New Release ~ Julie Lence

 Hello Everyone! I'm excited to share with you my new release, The Singer Ropes A Cowboy.  Available exclusively at Amazon, (www.amazon.com/dp/B0CW1J88PH), in both e-book and paperback format, this is my 1st contemporary western romance, and the 1st book in the Bennett Family Series. 

Country music superstar Bailey Bennett wasn’t looking for love, until Chip Colucci flashed her a glare she couldn’t resist.  

Blurb:

Country music sensation Bailey Bennett is in New York City to assist her twin sister in the buying of Bella Cosmetics and to look over a Thoroughbred who loathes racing, but while at the track, Bailey encounters an irksome stable hand looking after an abused pinto. Something about the glare in his pretty dark eyes suggests he’s believed too many of the lies printed about her. Something else suggests his sinew is exactly what she needs to overcome the past. Either way, the horses are a package deal, and she reluctantly hires Chip to acclimate them to Bennett Ranch. Has she just made a deal with the Devil? Or has she made the decision of a lifetime?

 A New Yorker his entire life, Chip Colucci values family and honesty above everything else. When his father is seriously injured, he quits night school to take a part-time job bouncing at a strip club. When combined with his salary from the race track, the money’s enough to pay the never-ending doctor bills and keep food on the table. But then, Belmont cuts his hours and he’s forced to hire on with Bailey Bennett. Acclimating the horses to her family’s ranch in Reno isn’t a hardship. Working alongside her is. Lurking behind a brilliant smile is a she-devil who only cares about herself. Trouble is, he wants that she-devil to favor him, for a lifetime and more. 

Excerpt:

“Chip!” Bailey’s hand froze mid-air, as she jerked around his direction. “You startled me.”

“Sorry.” He halted just out of her reach. “Thought you’d be buried beneath your blankets dreaming whatever girls dream.”

“Nope. Too many thoughts running through my mind.” 

“The horses?” He nodded toward Misty and Polly.

“Them, the Christmas show, Bella, Barbie…” Her fingers glided into the pinto’s mane. “You can’t sleep, either?”

“Nope. Miss the sound of the subway rattling by.”

Liar.

“I can understand that. When I’m home, I get used to the quiet of the ranch. When the tour starts, it takes me a few days to get used to Paulie and the others on the bus.”

“You live on the ranch?” He stepped closer, kept his gaze on her and her makeup free complexion.

“I had a condo close to the recording studio, but I moved back here after I hired Paulie. I…” she ran her palm down the side of her jeans, “like being near the horses.”

“Nice,” he absently replied. She has brown flecks in her eyes. Never knew that.

“Barbie has the room next to mine. When we’re home, Mom spoils us. And the ranch hands watch over us. Who can resist that?”

“Not a clue.” She’s got a tiny indent on her cheekbone. Makeup must cover it.

“You must feel the same sense of security living in your childhood home.”

“Sure.” He considered her hair. Long, thick, silky; What did she just say? Something about security and the ranch hands. He met her gaze, noted the tiredness staring back at him. But past that lurked something else. Unease? Could be. “I live at home by choice. Before Pops’ accident, I was going to school at night. Lot easier paying for books when I don’t have to pay rent.” Does she fear being alone with me? She didn’t seem to mind those times at Belmont.

“What are you studying?”

“Veterinary medicine.”

“Really?!” Her entire being brightened.

Maybe not me. “Got the urge when I worked my cousin’s ranch, but with Pops laid up, I had to quit school. Don’t know if I’ll ever go back.”

“Oh, don’t say that.” She grasped his arm.

Definitely not me. He gazed down at her hand. Slender fingers… long, manicured fingernails…

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way. When Barbie and I started in this business, we sang backup for our brothers. It was fun, but in my heart, I knew rock-n-roll wasn’t for me. I wanted a career in country music and caused a rift  when I left for Nashville.”

“You talking about Barbie?” He kept his gaze on her hand. “People leave gossip magazines at the track. A lot of articles talked about a feud between her and you.”

“I didn’t want for her and me to go our separate ways. I wanted her to come with me.” She sighed heavily. “The worst was when our managers scheduled us to appear together. We’d smile and sing for the fans, but backstage, she barely spoke to me. It broke my heart.”

“If Dominic barely spoke to me, I wouldn’t cry. I’d celebrate.”

“You say that now, but you wouldn’t.”

“Yeah, pretty sure I would. He talks more than a girl.”

“When she has something to say, Barbie won’t come up for air. But she’s sweet, and she’s been…” She swallowed hard. “I’ve been…” Tears welled in her eyes and she looked away.

“Awe, hey, look, don’t cry.” He touched her cheek and heat ricocheted up his arm. Sonofa… “You love your sister. Ain’t nothing wrong with that.”

“I do.” She sniffled. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I actually enjoy joshing with people.”

“Good.” He ran the pad of his thumb beneath her eye, dried the wetness from her skin. She’s soft, and too damn vulnerable when she cries.

Hold her, that flutter urged. Comfort her.

Hell, no! He dropped his hand, stepped back. “I should get back to the bunkhouse.”

“And me to my room.” She lowered her lashes, but not before he glimpsed her eyes glistening again.

Awe, hell. He gently pulled her to him, held her close and felt her tremble. Or was that him?

 

Author's Note:

I hope you enjoy Bailey and Chip's story as much as I enjoyed writing it. Hugs!