Page 27 of Cowboy's Christmas Girlfriend

Dina sighed down the line. “We were kind of hoping you’d have something today. Not the whole pitch, but a teaser, something buzzy. Something to share with sales and marketing, to get the word out. You need to ride that momentum, keep your readers engaged.”

“Australia,” said Suzanna, and bit her tongue hard. Why had she said that? She’d panicked was why, and she’d—

“Australia?” Dina’s chair creaked. Suzanna could almost hear her frown through the phone. “That’s a start,” she said. “But we’ll need more than that to get you trending again.”

Suzanna leaned on the counter, wheels spinning. A spark flared and she jumped on it, improvising as she went. “It’s the hero’s little brother from Cowboy’s Awakening,” she said. “He—he needs a fresh start, so he buys up this ranchland out in Australia. He’s this fish out of water, thinking that he’ll be fine because he knows ranching, that he can do everything the way he’s always done. But, of course, he can’t.”

“And he meets some cute local who shows him the ropes?”

“The rancher’s daughter,” she said. “The one who sold him the land. She grew up there. It’s her home. She can’t let him destroy it.”

“And they bond over...spider bites? Killer kangaroos?”

Suzanna chuckled, half amusement, half relief. The idea had legs. She felt it already, and she knew Dina did too. “I’ll need to do some research,” she said. “But I’ll get you that pitch, and I promise you’ll love it.”

“I’ll be waiting,” said Dina, and she hung up. Suzanna scrambled for her laptop. She was hot, she could feel it, bubbling with inspiration. She’d have her young, troubled hero, fresh off a fall that’d killed his rodeo dreams. In search of a new life, a new world to explore. He’d leave Montana in winter and land in Australia in summer. You think this is hot? Wait’ll you get to...

Suzanna paused mid-thought and switched to Google. She searched “hottest part of Australia,” then “ranches in Australia.”

...Wyndham, she finished. Wait’ll you get to Wyndham.

She could picture it now, her hero shirtless and sweating, bursting into the barn. Hosing himself down with cold water from the spigot. Shaking out his dark hair, scattering droplets on the boards. Fending off dingoes—were those a real thing? Stealing a starlit kiss under the wide southern sky. But then the day would come when he stood to lose it all, besieged by land developers and an unforgiving bank. He’d storm into town, hell-bent on justice, on defending the new life he’d fought so hard to build. He’d burst into that bank (wild-eyed, hard-jawed), and he’d—

The kitchen door slammed open, so hard Suzanna yelped. Will barged in, fuming, looking for all the world like her fantasy come to life. Only, this was no fantasy. Will was beside himself, tossing his hat on the table so hard it slid off.

“Will? What’s the matter?”

Will’s head snapped up. He took a deep breath and let it out through his teeth. “George,” he spat, snarling the name like a curse. “One responsibility I give him—one task, just one—and what does he do?”

Suzanna didn’t dare guess.

“He ambushes me, that’s what. He promised me a focus group, and what do I walk into? A five-man commercial for these damn HVAC systems.”

Suzanna eased closer, trying a smile. “Maybe you got your wires crossed. Maybe he thought—”

“I’ll tell you what he thought.” Will slumped against the counter, massaging his brow. “He thought I needed persuading, and that’s what he set out to do. He brought in four guys with spanking new systems and had them sing their praises, not a con list in sight. Barely a nod to risk management, to what could go wrong. I mean, look at this.” He reached into his jacket and pulled out a sheaf of papers. “His product evaluation reads like a manufacturer’s brochure.”

Suzanna took the papers and leafed through them. She took her time, mostly to give Will a chance to catch his breath. He poured himself a glass of water and drained it off in a single gulp.

“You see the problem, don’t you?”

“Maybe, uh...” Suzanna pressed her lips together.

“It’s so one-sided. So reckless.”

“He does have a risk table,” said Suzanna, holding up the last page. “Clogged filters, blown fuses, thermostat malfunctions—it’s fine print, I’ll grant you, but it seems pretty thorough to me. And here, look at this.” She tapped on a red box down at the bottom. “It says the chance of total system failure is under two percent. He doesn’t ignore the possibility, but he does point out how unlikely it is. What are the odds your whole system goes down, then your backup dies too?”

“Not zero,” said Will. He brought his palm down on the counter. “I tell you, I’m sick of only and just. A risk is a risk, and you can’t pretend it’s not there. You can’t stake your future on it’ll probably be okay.”

Suzanna gaped at Will. He didn’t look like himself, pale and hunched over, hands bunched into fists. She came up beside him and set her hand on his arm.

“I’m not saying ignore it,” she said. “I doubt George is either. I’m saying, I’m asking, aren’t some risks worth it?”

“Worth it?” Will’s stare was flat, uncomprehending.

“I mean, I was a risk, right?” Suzanna’s voice shook. “Inviting me, sight unseen? That was a big risk, but I’d say we’re doing okay.”

“That’s different. That’s...” Will trailed off, frowning, at a sound from the hall. “Lucky? That you?”

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