A COWBOY FOR CHRISTMAS – Lori Wilde
A Jubilee, Texas Novel
Avon Romance
ISBN: 978-0-06-204780-9
November 2012
Contemporary Romance

Jubilee, Texas – Present Day

Widowed and left to raise her three year-old son, Kyle, alone, Lissette Moncrief is crushed to learn that Kyle is going deaf. In a state of shock, she doesn't pay attention while driving and backs into a stranger's pickup truck. He's nice about it, and even in her distressed frame of mind, Lissette is attracted to the man. Yet, when he shows up on her doorstep later, she learns that he is her late husband's half-brother—and the man who was named the beneficiary on the life insurance proceeds that should have been hers.

Hollywood horse trainer Rafferty Jones was out of the country and only just learned of Jake's death and his inheritance. This money is rightfully Lissette's, and he's in town to give it to her. She refuses the offer but agrees to let Rafferty stay in her garage apartment after he conjures up a plan to train and enter Jake's horse in the futurity, with an idea to sell the horse afterwards to invest in her baking business. Rafferty also helps Lissette deal with Kyle's hearing loss and what to do about teaching him. A woman in need of someone to lean on, he soon proves more than capable of providing a strong shoulder for Lissette. But as each day passes, they grow closer and begin to fall in love. How will Lissette react when Rafferty has to leave, or when she learns that he's plotting to secretly give her the money he feels she deserves but her pride refuses to accept?

Lissette has always been attracted to cowboys and thought she married the cowboy of her dreams when she met Jake. However, he decided to join the military and, after being overseas, changed from the sweet man she fell in love with to a man who is moody and itching to return to battle. Jake is killed overseas, leaving Lissette to raise their son alone and to battle money woes. She can't hate Rafferty because Jake chose to leave his money to him, though often asks herself why. Despite Rafferty being raised in California, he's very much a fine-looking cowboy who fits in well in Jubilee. Rafferty is one of the good guys and seems to have spent his life “rescuing” those he cares for, with Lissette being his latest rescue. Can he make sure that she and Kyle will have the money that belongs to them, despite her pride?

A COWBOY FOR CHRISTMAS is a return for readers to Jubilee, where you'll catch up on Joe and Mariah (THE COWBOY TAKES A BRIDE) and Brady and Annie (THE COWBOY AND THE PRINCESS). By the time Jake went overseas for the final time, Lissette had fallen out of love and feels a bit guilty for feeling this way. She has to deal with Jake's mother, Claudia, who is a dear friend, but who thinks she knows what is right for Lissette. Claudia isn't happy to have her late husband's bastard son in town hanging around Lissette and Kyle, especially when she sees the sparks that are flying between the two.

While Lissette recognizes her instant attraction to Rafferty, she fights it because she doesn't want a temporary fling that might cause Kyle separation anxiety. But Rafferty proves to be helpful to her, what with helping her to decide how to deal with Kyle's deafness and getting her baking business off the ground. Soon she can't battle the inevitable, as passion flares. They agree to keep their affair a secret, yet it's obvious to everyone around them. Can Lissette let Rafferty walk out of her life once he decides to move on? Or will this cowboy decide to make Jubilee his home?

A beautiful, feel good romance that will leave you with a smile and wishing that there are more men like Rafferty Jones around, A COWBOY FOR CHRISTMAS is a wonderful tale to curl up with on a cold winter night.

Patti Fischer