Lassoing Lara

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An Excerpt From: LASSOING LARA

Copyright © N.J. WALTERS, 2010

All Rights Reserved, Ellora's Cave Publishing, Inc.

Chapter One

A groan woke him. It took Brody Courage a moment to realize the low, tortured sound had come from his own throat. His head felt as though a stubborn horse had kicked him and his mouth was as dry as a mid-July afternoon in West Texas. He lay there, eyes closed, not moving as he assessed the damage.

What the hell had he done last night?

The last thing he remembered was going into town with his brothers J.T. and Marshall and hitting the Last Chance Saloon for some pool and a few beers. It was rare for the three of them to be home at the same time as Marshall was usually gone, working for a secret U. S. government agency. His brother didn´t talk about it and they didn´t ask. Both he and J.T. knew that whatever their brother did for the government wasn´t pretty, but it was necessary.

They´d drank a few beers, ragged on one another as only brothers can and shot some pool. It hadn´t taken long for the women to start circling. J.T. wasn´t interested. Not anymore. He had his wife Tori waiting at home and he barely noticed other women. Marshall was a one-night stand kinda guy. His work didn´t allow for a serious relationship.

As for himself, he had too much work to do to even think about getting involved in a permanent relationship. Maybe when the house renovations were done and he´d met the deadline for his next book. One-night stands weren´t his style. Hell, he didn´t know what he was looking for anymore, so he´d smiled and sent the women on their way last night.

Well, all except, Lara. Feisty Lara Jacobs was the daughter of a neighbor. They´d practically grown up together. A tomboy through and through, Lara could ride and rope with the best of them. She´d also been a thorn in his side most of his life, chasing behind him and his brothers whenever possible. But they´d also been friends. She´d been like one of the guys, laughing and romping and getting into trouble right alongside the Courage brothers.

She´d certainly changed from the skinny teenager who´d dogged their every step. Not that she was a kid any longer. Now, from what he´d seen, she was all woman. She was still lanky, her short black hair chopped off shorter than most guys´, but there was no mistaking the fact that she was a well-put-together female.

She´d joined them for a few games of pool. Watching her lean over the table to take a difficult shot had certainly been an experience he wouldn´t soon forget. Her jeans had pulled tight over a nicely rounded ass. Her legs seemed to go on forever, making him wonder what they´d be like wrapped around his flanks as he thrust into her. Her breasts were on the small side, but firm and full. As a man, he could appreciate them. As a friend and a neighbor, he was going to keep his distance.

And thinking about Lara wasn´t going to help him remember what had happened last night. All it was doing was making him horny. He´d certainly tied one on, which was unusual for him. But the past few months he´d been working on a deadline for his next book, plus renovating his house during every free second. It had felt good to cut loose with his brothers. But now it was time to pay the piper for that excess.

Knowing he´d put off the inevitable long enough, he took a deep breath and cracked open one eyelid. The sun was streaming in through the window. He swore under his breath, but forced his other eye open.

He blinked several times before things settled down. The room looked the same, the walls bare, the furniture sparse. Yup, he´d made it home last night in one piece. He´d have to thank his brothers for that.

It was time to try to move. He started to roll, but something tugged on his arm, pulling him back. "What the hell?" He turned his head, ignoring the throbbing at the base of his skull. What he saw made him swear again. His wrist was tied to the headboard. An experimental tug assured him that his other wrist was in exactly the same condition.

He was also buck naked under the sheets that bunched at his waist.

Taking a deep breath, he tested the strength of the binding. If this was his brothers´ idea of a joke, he was going to kill them. He swallowed hard as his stomach roiled. He´d definitely had way too much to drink last night, which was totally out of character. He liked to maintain control. He didn´t like the idea of being at the mercy of someone else´s whim.

Whoever had done this to him would pay.