Rafael Pederos is awakened in the middle of the night by his wheelchair-bound sister Pearl. Someone’s in the barn where they shouldn’t be. Rafael tells her to call the cops as he storms out to chase off the rustlers, but he’s too late. They’re already gone, and they’ve taken four pregnant mares with them. Now the future of the Pederos Ranch is up in the air.<br><br>This is where Chad Masters comes in. As a detective-ranger, he swears to track down the missing mares. But that’s easier said than done when he realizes there’s something about Rafael he can’t resist. Now if he can just get past the gruff exterior and teach Rafael how to love again.

Stolen Hearts

To keep himself busy, Rafael wandered further into the barn. The place stank. The stalls showed signs of having been chewed on and kicked at by desperate, scared, and nervous inhabitants. If his girls were here, he planned to have the vet out immediately to check them over. Their well-being was of the utmost importance to him. Rafael peered into one stall to find a muddied pony, its mane and tail scraggly and knotted with burrs. The poor soul was in need of food, hip bones clearly visible.


“And this is why I avoid places like this,” he said to the pony. Its ears flicked in his direction. “You’re all a sore sight and I want to take you home.”


“So do it,” Chad said, stepping up to his side. “Bet you can get him for a steal.”


“What use is a pony at a cattle ranch?”


Rafael narrowed his eyes. “So you are into her.”


Chapter 10