Title: Cowboy Christmas Redemption
A Gold Valley Novel
A Gold Valley Novel
Author: Maisey Yates
Publisher: HQN Books
Publisher: HQN Books
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: September 24, 2019
Blurb
As
snowflakes fall in Gold Valley, Oregon, will this rugged cowboy finally win the
woman of his dreams?
Cowboy Caleb Dalton has loved single mom Ellie Bell, and her little daughter, Amelia, for years. But since Ellie is his best friendās widow, Calebās head knows Ellie will always be strictly off-limits. If only his heart got the memo. So when Caleb discovers that Ellie has a Christmas wish listāand hopes for a kiss under the mistletoeāheās throwing his cowboy hat into the ring. If anyoneās going to be kissing Ellie and sharing this magical time with her and her daughter, itās him.
Ellie has dreaded the holidays since losing her husband. But this year, sheās finally ready to make some changes. She never expects the biggest change to be the heart-stopping kiss she shares with Caleb. For almost five years, Caleb has been her best friend, her rock, her salvation. This Christmas, can Caleb prove heās also the missing puzzle piece of Ellieās and Ameliaās hearts?
Cowboy Caleb Dalton has loved single mom Ellie Bell, and her little daughter, Amelia, for years. But since Ellie is his best friendās widow, Calebās head knows Ellie will always be strictly off-limits. If only his heart got the memo. So when Caleb discovers that Ellie has a Christmas wish listāand hopes for a kiss under the mistletoeāheās throwing his cowboy hat into the ring. If anyoneās going to be kissing Ellie and sharing this magical time with her and her daughter, itās him.
Ellie has dreaded the holidays since losing her husband. But this year, sheās finally ready to make some changes. She never expects the biggest change to be the heart-stopping kiss she shares with Caleb. For almost five years, Caleb has been her best friend, her rock, her salvation. This Christmas, can Caleb prove heās also the missing puzzle piece of Ellieās and Ameliaās hearts?
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Excerpt
āBut you areā¦ Youāre going to run a Christmas tree farm?ā
āAt least temporarily. Everythingās ready to go now, which means
finishing out the year, or the next few years, is guaranteed money in the bank
to begin other ventures. Thereās contracts already made with outfits around the
country, truckers on hand to drive the things to their destinations. And he
owns that small lot down on the main street of town. So, Iām all set not only
to sell this yearās crop around the country, but also sell it here.ā
āBut you donātā¦ You donāt actually want toā¦be a Christmas tree farmer?ā
āMy ultimate goal is cattle,ā he said.
Sheād had no idea. None at all. Not that he wanted his own ranch, not
that heād been unhappy at the school. Was he unhappy at the school? Was he
leaving?
āWhat does this mean for your position at the school?ā
āI will be leaving. Which I will be talking to Gabe about later tonight.ā
āButā¦ā
āWith West Caldwell coming into town, thereās no need for me to hang
around. Heās going to be working on the ranch.ā
āYour half brother that youāve never met. Thatās putĀting a lot of stock
in a man you donāt even know.ā
āGabe figures we owe him. And, since Gabe is awash in guilt over the
whole half sibling thing, I figĀure that works in my favor.ā
As much as Ellie loved Hank Dalton, the patriarch of the Dalton clan, it
was becoming more and more clear that he was problematic. A couple of years ago
it had been discovered that he had a daughter that none of them had known
about. McKenna Tate. Sheād come into town after discovering the identity of her
family, and after some adjusting, the Dalton family had welĀcomed her into the
full. But on the heels of that revelaĀtion had come another one.
There were three more children. All adults now.
Hank had never known about them. But Tammy had.
It had changed the relationship, that reveal.
But Hank was awash enough in the guilt from the actions in his past, that
the two of them were trying to work through it to an extent. And Ellie really
hoped that they did. For some selfish reasons, if she was honest. Because she
loved them, and they were the closest thing to a family for her, and she didnāt
want to lose them.
āButā¦ Donāt you want to wait and see if itās going to work out?ā
āNo,ā Caleb said. āI donāt want to work at the school forever. This is
what I want.ā
That made herā¦angry and she couldnāt figure out exactly why. He deserved
to have dreams; of course he did. But sheād justā¦assumed he was happy with the
way things were. Sheād somehow meshed his dreams together with hers.
Had decided that what she was doing with his famĀily ranch, with the
school, was what he wanted, too.
But if she didnāt feel great about him fighting fires anymore, maybe he
didnāt, either. And sheād never asked. Sheād only thought about it in terms of
her own comfort. That wasnāt right at all.
Still, the idea of him having his own endeavors, his own life farther
away from her and not right all around her while they workedā¦
She needed him. She really had. She still did.
She didnāt like thisā¦this change. But she should be happy for him, and it
made her feelā¦ She felt bad. And she didnāt like feeling bad about something
that was good for her friend.
āIādā¦ Well, congratulations,ā she said. Even though she didnāt feel like
congratulating him at all. She felt like having a tantrum.
She really didnāt know why.
āThank you,ā he said, his mouth quirking up into a half smile that made
it very clear he was well aware she wasnāt having the best reaction to his
news.
āIāll miss seeing you.ā The words more plaintive than she intended.
āIām not moving away,ā he said.
āYeah, but I see you all the time,ā she protested.
āYou will still see me all the time.ā
āBut you wonāt be dropping Amelia off when I want you to.ā
āProbably not.ā
Her stomach twisted, but that wasnāt what was upĀsetting her. She knew it
wasnāt.
And then it hit her, as strongly as that melancholy had when sheād
realized it was nearly the Christmas season.
This phase of life was over.
The one where he was here to carry her. Where she had a crutch to get her
through what life looked like without Clint. Being a single mother.
It was changing.
It had begun to change months ago, when the idea for the school had come
about. She had gone back to work.
But sheād been a fledgling, and heād been there to help her.
Maybe she needed to make some changes, too.
Maybe, instead of dreading Christmas, she needed to get started on her
wish list.
Author Bio
USA TODAY Bestselling author Maisey Yates lives in rural
Oregon with her three children and her husband, whose chiseled jaw and
arresting features continue to make her swoon. She feels the epic trek she
takes several times a day from her office to her coffee maker is a true example
of her pioneer spirit.
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