Cowboy Kisses: Rip Ryder! by Rhonda Lee Carver

Wednesday, October 18, 2023

Rip Ryder! by Rhonda Lee Carver

Rip Ryder’s Second Chance is a novel of high school sweethearts who reunite to rekindle a rare passion and confront the past.

As teens, Noelle Evelyn and Rip Ryder fell deeply in love. Their passion seemed to defy the odds of disapproving parents, youth and unforeseen obstacles…until high school graduation rolled around. One drunken night changed the future.

Years later, Noelle returns to Second Chance after the death of a friend only to face the lingering ghosts of her past. The memory of Rip has haunted her every day since they broke up. Her life might have moved forward, she’s now a single mom of a toddler, but her heart stays frozen in a time when love was all that mattered.

Noelle has carried a secret to protect others that will unravel. Will the demons of the past draw them together, or rip them apart again? Will an endless love endure the pain? Rip was willing to do anything to protect the only love he’d ever known, but can he save her?

Rip Ryder's Second Chance is the last installment of the series. This book will have you cheering for Noelle and Rip as they face demons from their past, and a secret that has lingered too long.

Sneak Peek:

Time became a cage, imprisoning both in the awkward moment as they stared at each other through the screen.

For that moment he could still see her as a teenager, greeting him at the door with a smile that got him in the center of his bones.

Their gazes were locked.

Rip feasted his eyes on the only woman he’d ever loved. The only one he’d wanted to marry and have a kid with. She was even more beautiful than he remembered and he wished she wasn’t. Her hair that he thought looked the same didn’t at all. It was still dark brown but now had lighter streaks of caramel and a few faint strips of blonde. Not one line appeared on her face that proved fifteen years had passed. She had flawless skin. Her blue eyes—the color of the early morning sky—turned a shade darker.

She wore a white T-shirt and cutoff jean shorts, and she was barefoot. Her toenails were painted a bright purple. Her favorite color, at least as a teen. He couldn’t believe he remembered. He also remembered her smell. A mixture of cotton candy and vanilla that now floated through the mesh wire and warmed him from inside out. He practically salivated like the kid.

Her figure, once slender and athletic because she ran cross country, had blossomed into more curves than should be legal. Delicious, remarkable curves that made him practically moan. He felt a bit ridiculous considering she was a holding a child—her child.

And she’s probably married, he reminded himself.

“Rip? What in blue heavens are you doing here?” she asked as if no time had transpired between them. The gentle pitch of her sweet voice reminded him of summer days down at the lake where they’d explored each other.

Hurt rendered him silent.

He opened his mouth, searching for his voice that was lost.

He probably looked damn ridiculous standing on her front step staring.

His throat ached. His heart squeezed. She shifted the child onto the other hip, closest to the screen as if to place a wall between them.

“I’m sorry I didn’t call first. I have some news.” He finally managed to spit out.

The entire series: