36. Montgomery, Cullen: husband of Kit MacKlenna Montgomery, lawyer, author, founder of Montgomery Winery (first appeared in The Ruby Brooch)
37. Montgomery, James: son of Kit and Cullen Montgomery (first appeared in The Three Brooches
38. Montgomery, Kit MacKlenna: wife of Cullen Montgomery, goddaughter of Elliott Fraser, guardian of Emily Duffy, founder of Montgomery Winery (first appeared in The Ruby Brooch)
39. Montgomery, Kristen: deceased younger sister of Cullen Montgomery (first appeared in The Ruby Brooch)
40. Montgomery, Meredith: wife of Elliott Fraser and mother of James Cullen Fraser, grandmother of Blane and Lawrence Fraser, owner of Montgomery Winery (appears in all Brooch books except The Ruby Brooch)
41. Montgomery, Thomas: son of Kit and Cullen Montgomery
42. Norman: Teddy Roosevelt’s cook on roundup
43. O’Grady, Austin: son of JL O’Grady-Fraser and Chris Dalton, half brother of Blane and Lawrence Fraser, University of Kentucky graduate, point guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers
44. O’Grady, Connor: husband of Olivia Kelly O’Grady, father of Betsy, brother of JL O’Grady-Fraser, Shane, Rick, and Jeff O’Grady, son of Retired Deputy Chief Lawrence “Pops” O’Grady, former NYPD detective, VP of Global Security for MacKlenna Corporation (first appeared in The Broken Brooch)
45. O’Grady-Fraser, Jenny “JL” Lynn: wife of Kevin Allen Fraser, mother of Austin O’Grady, Blane and Lawrence Fraser, sister of Connor, Rick, Shane, and Jeff O’Grady, daughter of Retired Deputy Chief Lawrence “Pops” O’Grady, former NYPD detective, VP of Development and Operations MacKlenna Corporation (first appeared in The Broken Brooch)
46. O’Grady, Lawrence “Pops”: husband of Maria Ricci, father of Connor, Rick, Shane, Jeff, and JL, Retired NYPD Deputy Chief (first appeared in The Broken Brooch)
47. O’Grady, Patrick “Rick”: husband of Billie, father of Jean, Marine, former NYPD detective, brother of JL, Connor, Shane, and Jeff, president of Montgomery Winery in Napa, son of Retired Deputy Chief Lawrence “Pops” O’Grady (first appeared in The Broken Brooch)
48. O’Grady, Shane: VP of Global Security for MacKlenna Corporation, brother of JL, Connor, Rick, and Jeff O’Grady, son of Retired Deputy Chief Lawrence “Pops” O’Grady (first appeared in The Broken Brooch)
49. Orsini, Sophia: wife of Pete Parrino, mother of Lukas and Churchill Parrino, painter, artist, entrepreneur, granddaughter of Seamus Digby (first appeared in The Pearl Brooch)
50. Parrino, James Churchill: Pete and Sophia’s adopted son (first appeared in The Topaz Brooch)
51. Parrino, Pete: husband of Sophia Orsini, father of Lukas and Churchill, former NYPD detective, former Marine, VP for Global Security for MacKlenna Corporation, JL O’Grady-Fraser former NYPD partner (first appeared in The Broken Brooch)
52. Ricci-O’Grady, Maria: wife of Lawrence “Pops” O’Grady (first appeared in The Diamond Brooch)
53. Roosevelt, Theodore “Teddy”: New York State Assemblyman, future 26th US president
54. Rowe, Mr.: Teddy Roosevelt’s partner
55. Russell, Barb: Ensley’s best friend in NYC
56. Sewall, Bill: Teddy Roosevelt’s partner
57. Sewall, Lucretia “Kitty”: daughter of Bill and Mrs. Sewell
58. Sewall, Mrs.: wife of Bill Sewall, Teddy Roosevelt’s cook
59. Sten: Erik’s brother
60. Stuart, Joseph: son of Tavis Stuart
61. Stuart, Tavis: VP of Global Security MacCorp, Naval Academy graduate (first appeared in The Topaz Brooch)
62. Viking warriors: Erik, Arne, Forde, Bjørn, Birger
63. Williams, George: Ensley’s cousin, a friend of James Cullen Fraser
1
Medora, ND—Ensley, Age 16
This book contains violence, sexually explicit scenes, and adult language and may be considered offensive to some readers.
Sixteen-year-old Ensley MacAndrew Williams practiced a kind of bull-riding air guitar several times, circling in the dirt, clutching invisible bull ropes while her free hand waved above her head. Girls close in age watched from their folding chairs, cradling puppies and talking on their cell phones.
They weren’t there to watch Ensley ride. Nope, not at all. They were there for the guys wearing clean button-down shirts, cowboy hats, and crisp 20X Wrangler jeans with colossal belt buckles.
They all looked good in clean clothes with shirts tucked into waistbands. But like her, when it came time to ride, they all traded crisp blue jeans for old, dirty ones.
Except for when she rode bulls, she wouldn’t be caught dead in dirty, stretched-out jeans. And hers were so hopelessly gross that even a spritz of lemon juice and water couldn’t take away the stench.
Randy Myers, a former bull rider who managed Ensley’s parents’ ranch in North Dakota, stopped chugging a can of Rockstar energy drink long enough to applaud. “You look ready to go!”
“If I can go ninety seconds on a mock bull, I can go ninety on a real one.”
“That’s what they say, monkey.”
Randy had called her monkey since she climbed her first fence as a toddler, and while it embarrassed her as a preteen, she’d gotten over it. Now the affectionate term always made her smile.
“Will you tape me up, please?”
“Let me see you stretch.”
“I’ve already done it.”
He chugged the Rockstar again then tossed the empty can into the trash. “Do it again.”
“Grrr.” She kicked a denim leg onto the uppermost fence railing (it was a short fence) and stretched like a dancer on the ballet barre. Then switched legs. “Good enough?”
“Nope. Do it again.” He got up off a hay bale stacked against a barn piled with old tires and dusty mechanical equipment. “Other leg, too.” He removed his gray Stetson, wiped his forehead, and donned his hat again.
She stretched out the other leg, sweating in the North Dakota summer heat, which people from the South called a warm winter day. “Anything else you want me to do?”
“Yep! Go home.”
“Not gonna happen.”
She waved to a group of cowboys who smiled and winked when they strutted by. But they were more interested in the other girls—the ones sitting in folding chairs. The ones not wearing dirty jeans. The ones who didn’t smell like shit. And the ones who gave out Snapchat handles as quickly as flirtatious glances.
They were the buckle bunnies.
Ensley wasn’t a buckle bunny, and the only handle she had was attached to her bull rope. She was a rodeo gal who didn’t date her competition.
“Will you tape my wrist, please?” She always asked nicely, or he’d snap at her for acting like a princess. She didn’t want to be a princess. Hell, no. She wanted to be a rodeo queen. She was smart and pretty enough to be a queen, but she was a little conflicted about her long-term goals. When she
