Lawmen and Love

 

I've always enjoyed thinking about tough, seasoned lawmen turning as smooshy as a marshmallow when love catches them unawares.

Such is the case in my new release -  Lawmen and Love.

Three tough lawmen aren’t prepared for the moment when love arrives and turns their worlds upside down.

 This boxed set contains three full-length sweet and wholesome romances full of heart, humor, and hope featuring courageous women and brave men who uphold the law.

 

♥ Corsets and Cuffs – He never knew trouble had such a pretty face. She never knew the law could be so handsome and hardheaded.

Pampered and privileged, Brianna Dumont escapes the life she’s always known in an effort to clear her father’s good name. She arrives in Baker City, Oregon, intent on selling her father’s shares in a mine. Only the mine is a bust, her father’s partner is a crusty ol’ coot who hates women, and the sheriff in town is determined to keep her behind bars.

With good friends around him, a small ranch of his own, and a fulfilling job as sheriff, Tully Barrett loves his life. Then an exasperating woman shows up, making demands and driving him crazy. No matter how hard he tries to ignore her brains and beauty, she works her way under his skin.

When trouble follows her to Baker City, will Tully be able to protect her, along with his heart?

  

♥ Caterina - She’s hiding her past. He’s determined to reveal the truth.

On the run from the Italian mafia, feisty Caterina Campanelli escapes New York City with the help of her brother and travels across the country. She ends up in the small, rugged town of Pendleton, Oregon, where she makes new friends and focuses on building her future as a chef. Completely unprepared for the passionate feelings inspired by the handsome deputy in town, the last thing she needs is for a man of the law, especially one so relentless and exasperating, to dig around in her past.

Dedicated to his work as a deputy, Kade Rawlings takes pride in his community and his job protecting it. Determined to remain single and unfettered, he finds himself unable to stay away from the Italian spitfire who rolls into town keeping secrets and making the best food he’s ever eaten. Using his charm, wit, and brawn, he may just get more than he bargained for when he sets out to win her trust and her heart.

Will Kade be able to keep Caterina safe when her past catches up to her?

 

 ♥ Distracting the Deputy - He’s sworn to uphold the law. Her life is riddled with closely guarded secrets. When the past catches up to her, will she rush to him or run away?

When he’s not evading grabby-handed octogenarians, mentoring troubled teens, or rescuing rascally youngsters from disaster, Deputy Knox Strickland can be found upholding the law in the eastern Oregon region he patrols. He avoids making plans for tomorrow, focusing instead on doing his best today. Then one chance encounter with a beautiful woman in a wheat field turns his world upside down. Knox is left questioning what secrets she’s hiding, and how hard he’ll have to work to scale the fortress she's built around her heart.

Zadie Redmond isn’t like most women. A life spent looking over her shoulder has destroyed the promising future she’d once envisioned. Her days are spent leading hunting and fishing adventures or teaching tiny ballerinas the proper way to plié. She fills her evenings with do-it-yourself projects while worrying about the day her past catches up with her. In an unexpected moment, the local deputy swoops into her world like a storybook hero and she knows nothing will ever be the same. Zadie will do anything to keep Knox safe from the danger lurking in the shadows, even if it destroys her chance at love.

Will Knox convince Zadie she can trust him with her secrets and her heart?

Happy Valentine's Day!

USA Today Bestselling Author Shanna Hatfield is a farm girl who loves to write character-driven romances with relatable heroes and heroines. Her sweet historical and contemporary romances are filled with sarcasm, humor, hope, and hunky heroes.

When Shanna isn’t dreaming up unforgettable characters, twisting plots, or covertly seeking dark, decadent chocolate, she hangs out with her beloved husband, Captain Cavedweller.

Shanna is a member of Western Writers of America and Women Writing the West.

SHERIFF, TOWN MARSHAL, OR MARSHAL? by Marisa Masterson

US Marshals, East Texas

 I like accuracy, don't you? As I wrote Davis's Debt, I started to wonder. Have I been using the correct title for any lawmen that I include in my novels. So what was the difference between a sheriff and a marshal in the Old West?

After some digging, I found that many people use the titles of sheriff and marshal interchangeably. I'm not alone in relying on western novels and old movies as the source of my understanding those titles. Really, they were very different.

If we want to be technical about it--and we do for accuracy, right?--a sheriff was elected. He would have jurisdiction over a county. His role was to keep the peace in that area, so he was known as a peacekeeper.

There were two different marshals. Neither was elected.

The first was a town marshal. This man was appointed by city officials and had no power outside the town line. In some instances, the town marshal was limited to overseeing public safety. 

The second was the US Marshal, appointed by government representatives, like judges. They often acted as the sole law in new territories of the West. 

Wyatt Earp was appointed as Deputy

US Marshal,but only to deal with the problem

in Tombstone.That makes him more like a town

marshal, except hewas authorized to kill men. 

So, there we have it. Yet, I found that some towns still used the terms interchangeably in their infancy. It could be that our old movies were not that far off.

Please, take a look at this excerpt from Davis's Debt. You will see how I have applied this information.

“Don’t see you in town much, Davis. Whatcha up to?”

The raspy tones of Marshal Chapford’s voice sent a frisson of alarm down Ike’s spine. Almost unwillingly, his head turned in the man’s direction. The wink of light on the man’s tin star deepened his apprehension.

“Got business is all, Marshal. Nothing to worry the law.” He mumbled the words, moving away toward the stage office. He would ask about routes.

The man put a hand on his arm, stopping the other's retreat. “Hold up. I wanna ask if you’ve heard about the rustlers. They’ve been troubling your neighbors.”

He gave Chapford’s hand a meaningful look. His cold gaze rose to meet the lawman’s and the hand slipped away. The marshal glowered as he took a step back.

“Just wanted you to know what’s happening. Hope those rustlers won’t bother you.”His tone said he wished the opposite. One more thing that did not make sense to Ike about the man.

At the rancher’s continued silence, Chapford sputtered, “I know you’re a hard man, tough enough to deal with rustlers on your own. Only, it’s my job to warn you about such things.”

Ike scowled. “Your job ends at the town line, you being a town marshal and not the county sheriff. What’re you doing, chasing after cattle thieves?”

Chapford met his scowl without flinching. “Heard about the rustling. That’s all. If folks ask for my help, I’ll give it.”

With a snort, Ike Davis narrowed his eyes. “Yeah, and it don’t hurt that any rustlers more’n likely have a bounty on their head.”

The smarmy man smiled. “That’s a fact. Helps pay my bills to round ‘em up. Money’s important to a man.”

Davis's Debt releases June 20th. It's available now for pre-order! 

 

Ike Davis struggles to understand what the people around him mean by their expressions. He realizes that about himself. It's one reason he has for staying away from the town and its residents. Will marrying really change that?

Mae Williams arrives to claim what is owed to her father. They had saved Davis during the war. Now marrying Mae becomes his way of paying back the debt.
But marriage!

Can anything good come when the man is forced by honor to marry a woman who is not like he expected?

Lawkeepers of the Old West

As the stories go, many cities and towns in the old west were rowdy places where even the law of the land was hard to enforce. But these areas started growing. Families moved in. People wanted stability and safety for their children. They demanded more. They demanded help.

As the settlements grew, sheriffs and marshals were in high demand. Integrity and dedication were key elements in the make up of these men – and a few women – who helped tame the wild west. They made a difference every day they put on the badge.

Those who stood for right and stamped down wrong were heroes, plain and simple. These men of valor make us proud when we come across their stories. They didn’t back down from a fight with notorious outlaws. In fact, they thrived on it and in the process, they created the ideal for the perfect western hero.

These brave and well respected men didn’t have a motto. They just did their jobs. To protect and serve is a motto used by police forces across the country today. If the lawmen legends of the west were to have an opinion on that matter, I imagine they’d adopt To protect and serve as their own.

Inspired by the contributions to folkore and storytelling made by the legends of the law in the old west, a brand new series is starting soon. Four authors have teamed up to bring myth and legend together and then mix it with a touch of sweet romance. Come along with us as we tell The Lawkeepers stories and help them fall in love.

Along with my partners, Jenna Brandt, Lorana Hoopes, and Kate Cambridge—I can’t wait to share our new series with you. The first four books will be available on February 8, 2018. 

Follow The Lawkeepers page on Facebook as we begin sharing more information as the launch approaches.

 

Is a sneak peek of a cover in order? Of course it is!

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Annie Boone writes sweet western historical romance with a happy ending guaranteed in every single story. Inspiration comes in many forms and Annie finds more than one way to make her stories entertain and inspire.

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The Lawkeepers - don't miss it!