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His father was dead—and the void he’d left behind was as deep as the red Texas earth.

If you love Janet Dailey’s rugged cowboy
heroes, read on for an excerpt from the
next book in the Tylers of Texas series by
Janet Dailey,
available now in hardcover!

TEXAS TOUGH

Janet Dailey

He’s everything she doesn’t need.

The quiet horse whisperer whose touch still
ignites her dreams—and is everything wealthy
Lauren Prescott is not. She can think of a million
reasons why she should never ever fall
into Sky Fletcher’s sure embrace again. Until
she clashes head-on with the dangerous complications
of her privileged life and needs his
protection like air
to breathe . . .

She’s more than he can resist.

The heiress Sky can’t get out of his heart, no
matter how much he tries. And being the
secret third Tyler son doesn’t change a thing.
All he wants from his two brothers is help
uncovering a dangerous conspiracy threatening
his land, their ranch, and the spirited
beauty he never should have touched . . .

T
he sun burned blood red through a lingering haze of dust. As it sank behind the buttes and turrets of the Caprock Escarpment, shadows stretched long across the heat-seared landscape. With each minute that passed, the two riders grew more anxious. If they didn’t find the missing man soon, they’d be searching for him in the dark.

Jasper Platt, the Rimrock’s retired foreman, had gone hunting early that morning. When he didn’t show up for supper, Sky Fletcher and Beau Tyler had saddled their horses and set out looking for him. Armed with pistols and flashlights, they rode out across the flat toward the dry alkali lake where the old man liked to shoot quail and wild turkey.

“I don’t like this.” Beau scanned the horizon with his binoculars. “The old man’s got no business out here alone, driving that ATV God knows where, maybe rolling it in a wash, or even running into those smugglers who’ve been leaving tracks all over the place. We need to make some rules and insist that he follow them.”

“And how do you think Jasper would take to your rules?” Sky spoke softly, sharp ears alert for any unfamiliar sound. “He may be old, but that’s no reason to treat him like a child. After all, he practically raised you and Will after your mother died.”

Beau exhaled a tension-charged breath. “Somebody had to do the job. Our dad sure as hell didn’t have the patience. Jasper was more of a father to Will and me than Bull Tyler ever was. I just hope we find him safe.”

Sky let the words pass. It was no secret that Beau Tyler and his domineering father, Bull, had clashed bitterly at every turn. After their last quarrel, Beau had left for the army and stayed away eleven years.

Sky, however, had nothing but respect for the hard-driving rancher who’d taken in a starving half-Comanche teenager and given him a job. In the fourteen years Sky had worked for the Rimrock, he’d learned that Bull could be harsh but never unfair. The man’s death this past spring had been a genuine loss. Sky was still reeling from the legacy Bull had left him in his will—the deed to one hundred acres of prime ranchland, the first thing of real value he’d ever owned.

“Maybe we should’ve brought the dog.” Beau’s words broke into Sky’s thoughts. Tag, the black and white border collie, was about Jasper’s age in dog years. The two were close companions.

“I didn’t see Tag at the house,” Sky said. “Jasper might have taken him along in the ATV. If anything happened to Jasper, that dog would stay right with him. Keep your ears open. Maybe we’ll hear something.”

Both men fell silent as the twilight deepened. Sky’s ears sifted through the night sounds—the drone of flying insects, the faraway wail of a coyote, the rhythmic
ploof
of shod hooves in the powdery dust. With scorching temperatures and no rain since spring, the land was drier than he’d ever seen it. The drought was a constant, gnawing worry. But right now the more urgent concern was finding Jasper.

“Listen!” Beau hissed. “Do you hear that?”

“Sounds like a dog!” Sky had caught it, too. Urging their horses to a gallop, the two men thundered toward the sound.

Minutes later they found the ATV. The open vehicle had careened and landed on its side in a hollow, where a minuscule spring seeped out of the ground. Protected by the roll bar, Jasper was sprawled belly down, one side of his face pressed in the water-slicked mud. The border collie stood guard, barking at their approach.

“Get the dog out of the way.” Cursing, Beau dropped to a crouch beside the old man, who was as much a part of the Rimrock Ranch as the land itself.

Gripped by dread, Sky held the dog’s collar, stroking and soothing the agitated animal while Beau, who’d had some medical experience as an army ranger, checked for vital signs.

“Is he alive?” Sky asked, steeling himself against the answer.

“Barely. His pulse feels weak. Sounds like he might have some fluid in his lungs, too.” Beau worked a hand beneath Jasper’s head to lift his face clear of the mud. “I’d guess he’s been here awhile. Damned lucky he didn’t drown.”

Sky’s free hand whipped out his cell phone. “I’ll get Life Flight. Want me to call the house, too? Will and Bernice will be worried. And they’ll need to tell Erin.”

Beau was probing for broken bones. “Go ahead and call Life Flight. Then you can help me push the ATV off him and turn him over. I’ll phone Will when we’ve got him more comfortable.”

By the time Sky had finished the call, the dog was calm enough to stay put. Between them, Sky and Beau tipped the light vehicle back onto its wheels and pushed it out of the way. Jasper was semiconscious, muttering and moaning, his Stetson gone, his muddy white hair plastered to his scalp.

“I’ll take his head and shoulders,” Beau directed. “You support his hips and spine. On the count of three, we roll him onto his back.”

Crouching low, Sky worked his hands beneath the bony old body and waited for the count. Jasper had been on the Rimrock since before Will and Beau were born. By the time Sky showed up, he was already a silver-haired elder. Arthritis had ended his days in the saddle, but he remained a treasure trove of wisdom, humor, and experience. If he didn’t make it, his loss would devastate the ranch family.

Between advanced age and dehydration, Jasper’s body felt almost weightless. After lifting him like a child, they rolled him onto a patch of dry grass. By then the twilight had deepened to dusk. But even without the flashlight, they could see the dark stain spread around the hole in the front of his faded plaid shirt. Sky’s heart slammed. Beau cursed.

Jasper had been shot.

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Copyright © 2015 by Janet Dailey

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First Kensington Books Hardcover Printing: July 2015

First Zebra Books Mass-Market Paperback Printing: October 2015

ISBN: 978-1-4201-3509-1

eISBN-13: 978-1-4201-3510-7
eISBN-10: 1-4201-3510-4