Lesson in Lone Creek - Mary Manners

Welcome back, Mary! I am enjoying this new series so much, I thought I'd welcome everyone back to Lone Creek Ranch for another visit as the cast of characters grows. Brother #3 is absolutely wonderful! Wow! They just keep getting better!

Blurb:

Nick Merrill longs for adventure, and he finds it as one of the most highly-praised smoke jumpers on the West Coast. But when his best friend dies fighting a blaze, he returns to Lone Creek Ranch to shake off the loss. There he finds Sawyer Landon, a local middle school teacher who has a gift for reaching even the most difficult kids. When Sawyer asks him to speak at the school's annual Career Day, sparks fly. But Nick knows teaching and adventure are as polar opposite as it get--or are they?

Excerpt:

Nick Merrill wrinkled his nose at the acrid odor of burned wood that permeated the cab of his pick-up truck. No amount of fabric refresher seemed to be enough to remove the foul smell. He grimaced and shifted in the passenger seat as memories rushed in to crowd his head—memories of Jeremy’s harrowing last minutes here on earth.

For a moment the blue horizon, framed by swaying grass of a wheat-tan pasture that was just beginning to green, faded and Nick was back to that fateful day. He could almost feel flames coursing across his back as he and Jeremy delved deeper into the fire-engulfed forest of Washington State. The resulting furnace had turned their jumpsuits to ovens. Heat licked up Nick’s spine, singeing hair at the nape of his neck. He shifted the pack on his back, thankful for the protective fireproof tent folded inside. If the winds shifted, even slightly, he’d need it. He clenched his jaw and the muscles across his shoulders knotted into a keen, tight ball. The roar was deafening…who would have thought flames could devour the ground—and everything in their path—with such a howl?

The truck hit a pothole, jarring Nick back to the present, and Dalton, his older brother by less than two years, glanced over from the driver’s seat, his deep-blue eyes narrowed with worry.

“Hey, bro, are you OK?” Dalton’s voice, low and gravelly, did battle with a cool breeze that rushed through the passenger window.

“Yeah.” Nick brushed a hand across his stubbled chin and turned his head so Dalton couldn’t see his eyes. They felt gritty with sleep, and his shoulders ached from another restless night. He hadn’t bothered to shave that morning, and was considering just letting the shadowy patch grow. He rolled his shoulders to battle the ache as his gaze drifted to the pasture grass beyond the window. Spring kissed the horizon, and the foothills of the Smoky Mountains danced with a flurry of Bradford Pears coming into full bloom. The snow-white blossoms wreaked havoc on Nick’s sinuses, and he swiped a hand across his face, drawing a ragged breath. “Just trying to wake up.”

“You’ll adjust to the early hours again.” Dalton nodded. “The ranch is changed now, and, well, it never really sleeps. We have programs morning to night, and Carson keeps the schedule pretty tight. You’ll get used to it.”

“You know how much I love mornings…” Nick had always been the night owl of the four Merrill brothers, and usually he could function on a shoestring’s worth of sleep. But losing Jeremy, his smokejumping partner and best friend, had really thrown a wrench into his system. Now, all he wanted to do was sleep. He’d let Dalton drive his truck, because his brain fogged from the pills he’d downed the night before in hopes of losing the gut-twisting memories for a while. And now he wondered why he’d allowed Dalton to roust him from bed and talk him into riding along into town at this early hour. Sleep was a much more comfortable option.

Dalton cleared his throat and pressed the gas. The truck flew over the highway. “I tossed a box of flyers behind your seat. Would you mind dropping them by the middle school while I head over to the building supply store? The school is expecting them to arrive this morning.”

“Flyers for what?”

“That camp Carson has slated to start next month—an outreach for troubled teens.” Dalton’s voice softened and Nick marveled that his brother cared so much about wayward kids. What had happened to the headstrong, bull-riding tough guy he’d known all his life? Dalton’s next word offered a clue for the change. “Emilee has a friend who teaches English at the school, Sawyer Landon, and she thought it would be a good idea to distribute the information, maybe draw in a few more kids who’ll benefit. Apparently, there’s a need for a camp like ours.”

Emilee…Nick might have known she was the reason for the transformation he’d seen in Dalton. Come to mention it, Jessica had worked a number on Carson, as well. The two brothers walked around starry-eyed, with grins the size of watermelons, whenever their wives’ names were mentioned. Marriage might work for them, but Nick had no desire to jump on that particular wagon.

A woman named Sawyer sounded like the kind of trouble Nick didn’t need—or want. “I’d rather go to the supply store and you deliver the flyers.” He pressed a finger to his temple to battle a throbbing ache that drummed like rain on a metal roof. “At least the store’s quiet, but the middle school…not so much.”

“Overruled.” Dalton thumped a palm over the steering wheel. “Suck it up and deal, Nick. The building supply store is my gig. Emilee would have my hide if the building order got mixed up.”

“Yes, she would.” Nick turned to Dalton, frowning. “And, you’re still bossy, you know.”

“It’s one of my favorite qualities.”

Review:


Between the beautiful view she paints with her opening words, and the emotional turmoil in the hero’s heart, Ms. Manners drew me into this story from the start.

Sawyer is precious, just a little spitfire, a bundle of energy that reaches out to everyone around her, and obviously touches Nick’s heart even when he can’t see beyond his own pain. You can’t help but hurt for Nick, for the loss of his friend. And yet his good-heartedness shines through when he meets up with trouble of the teenage variety. What a great story!

Although this story is short, it’s packed with emotion. I loved it!

Buy link: http://www.pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/lesson-in-lone-creek

For more about the author, visit Mary at www.marymannersromance.com