LITMIR.BIZ

      Joan Marlow Golan

      Senior Editor, Silhouette Desire

      Tycoon Warrior

      Sheri Whitefeather

      This book is dedicated to my Texas Cattleman’s Club sisters, Jennifer Greene,

       Sara Orwig, Cindy Gerard and Kristi Gold. I hope we can do it again sometime.

      SHERI WHITEFEATHER

      lives in Southern California and enjoys ethnic dining, summer powwows and visiting art galleries and vintage clothing stores near the beach. Since her one true passion is writing, she is thrilled to be a part of the Silhouette Desire line. When she isn’t writing, she often reads until the wee hours of the morning.

      Sheri also works as a leather artisan with her Muscogee Creek husband. They have one son and a menagerie of pets, including a pampered English bulldog and four equally spoiled Bengal cats. She would love to hear from her readers. You may write to her at: P.O. Box 5130, Orange, California 92863-5130.

      “What’s Happening in Royal?”

      NEWS FLASH, May—Everyone in the town of Royal is talking about a possible reconciliation of our favorite marrieds—Dakota and Kathy Lewis! ’Course, all those single gals are hoping it isn’t true, as the swoon-inspiring former air force lieutenant Dakota Lewis proves a mighty catch. But this hunk’s Comanche heart appears destined to belong to his beautiful wife, Kathy….

      Seems the reunion began when woman-of-the-world Kathy returned to Royal unexpectedly to meet with our dashing Texas Cattlemen—her hubby, Dakota, included—behind closed doors. And where-oh-where did Kathy and Dakota disappear to soon after?

      Perhaps our boys at the Cattleman’s Club can finally give us some answers? We’re waiting here with bated breath…. Stay tuned!

      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

      Epilogue

      One

      Retired air force lieutenant Dakota Lewis sat upright in a leather recliner, studying his home. Would the ranch look the same to Kathy?

      Of course it would, he told himself a second later. He hadn’t changed a thing. Not one cowboy novelty, not one Indian artifact. She would recognize every cow skull, every antler, every ceremonial pipe.

      An ensemble of cedar, pine and mahogany made up Dakota’s living room. He hadn’t chosen pieces that belonged in sets. He preferred eclectic furnishings—hacienda-style trunks, tables topped with clay-colored tiles, mirrors framed in tooled leather.

      He turned his attention back to his guests. They weren’t discussing the mission at this point. Someone had made a reference to his wife. Was it Aaron Black? Sheikh Ben Rassad? Dr. Justin Webb? It wasn’t Matthew Walker because Matt wasn’t married.

      No, but he was engaged. Happily engaged.

      Hell, Dakota thought. What was wrong with him? The other men in the room were his friends, his peers. He had no right to envy them. They were all members of the Texas Cattleman’s Club, the most exclusive gentlemen’s club in the state. They were all wealthy—filthy rich, some might say. And they were all either happily married or happily engaged.

      All except himself.

      Dakota’s estranged wife was due to arrive at his ranch any minute. Kathy had left three years before, a choice she hadn’t even bothered to explain. Dakota had come home from an assignment to find her gone—her side of the closet empty, the scented lotions she favored no longer lined up on the bathroom counter. Two years of marriage shot to hell, and Dakota didn’t know why. He had loved his wife, was certain she had loved him, too. Yet she’d walked out on him, saddling him with an emotional wound festering deep in his gut.

      A wound that had become exceptionally active today. The top-secret mission the Cattleman’s Club’s members had come to discuss involved Kathy. She was the Foreign Service consular being teamed with Dakota. Together they would fly to Asterland, a small European country on the brink of a revolution.

      The doorbell rang. Dakota excused himself from the other men and strode toward the entryway. Checking his watch, he tightened his jaw. Thirteen hundred hours. She was right on time.

      Kathy stood on the other side of the door, slim and elegant, her thick, hard-to-hold hair coiled in a neat chignon. She wore a beige pantsuit and an emerald blouse that intensified the color of her eyes. Cat’s eyes, he’d always called them. Exotic eyes and fire-tinted hair, features that belied Kathy’s proper nature.

      Neither spoke. Instead their gazes locked, and they stared at each other for what seemed like the longest moment of Dakota’s life.

      “It’s

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