Second Hope

My mother always gave the best advice. I just wish she had advised me to stay away from bull riders. One in particular. Connor Bennett is a walking red flag I could see coming from miles away, but I'm a sucker for his rakish smile, his irresistible charm, and that world class behind always wrapped in a tight pair of Wranglers. I told myself I'd learned my lesson when I woke up and discovered he ghosted me, leaving a note behind on the pillow where his head should have been. Unfortunately, that wasn't true. High emotions and too much booze during a mutual friend's wedding lands me back in his bed, but this time I make sure I'm not the one left high and dry once the sun comes up. Even though I can't stop thinking about him, I've convinced myself I've worked him out of my system. However, two pink lines a few weeks later make it impossible to pretend he doesn't exist. We make an agreement. We'll co–parent once the baby is born, but nothing more. There certainly won't be any more hanky panky. But it turns out Connor has other ideas and wants to share more than just custody with me. I'm trying so hard not to fall for that charm a second time, but my hormones are going crazy and he's doing and saying all the right things. Despite all reason, I find myself wanting to get tangled up with him all over again. I just don't know if I should trust the bull rider not to trample all over my heart.

When I moved away from Hope Valley at eighteen years old, I told myself it was for good. There were too many unpleasant memories, too much history, and too many reminders of the boy who had broken my heart. Years passed and I built a life and a family with a man I loved. Then, in the blink of an eye, that life was ripped away from me, and the secrets he'd kept from me refused to follow him into his grave. Now I'm back in my hometown, a shell of my former self, trying to pick up the pieces of my shattered life. My heart has been broken for the second time in my life, but I have to put on a brave face and fake it for the sake of my kids and the people I love. I thought I was doing a pretty good job of hiding the pain, but there is one person I've never been able to fool. One person who was always able to see through the masks I tried to wear, and he is determined to chase my shadows away. Rhodes Bradbury is all grown up now. The boy who had been my first love is now all man. And to make matters worse, my body still reacts to him the same way it did all those years ago. My heart still races in his presence, and a single look from those deep, dark eyes is enough to make my skin tingle. The voice in the back of my head is screaming at me to steer clear, but there's just one problem. The boy he was might have broken my heart, but the man he is now wants a second chance. He isn't afraid of my baggage. In fact, he wants nothing more than to carry it for me. I'm trying my hardest not to repeat the mistakes of the past. But he's doing everything in his power to convince me that most people aren't lucky enough to have what we had even once, let alone twice in a lifetime.

I've never been the kind of man to give much thought to the future. When I pictured what forever looked like, I didn't see a picket fence, a wife, or a bunch of little rugrats running around. I had the dog, and that was good enough for me. Or it had been, until a woman with dark, silky hair and sad eyes stumbled into my life and shook everything up. The shadows that haunted Merritt Bell tugged at something deep inside me, bringing to life a primal instinct to protect that was stronger than anything I experienced before. The second I laid eyes on her, I wanted to slay all her demons. Be the knight in shining armor who could bring a smile to her beautiful face. But before that could happen, I had to earn her trust. When a family emergency brings her back to town and directly into the path of her estranged, abusive husband, I don't hesitate to put myself in the middle, even if it means placing a target on my back that my badge can't protect me from. Now she and her nephew are living under my roof, and there isn't anything I won't do to keep them safe. I might be one of the good guys, but when it comes to protecting the woman who's stolen my heart and the boy I've grown to adore, I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty. I finally know what my forever looks like, and there isn't anything that can stop me from chasing it down and holding on tight.