The Cowboy's Road Trip

by Stella Bagwell

His road to love may be the trip of a lifetime. 

Riding shotgun with a chatty blonde ten years his junior isn’t cowboy Kipp Starr’s first choice. Despite his attraction to pretty Beatrice Hollister, serious-minded Kipp feels they have little in common. But to show his gratitude for the Hollister family’s Christmas hospitality, he agrees to accompany Beatrice on the drive to his home state of Idaho. 

Beatrice doesn’t know if she’s more excited about meeting her estranged grandmother—or driving Kipp home to his ranch. Secretly, she’s wildly attracted to him, but a long-distance relationship is hard to navigate. When they’re stranded by the wintry weather, their attraction becomes hotter than July. And Kipp finds himself wondering whether to pump the brakes—or trust in love for the long haul. 

From Harlequin Special Believe in love. Overcome obstacles. Find happiness.

Men of the West

Book 1: SHOULD HAVE BEEN HER CHILD
Book 2: HIS DEFENDER
Book 3: A Baby on the Ranch
Book 4: Redwing's Lady
Book 5: From Here to Texas
Book 6: Taming a Dark Horse
Book 7: A South Texas Christmas
Book 8: The Rancher's Request
Book 9: The Best Catch in Texas
Book 10: Having the Cowboy's Baby
Book 11: Her Texas Lawman
Book 12: Hitched to the Horseman
Book 13: The Christmas She Always Wanted
Book 14: Cowboy to the Rescue
Book 15: Lone Star Daddy
Book 16: Branded with his Baby
Book 17: The Deputy's Lost and Found
Book 18: His Texas Wildflower
Book 19: Daddy's Double Duty
Book 20: His Medicine Woman
Book 21: Christmas with the Mustang Man
Book 22: His Texas Baby
Book 23: The Doctor's Calling
Book 24: A Daddy for Dillon
Book 25: The Deputy Gets Her Man
Book 26: The Baby Truth
Book 27: Wearing the Rancher's Ring
Book 28: The Lawman's Noelle
Book 29: One Tall, Dusty Cowboy
Book 30: Daddy Wore Spurs
Book 31: Christmas on the Silver Horn Ranch
Book 32: Her Rugged Rancher
Book 33: His Badge, Her Baby...Their Family?
Book 34: The Cowboy's Christmas Lullaby
Book 35: Her Kind of Doctor
Book 36: The Arizona Lawman
Book 37: Her Man on Three Rivers Ranch
Book 38: A Ranger for Christmas
Book 39: His Texas Runaway
Book 40: Home to Blue Stallion Ranch
Book 41: The Rancher's Best Gift
Book 42: The Texan Tries Again
Book 43: Her Man Behind the Badge
Book 44: His Forever Texas Rose
Book 45: The Baby That Binds Them

265 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 20, 2024

About the author

At seventeen, Stella married her high school sweetheart: Harrell, and they had a son Jason. She began her writing career almost by accident. She was a hairdresser and worked in her sister's beauty shop. Ironically, Stella developed a severe allergy to hairspray and was forced to resign. With time on her hands, Stella wanted to do something creative. She remembered a high school English teacher telling her she could be a writer if she wanted. Although she always loved reading romances, she never thought to write one herself. Armed with that now notion and an old, manual typewriter, she went to work, attempting to create a story similar to those she liked reading. The result‚ her first book, purchased by Mills & Boon and issued under the Harlequin imprint. After that, she became a full time writer and today, has close to forty published novels. Her for the future is to continue writing romance novels as long as there's an audience to enjoy her work.

Next to writing, traveling is one of her most favorite activities. Yet, because the southwest is dear to her heart, she sets most of her books there in rough, rugged ranch country. She feels it's essential to know a place before writing about it; that philosophy gives her more reason to plan trips! The marriage has always lived in southeastern Oklahoma. But, they purchased a portion of a twenty-two hundred, acre ranch; they now make their home there. Before moving onto the ranch, she had a swimming pool in her back yard and spent most of her summer evenings in the water. Her husband has promised to put in another pool, but for now she has to make do with the creek that runs through their property. The closest town of three thousand is fifteen miles away; she says she loves the seclusion, living among the woods and horses and wildlife. The only thing she doesn't like is making the thirty mile round trip to the post office or grocery store. Worse still, is the eighty-five mile trip to get office supplies!

One of her greatest joys was to see Jason, her only son, graduate from college with degrees in math and physical education. He now lives in Port Lavaca, Texas, where he teaches high school algebra and geometry and coaches football and weightlifting. Family has always come first with Stella and she enjoys spending time with her son when he visits Oklahoma. Sometimes, she and her husband drive down to the Texas coast to see him. However, her mother, step-father and siblings all live nearby and they have routine get-togethers. In her spare time, she enjoys practicing violin and guitar, both of which she can play by ear. She claims to need years of practice before calling herself a musician. Stella also enjoys gardening and being outdoors.

Reviews

[Becky Tatar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kipp Starr is ready to return home to the ranch in Idaho, but Hadley Hollister has a favor to ask. He's sending his daughter, Beatrice to Coeur d'Alene in northern Idaho to meet with Scarlet Hollister Wilson, his newly found mother, so see if Scarlet can shed any light on her disappearance years ago, or his father's, Lincoln's, life. Both Kipp and Bea are secretly appalled, because in the time Kipp has been at the Hollister rance for his sister Clem's wedding to Quinn Hollister, Kipp and Bea have secretly grown attracted to each other. And a three day trip to northern Idaho from central Utah? What could go wrong?

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was intriguing and I couldn’t put it down. I quite enjoyed the romance between Beatrice and Kipp. I knocked it down a star because I cringed every time the main character said “sissy” about her twin sister Bonnie. It was overused and I never heard a grown woman say “sissy” while referring to her sister. I super cringed once with the author had Kipp saying “sissy” once to refer his sister as well. I could have done without it. Besides that the book was really good.

[Becca · Rating 2 out of 5]

Even though it's not marked as such on the cover, this book is clearly part of a series, and if you haven't read the previous books it won't make much sense. I had no idea who these characters were, nor did I care about the family history. Very disappointing. Bea came off as being young and overly naive.

[Harlequin Books]

Western Romance, Contemporary Romance, Holiday Romance
Miniseries
Men of the West (Book #54)