Enter to Win a
Print Copy of MIDNIGHT HEAT
MIDNIGHT HEAT
Midnight Cowboys #3
Cat Johnson
Released February 23rd, 2016
Zebra: Kensington
He
needs to escape...
Justin
Skaggs is on the road to anywhere—as long as it's far from home—when fate
throws a kindred spirit across his path.
She
needs to get to Oklahoma...
Phoenix
Montagno can't believe her luck when she runs into the hottie from the bar.
He's the key to her getting everything she's always wanted, but she can't tell
him that. Luckily he's not interested in learning her story any more than he is
in sharing his.
Both
have secrets they don't want to share...
It's the perfect arrangement. No personal details. No talking at all. Just two strangers sharing the cab of a truck heading the direction they both need to go . . . until they decide to share a bed, too.
BUY NOW
Amazon | B& N | GooglePlay | iTunes | Kobo
Justin ran the back
of one hand across his forehead and let out a breath. It was a hot day. Then
again, moving hay was a hot, dirty job no matter what time of year it was, but
they were finally done with work for the day.
Tyler had already headed back to the
barn. He’d gone to meet the blacksmith they’d called to come to check on the
stallion that had a hoof abscess.
Justin’s boss, Rohn Lerner, was
hoping if they pulled the stallion’s shoes and clipped his hooves shorter, the
abscess might work its way down. Recovery was much faster and neater if the
infection drained from the bottom of the hoof rather than burst through the top
by the pastern.
While Tyler dealt with the lame
horse and the blacksmith, Justin and Colton had been left to finish stacking
the last of the bales in the hay shed to store them for winter use.
That was fine with Justin. He knew
from experience that the Arabian stallion they’d been training could be
temperamental, and he was a kicker. There was a good chance that
Tyler had gotten the worst end of
this deal.
“Phew. I’m glad that’s done.”
Justin glanced up at Colton’s
comment. “You ain’t kidding.”
While wiping his hands on his jeans,
Colton wandered closer. “So I’m gonna head home, shower, and then get dressed
to go out. It’s two-for-one beer night at the Two-Step. You’re coming right?”
“Nah.” Justin shook his head.
“Thanks, but I think I’ll pass.” Colton drew his brows low. “Not that I’m
complaining, but you haven’t wanted
to do anything lately.”
“That sounded like complaining to
me. Besides, what do you care?”
Justin shouldn’t argue with him
because Colt was right.
It had been two weeks since Justin’s
near meltdown in the bar, and he wasn’t feeling much better. In fact, he was
even more of an antisocial bastard, if that was possible.
“I care because we’re friends.”
Colton frowned.
“Yeah right.” Justin screwed up his
mouth with doubt.
“You care because now that Ty is all
bowed up with Janie every night, you got nobody to go out trolling for girls
with.”
Colton wobbled his head from side to
side. “Eh. I guess there is that, too.”
That elicited the first laugh from
Justin all day. “At least you’re honest about it.”
Colton lifted one shoulder. “Anyway,
you know where I’ll be if you change your mind. I’ll even pick you up so you
don’t have to drive, if you want.”
“That’s a very generous offer. . .
.”
“But?” Colton prompted Justin to
continue when he let the sentence hang.
“I’ll let you know if I change my
mind and decide to go.”
“A’ight. Good enough. I’m heading
out. Maybe I’ll see you later.” It seemed, with that final comment, Colton was
going to let the subject drop. Justin couldn’t be more relieved.
“Maybe,” Justin called after Colton,
who’d already turned toward where the trucks were parked.
Colton didn’t bother turning around
as he raised an arm to acknowledge he’d heard.
Justin reached for the handle of his
own vehicle and swung the door open. As he settled in the driver’s seat, he saw
dark clouds hanging low on the horizon. There’d be a storm rolling in tonight
if he wasn’t mistaken.
Hopefully, it would just be a little
rain. Thunder made his mother nervous. Tornadoes, even more so.
A bad storm meant she’d sit up all
night, not sleeping a wink. She’d be exhausted in the morning. She always
seemed worse when she didn’t sleep. He’d noticed that over the past couple of
years.
With the anniversary of his
brother’s death coming up next month, it was already like walking on eggshells
at home as he tried not to do or say anything that might set off a major bout
of depression.
Meanwhile, he had his own issues to
deal with. His mood felt as dark as those clouds in the distance.
Maybe he should go out with Colton.
Get drunk and get laid and knock himself out of this crappy mood. So far,
sitting alone and stewing for the past couple of weeks hadn’t helped. His
trying to be there to cheer up his mother hadn’t worked to make either of them
feel better.
The wind began to kick up and he
heard the sound of distant thunder rumble through the air. He sighed. He needed
to get home.
His mother would need him.
The only question was, could he hold
on long enough to support her while not cracking himself? He’d need to do
something to keep sane and soon, before he wasn’t fit to be near anyone,
including his mother.
He fired up the engine and spun the
truck toward the road headed for home.
They didn’t live too far from the
ranch, so it didn’t take long for Justin to reach home, or what had become his
home again after he’d had to move out of his own place and back in with his
mother. That had been shortly after his brother’s death, when he’d realized his
mother couldn’t be alone.
Big fat drops of rain began to
strike the glass of his windshield as Justin pulled into the house’s driveway.
He realized they’d gotten that hay put up in the shed at Rohn’s place just in
time. If they’d left the job until tomorrow, it would have been soaked.
Justin parked the truck behind his
mother’s car in the drive, blocking her in. That was all right. She wouldn’t be
going anywhere tonight. She rarely went anywhere during the day. She sure as
hell wouldn’t be leaving the house on a stormy night.
He sprinted to the house, trying to
avoid getting wet. Inside the front door, he shook the water off his hat and
then hung it on the hook.
“Hey, Mom. I’m home.” Justin’s
announcement didn’t elicit a response.
He walked through the kitchen, dark
except for the waning light filtering through the windows. He noticed there
wasn’t anything started for supper.
Continuing to the living room, he
found her on the sofa in front of the television, wrapped in a blanket in spite
of the warmth of the day.
“Hey.”
It took her a second to look up.
Long enough that he wondered if she’d heard him. Finally, she glanced at him
and said, “Hi.”
As she turned her focus back to the
television, Justin sat next to her. “What do you want for dinner?
“Nothing. I’m not hungry.” It was
her usual response. A clap of thunder had her jumping. “There’s a storm
coming.”
“Just a few storm clouds. It’ll
pass.” He noticed for the first time what she was watching on television. The
Weather Channel.
A banner that read Storm
Alert in bright red text spanned the width of the screen. Leave it
to the media to make an event out of anything, including a simple thunderstorm.
He drew in a breath and stood,
knowing she’d sit there all night watching the live weather radar and worrying,
and there was nothing he could do about it short of unplugging the TV.
“I’m gonna throw something together
for dinner for myself.”
“I’m sorry. I can do it—” She
flipped the blanket off and moved to get up.
Sometimes, on the better days, he
saw her guilt when she realized he was pulling both his own weight and hers.
That he’d work a full day at the ranch and then come home to cook, clean, and
do laundry. On those days she’d try to make an effort to function normally.
“Stay. I got it. It’s fine.” He
moved toward the kitchen, too hungry and not in the mood to watch her wander
aimlessly around the kitchen, taking twice as long to do something as it would
take him because she couldn’t focus her mind.
He’d defrost some of the chili he’d
seen in the freezer. If he delivered a bowl to her where she sat, she’d eat at
least some of it, just to make him happy. That would have to do for now.
The best he could do was get some
food into her. Then he’d convince her to take one of the pills the doctor had
prescribed for her after his brother’s death. The ones that calmed her and made
her sleep.
They were out of refills on the
prescription and the bottle was getting dangerously low, but she took them so
infrequently, there were still enough left to get her through the next month,
when she’d need them most. After that, he’d have to convince her to go to the
doctor again and get more.
Hell, maybe he should be taking the
meds, too. Though he preferred to self-medicate with the good old-fashioned,
tried-and-true medicinal properties of booze.
Five minutes in the microwave and
dinner was ready.
A New York Times and USA Today
bestselling author, Cat Johnson writes contemporary romance in genres including
military and western. Known for her unique marketing and research techniques,
she has sponsored pro bull riders, owns a collection of camouflage and western
footwear for book signings, and a fair number of her consultants wear combat or
cowboy boots for a living. For more visit CatJohnson.net
Don't Miss Any of the Midnight Cowboys
Thank you for hosting MIDNIGHT HEAT on your blog today!
ReplyDeleteCrystal, Tasty Book Tours