The Hometown Heroes Collection
ISBN: 978-1-944258-46-7 Volume 1
ISBN: 978-1-944258-47-4 Volume 2
The young men hunkered down around a campfire while the wind howled around them on the Circle P's weekend cattle drive. Beneath the stars those cold nights, lasting friendships formed as each of the men spoke of the big plans they had for their lives. Some dreamed of building successful careers in finance, the law, sports and medicine. Others were determined to win gold belt buckles at the Cheyenne Frontier Days or the National Finals Rodeo. Ten years later, many of those dreams have come true, while others have tarnished a bit. But each of these hometown heroes is still…saving lives and winning hearts wherever they go.
Volume 1:
Mitch: Far more comfortable prosecuting criminals than defending himself in family court, Mitch is determined to win full custody of the daughter he’s single-handedly raised for the past four years. With his daughter's future on the line, it's the worst possible time for rodeo star Amanda Markette to gallop back into Mitch's life where she stirs up the long-buried desires and emotions of their first love. But when Amanda's carefully guarded secret threatens to break loose, will it be the lasso that pulls Mitch and Amanda together? Or the stampede that tears them apart forever?
Luke: Rancher Luke Parker swore he’d never risk his heart again after his childhood sweetheart walked out on him to start a new life in the big city. The brooding cowboy has stayed true to his word over the last six years while he wrangled cattle and guided city slickers on cattle drives through South Florida’s version of the Old West. But everything changes the day a feisty social worker shows up on the Circle P with a scrappy little boy at her side, a child she swears belongs to Luke.
Luke might be the best-looking man who’s ever swaggered into the DCF office, but as far as Sarah Magarity is concerned, he’s the latest in a long line of fathers who refuse to take responsibility for their children. And Luke’s plan to take five-year-old Jimmy on a two-week round-up while they wait for the results of a paternity test? Ludicrous! But Sarah soon finds herself on a long trail ride, where Luke’s concern for those around him convinces her the rugged cowboy is a man of his word. Soon, Sarah and Luke’s attraction grows hotter than Florida in the summer. But will their new-found love survive when Jimmy’s blood work delivers surprising results?
Brett: The broad-shouldered Adonis standing on Stephanie Bryant’s front porch cannot fathom why the sassy beauty failed to evacuate along with the other residents of Cocoa Beach, but she has her reasons. With a big promotion at stake, the approaching storm doesn’t figure into Stephanie’s plans any more than falling for the hunkiest cop in Florida. But more than the landscape changes when a hurricane practically blows Florida’s newest resident into the arms of disillusioned cop Brett Lincoln. While the last thing he wants in his life is another self-centered woman, the keys to his emotional survival just might dangle from Stephanie’s perfectly sculpted nails.
Dan: Dan Hamilton is a foster care success story who lives for the day he can help give kids stuck in “the system” a good start in life. His wildest dreams are finally within reach when Dan is asked to join in building an exclusive medical center on Florida’s east coast. Widowed Jessica Cofer wants little more than to help her young son grow into an honest man and preserve the natural beauty of Phelps Cove. When Dan and Jessica meet, their temperatures rise faster than mercury on a summer day…until she learns the handsome doctor has his eye on more than her curves—he plans to steal the land from under her feet.
Volume 2:
Travis: Travis Oak dreamed of making it into The Show before three broken ribs ended his career as a pitcher. Relegated to the sidelines, Travis teaches Phys Ed while he waits for his next chance to make it into the major leagues—this time as a coach. He gets a rare a chance to mold raw talent when a fight at his school forces widowed mom Courtney Smith to choose between expulsion or Little League for ten-year-old Josh. There’s just one problem. The slim blonde with a baby on one hip and desperation in her blue eyes doesn’t want anything to do with baseball…or the men who play it.
To prove he has her boy’s best interests at heart, will this former minor league baseball player become a major league dad?
Colt: Though Colt Judd chafes to escape Glades County, the former rodeo star vows to maintain the traditions of the South Florida ranch following the death of his father. Her job as head cook gives widowed mom Emma Shane the chance to provide a permanent home for her daughter…until Colt swaggers into her domain.
More than soup simmers in the kitchen while Colt and Emma work to recreate lost family recipes, but Emma guards against the man whose tumbleweed existence threatens both her heart and the stable life she wants to provide for her daughter. Will the Circle P’s beautiful new cook tempt the wandering cowboy to do the impossible and put down roots?
Hank: When Hank Judd closes his real estate business and takes his turn at managing the Florida ranch his family has cherished for generations, he seizes one last chance to reconnect with the daughter he barely knows. Desperate to bridge the gap with ten-year-old Noel, Hank encounters unexpected resistance. For help, he reluctantly turns to the one person he’d sworn to keep his distance from—his high school sweetheart, Kelly Tompkins.
Kelly has recently returned to town to care for her ailing grandfather and, as his medical bills pile up, she proposes a mutually beneficial deal: Hank will use his expertise to sell her grandfather’s ranch while Kelly helps Hank connect with his withdrawn daughter. Both intend to go their separate ways once the deal is done, but long-buried feelings bubble to the surface as the handsome cowboy works with the woman who has swapped her braids and freckles for a suave sophistication that fits her curves as snugly as her jeans.
Garrett: Searching for peace to soothe his soul and heal his grief, widower Garrett Judd brings his baby boy home to the Circle P Ranch where his pain distances him from everyone ... including baby LJ. It’s only in the dead of the night that the grieving father picks up his old guitar and sings a lullaby to the fussy baby until his son falls asleep.
Once the lead singer in a popular bluegrass band, Lisa Rose agrees to share the stage with a devilishly handsome rancher--despite his bad attitude--when she's hired to provide entertainment for the hired hands during the Circle P's summer roundup. But when one night of passion has unexpected consequences, can Garrett overcome his fears that history will repeat itself long enough to admit he’s fallen in love with the bluegrass singer…and the child she carries?
All 8 books in the Hometown Heroes Collection were previously published as Harlequin American Romances.
