The Accidental Sheriff

167 Pages·2016·0.88 MB·English

by  McDavid Cathy

“I guess that’s my cue to go,” Carolina said with a hint of disappointment
Neil gently took hold of her arm. He had no idea what he’d done until he felt the
cool fabric of her coat sleeve beneath his fingers.
“What?” She turned.
Neil had always been a man of actions, not words. That the right thing to say
should fail him now was no great surprise.
“Stay.” He swallowed, took a breath. “Please.” He had to explain. Make her
understand.
She remained rigid. “Give me one good reason. You’ve already hurt me once. I
can’t handle a second time.”
He nodded and let go of her arm.
But before she’d moved so much as an inch, he raised his hand to her cheek and
cradled it tenderly.
“How about this for a reason?” he said, drawing her toward him.
Dear Reader,
Carolina Sweetwater first appeared on the pages of Waiting for Baby (June
2009) and then again in Taking on Twins (February 2010). While I felt she was a
perfect foil for her cousin Jake and a great friend to her sister, Corrine, it soon
became clear to me she needed her own book and her own hero. But who to
match her with? Not just any man would do for Carolina, not with her blend of
wit, wisdom and tenderhearted vulnerability.
Acting Sheriff Neil Lovitt is very loosely based on a deputy sheriff I read about
a few years ago whose personal tragedy touched me deeply. I frequently
remembered the man’s story and wondered how anyone could go on after losing
a loved one under such terrible circumstances. In The Accidental Sheriff, Neil
has learned to cope in the wake of his own personal tragedy and created a nice, if
uneventful, life for him and his young daughter. It takes Carolina, along with the
help of his daughter, to teach him how to really live and love again.
I’m so glad my editor, Kathleen Scheibling, let me add a small suspense element
to The Accidental Sheriff. It made the book that much more fun to write and, I
hope, that much more fun for you to read.
Warmest wishes,
Cathy McDavid
The Accidental Sheriff
C M D
ATHY C AVID

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
For the past eleven years Cathy McDavid has been juggling a family, a job and
writing, and she’s been doing pretty well at it except for the cooking and
housecleaning part. Mother of boy-and-girl teenage twins, she manages the near
impossible by working every day with her husband of twenty years at their
commercial construction company. They survive by not bringing work home and
not bringing home to the office. A mutual love of all things Western also helps.
Horses and ranch animals have been a part of Cathy’s life since she moved to
Arizona as a child and asked her mother for riding lessons. She can hardly
remember a time when she couldn’t walk outside and pet a soft, velvety nose (or
beak or snout) whenever the mood struck. You can visit her Web site at
www.cathymcdavid.com.
Books by Cathy McDavid
HARLEQUIN AMERICAN ROMANCE
1168—HIS ONLY WIFE
1197—THE FAMILY PLAN
*
1221—COWBOY DAD
1264—WAITING FOR BABY
1294—TAKING ON TWINS
*
To Pamela, best friend.
Thank you for all the body parts you’ve lent me through the years. An ear to
bend when I’ve just got to vent, a hand to hold when I’m afraid, a shoulder to
cry on when I’m sad, a foot planted firmly in my rear end when I need a good
kick, an elbow in the ribs to keep me lined out, your thumbs up when I’ve done a
good job, your fresh pair of eyes for critiquing my chapters, and your big, sweet,
generous heart that you’ve given me time and again. I love you.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten