Stuck in Texas

This rich guy and his friend show up, one's drunk as a skunk, the other has an accent matching mine. I wonder why this stranger is here, dressed to kill, hanging with the usual vagrants that patronize my fifty-dollar-a-night motel. When he leaves his wallet here by mistake, I end up learning a whole lot more about this Terence Daniels fellow than I ever dreamed. Unfortunately, he doesn't shed all the light, but when Ruby, his former lover, does, I realize why he kept mum...but I'm not about to keep my mouth shut.

I don't trust her to keep my wallet safe, or to send it via courier, so I drive, from Louisiana to Dallas, again, to get it. In the few minutes that I talk to her, this time sober, I wish like hell that I didn't make the mistakes that I did. Before I know it, I'm emotionally involved with this woman, who runs a dilapidated motel, but has so much more promise. And days later, her world falls apart. Kobie is guarded, rightfully so, although what I offer her makes her eyes twinkle.

But can what I've given her be the glue that holds us together? Or will Ruby's fate darken Kobie's future...

HEA (Happily Ever After)
Ranch romance
Cowboy romance
Medium heat
Course language
Cliffhanger ending