Cowboy SEAL: The Hot Cowboys, #5

By Lexi Banks

Former SEAL and current Sheriff Hogan Cartwright has completely given up on love until he meets Autumn Green. She owns a farm and Hogan thinks she might be his last chance at love.

But Autumn has different plans...

• Language: English
• Publisher: DM
• Release date: Jul 15, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393339526

Book preview

Chapter One—Hogan

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With the sirens blaring and the sun beating down through the window of the squad car, I tore through the small town and headed to take the call.

I knew I was going a little too fast, but I wanted to make sure that this weekend, more than any other, ran smoothly. Over the next few days, the Ostrich Festival, the biggest draw the small, sleepy town of Cedar Bluff, would take place, and that meant I had to make sure that nothing happened to screw things up. It was a high-stress time for everyone here, and, as the town sheriff, I was going to have to keep a close eye on any trouble. There were going to be a hell of a lot of outsiders and tourists passing through, and if there was one thing that most people in Cedar Bluff resented, it was having to share their space with out-of-towners.

But it was worth it, given that it brought in so many people looking to play at rural life for a couple of days. In the fields surrounding the town, farmers would come out and bring their livestock to play and visit with the tourists, and the bars and cafés would set up stalls and do their best to keep beer cool in the heat of the height of the summer. As the sheriff, it would require me to keep a close eye on the troublemakers, the kind of people who thought it was cute to cause trouble after a couple of beers, or those tourists who didn’t know better than to climb into the river that ran along the town limits, thinking the current would be milder than it was.

And I was answering that first call of the weekend, and I had a pretty good idea who was going to be involved with it. In a town as small as Cedar Bluff, you got to know the people who caused trouble.

I pulled the car to a halt when I spotted the issue—a fender bender, nothing special. Well, apart from the fact that it involved a horse.

I let out a long sigh and climbed out of the car, wincing slightly as my foot on my bad leg hit the turf. I had been a little stiff today, a cold night seizing up my bones a little, or at least that’s what it felt like. I strode over to the incident, where a car I didn’t recognize had pulled into the side of the road and the man who had presumably been driving it standing next to it, waving his arms around as though he could fix the dent in the back bumper by sheer force of will. Standing next to him was Tom White and his horse, Brandy, staring at him with an amused incredulity that was clearly driving the guy even crazier.

Hey, hey, what’s the problem here? I stepped in between them and the man—a little pudgy and bright red from the exertion of his anger—turned to me and planted his hands on his hips.

This guy ran his horse into the back of my car! he exclaimed, clearly furious. That’s why I called you. I can’t believe this. I come here from out of town, and I only expect a little—

Alright, alright, buddy, I raised my hand, soothing him, and he fell silent, tapping his foot in irritation. Let’s see the car?

He pointed to the small dent in the pale yellow metal just above the back bumper. It was an expensive car, no doubt about that, a handsome thing that probably cost the better part of a college education. The dent was small, but it was noticeable—that said, it could have come from anywhere.

And you’re sure that this wasn’t here when you left home? I asked. He shook his head emphatically.

No way, he replied firmly. I checked this thing before I left, it was spotless.

Alright, I turned to Tom, cocking my eyebrow. The two of us had had plenty of run-ins over the last few years since I had become sheriff, but I still had a soft spot for him. He was a proper, old-fashioned, small-town eccentric, harmless but hopeless, and I could tell from the grin on his face that he knew he already had me on his side.

So, Tom, what would you say happened here? I asked him.

I was just ridin’ along, heading down to the bar, he told me, holding his hands up. And I had left plenty of space between me and this gentleman here. And then he just pulls over out of nowhere and tells me that I took a chunk out of his car, and it’s just not true! I told him to give you a call, told him that you would get all of this sorted out.

He practically winked at me as he finished up, and I fought the urge to laugh at him. This poor guy didn’t know just how tight this small town was. We all knew people like Tom, people who just needed a slap on the wrist and to get their shit together.

He’s drunk, the man pointed at him, and he suddenly produced a napkin from his pocket and began to mop his brow. It was a hot day, which was good news for the festival, but bad for the temper of everyone passing through town that weekend.

I’m nothing of the kind, Tom replied firmly, patting Brandy on the neck as she shuffled slightly. I eyed him for a moment. He was drunk, no doubt about that, and maybe he had had enough to cause some trouble. I had never seen him cause any trouble on the road before despite his drinking, though, and this guy was clearly irritated and looking for a fight anyway.

Here, let me give you a test, I suggested. Can you step away from the horse?

As long as you’re not going to steal her from me, he shot back playfully, and the guy continued to tap his foot as I got Tom to walk up and down a dozen paces and gave him a breathalyzer. Even though I could smell a touch of whiskey on him, he passed the test with flying colors.

Well, you’re sober enough to ride, I remarked, and he grinned and ran his hand through Brandy’s mane.

Now, I have somewhere to be, so if you don’t mind, I’d like to take off now, he touched an imaginary hat at the man who had called me up, and he was so mad he looked as though he was going to start pouring steam out of his ears.

You can’t be serious, the man snorted. I thought you guys were meant to be good with new people? Don’t you have loads of people coming here for the festival?

Is that what you’re here for? I asked him, trying to distract him. He nodded, and his shoulders slumped a little, as though he couldn’t be bothered with this fight a moment longer. The heat was getting to him, like it was the rest of us.

Well, I’m sure there’s a garage in town that would be happy to help you fix up the car, I told him. Tell them I sent you. They’ll give you some money off, I’m sure, sir.

Fine, the man replied, and he leaned up against his car. I pulled out my pad to make a note of what had just happened and had to duck back into my car to grab the pen out.

You alright? The man frowned as I turned back to him. You’re walking a little heavy on that leg.

I’m fine, I replied, and I glanced at Tom, who I could already tell was about to dive into the story of my past whether I liked it or not. He puffed his chest up and stepped forward, one hand on Brandy’s reins, a big smile on his face.

That’s the sign of a hero, he told the man, pointing at my leg. You know he fought in the war?

Oh yeah? The man cocked her head at me. Which one?

Afghanistan, I replied. I didn’t want to go into it. I had better things to think about today.

Really? The man craned his neck to get a better look at my leg, and I shifted back a few steps. I didn’t want him looking at me like some kind of freak. I could do without Tom feeling the urge to boast about me every chance he got, but any time he saw an entry-point, he would jump on it to tell anyone he could. 

He’s a bonafide American hero, Tom slapped me on the shoulder and grinned. You should know that. He fought for his country!

Yeah, and now I’m just the sheriff, I reminded Tom, slipping out from under his grasp. I knew that he meant well, but I didn’t want to have to deal with his shit right then. Sometimes, I just wanted to pretend that things were normal, that the crap I had dealt with when I had been in the force was part of my past.

You’re a hero, and I won’t let anyone think any different, Tom replied, beaming down at me. Even though I knew he could be an ass, I couldn’t be too mad at him. He meant well, and he was fiercely loyal to the people he liked. Since I fell into that group, I was glad to have him around.

Before I could say anything else, the radio buzzed on my belt, and I pulled it up to my mouth.

What’s up?

There’s a cow gone missing over at the old Delio place, someone yawned down the line—could have been Martha, could have been George; I couldn’t tell through the crackle of the static. You need to go down there and check it out.

I can’t stick around anymore, but make sure to mention my name to whoever you go to at the garage in the center of the town, and you’ll get your car fixed up for cheap, I told the man who was still standing next to his car. He took one last look at the small dent above the bumper and then shot a look at Tom that was clearly meant to intimidate but looked more like constipation. He climbed back in and drove off, and Tom went to mount his horse once more.

You stay out of trouble now, I warned him. I don’t want to have to spend festival weekend dealing with your messes.

I didn’t cause this one, he protested, but he winked at me anyway. But I hear you. I’ll do my best to keep my head down.

I appreciate it, I nodded to him, and he took off down the road. I watched him go for a few paces, making sure that he was as sober as he seemed, and then climbed back into the squad car. I rolled the windows down and flicked on the air-con and headed back down the road to the old Delio place. It was going to be a long-ass week, that much was obvious. I just had to find a way through the heat, the clashes between the tourists and the townies, and the free-flowing booze, and come out the other side unscathed.

Chapter Two—Autumn

I stared deep into its eyes and furrowed my brow. I knew there was something going on, but I couldn’t figure out what it was yet.

Autumn, what are you—

Shh, I shushed my best friend, Meghan, as she tried to intervene in my business.

I need total quiet, I told her, and I could practically hear her rolling her eyes at me. I knew she thought all of this was ridiculous, but then she hadn’t spent years communing with animals and connecting with them on a level as deep as I did.

The goat stared back at me and shifted back and forth on the spot and let out a miserable little noise. She had been a little off for a few days now, and try as I might, I hadn’t been able to connect with her and find out what was going on.

Come on, just let me help you out, Meghan implored me. I sighed and stood back up. I knew she was right, but I hated not being able to help the animals myself. I didn’t come all the way out here to this farm because I didn’t love the animals, but I had to admit that Meghan, as a vet, knew better than I ever could.

Really, I think I just need to change her feed, I replied with a sigh, getting back to my feet. She’s not happy with it.

And she told you that? Meghan asked incredulously.

She doesn’t tell me anything, I shook my head. It’s in her aura. I can read it. She’s communicating that with me.

Right, okay, Meghan widened her eyes at me and nodded seriously. I knew she was fighting the urge to laugh out loud, but she kept it in. I appreciated that about her; she seemed to get the fact that sometimes I was going to be a little funny around the animals, and never judged me.

It’s easier than it is to do it with humans, I continued. They’re less complicated.

So, like, you could read the aura of someone who was really stupid? Meghan teased, and I straightened up.

Mighty well, I grinned.

So you don’t want me to take a look at her?

I think I know what I want to do, I nodded firmly, and she planted her hands on her hips and shook her head at me.

I don’t know why you got me all the way out here, she remarked fondly, and I jerked my head back towards the house.

Because I make the best coffee in town? I suggested, and she laughed.

Yeah, okay, you convinced me, she held her hands up. Just make me an extra-strong one, alright? It’s the festival coming up this weekend, and I’m going to be working overtime to make sure that all the animals are taken care of.

Man, I can’t believe the festival’s come around again already, I sighed and shook my head. It was that thing that got me down here in the first place, you know.

I remember, Meghan nodded. And to think, you would have never had the pleasure of me in your life if you hadn’t moved out here, huh?

To think, I cocked my eyebrow at her playfully.

It had been the week of the Ostrich Days when I had passed through Cedar Bluff on my way back to Portland, and I had felt this draw to the town that I had never come across before in my life. When I had arrived in Portland five years before, I had felt a dim version of it then, as though the universe was compelling me to take up the offer it was holding out to me. And I took the chance then, and it had done me well for a while; at first, Portland seemed like the perfect place for me, surrounded by people with my attitudes and my way of thinking. But I soon figured out that most of them didn’t put their money where their mouths were and weren’t much interested in my lifestyle as anything other than a costume they could toss on and off as they wanted to, and I found myself craving somewhere new.

So when Cedar Bluffs came into my crosshairs, I just had this good feeling. I had always been sensitive to the way the universe worked; I wasn’t sure why, but I had been that way since I was a kid, being able to put the pieces together and figure out with surprising accuracy what I was meant to be doing and where I was meant to be going. Everywhere I had ended up, I had ended up there for a reason—and taking a back route to skip out on a closed motorway led me to this place.

It was a tiny town, the kind that appeared on postcards and kids’ TV shows, but I liked it at once. Portland sometimes felt suffocating to me, the city air not suiting my head, clouding my brain and making it harder to seek out the truth where I could sense it calling for me. And the place was surrounded by farms, which I loved—I had always wanted to own a farm in the middle of nowhere like this, raise some beautiful animals and make a living for myself.

That first day that I had passed through, it was the yearly Ostrich Day Festival; the terrain and the temperature made it the ideal spot to rear ostriches, and every year Cedar Bluff would open its doors to all the out-of-towners it could handle, parading around their animals and their local cuisines and their cheap beer. Maybe it was one glass of the latter too many, but I knew I had to come here. It had the best vibe I’d ever found anywhere in my life, and I instantly knew that this was the place the universe had been drawing me towards all this time.

I had taken what was left of my savings and managed to gather up enough cash to put down a few months’ rent on an old place a couple of miles from the center of the town, and I was happy enough there now. As well as my goats, I had a couple of sheep, a cow, and a half-dozen ostriches that I was getting ready for the festival this year, as well as a coop full of noisy chickens who got me up in the morning. And so far, trusting my gut had been the right thing to do; this place was slower than the city and the people were more genuine. Most of them didn’t seem to give much of a damn about my aura-reading or communing with the animals or anything else—in fact, most of them just seemed to want me to leave them alone so they could get on with their lives, which I was all too happy to accommodate. I had met Meghan, the new vet in town, the month before I’d arrived, and her no-nonsense ways had grown on me quickly. Why she had kept me around, I would never know, but I was glad she was here now anyway.

Come on, just let me take one look at her, Meghan urged me. It won’t take but a second, I promise. Done before you know it.

Alright, I moved away from Amy, the goat, and scratched the back of her head. She nuzzled her head into my hand, and I smiled. They made me happy, animals, in a way that nobody else ever had in my life. No human could come close. Why would I want to chill with people who were gossiping and judging and passing comment on what I was doing with my life when I could spend all my time with the animals, who would only ever nag me for food and occasional cuddles?

Meghan stepped forward and knelt down in front of my goat. She had a gentleness about her—I trusted her totally. I wouldn’t have let anyone near my farm that I didn’t believe in one-hundred-percent, and I knew that she cared as deeply as I did.

I really thought you had just called me here to watch you stare at that thing, Meghan teased, as she went through the standard check-ups.

I’m not just staring at her, I protested. I’m communing with her. I can read their auras. Sometimes they communicate with me, and I can actually figure out what’s wrong with them.

Mm-hmm, Meghan replied, and I could tell that she was doubting me. I didn’t care. I usually got a lot of people who looked at me sideways for the way I was with the animals that I loved, but that I had never stopped me before.

So, what do you think’s wrong with her? I asked, worriedly. Do you think it’s going to cost a lot to fix her up?

No, I don’t think she’s going too badly, Meghan frowned, getting back to her feet. Probably just needs a round of antibiotics. I think it’s mastitis. One of the farms near here, the goats down there came down with a round of it, and they’re still trying to shake it off. Could have made its way down here somehow.

Shit, I shook my head and scratched Amy’s head again. Sorry, baby.

You know, I don’t think I’ve seen anyone who runs a farm who loves their animals so much, Meghan got back to her feet. I mean, they like them, sure, but they seem them as moneymakers first.

Never, I replied with a grin. They’re my babies. All of them.

That’s a hell of a family, Meghan laughed.

Sure is, I agreed, and I heard a small commotion from the other side of the house; I hurried around to check what was going on, Meghan hot on my heels.

Everything alright? she asked, and I came to a halt in front of the paddock where my ostriches had room to run and play. I frowned; the noise had died down, but they still seemed agitated.

They’ve been a little off the last few days, I remarked, opening the paddock and ducking inside. They scattered as I approached, which was odd for them; usually, they would come over and say hello when I stuck my head in, but I seemed to be the last thing they wanted to deal with at that moment.

Maybe they know that the festival’s coming, Meghan suggested. It can be stressful for them, what with all the new people and being paraded around—

Don’t, I pulled a face. If I could avoid doing it, I would, but they insist on bringing them all out there. I can get fined if I don’t have a good reason not to.

Well, just give them some of your good-aura-heebie-jeebies and they’ll be fine, she teased. It’s okay, really. Just keep an eye on them and let me know if anything out of the ordinary happens, right?

Something out of the ordinary’s on its way, I muttered as I ducked out of the paddock and back to join Meghan once more.

It’s just the festival, she tried to assure me. Come on, make me a coffee, you owe me one.

No, it’s more than that, I frowned as I headed into the house. I read my horoscope this morning, and it said that there was a big change coming. And a man, as well.

A big man coming? she replied, grinning at me. Sounds fun. Save one for me, would you?

Oh, very funny, I waved my hand at her as I went to make us up a pot of coffee. Just keep your ear to the ground, huh? Let me know if you catch on to anything weird going around town.

Autumn, this is the week of the festival, she reminded me. It’s going to be wall-to-wall weird from here on out, I’m afraid.

Guess so, I sighed, and I stared into the dark swirling liquid in the pot in front of me and wondered if I could read my future in coffee grounds. Or if I had to stick to tea leaves for the time being.

Chapter Three—Hogan

Hogan, honey, it’s so good to see you.

Mary greeted me with her usual easy warmth and wrapped me up in a tight hug; I had known her practically my entire life, and I was so lucky to have a sister-in-law who was about the sweetest thing