Return to Folly Series Archives

Jan 19th The Texas Cowboy Release Party by Linda Nightingale

Give a warm welcome to Linda Nightingale and her new release The Texas Cowboy, book One, Return to Folly Series. Pull up a chair, grab a drink of your choice from the cooler, a Chocolate Chip or Peanut Butter cookie from the plate, and let’s find out a little about Linda and The Texas Cowboy!

Tena asked me about the inspiration for this story, Like my other books, I began with one character: Ash, the hero. The entire book is told from his point of view. In the Prologue, Ash is twelve years old and is leaving his home for an unknown and unwanted fate. His mother has divorced his father and is taking him to her native England. He’s leaving behind his horse as well as half his family.

When I started thinking about the story, I knew I wanted the hero to be Texan by birth but raised in England. The fact that he was British and Texan made a contrast that I wanted to explore and made for conflict, both internal and external. When he inherits Marathon Ranch, he must leave his mother and his horses in England and take a big step in relocating. His father has just died, and he feels guilty about staying away so long. Before he arrives, the ranch hands have already starting calling him the English Cowboy. He has to face the preconceived idea that he is a foreigner even though he was born on the ranch in Texas.

What would it be like to suddenly be thrust into managing a large cattle and horse breeding operation in the small Old West town of Folly, Texas? There’d be cultural adjustments for sure, and lots of getting up to speed on a totally different businesses. While Ash is adjusting to a whole new way of life, he meets the heroine—a pert, pretty, and sassy ranch hand with the preconceived idea that he is the enemy. Trish is fiercely devoted to her beloved Quarter horses, and she thinks Ash will jettison them and start breeding the thoroughbreds he raced in England. I don’t know if anyone other than another horse person will understand what a big conflict this is. It’s huge, very emotionally charged and a definite barrier against any affection between the two.

But I digress. The question was about inspiration. I suppose all those old western movies I watched with my dad when I was young resurfaced from memory and are the inspiration for this western series. I’m dating myself now, but I was very familiar with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans, but was much more interested in their horses the palomino Trigger and her buckskin Buttermilk. I’ve always loved horses, and they appear in some form in most of my books. Even in the android books in the Tomorrow’s Angels series, the escaped androids go riding in Jamaica.

So, maybe part of the inspiration for The Texas Cowboy is my love of horses. I appreciate almost all breeds, but my favorite is the magnificent Andalusian, the bull fighting horse of Spain. They are noble, kind, and gentle, and absolutely beautiful. The colt in the picture with me is an Andalusian. Oops, I’m starting on a subject I adore and must say happy trails, cowgirls and cowboys.

So tell us a little about The Texas Cowboy:

When Ash Colter was twelve, his mother divorced his cattle baron father and whisked him away to raise in her native England. Sixteen years later, when his father dies, he inherits Marathon Ranch. Running a 1,000-acre spread famous for the best Black Angus cattle in the great state of Texas is the biggest challenge he’s ever faced…until he meets a pert, pretty, and sassy ranch hand who seems to have her own agenda for his ranch. Unfortunately, she makes his spurs go jingle-jangle-jingle like no one else ever has!

Trish Owens is a real cowgirl, a loner, and, though she’d never admit it, a little lonely. When the “English Cowboy” appears on the scene, her entire way of life is threatened, not only her job, but her beloved Quarter horses. She’s sure he plans to import his thoroughbreds from England. Worse of all is the chemistry sizzling between them. He makes feelings she thought long dead awaken.

Can these two unwilling allies set aside their differences to put Marathon Ranch in the Winner’s Circle…and to fall in love?

A sneak peek between the pages of The Texas Cowboy:

Rejoneador mounting a horse in a bullring

Squinting in the sudden sunlight, Ash sized up a woman about his age. In jeans with a burgundy Marathon tee, she was slender but curvy. Her blonde hair looked as if it had been hurriedly ponytailed. Wayward strands dangling everywhere framed her face. On closer examination, he decided she wasn’t hard on the eyes. In a non-fancy way. But then he was accustomed to Dorothy—High maintenance with a capital High Maintenance.

The girl tilted an odd look at him. Then she suffered a wardrobe malfunction. The band holding her ponytail broke. Blonde silk gushed over her big, chocolate brown eyes. A graceful hand, stained black by hoof polish, swiped the thick mess back from a pretty face. Her unsmiling mouth was generous and wide. Feed her and clean her up, and she’d be a presentable…opponent. The chill in what should have been melting brown eyes was as unwelcoming as Deanne’s steely green gaze.

He snapped a smart salute, imitating her stance. “I’ll do that, ma’am. I’m Ash Colter. You are?”

“Trish.” One word. No introduction. More or less bugger off.

He stuck out his hand. “My pleasure, Trish. I assume you work with the horses.”

“Right assumption.” Gazing intently into his eyes, she accepted his handshake. “How could you tell?” she asked, her voice dripping sarcasm.

“The hoof polish was a big clue.”

She glanced down at her stained hand. Her handshake was firm, confident, another person he felt he could trust. The color of her eyes was quite rare with her blonde hair. Very striking, but at the moment, they challenged him to measure up to her standards. Oh but no, he refused to have two bitches to contend with. This one was no problem. Employees could be towed into line. Or dismissed.

“Maybe I’ll see you around the stables.” He popped the trunk, dismissing her as curtly as was polite but smiling inside. What a feisty filly.

“The funeral is day after tomorrow,” Trish said, loud enough to carry. Her native Texan accent was music to his ears, but he could scarcely believe what she’d said. “Mrs. Colter waited to give you time to get here.”

He froze with his hand on the hot trunk. Without turning, in a voice like ice, he spat, “Thank you for telling me, Deanne.”

“You didn’t know?” The amazed question burst from the gutsy Trish.

As a sharp pang of grief broke through his carefully erected walls, he visibly winced. He’d lost his father, and his stepmother had planned the funeral without consulting him. What else had she planned to cut him out of? Knowing her for what she was, still her cruelty shocked him. What if he’d been delayed? He’d have missed his final farewell to his father. Sick at heart, he swiped a hand across his burning eyes. He couldn’t trust himself to speak around the sudden lump in his throat. Gritting his teeth, he slammed the trunk. Shouldering his duffle, he faced a sea of surprised expressions. He could scarcely see them for the sheen of emotion clouding his vision.

Angry now, he tried but failed to modulate his voice. Dark emotion crept into his gruff tone. “No one saw fit to tell me.”

“Oh?” Trish’s eyebrows darted up, her wide eyes shifting to Deanne. “You’re kidding.” In unconcealed shock, and perhaps reproach, she gaped at her employer

Links to Linda’s books:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09QP4C5NZ/

Book Bub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/linda-nightingale

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4839311.Linda_Nightingale

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

After 14 years in Texas, Linda returned home to her roots in the South Carolina red clay. She has eight published novels, four of which are available in audio from Audible.com. For many years, she bred, trained, and showed the magnificent Andalusian horses. So, she’s seen a lot of this country from the windshield of a truck pulling a horse trailer. She won The Georgia Romance Writers’ Magnolia Award for Excellence, the Raven Award, and the SARA Merritt. In real life, she was a legal assistant. She loves to dress up, use the good china and crystal, and host formal dinner parties. She has a fondness for sports cars like her current ride, Zippy Z.

LINKS:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Linda-Nightingale/e/B005OSOJ0U

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LNightingale

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LindaNightingaleAuthor

Web Site: http://www.lindanightingale.com

Blog: https://lindanightingale.wordpress.com/ – Lots of interesting guests & prizes

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lbnightingale1/

It’s been great having you with us today. Good luck with A Texas Cowboy, book One, Return to Folly Series !