Jodi Thomas

Table of Contents

 

 

THE TEXAN’S DREAM

“Packs a powerful emotional punch ... [Thomas’s] latest western historical romance highlights the author’s talent for creating genuinely real characters. Kara, in particular, is an appealing blend of vulnerability and strength, and watching this plucky heroine discover her own sense of worth and find true love is just one of the joys of reading this exceptional romance.”

—
Booklist

 

TWILIGHT IN TEXAS

 

“Tender and emotional ... [a] sweet tale.”

—
Old Book Barn Gazette

 

“The excitement ... races across the pages. There’s also enough humor to bring a chuckle to your lips and warmth to your heart.”

—
Rendezvous

 

“A powerful Lone Star romance that brings to life the decade after the Civil War ... filled with action ... loaded with tender passion ... another exciting tale.”

—
Midwest Book Review

 

TO WED IN TEXAS

 

“Entertaining.”

—
Publishers Weekly

 

“Tender, sweet, funny, and touching.”

—
The Romance Reader

 

“A thrilling tale ... a story that readers will want to read again and again.”

—
Rendezvous

 

“Your heart will be moved by the passion, the action, the loyalty, the suspense, and the emotion.”

—
The Oklaboman

 

TO KISS A TEXAN

 

“Compelling ... fans will appreciate Thomas’s subtle humor and her deft handling of sensitive topics.”

—
Booklist

 

“[A] poignant, exciting, emotional story ... Jodi Thomas understands the workings of a woman’s heart and a man’s mind.”

—
Romantic Times

 

THE TEXAN’S TOUCH

 

“Delightful and memorable characters and a roller-coaster pace ... Another wonderful read from a true shining star.”

—
Romantic Time
s

 

TWO TEXAS HEARTS

 

“Jodi Thomas is at her remarkable best in Two
Texas Hearts.”

—Debbie Macomber

 

TEXAS LOVE SONG

 

“A warm and touching read full of intrigue and suspense that will keep the reader on the edge of her seat.”

 

FOREVER IN TEXAS

 

“A great western romance filled with suspense and plenty of action.”

 

TO TAME A TEXAN’S HEART

 

Winner of the Romance Writer
s of
America
Best Historical Romance Award

 

“Earthy, vibrant, funny, and poignant ... a wonderful, colorful love story.”

—
Romantic Times

 

THE TEXAN AND THE LADY

 

“Jodi Thomas shows us hard-living men with grit and guts, and the determined young women who soften their hearts.”

—Pamela Morsi, bestselling author of
Something Shady
and
Wild Oats

 

PRAIRIE SONG

 

“Thoroughly entertaining romance.”

 

THE TENDER TEXAN

 

“[A] marvelous, sensitive, emotional romance ... spellbinding.”

—
Romantic Times

 

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Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R ORL, England

 

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

 

THE TEXAN’S WAGER

 

A Jove Book / published by arrangement with the author

 

PRINTING HISTORY

Jove edition / November 2002

Copyright © 2002 by Jodi Koumalats.

Excerpt from
When a Texan Gambles
copyright © 2003 by Jodi Koumalats.

 

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

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eISBN : 978-1-101-12690-5

 

JOVE® Jove Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014. JOVE and the “J” design are trademarks belonging to Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

 

 

 

PROLOGUE

 

B
AILEE GRACE MOORE WATCHED AS THE LAST FEW stragglers of the Roland wagon train disappeared into the fiery sunset. The dust from fifty teams of oxen pulling huge Conestogas settled around her along with the shattered remains of her final dream.

She thought she heard the wagon master, Broken-Hand Harrison, yelling, “Catch up! Hold tight!” But the call she’d listened to every day since they had left Independence, Missouri, was no longer meant for her or the two women standing beside her. Their one wagon and four oxen now had no place in the long line heading west. The three of them had been cut from the group and abandoned as easily as a drover cuts the weak from a healthy herd.

“They’ll be sorry,” Lacy Dillavou whispered behind Bailee. “They’ll all wish they hadn’t kicked us off. Someone will turn around and come back for us, you’ll see. And then they’ll apologize.” Her voice trembled.

“No.” Bailee fought back her own tears as she faced the girl ten years younger than she. Bailee’s father had always insisted she be practical even when the truth hurt.

Lacy, though in a woman’s body, was little more than a child clinging to hope when none existed.

Bailee tried to soften her words. “No one will turn back, Lacy. No one will come for us.”

“Then we’ll follow from far enough behind that they won’t know.” Lacy gulped back a cry and tried to act older than her fifteen years as she glanced at her two companions. “We can’t just stay out here in the middle of nowhere without anyone to help us.”

“We can’t follow.” Sarah Andrews’s calm voice cut across Lacy’s sobs. “Even if the three of us could manage the team, there is no one to hunt for food. In a week we’ll be out of supplies. In two weeks we’ll be starving.”

Bailee looked into Sarah’s sad eyes. Though only twenty, Sarah’s pale blue depths lacked any spark of vitality. She believed herself dying, and despite Bailee’s efforts, Sarah grew weaker every day. Her face was as pale as her white-blond hair, and her eyes were almost void of color. She reminded Bailee of a faded painting of an angel she’d once seen. It almost seemed cruel, forcing her to live and remain on an Earth far too harsh for her nature.

In the weeks since the wagons rolled through Fort Dodge, Sarah had lost first her baby, then her husband, to fever. When she became ill, the wagon master ordered her wagon burned, along with everything she owned. A few days later Bailee insisted on giving her a ride and was ordered to the back of the train. Lacy joined them to help nurse Sarah back to health. A week later all wagons stopped and a council was called. A council bent on ridding itself of all undesirables.

“I wish I were a witch like they say I am!” Lacy shouted at the thin line of dust in the distance. “I’d turn them all into crows. They should’ve shot us outright. What chance do we have?” She leaned against the wagon wheel and gave way to sobbing.

Bailee couldn’t stand to watch Lacy cry or Sarah draw into herself. Yet, Lacy’s question echoed in her mind as she began making camp just as she had done every night for weeks. It would be dark in an hour, and a fire had to be built. Without weapons or protection the light from the fire would be their only defense.

As she gathered wood, Bailee forced down her fears and tried to think. Be logical. Be practical. Be sensible. She could almost hear her accountant father lecturing her with his glasses low on his nose. But logic made her hesitate when Francis Tarleton asked her to marry him. She’d told herself she was being practical when she insisted he go on without her. He’d make his way, build a home, and send for her.

Bailee dropped a load of wood on the ground a few feet from the wagon and headed for the stream to find more. She made several trips before finally stopping to wash. In the stillness of twilight she pulled Francis’s tin-type from her pocket and faced the truth. It had been three years. He wasn’t going to send for her. He hadn’t written for months, and, even before that, his letters gradually stopped mentioning her joining him in Santa Fe. He hadn’t gone on ahead of her, he’d gone on without her.