HOT OFF THE RANGE

BLURBS:
Riding and herding. Those spurs that jingle-jangle-jingle. What is it about cowboys that so doggedly fires the imagination? Join the Mischief Corner authors as they give you their own unique takes on the cowboy mystique and mythos, from the American West, to Australia, to outer space. The cowboy story will never be the same…
Once A Cowboy - Toni Griffin
It's been six years since Jesse Howard has stepped foot on the Western Hills Cattle Station. Now that he's able, Jesse's returned. The problem is, he's not returning alone. Will Logan Kennedy, the love of his life, listen to Jesse's explanations or will Logan close the door on the future Jesse's dreamed about for so long.
Accounting for the Hero - Silvia Violet
Grant longs for a hero to ride up on his valiant steed and revive his failing ranch, but he hires, Miles, a man with a desperate need for a job and no ranch experience. Miles may know a lot more about bookkeeping than calf-roping, but that doesn’t mean he’s incapable of heroics or of capturing Grant’s heart.
Sock Poacher and the Shower Thief: Tall Tales of Hooper's Town 1 - Freddy MacKay
One step at a time, one foot in front of the other. All things are possible when someone steps outside their door. In Namid's case, he meets the town recluse, Dusty, when he gets attacked by Dusty's porch. And that's only the beginning.
BULL: Corralling Nature 1 - Mathilde Watson
Shy, awkward, and overweight, Roland Paulson wasn’t the kind of man who attracted a lot of amorous attention. His romantic life consisted of a series of short lived flings and one night stands with other men who were just as desperate. When propositioned by a charming cowboy with the body of a god, he expected sex. He never imagined the wild ride that would follow.
From the moment Dodge Bramen set eyes on the adorable red-head he wanted him. And Dodge was a man who gets what he wants. He had no trouble luring the guy into his bed, but keeping him there was a different story. Deep kept secrets and unexpected discoveries could either shatter their bond or break it.
Fear of Frogs: Brimstone 2 - Angel Martinez
While Shax recovers from a near fatality, his shipmates have been busy. He's rather proud of them taking the initiative and finding them a lucrative cargo run. His pride turns to outright horror, though, when he finds out what sort of cargo. Unfortunately, he'll soon discover that a healthy fear of frogs doesn't prevent frog-driven disasters. Time travel has never been so messy.
Riding and herding. Those spurs that jingle-jangle-jingle. What is it about cowboys that so doggedly fires the imagination? Join the Mischief Corner authors as they give you their own unique takes on the cowboy mystique and mythos, from the American West, to Australia, to outer space. The cowboy story will never be the same…
Once A Cowboy - Toni Griffin
It's been six years since Jesse Howard has stepped foot on the Western Hills Cattle Station. Now that he's able, Jesse's returned. The problem is, he's not returning alone. Will Logan Kennedy, the love of his life, listen to Jesse's explanations or will Logan close the door on the future Jesse's dreamed about for so long.
Accounting for the Hero - Silvia Violet
Grant longs for a hero to ride up on his valiant steed and revive his failing ranch, but he hires, Miles, a man with a desperate need for a job and no ranch experience. Miles may know a lot more about bookkeeping than calf-roping, but that doesn’t mean he’s incapable of heroics or of capturing Grant’s heart.
Sock Poacher and the Shower Thief: Tall Tales of Hooper's Town 1 - Freddy MacKay
One step at a time, one foot in front of the other. All things are possible when someone steps outside their door. In Namid's case, he meets the town recluse, Dusty, when he gets attacked by Dusty's porch. And that's only the beginning.
BULL: Corralling Nature 1 - Mathilde Watson
Shy, awkward, and overweight, Roland Paulson wasn’t the kind of man who attracted a lot of amorous attention. His romantic life consisted of a series of short lived flings and one night stands with other men who were just as desperate. When propositioned by a charming cowboy with the body of a god, he expected sex. He never imagined the wild ride that would follow.
From the moment Dodge Bramen set eyes on the adorable red-head he wanted him. And Dodge was a man who gets what he wants. He had no trouble luring the guy into his bed, but keeping him there was a different story. Deep kept secrets and unexpected discoveries could either shatter their bond or break it.
Fear of Frogs: Brimstone 2 - Angel Martinez
While Shax recovers from a near fatality, his shipmates have been busy. He's rather proud of them taking the initiative and finding them a lucrative cargo run. His pride turns to outright horror, though, when he finds out what sort of cargo. Unfortunately, he'll soon discover that a healthy fear of frogs doesn't prevent frog-driven disasters. Time travel has never been so messy.
EXCERPT:
"Fuck, I hope we get some rain soon." Logan Kennedy sighed as he surveyed the dry and dusty land before him. Storm snorted beneath him and shook his head. Logan reached down and patted the gelding's crest, soothing the large animal.
"From your lips to God's ears, my friend," Bluey said from beside him. The older man slapped Logan on the back before he removed his akubra and wiped away the sweat currently beading on his forehead; then he settled his hat once again in place.
Bluey had been a fixture on the Western Hills Cattle Station for as long as Logan could remember. He had the brightest red hair Logan had seen this side of a dye job, but Bluey kept it cut short with a set of clippers. Logan had no idea why guys with red hair were nicknamed Bluey; it was just one of those things, he supposed. He'd never bothered to ask, and really, after all this time it didn't matter. Bluey was Bluey.
"Time to get back to it," Logan announced as he spurred Storm into motion below him. Storm had been named due to the huge thunderstorm he'd been born in the middle of. His damn horse had been so impatient to come into this world he hadn't cared one iota that it wasn't the most convenient of times for Logan and everyone else to be worried about a horse in labour. Thankfully, he had grown out of that impatience at a young age.
Looking out across the land, Logan took it all in. The bright blue skies without a single cloud in sight were not what he wanted to see. The ground was dry and dusty. They needed rain. The wet season usually ran for a good six months of the year, followed by a dry season where they wouldn't see a drop of rain and the temperatures dropped overnight.
By the time the wet was due to roll around again, everything looked as it currently did. Starved for water. Logan knew they had enough water to get them through, even though the last wet wasn't as good as previous years, they weren't in trouble yet. Still, it would be nice to get some rain and see another colour except brown for a change.
The day dragged on and as the sun made its way across the sky and started heading for the horizon, Logan and Bluey headed back to the homestead. After a day in the saddle checking on the herds and fences, Logan sighed with relief as he swung down from his horse.
With the cattle station being the size it was, a lot of the work got done using utes and ATVs, but no matter what, Logan loved being on horseback more than anything else. Any opportunity he had, he was in the saddle. The men that worked for Logan knew this, and on the days that he was able to pull himself away from the paperwork and the phone calls it took to run this place, they left the jobs closest to home for Logan.
This land was in his blood. The station had belonged to his daddy and his granddaddy before that. He'd grown up on this land. His blood, sweat and tears had all gone into the earth throughout the years, but Logan wouldn't have it any other way. He couldn't imagine doing anything other than what he did.
Yes, he'd had to sacrifice a few things along the way. His father had died on the land doing what he enjoyed, and as much as he missed his dad, Logan couldn't think of a better way to go. He'd also sacrificed love, but even that hadn't made Logan hate what he did. Jesse Howard was the love of his life, and Logan knew he'd never fall for another like he had for Jesse. They had grown up together, neighbours, had been friends all through school, but unlike Logan, who had been an only child, Jesse was the youngest of five.
Teenage hormones had run rampant through their systems, and one thing had led to another when they were seventeen. Logan could still remember the first time he had crowded Jesse against the side of the barn and swooped in to take his lips in a hard kiss. His heart had beat a mile a minute, scared his friend was going to push him away or worse, slug him. When Jesse had wrapped his arms around Logan's neck and kissed him back, Logan thought he'd died and gone to heaven.
It had been hard, but Logan and Jesse had managed to hide their relationship for five years before someone else found out about them.
Logan shook his head, wondering why all of a sudden he was thinking about things long buried in the past. Jesse was gone, and as much as it hurt, Logan didn't think he'd ever see the other man again.
"Fuck, I hope we get some rain soon." Logan Kennedy sighed as he surveyed the dry and dusty land before him. Storm snorted beneath him and shook his head. Logan reached down and patted the gelding's crest, soothing the large animal.
"From your lips to God's ears, my friend," Bluey said from beside him. The older man slapped Logan on the back before he removed his akubra and wiped away the sweat currently beading on his forehead; then he settled his hat once again in place.
Bluey had been a fixture on the Western Hills Cattle Station for as long as Logan could remember. He had the brightest red hair Logan had seen this side of a dye job, but Bluey kept it cut short with a set of clippers. Logan had no idea why guys with red hair were nicknamed Bluey; it was just one of those things, he supposed. He'd never bothered to ask, and really, after all this time it didn't matter. Bluey was Bluey.
"Time to get back to it," Logan announced as he spurred Storm into motion below him. Storm had been named due to the huge thunderstorm he'd been born in the middle of. His damn horse had been so impatient to come into this world he hadn't cared one iota that it wasn't the most convenient of times for Logan and everyone else to be worried about a horse in labour. Thankfully, he had grown out of that impatience at a young age.
Looking out across the land, Logan took it all in. The bright blue skies without a single cloud in sight were not what he wanted to see. The ground was dry and dusty. They needed rain. The wet season usually ran for a good six months of the year, followed by a dry season where they wouldn't see a drop of rain and the temperatures dropped overnight.
By the time the wet was due to roll around again, everything looked as it currently did. Starved for water. Logan knew they had enough water to get them through, even though the last wet wasn't as good as previous years, they weren't in trouble yet. Still, it would be nice to get some rain and see another colour except brown for a change.
The day dragged on and as the sun made its way across the sky and started heading for the horizon, Logan and Bluey headed back to the homestead. After a day in the saddle checking on the herds and fences, Logan sighed with relief as he swung down from his horse.
With the cattle station being the size it was, a lot of the work got done using utes and ATVs, but no matter what, Logan loved being on horseback more than anything else. Any opportunity he had, he was in the saddle. The men that worked for Logan knew this, and on the days that he was able to pull himself away from the paperwork and the phone calls it took to run this place, they left the jobs closest to home for Logan.
This land was in his blood. The station had belonged to his daddy and his granddaddy before that. He'd grown up on this land. His blood, sweat and tears had all gone into the earth throughout the years, but Logan wouldn't have it any other way. He couldn't imagine doing anything other than what he did.
Yes, he'd had to sacrifice a few things along the way. His father had died on the land doing what he enjoyed, and as much as he missed his dad, Logan couldn't think of a better way to go. He'd also sacrificed love, but even that hadn't made Logan hate what he did. Jesse Howard was the love of his life, and Logan knew he'd never fall for another like he had for Jesse. They had grown up together, neighbours, had been friends all through school, but unlike Logan, who had been an only child, Jesse was the youngest of five.
Teenage hormones had run rampant through their systems, and one thing had led to another when they were seventeen. Logan could still remember the first time he had crowded Jesse against the side of the barn and swooped in to take his lips in a hard kiss. His heart had beat a mile a minute, scared his friend was going to push him away or worse, slug him. When Jesse had wrapped his arms around Logan's neck and kissed him back, Logan thought he'd died and gone to heaven.
It had been hard, but Logan and Jesse had managed to hide their relationship for five years before someone else found out about them.
Logan shook his head, wondering why all of a sudden he was thinking about things long buried in the past. Jesse was gone, and as much as it hurt, Logan didn't think he'd ever see the other man again.