Spotlight & Giveaway: Cowboy Rebel by Carolyn Brown

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Carolyn Brown to HJ!

Hi Carolyn and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Cowboy Rebel!

 
Good morning, and thank you for inviting me back to visit with all y’all again.
 

To start off, can you please tell us a little bit about this book?:

Taggart Baker has always lived life on the edge, making the country song, “Live Like You Were Dying” his motto, after his best friend died in a motorcycle accident when they were eighteen.
Trauma nurse Nikki Grady likes life slow and steady. She has too much drama in her job to want a man who’s only going to create more headaches. But there’s something in Tag’s haunting crystal clear blue eyes draws her to him like flies to honey.
 

Please share your favorite lines or quote(s) from this book:

This is a little short snippet from a favorite scene in the book:

“What happened?” she asked. “Looks like you were the only one at a knife fight without a knife.”
“Beer bottle.” Tag tried to grin but it hurt like hell. “Just glue me up. Give it a kiss to help it heal and call my brother Hud.”
“Honey, with this much blood loss and the fact that I’m lookin’ at your bone, it’s goin’ to take more than glue and a kiss,” Nikki said.
And these are a couple of my favorite quotes:
#1:“Lord have mercy.” She laid one hand over her heart and fanned her face with the other one. “That cowboy could melt my panties with those blue eyes.”
#2: “Why’s it so important for me to go out with you anyway?” Nikki asked.
“Because he’s never been rejected, not one time in his whole life,” Hud answered.
Nikki reached up and gently patted him on the cheek. “Poor baby.”

What inspired this book?

Tag came to me with his hat in his hand, telling me that he had this bad boy, devil-may-care, reputation, but he really wanted to settle down and straighten up his act. I knew just the right woman to introduce him to…Nikki from Cowboy Brave!

How did you ‘get to know’ your main characters? Did they ever surprise you?

My characters always, always surprise me. Nikki’s told me more about her past and her mother in this book than she’d let me know in Cowboy Brave. And Tag’s past was way more complicated than I’d thought in the beginning.

What was your favorite scene to write?

It would be difficult to choose my favorite scene since I loved writing this whole story so much. But maybe this was one of them: (They’re in the hospital emergency room when this takes place)

Taggart, or Tag as the family called him, was one of those men who turned every woman’s eye when he walked into a place—even a hospital emergency room. The nurses, old and young alike, were buzzing about him before Nikki even got him into the cubicle. With that chiseled face, those piercing blue eyes, a cowboy swagger, and a smile that would make a religious woman want to drink whiskey and do the two-step, it’s a wonder he hadn’t already put one of those “take a number and wait” machines on the front porch post of his house.
“The doctor is on his way. He just finished stitchin’ up a patient with a knife wound. From the looks of you, I’d think you’d been in on that fight.” Nikki applied pressure to the cut with a wad of gauze.
The curtain between the cubicles flew to one side, and a white-coated guy came over to the bed. “What have we got here? I’m Dr. Richards.” He gently lifted the edge of the gauze. “Knife?”
“Beer bottle,” Tag said.
“Well, the first thing we have to do is shave off that scruff. Deaden it up and then shave off the area around it, Nikki. I’ll take care of the kid who thought he could ride his skateboard down a slide, and I’ll be right back,” Dr. Richards said.
“Yes, sir.” Nikki nodded.
The doctor had been instrumental in getting Nikki her first job as a registered nurse, and she really admired him. An older man with a white rim of hair around an otherwise bald head covered in freckles, he was the best when it came to stitches, in Nikki’s opinion. Tag was a lucky cowboy that Dr. Richards was on call that night. It could have been an intern doing the embroidery on his face, and it would be such a shame to leave a scar on something that sexy.
“You still going to go out with me even though I’m clean shaven and got a scar?” Tag asked her as she prepared to shave part of his face.
“If I don’t work, I don’t eat, and I’m real fond of cheeseburgers,” she answered.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” He winced when she picked up a needle to start the local anesthetic.
“That I don’t have time to take a number and wait in line behind all those other women wanting to get a chance at taming you,” she answered.
He wrapped his hand around her wrist before she started. “I’d move you to the front of the line, darlin’.”
“Well, ain’t that sweet.” She patted his hand and ignored the heat between them. “But, honey, you’re way too fast for this little country girl. Now be still and let me get this ready for Dr. Richards.”

What was the most difficult scene to write?

There were several difficult scenes to write. Mainly because they were so emotional. Here’s one (Tag and Nikki have gone fishing)

Nikki sat down with her back to the log, took a worm from the container, and baited her hook. “We stayed over there because we knew Eli Johnson wouldn’t come across the water to fuss at us. And if he did, it’s only about a hundred yards from the creek to the road back there, so we could outrun him.”
“Why’d you come here?”
“The water is spring fed, so it’s always cold. We’d cross the Red River to Terral, Oklahoma, where they grow lots of watermelons. We’d steal three or four, bring them here, and put them in the water to chill. Then we would split them open and have a feast.” She tossed the line out into the water.
“I can’t believe you stole watermelons,” he chuckled.
“Don’t tell my mama, but I drank beer on those nights too.” She wiggled around until she was comfortable but kept a firm hold on the rod. Some of us actually fished and if anyone caught anything, we’d build a fire up next to the edge of the water and cook it.”
“I should’ve known you’d fished before, the way you baited that hook.”
Nikki’s red and white bobber danced out there on top of the water. She took a deep breath. “My dad knew Eli Johnson, and I used to come here with Daddy to fish when I was a little girl, back before Quint got sick. Last time we were here was just before my brother died. Guess it kind of brings back memories.”
“I’m sorry, maybe we could load up and go up to the Red River,” he said.
“No, they’re good memories. It’s just that when we were in high school, I was still struggling with everything,” she said. “I’m pretty much past that now.”
“Want to talk about it?” Tag laced his hook with two worms and tossed it out a few feet from hers.
“Nothing to talk about, really. Mama was always sick with something, supposedly, and Daddy was gone much of the time. He drove a truck out of Dallas through the week, but he got to come home every Friday night. Saturday, he’d try to do something with me and Quint. Fishing when the weather was good. Hiking sometimes in the fall, but it was always away from the house and Mama’s constant nagging. Then Sunday morning we’d go to church, and afterwards I’d make our dinner and he’d have to go back to Dallas for his next run.”
Tag sat down beside her. “I think Eli used the log for a bench, but it makes a better backrest. I can’t imagine not having a dad around all the time.”
“It was a way of life for us. We couldn’t wait until Friday nights. When he left on Sunday, Quint and I cried. But not where he or Mama could see it. It would make him sad, and Mama would think we were sick and want to give us some kind of awful medicine. So we’d go to my room and cry together.”
Tag leaned over slightly and touched her shoulder with his. “Anyone ever tell you say that you had a dysfunctional family?”
“Oh, yeah, I knew that the first time I brought a friend home with me after school and Mama told me we’d have to stay outside until her mama came to get her.”
“That’s harsh,” Tag said.
“I didn’t ever do it again.” Watching the bobber was mesmerizing.

Would you say this book showcases your writing style or is it a departure for you?

I’d say this showcases it very well. It’s bad boy cowboy vs. independent woman. I like writing about sassy women and hope it will give women confidence to let their own sass show when they read my books.

What do you want people to take away from reading this book?

That there’s always room for change in any life. And that change is good!

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

I’m working on a woman’s fiction called The Banty House right now. Upcoming releases are The Empty Nesters (August) and Christmas with a Cowboy (September). There are a few reissues coming up this year also…I Love This Bar and Hell, Yeah, and the first two books in the Cadillac Series (The Blue Ribbon Jalapeno Society Jubilee and The Red Hot Chili Cook Off) are being reissued as The Sister’s Cafe and The Shop on Main Street with brand new covers.

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: I’ll giveaway a signed copy of Cowboy Rebel and a $10 Amazon gift card.

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: What cowboy–fictional or living–would you like to have dinner with?

 
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Excerpt from Cowboy Rebel:

After hearing her story, Tag realized what a safe and love-filled environment he’d had the privilege of growing up in. No wonder Nikki was so independent and untrusting. He suddenly felt the need to call his mama and dad and thank them for all they’d done for him. He had been such a wild child, and he regretted all the nights when his mother probably laid awake wondering where he was.
“I guess I’ll have to pay for my raising someday,” he muttered.
“What was that?” Nikki asked.
“Just thinking of my own family and how I can’t expect to have an easy life of parenthood. Everyone has to pay for their raising,” he said.
“Your poor babies,” she giggled. “Speaking of which. How’s the jaw since the stitches came out?”
“Little tender yet. Dr. Richards said it’ll still take a while to heal since the cut was so deep. And I do get to ride again. ’Course, the next ranch rodeo isn’t for two weeks. Last day of this month to be exact. You going to be there to see me ride?”
“Probably, unless Emily needs me over at Longhorn Canyon. That’s the day before the kids come in for the summer. I told her I’d help out with whatever she needs since it’s her first time to be a bunkhouse supervisor,” Nikki answered. “I don’t think there’s a fish in this creek anymore. We haven’t even had a nibble since we got here.”
“We need a beer. Can’t expect to catch anything if you aren’t drinking a beer. Fish come around when they catch the wonderful smell of cold beer,” he teased as he opened the cooler and brought out two bottles. He twisted the lid off both of them and handed one to her. He took a sip, then set it to the side and reeled in his line.
“Givin’ up?” she asked.
“Nope, just sharin’.” He held the top of the hook with one hand and poured beer over the worms with the other. “Give the fish a little taste of something good instead of plain old worms.”
“You’re crazy,” Nikki laughed.
There’d been so much sadness in her eyes when she talked about her family, and now one silly stunt with a few drops of beer made her eyes glitter again. Tag was suddenly floating on air for doing that for her.
“Been told that lots of times,” he chuckled. “Can’t deny it. Won’t admit it.”
“That old Fifth Amendment thing, huh?”
“Yep.” He tossed the line back into the water, and immediately the bobber sank. “See, crazy works.” He got so excited that he knocked his bottle of beer over.
She grabbed it before it spilled even a single drop. “Don’t waste beer just because you’ve got Moby Dick on the line.”
“Thanks,” he said as he brought in a nice-sized catfish. “A couple more of these and we’ll have us a fish fry. You’re invited even if you don’t catch anything.”
“Well, thank you for that, but my bobber is doing a cute little two-step out there.” She motioned out to the creek with her bottle and then took a long draw. “That’ll give me the strength to get it in. Want to bet who’s got the biggest fish?”
“Sure. Winner has to kiss the loser.”
She hauled in a bass about half the size of his catfish. “Guess this means you have to kiss me. Think you can stand it?”
Tag removed the fish from her hook and put it on the stringer with his. Then he took it to the edge of the creek and staked it in the soft mud and rinsed his hands. When he returned, she was in the process of baiting a hook and pouring a little of his beer on it.
“Hey, now, you got to use your own beer.” He plopped down on the quilt beside her. “It don’t work if you use someone else’s.”
“Bull crap,” she said.
“Before you throw that line in the water, you owe me a kiss. Mine was bigger.”
She laid the rod and reel down, threw a leg over his body so that she was sitting in his lap, and removed his old straw hat. Then she drew his face to hers and kissed him—long, hard, and with so much passion that he was panting when it ended.
“Damn, lady, I hope that all my fish are bigger than yours today,” he said between short breaths.
“After that kiss, you’re calling me a lady. What constitutes a lady?” She shifted her body until she was back at her original spot. She tossed her line out in the water and took a sip of beer.
“You do, Nikki,” he said. “If you look up the word ‘lady’ in the dictionary, I’m sure you’ll find your picture beside it.”
“And where would I find your picture?” she asked.
“Beside the word ‘rebel,’ but I think it’s beginning to fade.” He smiled.
“And how does that affect you?”
“Some days I’m good with it. Some days not so much. Guess I’m still on the fence.”
She watched her bobber go down and reeled in a catfish, not as big as his, but a good size. “A barbed wire fence can get pretty uncomfortable.”
He took the fish off and put it on the stringer. “I know it all too well. The barbed wire is biting into my butt pretty good.”
“You deserve it,” she told him as she put another worm on her hook and slung it out to the middle of the creek.
“You are a tough lady,” he said as he poured some of his beer over the worms on his hook and then finished it off.
“Had to be to survive. Don’t know how to be any other way now.”
He watched both bobbers as they moved down the creek in the current, not touching but close to each other. Remembering what his granny had told him when he was making a difficult decision about not being able to ride two horses with one ass, he began to imagine himself crawling off the barbed wire fence.
“But which side am I on?” he muttered.
“You’re talkin’ to yourself again,” she said. “Look at that. It’s like there’s a magnet in our bobbers drawing them close together.”
“I know the feelin’,” he said, giving her a meaningful look. “How about you?”
“Little bit, but to be honest, I had a bad experience with a relationship last spring. It was getting pretty serious when I found out he was married, and his wife was pregnant,” she said.
“And he’s still alive?” Tag chuckled. “Did you have that pistol back then?”
“Oh, yeah, but I couldn’t take a daddy from a baby, even if he was a sorry daddy,” she said. “Just thought you should know before we take this any farther. I’m not sure why I feel like I can talk to you like this, Tag. It doesn’t have anything to do with chemistry, but more friendship.”
“It’s because we’re both troubled souls,” he whispered.
“Maybe so. I need closure, and you do too,” she said.
“You got it, darlin’. I’ve never talked to anyone about serious things like I have you, so thank you for that,” he said. “And anytime you need to talk about anything, my door is open.”
“Thank you. Mine too,” she said.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

The next heartwarming romance in this USA Today bestselling series proves it’s tough to resist a sexy cowboy with a Texas drawl and heart of gold!

Taggart Baker has always lived life on the edge, making the country song, “Live Like You Were Dying” his motto, after his best friend died in a motorcycle accident when they were eighteen. But after one bad brush with the law, he realized it was time to move on. Now he’s looking thirty in the eye and running his own ranch next to the Longhorn Canyon spread in Texas. Still, no one would ever call him tame…

Trauma nurse Nikki Grady likes life slow and steady. She has too much drama in her job to want a man who’s only going to create more headaches. But when her best friend’s younger brother shows up in the ER after a bull-riding accident, something in his haunting crystal clear blue eyes draws her to him like flies to honey. The more time they spend together, the more Nikki begins to relish the idea of his cowboy in her life forever. But just as Tag is ready to ditch his wild ways for good, his past comes calling, threatening not only their love, but their lives.

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Meet the Author:

Carolyn Brown is a New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Publisher’s Weekly and #1 Amazon and #1 Washington Post bestselling author and a RITA finalist. Cowboy Rebel is her 97th published book on the market. She’s a recipient of the Bookseller’s Best Award, and the prestigious Montlake Diamond Award, and also a three-time recipient of the National Reader’s Choice Award.
Brown has been published for more than 20 years, and her books have been translated 18 foreign languages. They’ve also been published in both book club editions and large print, and many are available in audio format. She and her husband live in the small town of Davis, Oklahoma, where everyone knows everyone else, as well as what they’re doing and when—and they read the local newspaper on Wednesday to see who got caught. They have three grown children and enough grandchildren to keep them young.
When she’s not writing, Carolyn likes to plot new stories in her backyard with her tom cat, Boots Randolph Terminator Outlaw, who protects the yard from all kinds of wicked varmints like crickets, locusts, and spiders. Visit her at www.carolynbrownbooks.com.
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