Million Dollar Baby Read online

  After one night with an anonymous cowboy...

  ...there’s a little secret on the way!

  Going home with a stranger isn’t sheltered heiress Brooke Goodman’s MO. Neither is falling back into bed with the same sinfully sexy man...or asking him to marry her so she can inherit millions. But now she’s pregnant, and Austin wants to wed for real! Should she trust a man who can promise her his name but not forever?

  “Come here.”

  Austin reached down, grabbed her hand and drew Brooke to her feet. He put his hands on her face, cupping her cheeks in his palms.

  “No one,” he said firmly. “No one makes me do something I don’t want to do. I’m not marrying you because I have to. I don’t feel trapped. You’re not taking advantage of my good nature.”

  Her eyes widened. “I’m not?”

  He dragged her against him. “This marriage is convenient for me, too,” he drawled. “I want you in my bed every night. I want you in a million different ways. I want to take you over and over again and make you cry out my name until neither of us can remember to breathe. You’re a fire in my blood.”

  * * *

  Million Dollar Baby is part of the

  Texas Cattleman’s Club: Bachelor Auction series.

  Dear Reader,

  My husband and I met in high school and married between our sophomore and junior years in college. (FYI: we graduated together and on time—go us!) I barely remember not loving Charlie, so my firsthand knowledge of “dating” as a twentysomething adult is nonexistent.

  When I am writing a book, I have to put myself in the shoes of many different characters whose life experiences are different from mine. In the case of Austin and Brooke, who meet in a Texas bar, it was really a leap of faith for me to imagine that scenario.

  Not only that, but I had to empathize with what it would be like to grow up in a town where everybody knows your business (and knows your parents).

  I had such fun writing this book. Brooke became very special to me as she struggled to have the life she wanted. And my heart ached for Austin, who felt things so deeply and yet was a loner in many ways.

  Thanks for loving books!

  Janice Maynard

  Janice Maynard

  Million Dollar Baby

  USA TODAY bestselling author Janice Maynard loved books and writing even as a child. After multiple rejections, she finally sold her first manuscript! Since then, she has written fifty-plus books and novellas. Janice lives in Tennessee with her husband, Charles. They love hiking, traveling and family time. You can connect with Janice at www.janicemaynard.com, www.Twitter.com/janicemaynard, www.Facebook.com/janicemaynardreaderpage, www.Facebook.com/janicesmaynard and www.Instagram.com/janicemaynard.

  Books by Janice Maynard

  Harlequin Desire

  The Kavanaghs of Silver Glen

  A Not-So-Innocent Seduction

  Baby for Keeps

  Christmas in the Billionaire’s Bed

  Twins on the Way

  Second Chance with the Billionaire

  How to Sleep with the Boss

  For Baby’s Sake

  Highland Heroes

  His Heir, Her Secret

  On Temporary Terms

  Visit her Author Profile page at Harlequin.com, or janicemaynard.com, for more titles.

  Join Harlequin My Rewards today and earn a FREE ebook!

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  For the artists and dreamers among us...

  May you always find ways to keep your

  creative spirit alive. The world needs you!

  * * *

  Don’t miss a single book in the

  Texas Cattleman’s Club: Bachelor Auction

  series!

  Runaway Temptation by USA TODAY

  bestselling author Maureen Child

  Most Eligible Texan by USA TODAY

  bestselling author Jules Bennett

  Million Dollar Baby by USA TODAY

  bestselling author Janice Maynard

  His Until Midnight by Reese Ryan

  (available December 2018)

  The Rancher’s Bargain by Joanne Rock

  (available January 2019)

  Lone Star Reunion by Joss Wood

  (available February 2019)

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Excerpt from Love in Catalina Cove by Brenda Jackson

  Excerpt from The Second Chance by Catherine Mann

  One

  A dimly lit bar filled with rowdy patrons was an uncomfortable place to be on a Thursday night near the witching hour...if you were a woman without a date and too shy to make eye contact with anyone. The music was loud, masking Brooke’s unease.

  She was lonely and so very tired of being the forgotten Goodman child. She’d spent her entire life toeing some invisible line, and what had it gotten her? Neither of her parents respected her. Her two older brothers were out conquering the world. And where was Brooke? Stuck at home with Mom and Dad in Royal, Texas. Held hostage by their expectations and her own eager-to-please personality. The whole situation sucked.

  She nursed her virgin strawberry daiquiri and stared at the tiny seeds nestling in the ice. Impulsive decisions were more her style than drunken peccadilloes. Brooke had seen too many of her friends almost ruin their lives with a single alcohol-fueled mistake. She might be crazy, but she was clearheaded.

  Suddenly, she realized that the band had vacated the stage. The remaining plaintive music—courtesy of the lone guitar player—suited Brooke’s mood. She didn’t even mind the peanut-strewn floor and the smell of stale beer. At the same moment, she saw a man sitting alone at the bar, three empty stools on either side of him. Something about his broad shoulders made the breath catch in her throat. She had seen him walk in earlier. Instantaneous attraction might be a quirk of pheromones, but yearning had curled in the pit of her stomach even then. Sadly, the dance floor had been too crowded, and she had lost sight of him before she could work up the courage to introduce herself.

  Now, here he was. All the scene needed was a shaft of light from heaven to tell her this was the man. This was her moment. She wanted him.

  Butterflies fluttered through her. Oh, God. Was she really going to do it? Was she really going to pick up a stranger?

  There was little question in her mind that he was her type. Even seated, she could tell that he was tall. His frame was leanly muscled and lanky, his posture relaxed. His dark blond hair—what she could see of it beneath the Stetson—was rumpled enough to be interesting and had a slight curl that gave him an approachable charm. Unfortunately, she couldn’t gauge the color of his eyes from this distance.

  Before she could change her mind, she lurched to her feet, frosty glass in hand, and made her way across the room. Not a single person stopped her. Not a single person joined the solitary man at the bar.

  Surely it was a sign.

  Taking a deep breath, she set her drink and her tiny clutch purse on the polish
ed mahogany counter and hopped up on the leather-covered stool. No need to panic. It was only a conversation so far. That’s all.

  Now that she was close to him, she felt a little dizzy.

  She gnawed her bottom lip and summoned a smile. “Hello, Cowboy. Mind if I join you?”

  * * *

  Austin glanced sideways and felt a kick of disappointment. The little blonde was a beauty, but she was far too young for him. Her gray eyes held an innocence he had lost years ago.

  He shot her a terse smile. “Sorry, ma’am. I was about to leave.”

  Her face fell. “Oh, don’t go. I thought we could chat.”

  He lifted an eyebrow. “Chat?”

  Mortification stained her cheeks crimson. “Well, you know...”

  “I don’t know,” he said. “That’s the point. This could be a sorority prank, or maybe you’re a not-quite-legal girl trying to lose her virginity. You look about sixteen, and I’m not keen to end up in jail tonight.”

  She scowled at him. “That’s insulting.”

  “Not at all. You reek of innocence. It’s a compliment, believe me. Unfortunately, I’m not the guy you’re looking for.”

  “Maybe I want one who doesn’t end sentences with prepositions.”

  The bite in her voice made him grin. “Are you insinuating that I’m uneducated?”

  “Don’t change the subject. For your information, I’m twenty-six. Plenty old enough to know my own mind.” She took a deep breath. “I’m in the mood for romance.”

  “I think you mean sex.”

  He drawled the five words slowly, for nothing more than the pleasure of watching all that beautiful creamy skin turn a darker shade of dusky pink. “Sex?” The word came out as a tiny high-pitched syllable. Huge, smoky, thickly lashed eyes stared up at him.

  This time he hid the grin. Poor kid was petrified.

  He couldn’t deny that he was tempted. She was genuine and sweet and disarmingly beautiful...in a healthy, girl-next-door kind of way. Her pale blond hair was caught up in a careless ponytail, and her royal-blue silk shirt and skinny jeans were nothing pretentious. Even her ballerina flats were unexceptional. She was the kind of woman who probably looked exactly this good when she rolled out of bed in the morning.

  That thought took him down a road he needed to avoid. His sex hardened, making his pants uncomfortable. He held out his hand, attempting to normalize the situation. “I’m Au—”

  She slapped her hand over his mouth, interrupting his polite introduction. “No,” she said, sounding desperate and anxious all at the same time. “I’ll call you Cowboy. You can call me Mandy.”

  He took her wrist and moved her hand away. “Not your real name?”

  “No.”

  “Ah. Aliases. Intriguing.”

  “You’re making fun of me.” Her face fell.

  “Maybe a little.” He smiled to let her know he was teasing.

  Without warning, their flirtatious repartee was rudely curtailed. A tall, statuesque redhead took the bar stool at his right shoulder and curled an arm around his waist. “Buy me another beer, will you? Sorry I was gone so long. Who the hell thinks it’s a good idea to build a ladies’ room with only a single stall?”

  Austin groaned inwardly. Damn. He’d actually forgotten about Audra for a moment. “Um...”

  Poor Mandy went dead white and looked as if she were going to throw up. “Excuse me,” she said, with all the politeness of a guest at high tea with the queen. “It was a pleasure to meet you, but I have to go now.”

  Thank God Audra was a quick study. She sized up the situation in a glance. Her eyes widened. “Oh, crap. I’m sorry. Don’t go. I’m his sister. Honest.”

  Mandy hesitated.

  Austin nodded. “It’s true. Underneath that bottled red hair is a blonde just like me.”

  Audra stood up and grimaced. “Forget the beer, little brother. I’ll grab a cab. See you at the house later.”

  Then his five-years-older sister went completely off script. She stepped around him and took both of Mandy’s hands in hers. “Here’s the thing, ma’am. I know it’s sometimes scary to meet men these days. Getting hit on in a bar can be dangerous.”

  “She was hitting on me,” Austin muttered.

  Both women ignored him.

  Audra continued. “My brother is a good, decent man. He doesn’t have any diseases, and he doesn’t assault women. You don’t have to be afraid of him.”

  “Audra!” His head threatened to explode from embarrassment.

  Mandy barely glanced at him. “I see.”

  Audra nodded. “He doesn’t live here. He’s in town visiting me, and we came out tonight to...well...”

  For once, his outrageous sister looked abashed.

  Mandy gave him a puzzled look. “To what?”

  Dear Lord. He gritted his teeth. If he didn’t tell her, Audra would. “Today is the anniversary of my wife’s death. She’s been gone for six years. I finally took my wedding ring off, thanks to my sister’s badgering. That’s it. That’s all.”

  Tears welled in Mandy’s eyes. She blinked them back, but one rolled down her cheek. “I had no idea. I am so sorry.”

  Audra patted her shoulder. “It was a long time ago. He’s fine.”

  Austin got to his feet and grabbed his sister’s arm none too gently despite her glowing character testimonial. “You’re leaving. Now.”

  He glanced back at Mandy. “Don’t move.”

  On the way to the door, Audra smirked at him. “I won’t wait up for you. Have fun tonight.”

  “You are such a brat.”

  Outside on the sidewalk, he hugged her. “I won’t discuss my love life with you. A man has boundaries.”

  Audra kissed his cheek. “Understood. I just want you to be happy, that’s all.”

  “I am happy,” he said.

  “Liar.”

  “I’m happier than I was.”

  “Go back in there before she gets cold feet.”

  “I love you, sis.”

  “I love you, too.”

  He watched his only sibling get into a cab, and then he looked through the window into the bar where not one but two men had taken advantage of his absence to move in on Mandy.

  No way. No way in hell. The little blonde was his. At least for tonight.

  * * *

  Brooke breathed a sigh of relief when her cowboy returned and dispersed the crowd that had gathered around her. Apparently if the hour was late enough and the man drunk enough, even the most vehement no didn’t register.

  When it was just the two of them again, the cowboy gave her a slow, intimate smile that curled her toes. “May I buy you another drink?”

  “No, thanks. I wasn’t drinking. Not really. Alcohol clouds a person’s judgment. I wanted to be clearheaded tonight.”

  “I see.” He cocked his head and studied her. “Do you live here in Joplin?”

  “Nope.”

  “So we’re both just passing through?”

  “It would seem that way.”

  A small grin teased the corners of his mouth. The man had a great mouth. Really great. She could imagine kissing that mouth all night long.

  Finally, he shook his head, bemusement in his baffled gaze. “I know what I’m doing here, Mandy, but I’m still not clear about why you showed up at this bar tonight.”

  “Does it matter?” She hadn’t expected a man to quiz her. The fact that her cowboy was slowing things down rattled her.

  He nodded. “It does to me.”

  “Maybe I’m horny.”

  He snorted out a laugh and tried to turn it into a cough...unsuccessfully. Then he rubbed two fingers in the center of his forehead and sighed. “I’m not asking for your life story. But I’d like to know why me and why tonight. Is this a rebound thing? Are you trying t
o teach someone a lesson? Am I even warm?”

  “Ninety-nine men out of a hundred would already have me in bed right now.”

  “Sorry to disappoint you.”

  The look in his eyes made her feel like a naughty schoolgirl. And not in a good way. She drained the last of her melted daiquiri and wrinkled her nose. “My life is boring. I’m having some family issues. For once I wanted to do something wild and exciting and totally out of character. Plus, you’re really hot.”

  “So you don’t frequent bars as a rule?”

  “You know I don’t,” she grumbled, “or I wouldn’t be so bad at it.”

  He flicked the end of her ponytail. “I never said you were bad at it.”

  Some deep note in his voice caught her stomach and sent it into a free fall of excitement and anticipation. “So are we good now?” she asked.

  The cowboy stared at her. He stared at her for so long that her nipples pebbled and her thighs clenched. “What makes you believe that you and I will be wild and exciting? What if you chose wrong?”

  She gaped. Words escaped her.

  He closed her mouth with a finger below her chin. “It would seem prudent to take me out for a test drive ahead of time...don’t you think?”

  Before she could do more than inhale a sharp, startled breath, he slid one big hand beneath her ponytail, cupped the base of her neck and pulled her toward him just far enough for their mouths to meet comfortably.

  Actually, comfortable was a misnomer for what happened next. Fireworks shot toward the ceiling in all directions. Angel choirs sang. A million dizzying pinwheels shot through her veins and rocketed into her pelvis.

  The man was kissing her. Nothing more. So why was the earth shaking beneath her feet?

  He tasted of whiskey and temptation. If she’d had any remaining reservations about her plan, they vanished in the heat of his lips on hers. It was possible she whimpered. She definitely leaned in and wordlessly begged for more.

  Somewhere in the distance catcalls and whoops and hollers signaled an appreciative audience. But Brooke barely noticed. Her hands settled on the cowboy’s shoulders. “Take off your hat,” she begged.