Historic Western Romance Quotes

His gaze lingered on her mouth, wide and sweet. A sudden hunger to kiss her made him draw Maggie close. He pressed his mouth against hers, softly, a gently caress, not a searing kiss, for he didn't want to frighten her away.
Her hand on his arm tightened.
Caleb ran his tongue smoothly over her lips until she opened to him, making a small sound. He wanted to plunge his tongue into her mouth and deepen the kiss, to pull her against him and slide his hands over her curves, but he knew that brute of a husband had hurt her. This was only supposed to be a light flirtation, so he held back and waited for her to lead.
Maggie pulled back a few inches. Her eyes fluttered open, dark and luminous, the gold flecks sparkling in the sun. She swallowed and moistened her lips. She studied his face. Her generous mouth trembled, and then her lips turned up. "Why did you kiss me?
"Because I enjoyed your enjoyment in our drive today. I know how seldom pleasures come your way, and I was glad to give you the experience. Because I lack appreciation of my blessings..." 'Because you are mine.'
Caleb didn't want to delve deeper inside himself to find his true feelings, so he resorted to some light banter. He touched the tip of her nose with one finger. "This is the month of May. A man is supposed to steal kisses in May. ~ Debra Holland

You let me kiss you, but you won't let me take you out on a date." He shook his head. "Maybe I'm going about this the wrong way. Maybe I need to convince you that you can't live without me."
She raised her brows. "How are you going to do that?"
"I'll show you." He pressed closer as his hands roamed down her body. "But it might take all night. That okay with you?"
"I've got nowhere else to be ... ~ Cat Johnson

My outlook has changed, Antonia. Last year this time, I'd bemoaned the ruined hay." He shrugged. "Now I know what real loss is. So I'm seeing things differently. ~ Debra Holland

Before he could decide what to do, he heard a female voice call out, "Pepe? Mack?"
Pepe recognized the voice as belonging to Senora Rodriguez. No, Senora Thompson. There'd been a wedding in late summer. He hurried out to the main part of the barn to see what she wanted.
Senora Thompson stood just inside the entrance, holding the reins of her mare, Bianca, a black beauty with four white stockings and a blaze down her nose her husband had given her after their marriage. ~ Debra Holland

Ahhh, darlin', the women won't even glance my way."
She squeezed. "If they do, they'll learn that I'm a damn good shot. ~ Carolyn Brown

You're pretty low maintenance, as women go."
"I am, am I?" She sounded amused.
"Yeah. Like a cactus. ~ Roxanne Snopek

How are you this morning? You get up in time for your workout?"
"Yeah. Just finished that. It was just a run ... well, a run in full combat uniform including our packs, but it was only five miles so not so bad."
Her eyes opened wide. "Oh, sure. That's nothing. I do at least that every morning, you know, before tea. ~ Cat Johnson

Mrs. Flanigan made this for you and dropped it off earlier. So pretty, wouldn't you agree?"...
"White roses - the bride's flower," Mrs. Norton said with a lilt in her voice. "For unity, purity, and a love stronger than death." She touched the edge of a blossom. "And, in addition, you have chrysanthemums for fidelity, optimism, joy, and long life, with the color white standing for truth and loyal love."
As if caught in a spell, Grace stared at the flowers, a lump forming in her throat, the words echoing in her mind... Joy, truth, fidelity, a love stronger than death.
Mrs. Flanigan chuckled. "Mrs. Norton, you make the bouquet sound so poetic. I'm afraid I can't take credit for such a romantic arrangement. I chose the only white flowers still blooming in my garden. ~ Debra Holland

I was going to go to bed early and maybe read for a little bit."
"Reading. Wow. Not sure I know many girls who do that."
Her brows rose. "Then you're hanging out with the wrong girls."
"No doubt. I most definitely have been ... in the past, but I've raised my standards a bit recently. ~ Cat Johnson

The tiny body was slippery, and he held her tightly, afraid she'd slither out of his grip. He rotated the infant face-up, holding her about ten inches away from his face. The top of her head had a slight cone shape. Her blue-tinged hands pinked. The baby's eyes were open, alert and seemingly amazed.
They connected with his.
A jolt of intense feeling, of recognition, flowed between them. As he gazed on the scrunched features of the infant, love surged through him. He'd never felt such a feeling before, and his chest ached with the joyful pressure. Caleb wanted to curl her to his chest and keep her safe. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, inhaling a scent that surprised him with its sweetness.
"My baby?" Maggie asked.
The infant broke eye contact with Caleb and turned her face toward the sound of her mother's voice. He blinked back moisture from his eyes and grinned. "You have a beautiful daughter. ~ Debra Holland

Katie Lane is a wonderful new voice in Western romance fiction. ~ Joan Johnston

Nicole Powell of Decatur, Georgia, was off-limits to hot cowboy lawyers. There was no way in hell she was going to return home with her tail between her legs all because she'd let him put HIS there. ~ Victoria Vane

Dalton gaped at something in the stream.
"Did you see that trout? Where's my fishing pole when I need it?" He was leaning so far over she feared he might fall in headfirst. She grasped his arm and pulled him back.
"You made that up," she laughed. "You didn't see a fish. Trout don't swim at night."
"What makes you think that? They don't have a little house to go home to when the sun goes down, with a small woodstove and comfortable bed. ~ Caroline Fyffe

She sighed. "What I wouldn't give for a civilized bathroom."
Howie remained silent out of habit and also because he didn't know what a civilized bathroom was. ~ Debra Holland

His heart found something that it doesn't want to live without, he whispered. ~ Carolyn Brown

I heard through the Verdie grapevine yesterday that the sexy cowboy who lives in this house likes gingersnaps."
"Sexy?" One dark eyebrow shot up. "That's according to the grapevine," she said.
"I kind of like the grapevine then. ~ Carolyn Brown

When Tucker glanced in Becca's direction and saw her watching, he smiled and winked. That one move, just a wink, made her knees go weak. She swallowed hard and knew with complete certainty, she was going to do it - she was going to spend the night with him. ~ Cat Johnson

She looked up and their eyes locked. "Want to be my birthday present?" she asked in a breathy whisper.
Chase's mother didn't raise any fools. He released her hips and trailed his hand down her arm until their fingers entwined.
"Let's get out of here."
He tugged her from the dance floor, trying not to rush like he was running from a fire. But, damn. There was a fire in his britches. ~ Tamara Hoffa

Even through her coat, he could feel the curve of her arm, making him aware of their differences.
Man and woman.
Hard and soft. ~ Debra Holland

Charlie Rose is too much of a ladies' man for my liking. He thinks a lot of himself with his bluer-than-blue eyes and charming smile. I'm sure in his day he's enchanted more women than we have horses."
Nell gave the mare a quick hug and kissed her neck. "Sorry again, Georgia." With a lighthearted chuckle, she stepped through the gate.
And came face-to-face with Charlie. ~ Caroline Fyffe

Rory's big labradoodle made a snap judgement that Frankie was everything her life had been missing up until now. She flung herself into the girl's arms, wiggling and whining, a shaggy mass of chocolate-colored enthusiasm.
"Mistral likes you, I see." While he, the one who filled the dog's food dish, had gotten nothing but suspicious glances since he arrived two days earlier.
"of course you like me" she said, baby-talking into the dog's fur, "I'm extremely likeable."
If the dog's expression was any indication, Frankie was about to get nominated for sainthood....
She glanced at him. "Maybe she'd like you more if you weren't so... testosterone-y."
"But then you might like me less ~ Roxanne Snopek

She was everything he loved about a woman wrapped up in a cute little package. Golden blonde hair was secured to the top of her head in a ponytail, he bet it would reach her waist when it was loose. Her body was curvy in all the right places, her breasts more than filled out the T-shirt she was wearing and those hips, dang he could just imagine holding onto them while she rode him, instead of Big Red. ~ Tamara Hoffa

Chase looked up from his beer when the bar door opened again, and his eyes widened. Hot damn! There was a goddess standing in the doorway. Holy shit, that was one hot woman ... and that hair? He could already feel it sliding against his skin as she rode him like a wild stallion. Bet it will feel like silk. ~ Tamara Hoffa

There are two types of people: those that are going somewhere and those that ain't. ~ Lee Marvin

Then swear you'll make this so damn good I won't regret it in the morning."
His mouth molded into that sexy, dimpled grin. "Darlin', the only thing you're going to regret is putting me off for so long. ~ Victoria Vane

Despite everything, every piece of Alaska sang to me. I remembered every curve in the trails, every tree in the forest. It was familiar to me, comfortable. The more I thought about leaving it, the less I liked the idea. This was my home. ~ Summer Lane

Her demon had pursued and seduced him. She hoped he hadn't placed too much importance on that. ~ Paula Altenburg

Why should I mind?" She drummed her fingertips against his knee. "Because you got asked to play baseball, while I got a lecture on circumspection, Jezebels, and leading men into sin?"
"Did you really?" He managed to sound annoyed, fascinated, and amused all at once.
"It's not funny."
"Of course it's not." He was quick to try and placate her. "But we can do something about those lectures real quick. All you have to do is marry me."
Coyote Bluff had too many secrets that weren't hers to share. She couldn't put him in that position. He was a federal marshal. And she'd seen what all the lies her father told had done to her mother. She'd died hating him.
The last remnants of her earlier contentment vanished. "I like my independence."
"Then I guess you'll have to get used to the lectures, Sheriff Jezebel," he replied. ~ Paula Altenburg

"You might have figured out she has a thing for guys in uniform."
"A perfect match." He grinned. "Garcia has a thing for girls with a thing. ~ Victoria Vane

Do you deny that you want me, Miranda?" he whispered seductively. His gaze dropped to her mouth. Was he going to kiss her? Her nerves coiled tighter, her anticipation ramping up another notch. "Isn't that the real reason you came out here with me?" His mouth hovered inches from hers, his hot, humid breath inciting tiny ripples down her spine. "If I can't hear it from your lips, I'll make your body speak. ~ Victoria Vane

Darlin', he is so damn sexy that my underpants crawled all the way to my ankles. ~ Carolyn Brown

American literature has, since the time of the Puritans, featured the jeremiad as a prolonged complaint, a prophet's indictment of his society characteristic of work such as the muckrakers' novels or Allan Ginsberg's "Howl." Doctorow struggles to accommodate this form to his artistry (as successful practitioners of the work have always done). To this end, he has repeatedly adapted genres such as the Western, the romance, and the detective novel, often playing with accepted conventions, and thus avoiding didacticism. ~ Michelle M. Tokarczyk

Story of her life. The first cute guy she'd seen in what felt like ages and she met him at a dive bar located in another state hours away from where she lived. ~ Cat Johnson

Nick laughed. "We'll have a celebration, all right. It's called Christmas."
"She's a Christmas baby? On the actual day?"
"Came a month earlier than we expected. Elizabeth had organized the children into a Christmas choir and planned a big party after the service on Christmas Eve." Nick chuckled. "She was not pleased when her pains started beforehand. ~ Debra Holland

Five months later, he still wasn't over it. After seeing so many guys dumped during deployments - and now having experienced it himself - he'd banished any thought of women from his mind. ~ Victoria Vane

Getting shot wasn't an issue of skill; it was an issue of chance. And Justice had a bullet-sized issue of chance lodged in her shoulder. ~ Ashley Nikole

She didn't need anyone to tell her he was all wrong for her and yet… ~ B.J. Daniels

She pulled her arm free from his grasp and stood back, her arms crossed. "So, what then? You're holding me hostage? Are you even really a sheriff?"
"I am," he said, highly amused at her attempt at bravado. "You wanna see my badge? ~ Roxanne Snopek

Damn right, cowboy. ~ Leslea Tash

His lips met hers in a long, lingering, passionate kiss that made her knees go weaker than ever before. His big hand held her head firmly as he deepened the kiss.
Forget the damn coat. All he had to do was kiss her about every two hours and she could run through the snow naked as a newborn baby and not even feel the cold. ~ Carolyn Brown

I particularly want you to meet Miss Bucholtz."
The very idea made him uneasy. "Why is that,
Ma'am?" he bluntly asked.
Mrs. Morgan hesitated. "Keep this under your hat, mind you."
"Yes, Ma'am."
She let out a tired sigh. "I've brought Miss Bucholtz to replace Mr. Gabellini."
Howie pictured a dried up old spinster with the same commanding presence as Mrs. Morgan, a real battle-axe.
"Fireworks are coming. Are you sure a woman is the right, uh, person for the job?"
"Bertha Bucholz is one of the best cooks I know. I guarantee by this time next month, you men will all be sporting five extra pounds. ~ Debra Holland

He'd stolen a kiss, and been transported to heaven. "I won't say I'm sorry, Susanna. Even if you think I should."
Her lips looked kissed and a bit plump. "I didn't ask you to. ~ Caroline Fyffe

I stabbed him," Lizzy said bluntly. "That's how he got that scar."
"Why? I'm sorry. That's personal. I shouldn't ask that." She blushed.
"It's okay." Lizzy laid a hand on the woman's arm. "I was mad at a woman for flirting with him and he tried to take the knife away from me. It was an accident."
"I'll be right back with your drinks and appetizer." She turned so fast that she ran into a bus boy with a tray of dirty glasses and he had to do some fancy footwork to keep it all from hitting the floor.
"Lying on Sunday?" Toby chuckled. "The preacher will make you deliver the benediction next week as penance."
-Lizzy, a waitress and Toby ~ Carolyn Brown

The motorcycle's headlights cut through the darkness. Ahead the road was nothing but a black hole. She roared toward it. ~ B. J. Daniels

She felt his fingers caress her scalp, the sensations swift, heated shocks rocking through her body. His breath was punctuated against her cheek and nose. The tension mounted in him until Shiloh felt as if he would snap and break, unleashing that throbbing sexual power she sensed so intensely around him. ~ Lindsay McKenna

Lily studied the rock garden. On a long, low hill that sloped to the stream, someone had set stones into the side and planted wildflowers in the pockets of dirt above them. They made her think of opera boxes filled with ladies in colorful gowns. Tyler's mother must have loved cool tones. Lily admired the blues, purples and pinks of the different flowers... ~ Debra Holland

Roan studied the photo in his hand. Shiloh Gallagher
had to be twenty-nine years old according to what Maud
had told him. Damned if she didn't look twenty-five or so,
her features unlined. She wasn't model pretty, but she had
an arresting face, with huge intelligent-looking green eyes.
His gaze dropped to her mouth and he felt himself stir. Her
mouth would make any man go crazy. Her upper lip was
full, but thinner than her lower one. The shape of her mouth
made him feel heat in his lower body. "Is she married?"

"No," Maud said. She's single. Never did marry. I don't know why. Shiloh's
a beautiful girl."

She was hardly a girl, but Roan said nothing because he
was fully reacting to her as a woman. He wondered if she
was curvy or rail thin. He was disgruntled over his avid
curiosity. "I have no problem with it. You know I get up
early and come in late. She's going to have to fend for herself.
I'm not cooking for her."

"Right," Maud agreed. "She's pretty shaken up, Roan.
You might find that stressful until, hopefully, Shiloh will
start to relax."

Shrugging, he slid the photo onto the desk. "Maud, I just
hope I don't stress her out with my award-winning personality,"
he said, and he cracked a small, sour grin.

Maud cackled. "I think you'll like her, Roan. She's a
very kind person. An introvert like you. Just remembe ~ Lindsay McKenna

Becca watched Tucker bend at the waist. Mmm, mmm. He was sure built nice. From the top of his felt hat to the tips of his worn leather boots. Those leather chaps he'd just slung around his hips weren't too bad, either.
He reached back to buckle the chap straps first around one jean-clad thigh, and then the other. And she'd thought the rodeo would be boring. Ha! She could watch Tucker do this all day. Buckle and unbuckle. Bend and stand.
She let out a sign filled with pure contentment. "All right, Em. I'll admit it. Cowboys are hot."
Next to her, Emma laughed. "Oh, yeah. ~ Cat Johnson

Caught the Viking looking at this. He's wife hunting." He winked at Frey before glancing down at Trudy. "Better than trying to capture one."
Frey sent Seth a mock scowl. "I left my battle axe at home. ~ Debra Holland

When she woke in the morning, there would be no glass on the floor. No comforter lying on the chair. Hawk Cahill, the cowboy hero to the rescue, would have been only a dream in the middle of her waking nightmare. ~ B.J. Daniels