Cowboy's Christmas Rodeo

Axel King has always been hot headed, something that’s created a heap of trouble on the rodeo circuit. The rodeo is a tough life and this cowboy is ready to settle back home, buy the old family ranch, and live quietly without the wildness of his past. All he has to do is win the Pride River Christmas Rodeo, but to do that he’s got to stay out of trouble. Trouble he very nearly finds by getting into yet another bar fight, stopped just in time by Belle Manning, his childhood friend. She always kept him out of hot water when he was a kid, with her calm support and friendly smile, and though it’s been years since he’s seen her, Axel’s never forgotten the first girl he kissed. And never forgotten how her daddy warned him to stay away from her. Troublemakers like him just aren’t good enough for someone like her…


Belle never forgot the sexy cowboy who stole her heart when they were kids. So when he approaches her with a proposition, she’s ready to listen. Axel wants her by his side so she can keep him out of trouble until the Christmas rodeo. In exchange, he’ll give her a plot of land so she can build her occupational therapy clinic. It’s a stunning proposal and one Belle can’t refuse. Her dream of using horses to help people heal is finally coming true. And, bonus, running around town with Axel will keep her matchmaking mother off her back. She’ll think about a relationship after her practice is up and running. Once Axel wins the rodeo, they can go on their merry ways. But it doesn’t take long before their fake relationship takes an unexpected turn toward real, throwing Belle off kilter. Is it possible Axel could turn into the Christmas present she didn’t know she wanted all along?

Mary Sue Jackson and USA Today Bestseller Leslie North invite you to indulge in a heart-warming small-town western romance with a smoking hot cowboy and the woman who tames him...