top of page
Search

The Rancher by Cynthia Woolf is a Celebrate Mothers Bookish Event pick #billionaireromance #romance #mothersday #giveaway

  • Writer: N. N. Light
    N. N. Light
  • May 8
  • 6 min read


Title: THE RANCHER            

 

Author: Cynthia Woolf

 

Genre: Contemporary Billionaire Romance

 

Book Blurb:

 

Veterinarian Lyris Jennings accepts a position at Whispering Winds Ranch, hoping for a fresh start—a quiet place to heal animals and leave her painful past behind. What she doesn’t expect is her new boss, billionaire horse breeder Ray Kincaid, to be as ruggedly protective as he is devoted to his teenage daughter, Maddy. Ray has spent years keeping his emotions locked away, determined to shield Maddy from further heartbreak. But from the moment Lyris arrives, she awakens something in him he thought was lost forever.

 

Just as Lyris begins to believe she’s found safety at Whispering Winds, danger creeps in from the shadows of Ray’s past. Someone is watching, waiting—and Lyris is caught in the crosshairs. When strange accidents escalate into real threats, Ray realizes the danger he thought he buried long ago has returned, and this time, it’s not just his own life on the line.

 

With the past threatening to tear them apart and an unseen enemy closing in, Ray will stop at nothing to protect Lyris. But as secrets unravel and trust is tested, will their growing love survive the storm—or will Whispering Winds Ranch become just another shattered dream?

 

Excerpt:

 

 June 16, 2024

 

Ray Kincaid, stood in the hot sun. Not even a slight breeze relieved him from the heat. His cowboy hat protected him and shaded his eyes so he could see the stopwatch he held in his right hand. He had one foot on the bottom rail and his left arm resting on the top of the tall three-railed, white, wooden fence surrounding the racing track. He timed his fifteen-year-old daughter, Maddy, while she raced her horse, White Lightning, around the track.

 

Horses and cattle grazed in the pasture beyond the racetrack.

 

He was proud of how far she’d come and yet terrified she’d die like her mother had.

 

Maddy was only three at the time. She was the one thing that held Ray together. He couldn’t wallow in grief because he had Maddy to take care of. One little girl, who he loved more than life, had saved him from falling into ruin.

She passed him again.

 

He clicked the stopwatch. She’d bested her previous time by three seconds. Every race she was a little faster. He watched her as she headed toward the barn to take care of White Lightning.

 

Behind him, he heard gravel crunching under the tires of a vehicle. He turned, prepared to tell whoever it was he didn’t work on Sundays.

 

The car was an older model, dark blue Chevy Yukon that had seen better days. The driver’s side door opened, and a statuesque redhead stepped out. She closed the door and headed toward him. Wearing faded jeans that looked like they were painted on, a plain emerald, green t-shirt and cowboy boots, she could’ve belonged to any ranch.

 

She walked up and removed her sunglasses. “Excuse me. Are you Ray Kincaid?”

 

“I am, but I don’t take visitors on Sundays.”

 

“I’m not a visitor. I’m Lyris Jennings, your new vet.” She held out her right hand. “Pleased to meet you.”

 

Ray took her outstretched hand. “I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow.”

 

She shrugged and pulled her hand back. “I made better time than I anticipated and rather than spend the night with family in Denver, I decided to come on out and get settled. If you’d rather I can return tomorrow.”

 

Ray thought for a moment. He was tempted to tell her just that, but it was ridiculous for her to drive back to Denver when the guesthouse was ready to be occupied. “No, don’t do that. Your quarters are ready. I’ve put you in the guesthouse. As soon as Maddy is done caring for her horse, we’ll take you to it and let you get settled in.” He turned for a moment to check on Maddy, who had just removed her helmet and was shaking out her long blonde hair. She looked so much like Francie, it hurt to look at her sometimes. He took a deep breath, and then he turned back to Lyris. “Supper is at six in the main house. We all eat together. Breakfast is at five-thirty and lunch is at noon. There is always food in the fridge and the cupboards if you get hungry between meals. Maddy and I usually have hot cocoa or a cocktail before bed. I have the cocktail, not Maddy. You’re welcome to come to the library and join us. Oh, and welcome to Whispering Wind Ranch.”

 

She chuckled. “Thank you, I might take you up on that.” She turned her gaze toward the racetrack. “She rides very well. And that’s a beautiful horse. I love the lightning bolt blazing down his nose against the black of his coat. It’s really mesmerizing.”

 

“His name is White Lightning because of that blaze. Although now that Maddy has been training him, he runs like lightning, too.”

 

“She looked good enough to ride professionally. Is that her plan?” Dr. Jennings leaned against the fence with her foot on the lowest rail.

 

The smile Ray had been feeling from the pride in Maddy’s riding slipped away, replaced by fear. What if the same thing happened to her as happened to Francie? He couldn’t get the thought out of his mind. He knew he was being unfair to Maddy, but he wanted her to be safe. She was his baby girl—always was and always would be.

 

“I didn’t realize you actually saw her ride. You didn’t get here in time for that.”

 

“I watched from the road before I drove up. As I said, she’s very good.”

 

Ray nodded. “She is. She’s just as good as her mother was, maybe better.”

 

The woman cocked her head to one side. “Was? I didn’t realize…”

 

He lifted his hand and brushed off her concern. “As long as you’ll be working and living here, you should be aware. Francie, my wife, died in a riding accident. She was thrown from a horse and broke her neck. Maddy was three at the time.”

 

The doctor looked at him with concern. “I’m so sorry. That must have been hard for you. Raising a child alone isn’t easy.”

 

Ray shifted from foot to foot. He didn’t know why he was nervous. There was no pity in her eyes. “No, it’s not.”

 

The sides of her mouth turned up. “You must be proud of her.”

 

He nodded. “I am. Very proud. She’s only fifteen and she rides as well as someone who’s been doing it much longer. I just…”

 

She frowned for a moment. “You wish she’d chosen something else.”

“I do, but I can’t quash her dream. This is what she wants, and she’s good at it.

 

Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):

 






 

 

 

 

What makes your featured book a must-read?

 

It’s a story about a billionaire, his daughter and the new vet. The vet, Lyris Jennings, tells herself she can’t get involved with an employer. That happened before the sparks between her and Ray are hard to ignore. So are the people injuring Ray’s horses. While she cares for the wounded animals, they try to find out who is behind the attacks, which puts a target on Lyris’ back. Can Ray save her before the villain kills her as revenge against Ray? It’s a perfect book for a stormy night.

 

Giveaway –

 

Enter to win a $10 Amazon gift card:

 

 

Open Internationally.

 

Runs May 6 – May 12, 2025.


Winner will be drawn on May 13, 2025.

 

Author Biography:

 

Cynthia Woolf is the USA Today Bestselling and award-winning author of eighty-five romance novels. Comprising sixty-six historical western romances, ten contemporary romance novels, two contemporary romance novellas, one historical western romance novella, and six sci-fi space opera romances, which she calls westerns in space. Along with these books, she has also published twelve boxed sets of her books and two short stories.

 

Cynthia loves writing and reading romance. Her first western romance, Tame A Wild Heart, was inspired by the story her mother told her of meeting Cynthia's father on a ranch in Creede, Colorado. Although Tame A Wild Heart takes place in Creede, that is the only similarity between the stories. Her father was a cowboy, not a bounty hunter, and her mother was a nursemaid (called a nanny now), not the ranch owner.

 

Cynthia credits her wonderfully supportive husband, Jim, and her great critique partners for saving her sanity and allowing her to explore her creativity.

 

Social Media Links:

 

 


If you enjoyed my book you can find out about the newest ones through the Bookbub New Release Alert. All you have to do is follow me on Bookbub. You can do that here:  https://www.bookbub.com/authors/cynthia-woolf

 

You can also follow me on these social media

 

 

©2015-2025 BY N. N. LIGHT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. (2015-17 on Wordpress) 

​

bottom of page