The Ashtons - Cole, Abigail & Megan

who knew them could verify the fact that they loved each other and were very happy. But could he and Abby do the same?
    Buckling the last of the chaps’ leather straps, Russ sank down onto one of the benches in the dressing room and thought about how much Abby meant to him. He’dnever been in love before, but he knew beyond a shadow of doubt that he loved her with all of his heart and soul.
    She’d said that his lack of a college education didn’t matter to her, nor did she care that he didn’t have much of anything to offer her beyond himself. But could she really be happy with him for the rest of their days? Had he made the biggest mistake of his life when he’d broken things off with her?
    “Hey, Gannon, are you going to sit there daydreaming, or are you going to ride your draw?” one of the other bull riders called from the doorway. “You’re up next.”
    Rising to his feet, he walked to the back of the bucking chutes and climbed the steps to the raised platform. He cringed when he noticed his draw. The Shredder had a wicked set of horns, and had earned his name because of the way he used them after he’d bucked off a rider.
    When a cowboy tied himself to the back of a bull, he needed every ounce of concentration he possessed to make a successful ride. But The Shredder was bad news, even when a rider had his mind on the business at hand. Unfortunately, Russ wasn’t concentrating on the bull he was about to ride. He was too busy thinking about the only woman he’d ever loved.
    But taking a turn out wasn’t his style, and, stepping over the side of the chute, he settled himself on the duncolored Brahma’s back. J.B. helped him pull his ropetight around the bull’s belly, then handed the excess to Russ for him to wrap around his hand.
    “You sure you want to do this?” J.B. asked, looking doubtful.
    “I might as well,” Russ answered, as he jammed his Resistol down tight on his head to keep from losing it during the ride. “In case you hadn’t noticed, it’s a little late to back out now.”
    “Then, cowboy, up and ride that son of a gun,” J.B. said, grinning.
    Russ knew what his friend was trying to do. J.B. was trying to pump him up and get Russ to concentrate on staying with the bull, jump for jump. He appreciated the encouragement, but as he slipped his mouth guard into place and nodded for the gate man to open the chute, he realized it was going to take more than J.B.’s good wishes for him to make a successful ride.
    The Shredder came out of the chute as though someone had set off a keg of dynamite under him, and the first bone-jarring jump had Russ shifting his weight to stay in the middle of the big animal’s back. But he knew he was in serious trouble when the bull twisted in midair, then settled into a flat spin. Jerked backward and to the side, centrifugal force took over, and Russ found himself flying through the air sideways. His landing on the soft dirt floor of the arena wasn’t graceful, but as the bullfighters moved in, hethanked the good Lord above that nothing more than his pride had been damaged.
    He started to scramble to his feet and sprint for the safety of the fence, but it suddenly felt as if he’d been hit from behind by a freight train. All of the air left his lungs in one big whoosh, and as he fell forward, he felt something hard connect with the side of his head. Pain exploded behind his eyes, and as the peaceful curtain of unconsciousness began to close in around him, his last thought and the last word on his lips was, “Abby.”

Chapter Ten
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    B y the time she and Nina had made their way from the seats to the training room at the back of the stadium, Abby was shaking all over, and her heart pounded inside her chest. She’d been horrified to see the big, ugly bull ignore the bullfighters and set his sights on running Russ down. But when one of the animal’s hooves grazed his head, knocking him unconscious, she’d thought she’d die right then and there. She’d never in her life experienced such abject terror.
    “I’m sorry, ladies, but you’ll have to return to your seats,” a security guard said, stopping them in the hall.“The only people allowed in the training room are medical personnel.”
    Thinking fast, Abby nodded. “My name is Dr. Abigail Ashton. I’m Mr. Gannon’s doctor.”
    Technically, she did have a medical degree, just not one for treating people. That’s why she’d purposely avoided calling herself Russ’s