement-until the day when a boys' hot-headed quarrel exploded into gunplay, with disastrous results.Three years later, Lew is withdrawn and bitter-and he still carries a gun. When an unexpected twist of circumstances forces him to face again the memories and the aftermath of that ill-fated fight, will old wrongs be righted-or will the result be an even worse tragedy than before?Novella, approximately 38,000 words.
Six short stories exploring the joys, heartaches and laughter of life against the backdrop of the Old West. In "Single-Handed," a gunfighter's courage comes in doubt when he refuses to explain to his friends the real reason he backed down from a fight. The capable proprietress of the busiest eating-house in town handles a day of disasters large and small in the light-hearted "The Rush at Mattie Arnold's," while in "Room Service," a hotel night clerk finds himself in on odd position after he allows an exhausted traveler to stay in a reserved room. And in the title story, the novella-length "Wanderlust Creek," a young rancher and his wife struggle to hold onto their land and their dreams in the face of adversity from weather, enemies-and even doubts of each other.Approximately 53,000 words.
The Twelve Dancing Princesses meets the heady glamor and danger of the Jazz AgeAll Dorothy Perkins wants is to have a good time. She's wild about dancing, and can't understand or accept her father's strictness in forbidding it. Night after night she sneaks out to the Lost Lake House, a glamorous island nightclub rumored to be the front for more than just music and dancing...in spite of an increasingly uneasy feeling that she may be getting into something more than she can handle.Marshall Kendrick knows the truth behind the Lost Lake House-and bitterly hates his job there. But fear and obligation have him trapped. When a twist of circumstances throws Dorothy and Marshall together one night, it may offer them both a chance at escaping the tangled web of fear and deceit each has woven...if only they are brave enough to take it. Novella, approximately 26,000 words.
There's no fairy godmothers on the prairie.But there just might be a prince.Life on her brother's ranch is lonely for Ellie Strickland. Ed's ungracious manners and tight-fisted habits keep visitors away and his mother and sister close to home. But when Cole Newcomb, son of the wealthiest rancher in the county, meets Ellie by chance, he is struck by an unexpected impulse to rescue her from her solitude-and Ellie's lonely summer is transformed.When Cole asks her to go with him to the Fourth of July dance, Ellie is determined that nothing, from an old dress to Ed's sour temper, will stand in her way. By the time the Fourth of July fireworks go off at midnight, will they herald only more heartache, or maybe-just maybe-a dream come true?Novella, approximately 21,000 words.
This Red Riding Hood is willing to walk into the wolf's den.But will she find what she is seeking?In the shadow of the mountain, Rosa Jean Kennedy lives alone, waiting. Vengeance for her brother's death is the only object left in her life, the one thing that steels her resolve to continue in a solitary, sometimes perilous existence.When mustanger Quincy Burnett arrives on the mountain, he finds himself strangely drawn to the silent, lonely girl who seems to rebuff all attempts at friendship. But Rosa Jean is determined not to let anyone-even Quincy-stand in the way of her revenge, and her determination may lead them both toward disaster...for there are other dangers lurking in the mountains besides the wolves whose howls are heard at night.Novella, approximately 30,700 words.
She needed a husband on short notice to save the ranch.They needed a ring to make it official, and his best pal just happened to have a real nice one handy.And they're all about to get way more than they bargained for.Meredith Fayett needed to marry someone before the week was out or she would lose her ranch. It sounded simple, so ranch hand Chance Stevens agreed to take on the job, in spite of his friend Marty's warnings that it could only lead to trouble.But even Marty, a loyal though opinionated sidekick, couldn't have predicted the mayhem that ensues when his own eccentric relatives appear on the scene, dragging Chance, Marty, and Meredith into the latest skirmish in a long-running family feud.What follows is a hilarious tangle involving an emerald ring, a fearsome aunt, a scheming suitor, and a team of runaway mules-by the end of which Chance finds that even a marriage just on paper has its complications, and that it never hurts to have a good sidekick.If you love a good screwball romp in a homespun setting-think P.G. Wodehouse meets O. Henry-pick up A Sidekick's Tale now and start laughing
