COWBOY CHRISTMAS REDEMPTION
Author: Maisey Yates
ISBN: 9781335009906
Publication Date: 9/24/2019
Publisher: HQN Books
Book Summary:
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 friend’s widow, Caleb’s 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 list—and hopes for a kiss under the mistletoe—he’s throwing his cowboy hat into the ring. If anyone’s going to be kissing Ellie and sharing this magical time with her and her daughter, it’s him.
Cowboy Caleb Dalton has loved single mom Ellie Bell, and her little daughter, Amelia, for years. But since Ellie is his best friend’s widow, Caleb’s 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 list—and hopes for a kiss under the mistletoe—he’s throwing his cowboy hat into the ring. If anyone’s going to be kissing Ellie and sharing this magical time with her and her daughter, it’s him.
Ellie has dreaded the holidays since losing her husband. But this year, she’s 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 he’s also the missing puzzle piece of Ellie’s and Amelia’s hearts?
Buy Links:
Author
Bio: New
York Times 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.
Social Links:
Twitter: @maiseyyates
Facebook:@MaiseyYates.Author
Instagram: @maiseyyates
From Chapter Two
Caleb
Dalton hadn’t had much to smile about for a long time. It had been a bear of a
few years, since his best friend’s death, and while time might ease a wound, it
wouldn’t ever bring Clint back.
But
that permanence made space for movement, around the grief, around the pain. And
finally toward a future he’d been planning for a long time.
Clint
had been, honest to God, one of the best men on earth. The hole he’d left
behind had been huge, and Caleb had dedicated himself to caring for his
friend’s widow and child in his absence.
That
had been his life, his whole life, for nearly five years. And it was fair,
because it had been Ellie’s life, too.
He
cared for Ellie. A hell of a lot. He’d met her because of Clint, but she’d
been in his life now for more than ten years.
His
feelings for Ellie were complicated. Had been from the beginning. But she’d
been with Clint. And there was no doubt Clint was the better man. More than
that, Clint was his brother. Maybe not in blood, but in every way that counted.
Caleb
had never claimed to be a perfect friend. Clint was one of those people who’d
drawn everyone right to him. He was easy to like. Caleb’s own parents had been
bowled over by Clint from the time they were kids.
And
Caleb’s jealousy had gotten the better of him once when they’d been younger.
Something that made him burn with shame even now.
He
hadn’t let it happen when they’d been adults. No matter how tempting it had
been. No matter how much he’d…
A
muscle in his jaw ticked.
He
gave thanks that there was a space in front of the Gold Valley Saloon, and he
whipped his truck there up against the curb, ignoring the honk that came from
behind him.
He
turned around and saw Trevor Sanderson in his Chevy, giving Caleb the death
glare.
“Hold
your damn horses, Trevor,” he muttered as he put his truck in Park.
He
should have been quicker.
Hell,
that was life in a nutshell. Sometimes, you were just too late. For parking
spots, and for women.
He’d
tried to get that image out of his head. More times than he could count over
the past decade. Had tried to erase that first time he’d seen Ellie.
It
was at his parents’ barbecue. Late one summer afternoon.
He’d
been talking and laughing with his brothers, and he’d lifted a beer to his lips
and looked out away from the party. Then he’d frozen.
It
was like the world had slowed down, all of it centering on the beautiful
blonde walking toward him. The golden light from the sun illuminated her hair
like a halo, and her smile seemed to light him up from the inside out.
As
she’d gotten closer, he’d taken in every last detail. The way the left side of
her cheek dimpled with that grin; her eyes, a mix of green and blue and a punch
in the gut. Her lips were glossy pink, and he wondered if it was that stuff
that women wore that smelled and tasted like cherries. He couldn’t decide if he
hoped that it was or not.
Twenty
years old, more experienced with women than he probably should be, and ready
right then and there to drop down to his knees and propose marriage to the one
walking in his direction.
It
took him a full minute to realize that the beautiful blonde was holding hands
with someone.
And
that that someone was Caleb’s best friend on earth.
It
was a surreal moment. It had been a sea change in his soul. When his feelings
for Ellie had tipped over from nothing to everything.
A
revelation he hadn’t been looking for, and one he sure as hell hadn’t enjoyed.
It
was like the whole world had turned, then bucked, like a particularly nasty-ass
bull, and left him sprawled out on the ground.
It
had been the beginning of a thorny, painful set of years. As he’d gotten to
know Ellie, as his feelings for her had become knit deep into his heart, into
his soul. She’d become more than his friend’s woman, and more than a woman he’d
desired. She’d become a friend to him.
In
many ways he was thankful for the depth of the feeling, because it was the
reason he’d been able to put aside the lust. The idea that he’d fallen in love
with her at first sight.
When
Clint had first started dating her, she’d been in school, so she hadn’t been
around all the time. But during the summers, and on breaks, she came around
with Clint.
Went
to the lake with them. Went fishing. Came to Christmas and Thanksgiving.
The
summers at the lake, though, that had been a particular kind of torture. All of
them swimming out in the water, her and her swimsuit. A tiny bikini that had
left little to the imagination.
And
he had been so very interested in imagining all the things that it did conceal.
And
he’d felt like the biggest, most perverse asshole.
Then
there had been the time that Clint had asked him to take her out riding.
Just
the two of them.
Because
Clint trusted him. Of course he did. Why wouldn’t he trust his best friend? So
he’d done it.
Had
taken her out on the trails that wound behind the Dalton family property, up to
the top of a mountain. And he looked over at the view with her, watched the
sunset. And everything in him had wanted to lean over and kiss her on the
mouth. To act on the feelings that were rioting through his chest.
For
just a breath she’d looked back at him, met his eyes. And he’d thought maybe
she’d wanted it, too.
Yeah,
it would have exploded his relationship with Clint, but for a minute it seemed
like it might be worth it.
Then
she’d looked away. And then he’d come back to himself.
Clint
was his brother. In every way but blood.
And
he couldn’t betray his friend like that.
Anyway,
Ellie loved Clint.
She
didn’t love Caleb.
And
no matter how much he might not want to, he had to respect that.
So
he hadn’t kissed her. They had ridden back down that mountain, and nothing
happened between them. But late at night, Caleb had taken himself in hand and
fantasized that it had.
Two
days later Clint and Ellie had been engaged.
Caleb
had agreed to be the best man.
She’d
married Clint. And while his feelings for her had remained, they’d shifted. As
they’d had to.
He
wasn’t perfect. He’d never touched Ellie. Not like a man touched a woman,
though that hadn’t stopped him from going over the accidental brush of
fingertips, of their elbows touching, over and over in his mind if it had
happened on accident.
It
hadn’t stopped him from keeping and cherishing secrets with her, even when he
knew he shouldn’t. Hadn’t stopped him from pushing some boundaries that not
even Ellie had realized he’d been pushing at.
Ellie
was the one who’d realized, for the first time, that he was dyslexic. And he’d
sworn her to secrecy. And in that secrecy had come secret reading lessons.
And
he’d…well, he’d lost control of his own feelings again. And once he’d
recognized that, he’d cut them off. Cut her off.
But
then Clint had died, just a month later. And everything changed again.
Since
then, his relationship with Ellie was about their coming together to try and
fill the gap Clint had left behind. His helping where she needed it.
Helping
with the house, with her grief, with Amelia.
That
was all.
Excerpted from Christmas
Cowboy Redemption by Maisey Yates, Copyright © 2019 by Maisey Yates.
Published by HQN Books.
AN ALASKAN CHRISTMAS
Author: Jennifer Snow
ISBN: 9781335041500
Publication Date: 9/24/2019
Publisher: HQN Books
In Alaska, it’s always a white Christmas—but the sparks
flying between two reunited friends could turn it red-hot…
If there’s one gift Erika Sheraton does not want for Christmas, it’s a vacation. Ordered to take time off, the workaholic surgeon reluctantly trades in her scrubs for a ski suit and heads to Wild River, Alaska. Her friend Cassie owns a tour company that offers adventures to fit every visitor. But nothing compares to the adrenaline rush Erika feels on being reunited with Cassie’s brother, Reed Reynolds.
Gone is the buttoned-up girl Reed remembers. His sister’s best friend has blossomed into a strong, skilled, confident woman. She’s exactly what his search-and-rescue team needs—and everything he didn’t know he craved. The gulf between his life in Wild River and her big-city career is wide. But it’s no match for a desire powerful enough to melt two stubborn hearts…
If there’s one gift Erika Sheraton does not want for Christmas, it’s a vacation. Ordered to take time off, the workaholic surgeon reluctantly trades in her scrubs for a ski suit and heads to Wild River, Alaska. Her friend Cassie owns a tour company that offers adventures to fit every visitor. But nothing compares to the adrenaline rush Erika feels on being reunited with Cassie’s brother, Reed Reynolds.
Gone is the buttoned-up girl Reed remembers. His sister’s best friend has blossomed into a strong, skilled, confident woman. She’s exactly what his search-and-rescue team needs—and everything he didn’t know he craved. The gulf between his life in Wild River and her big-city career is wide. But it’s no match for a desire powerful enough to melt two stubborn hearts…
Buy Links:
Author
Bio: Jennifer Snow lives in Edmonton, Alberta with her
husband and four year old son. She is a member of the RWA, the Alberta Writers
Guild, Canadian Authors Association and SheWrites.org. Her first Brookhollow
book was a finalist in the Heart of Denver Aspen Gold contest and the Golden
Quill Award. More information can be found at www.jennifersnowauthor.com.
Social Links:
Twitter: @JenniferSnow18
Facebook: @jennifersnowbooks
Instagram: @jensnowauthor
CHAPTER
ONE
Her
arms full of patient files, Dr. Erika Sheraton tipped her head back as Darren,
her premed intern, poured a double shot of espresso down her throat. The hot
liquid delivered the instant adrenaline boost she needed to get through the rest
of her fourteen-hour shift.
Dinner?
A quick glance at the clock on the wall above the nurses’ triage station
revealed it was almost nine. A late dinner.
“How
are you not vibrating? That’s your third in two hours.” Darren crumpled the
paper cup and tossed it into a recycle bin as they walked.
“Caffeine
stopped affecting me a long time ago. Now’s it’s about the taste,” she said,
only half kidding. Double course loads and all-nighters in college and then med
school had prepared her for the long hours she put in now as a general surgeon
and caffeine had been her best friend.
The
twentysomething looked like he could use a cup himself, as he stifled a yawn.
His sandy blond hair poked up in the back as though he’d crawled out of bed at
the last possible minute and his hazel eyes were bloodshot. If he was tired now
after only eight hours on shift, he’d be reconsidering this particular
profession by midnight. The staff at Alaska General Hospital never rested. The
revolving doors at emergency constantly rotated with broken bones, heart
attacks and bleeding patients filing in. No day was ever the same. Unpredictability
kept Erika alert and on her toes.
“After
these rounds, I’m going to need you to check in on Mr. Franklin—he’s in
recovery. His family is wondering when they can see him.” The man’s entire
extended family was camped out in the surgical ward waiting room—fifteen or
sixteen of them at least. They couldn’t see the man, but they all refused to
leave. Each one took turns driving the nurses on duty crazy. “Make sure they
know only immediate family can go in. He needs his rest.”
Darren
nodded, but a look of hesitation appeared behind his dark-rimmed glasses.
“What?”
She checked her watch.
“I
just… Well, shouldn’t you talk to them? I know his wife wanted to thank you…”
Erika
shook her head. “Keeping him on the low-cholesterol, low-sodium diet I’ve
prescribed—and off my operating table—will be thanks enough,” she said,
scanning the top folder on her stack.
“Okay,
but…”
She
shot him a look.
“No
problem. I’ll check in on him.”
“Thank
you.” She continued down the hall toward the next high-priority patient.
“Don’t
forget, your dad still wants to see you,” Darren said, struggling to keep up
to her half sprint.
“I
know.” And she could do without the hourly reminders. Her father rarely
requested her presence during her rounds, so whatever it was wouldn’t be good.
If she put him off long enough, maybe he’d forget.
“Top chart—Mr. Grayson. He’s scheduled for an
appendectomy in a few hours,” she said, approaching the man’s hospital room.
Darren
nodded as he smiled. “This old guy is hilarious. Did you know he was a stunt
motorcycle driver in the circus in the ’80s?”
“No.”
She knew he had an inflamed appendix and had waited far too long to come in.
She knew his vitals and that in an hour, they’d be prepping him for surgery.
Knowing personal details of a patient’s life didn’t make her job any easier or
guarantee a better outcome. She juggled the files on one arm as she reached
into her pocket for a new set of sterile gloves.
“Hey,
before we go in there, can I talk to you?” Darren asked, stopping her outside
the room. He stared at the checked patterned floor tiles.
Damn.
“You’re requesting a transfer to a different physician.” He wasn’t the first
medical student who’d gotten reassigned. She’d made it a month with Darren—a
new record.
Another
intern bites the dust.
He
nodded, obviously relieved that he hadn’t had to vocalize it himself. “You’re
amazing, Dr. Sheraton, and I feel so fortunate for the opportunity to work with
you, but you’re also very busy and unavailable…”
The
sharp sting of the words was familiar. She’d heard the same speech from interns
and boyfriends alike. She’d successfully eliminated the problem in one group
right after her first year of residency…interns were hospital assigned and
therefore out of her control.
“I
mean I just need all the training I can get and between patients and your
research work…”
She
didn’t need an explanation. She was busy. Too busy to have someone following
her around in fact. This was totally fine with her. “I understand.”
“You’re
not upset?”
“Only
about having to get my own coffee from now on,” she said.
The
joke missed its mark and the intern’s eyes widened. “I can still do that…”
Wow,
was she really that scary? She was demanding and expected the students to put
in the hours she did. She may not be the friendliest doctor on staff, socializing
after work and remembering birthdays and such, but she gave these interns a
real picture of their future in medicine. Wasn’t that what they were there for?
“I was kidding, Darren.”
“Oh…right.”
“Dr.
Sheraton, please report to emergency. Stat.”
The
call over the hospital intercom had her handing Darren the stack of folders.
“Please take his heart rate and blood pressure,” she said, practically running
to the elevators. “And don’t forget Mr. Franklin.”
“Got
it,” he called after her.
The
quiet twenty-six-second elevator ride to the first floor was the closest thing
she got to a spa day. It was the only time she was forced to slow to a pace other
than her own usual breakneck speed. But even that half a minute was too long.
It gave her time to think. Think about her previous surgeries and replay the
details—what went right, what went wrong, what she could do better next time.
Constantly reevaluating herself made her a better surgeon, but too often it
left her feeling like she was coming up slightly short of her potential. Her
type A personality left little room for failure or complacency.
Checking
her phone in her lab coat pocket, she scanned her schedule for the rest of the
evening, evaluating what she could push back if this emergency demanded her
immediate attention. The number of things marked urgent made her will
the elevator to move quicker. She’d be lucky to get out of there by 2:00 a.m.
A
text popped up from Darren.
If
you change your mind about Mrs. Franklin…
She
wouldn’t. She ignored the text from her intern—former intern—and put the phone
away.
As
the elevator stopped, she took a deep breath, expecting to see a flurry of
organized chaos as the doors opened. Stretchers, ambulance lights flashing and
sirens wailing outside, paramedics and nurses… Instead, she ran square into
her father.
No
emergency, just his six-foot-three frame and his usual neutral expression. It
was impossible to read her father, as his face gave nothing away. His emotions
were never too high or too low, just infuriatingly balanced no matter the
circumstance. His calm presence and rational thinking made him fantastic at his
profession, but sometimes he was irritating as shit as a father.
“Hi.
I was just coming to see you.” Eventually.
“Walk
with me,” he said, turning on his heel and nodding.
Her
jaw clenched so tight her teeth might snap. This was so like him—assuming she
could drop everything at his command. He may run the hospital, but he often had
no idea how hectic her schedule was. “Can we talk as I do my rounds, Darren
is…”
“More
than capable,” he said, leading the way to his first-floor corner office. “And
requesting to be transferred, I see.”
His
tone made her palms sweat. He should be happy that she was pushing these
interns to their limits. What awaited them once they graduated wasn’t for the
faint of heart. Better to get used to grueling days and nights now, performing
on little to no sleep, living on caffeine and leftover Halloween chocolate
bars, than to realize they couldn’t cut it when lives were in their hands.
Unfortunately,
he didn’t always agree with her beliefs . He wanted the interns to feel at
home at Alaska General so they’d apply here once they graduated. The hospital
was short staffed and more doctors would benefit everyone, but Erika preferred
to work alongside the best.
Her
father had an open-door policy—literally—so when he closed the office door
behind her, she knew the head of General Surgery hadn’t called her in to discuss
Thanksgiving dinner plans.
She
glanced at his wall calendar as she sat. Especially since Thanksgiving was a
week ago.
“Dad,
this intern thing is just ridiculous…”
He
held up a hand. “This isn’t about your inability to effectively manage others.”
Kick
to the gut delivered and received. She clamped her lips together.
He
opened his desk drawer and handed her a letter as he sat in the plush, leather
chair behind his oversize mahogany desk.
Her
eyes widened, seeing the Hospital Foundation logo on the top of the page. “Is
this the final approval from the board for the clinical trials?” They’d submitted
the application six months ago to start trials on a new antirejection drug
after years of research, and they were waiting on the formal go-ahead to start
with a test group.
Would
Darren reconsider staying with her if he knew he could be part of a medical
breakthrough? He’d been a lot of help in the past month.
“Just
read it,” her father said.
She
scanned the letter from the board of directors, feeling her excitement fade and
anxiety rise with each word. “Recommended vacation? What is this?”
“I
don’t like it either, but the board is reviewing policies and making sure we
are following them,” he said, the edge indicating he’d been outvoted in this decision.
He certainly didn’t believe in time off and had never encouraged her to take
any. Her life was her career, just like him.
“But
any day now we will be starting clinical trials on the new drug.” It had taken
her father and his team almost three years to get the experimental antirejection
product approved for testing on organ transplant patients and they’d finally
gotten it. They’d worked around the clock for a year to make sure they did.
Subjects were undergoing assessment right now to be ready for the trials.
Now
was not the time to take a break.
Her
father looked as though he’d made the same argument to the hospital board. “The
team will have to handle it.”
So
recommended actually meant forced. “Why now? I’m fine. I don’t
need a break.” At twenty-nine, she was eager to prove herself as one of the top
general surgeons in the state. Between her surgical success record and the
research time she’d invested in this new drug, she was close. Helping her
father get one step closer to winning the Lister Medal was high on her priority
list. “Come on, Dad, you know I’m good. My last two operations were impossible
surgeries…”
“Improbable
surgeries.”
Erika
clamped her lips together again, forcing her argument to stay put. It wouldn’t
do any good. Three years working alongside her father and she’d yet to prove
herself. Despite two back-to-back improbable surgeries that she’d
performed successfully, he still doubted her abilities. His micromanagement
over her research team had driven her insane, but he’d reluctantly agreed to
let her run her own set of clinical trials on the antirejection drug, and she’d
foolishly believed she was making progress with him.
Now
she was being forced into taking a break.
What
the hell was a break? She hadn’t had one since starting university.
She’d graduated with her bachelor’s in three years instead of four by doubling
up on courses and then had applied directly to med school. She’d interned at
Alaska General and secured a position there shortly after graduation. She
couldn’t remember the last day she had off, let alone…she glanced at the letter.
Two weeks?
What
the hell would she do with all that free time?
Excerpted from An Alaskan
Christmas by Jennifer Snow, Copyright © 2019 by Jennifer Snow. Published by HQN
Books.
A WEDDING IN DECEMBER
Author: Sarah Morgan
ISBN: 9781335147271
Publication Date: 9/24/2019
Publisher: HQN Books
Book Summary:
This funny, charming and heartwarming new Christmas novel
is USA TODAY bestselling
author Sarah Morgan at her festive best!
In the snowy perfection of Aspen, the White family gathers for
youngest daughter Rosie’s whirlwind Christmas wedding. First to arrive are the
bride’s parents, Maggie and Nick. Their daughter’s marriage is a milestone they
are determined to celebrate wholeheartedly, but they are hiding a huge secret
of their own: they are on the brink of divorce. After living apart for the last
six months, the last thing they need is to be trapped together in an
irresistibly romantic winter wonderland.
Rosie’s older sister, Katie, is also dreading the wedding. Worried that impulsive, sweet-hearted Rosie is making a mistake, Katie is determined to save her sister from herself! If only the irritatingly good-looking best man, Jordan, would stop interfering with her plans…
Bride-to-be Rosie loves her fiancé but is having serious second thoughts. Except everyone has arrived—how can she tell them she’s not sure? As the big day gets closer, and emotions run even higher, this is one White family Christmas none of them will ever forget!
Rosie’s older sister, Katie, is also dreading the wedding. Worried that impulsive, sweet-hearted Rosie is making a mistake, Katie is determined to save her sister from herself! If only the irritatingly good-looking best man, Jordan, would stop interfering with her plans…
Bride-to-be Rosie loves her fiancé but is having serious second thoughts. Except everyone has arrived—how can she tell them she’s not sure? As the big day gets closer, and emotions run even higher, this is one White family Christmas none of them will ever forget!
Buy Links:
Author Bio: USA Today bestselling author Sarah Morgan writes hot,
happy, contemporary romance and women’s fiction, and her trademark humor and
sensuality have gained her fans across the globe. Described as “a magician with
words” by RT Book Reviews, she has sold more than eleven million copies of her
books. She was nominated three years in succession for the prestigious RITA®
Award from the Romance Writers of America and won the award three times: once
in 2012 for Doukakis’s Apprentice, in 2013 for A Night of No Return and in 2017
for Miracle on 5th Avenue. She also won the RT Reviewers’ Choice
Award in 2012 and has made numerous appearances in their Top Pick slot. As a
child, Sarah dreamed of being a writer, and although she took a few interesting
detours along the way, she is now living that dream. Sarah lives near London,
England, with her husband and children, and when she isn’t reading or writing,
she loves being outdoors, preferably on vacation so she can forget the house
needs tidying.
Social Links:
Twitter: @SarahMorgan_
Facebook: @AuthorSarahMorgan
Instagram: @SarahMorganWrites
From Chapter One
Maggie
When
her phone rang at three in the morning, ripping her from a desperately needed
sleep, Maggie’s first thought was bad news.
Her
mind raced through the possibilities, starting with the worst-case scenario.
Death, or at least life-changing injury. Police. Ambulances.
Heart
pounding, brain foggy, she grabbed her phone from the summit of her teetering
pile of books. The name on the screen offered no reassurance.
Trouble
stalked her youngest daughter.
“Rosie?”
She fumbled for the light and sat up. The book she’d fallen asleep reading
thudded to the floor, scattering the pile of Christmas cards she’d started to
write the night before. She’d chosen a winter scene of snow-laden trees. They
hadn’t had a flake of snow in the village on Christmas Day for close to a decade.
They often joked that it was a good thing their last name was White because it
was the only way they were ever going to have a White Christmas.
She
snuggled under the blanket with the phone. “Has something happened?” The
physical distance between her and Rosie made her feel frustrated and helpless.
Everyone
said global travel made the world smaller, but it didn’t seem smaller to
Maggie. Why couldn’t her daughter have continued her studies closer to home?
Oxford, with its famous spires and ancient colleges, was only a few miles away.
Rosie had done her undergraduate degree there, followed by a master’s. Maggie
had loved having her close by. They’d taken sunlit strolls along cobbled
streets, past ancient honey-colored buildings and through Christchurch Meadows,
golden with daffodils. They’d followed the slow meander of the river and
cheered on the rowing crews. Maggie had hoped, privately, that her daughter
might stay close by, but after Rosie had graduated she’d been offered a place
in a US doctoral program, complete with full funding.
Can
you believe it, Mum? The day she’d had the news she’d danced across the living room,
hair flying around her face, twirling until she was dizzy and Maggie was dizzy
watching her. Are you proud of me?
Maggie
had been proud and dismayed in equal measure, although she’d hidden the
dismayed part of course. That was what you did when you were a parent.
Even
she could see it was too good an opportunity to turn down, but still a small
part of her had wished Rosie had turned it down. That transatlantic
flight from the nest left Maggie with email, Skype and social media, none of
which felt entirely satisfactory. Even less so in the middle of the night. Had
Rosie only been gone for four months? It felt like a lifetime since they’d
delivered her to the airport on that sweltering summer’s day.
“Is
it your asthma? Are you in hospital?” What could she do if Rosie was in
the hospital? Nothing. Anxiety was a constant companion, never more so than
now.
If
it had been her eldest daughter, Katie, who had moved to a different country
she might have felt more relaxed. Katie was reliable and sensible, but Rosie?
Rosie had always been impulsive and adventurous.
“I’m
not in hospital. Don’t fuss!”
Only
now did Maggie hear the noise in the background. Cheering, whooping.
“Do
you have your inhaler with you? You sound breathless.” The sound woke the
memories. Rosie, eyes bulging, lips stained blue. The whistling sound as air
struggled to squeeze through narrowed airways. Maggie making emergency calls
with hands that shook almost too hard to hold the phone, the terror raw and
brutal although she kept that hidden from her child. Calm, she’d learned, was
important even if it was faked.
Even
when Rosie had moved from child to adult there had been no reprieve.
Some
children grew out of asthma. Not Rosie.
There
had been a couple of occasions when Rosie was in college when she’d gone to
parties without her inhaler. A few hours of dancing later and she’d been rushed
to the emergency department. That had been a 3:00 a.m. phone call, too, and
Maggie had raced through the night to be by her side. Those were the episodes
Maggie knew about. She was sure there were plenty more that Rosie had kept to
herself.
“I’m
breathless because I’m excited. I’m twenty-two, Mum. When are you going to stop
worrying?”
“That
would be never. Your child is always your child, no matter how many candles are
on the birthday cake. Where are you?”
“I’m
with Dan’s family in Aspen for Thanksgiving, and I have news.” She broke off
and Maggie heard the clink of glasses and Rosie’s infectious laugh. It was
impossible to hear that laugh and not want to smile, too. The sound contrasted
with the silence of Maggie’s bedroom.
A waft of cold air chilled her
skin and she stood up and grabbed her robe from the back of the chair.
Honeysuckle Cottage looked idyllic from the outside, but it was impossibly
drafty. The ventilation was a relief in August but froze you to the bone in
November. She really needed to do something about the insulation before she
even thought about selling the place. Historic charm, climbing roses and a view
of the village green couldn’t compensate for frostbite.
Or
maybe it wasn’t the house that was cold. Maybe it was her.
Knocked
flat by a wave of sadness and she struggled to right herself.
“What’s
happening? What news? It sounds like you’re having a party.”
“Dan
proposed. Literally out of the blue. We were taking it in turns to say
what we’re thankful for and when it was his turn he gave me a funny look and
then he got down on one knee and—Mum, we’re getting married.”
Maggie
sat down hard on the edge of the bed, the freezing air forgotten. “Married? But
you and Dan have only been together for a few weeks—”
“Eleven
weeks, four days, six hours and fifteen minutes—oh wait, now it’s sixteen, I
mean seventeen—” She was laughing, and Maggie tried to laugh with her.
How
should she handle this? “That’s not very long, sweetheart.” But completely in
character for Rosie, who bounced from one impulse to another, powered by
enthusiasm.
“It
feels so right, I can’t even tell you. And you’ll understand because it was
like that for you and Dad.”
Maggie
stared at the damp patch on the wall.
Tell
her the truth.
Her
mouth moved but she couldn’t push the words out. This was the wrong time. She
should have done it months ago, but she’d been too much of a coward.
And
now it was too late. She didn’t want to be the slayer of happy moments.
She couldn’t even say you’re
too young, because she’d been the same age when she’d had Katie. Which
basically made her a hypocrite. Or did it make her someone with experience?
“You
just started your postgrad—”
“I’m
not giving it up. I can be married and study. Plenty do it.”
Maggie
couldn’t argue with that. “I’m happy for you.” Did she sound happy? She tried
harder. “Woohoo!”
She’d
thought she’d white-knuckled her way through all the toughest parts of
parenting, but it turned out there were still some surprises waiting for her.
Rosie wasn’t a child anymore. She had to be allowed to make her own decisions.
And her own mistakes.
Rosie
was talking again. “I know it’s all a bit fast, but you’re going to love Dan as
much as I do. You said you thought he was great when you spoke to him.”
But
speaking to someone on a video call wasn’t the same as meeting them in person,
was it?
Maggie
swallowed down all the words of warning that rose up inside her. She was not
going to turn into her own mother and send clouds to darken every bright
moment. “He seemed charming, and I’m thrilled for you. If I don’t sound it,
it’s because it’s the middle of the night here, and you know what I’m like
when I’ve just woken up. When I saw your name pop up on the screen, I was
worried it was your asthma.”
“Haven’t
had an attack in ages. I’m sorry I woke you, but I wanted to share my news.”
“I’m
glad you woke me. Tell me everything.” She closed her eyes and tried to pretend
her daughter was in the room with her, and not thousands of miles away.
There
was no reason to panic. It was an engagement, that was all. There was plenty of
time for them to decide if this was the right thing for them. “We’ll have a big
celebration when you and your sister are here for Christmas. Would Dan like to
join us? I can’t wait to meet him. Maybe we’ll throw a party. Invite the
Baxters, and all your friends from college and school.” Planning lifted
Maggie’s mood. Christmas was her favorite time of year, the one occasion the
whole family gathered together. Even Katie, with her busy life as a doctor,
usually managed to beg and barter a few days at Christmas in exchange for covering
the busy New Year shift. Maggie was looking forward to spending time with her.
She had a niggling suspicion her eldest daughter was avoiding her. Every time
Maggie suggested meeting up, Katie made an excuse, which was unlike her
because she rarely refused a free lunch.
Christmas
would give her a chance to dig a little deeper.
In
her opinion, Oxford was the perfect place to spend the festive season. True,
there was unlikely to be snow, but what was better than a postlunch walk
listening to the peal of bells on a crisp, cold winter’s day?
It
promised to be perfect, apart from one complication.
Nick.
Maggie
still hadn’t figured out how she was going to handle that side of things.
Maybe
an engagement was exactly what they needed to shift the focus of attention.
“Christmas
is one of the things I need to talk to you about.” Rosie sounded hesitant. “I
planned to come home, but since Dan proposed—well, we don’t see the point in
waiting. We’ve chosen the day. We’re getting married on Christmas Eve.”
Maggie
frowned. “You mean next year?”
“No,
this year.”
She
counted the days and her brain almost exploded. “You want to get married in
less than four weeks? To a man you barely know?” Rosie had always been
impulsive, but this wasn’t a soft toy that would be abandoned after a few days,
or a dress that would turn out to be not quite the right color. Marriage wasn’t
something that could be rectified with a refund. There was no reason for haste,
unless—“Sweetie—”
“I
know what you’re thinking, and it isn’t that. I’m not pregnant! We’re getting
married because we’re in love. I adore him. I’ve never felt this way about
anyone before.”
You
barely know him.
Maggie
shifted, uncomfortably aware that knowing someone well didn’t inoculate you
against problems.
“I’m
excited for you!” Turned out she could fake excitement as convincingly as she
could fake calm.
Excerpted from A Wedding
in December by Sarah Morgan. Copyright © 2019 by Sarah Morgan. Published by HQN
Books.
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