A family crisis brings him home…

Just in time for Christmas

Cattleman Callen Laramie has no intention of returning to his hometown of Coldwater, Texas, until a Christmas wedding and a family secret convince him he has no choice. And when he’s reunited with his childhood crush, the girl who’d always been off-limits, Callen knows leaving might not be so easy this time.

Shelby McCall is as pretty as a Christmas snowfall, and Callen wants to kiss her under the mistletoe…and the Christmas tree…and the stars. But once Shelby knows the whole truth behind this homecoming, will their holiday fling come to an abrupt end? Or will she accept the gift of his heart?

Excerpt

“I got Buck and Rosy’s wedding invitation,” Callen threw out there.

“Yeah. Buck popped the question a couple of weeks ago, and they’re throwing together this big wedding deal for Christmas Eve. They’re inviting all the kids Buck has ever fostered. All of them,” Judd emphasized. “So, no, you’re not special and didn’t get singled out because you’re a stinkin’ rich prodigal son or some such shit. All of them,” he repeated.

Judd sounded as pleased about that as Callen would have been had he still been living there. He had no idea why someone would want to take that kind of step back into the past. It didn’t matter that Buck had been good to them. The only one who had been. It was that being there brought back all the stuff that’d happened before they’d made it to Buck.

“Is Buck okay?” Callen asked.

“Of course he is,” Judd snapped. Then he paused. “Why wouldn’t he be? Just gather the blasted eggs!” he added onto that after another whiny ewww. “Why wouldn’t Buck be okay?”

Callen didn’t want to explain the punch-in-the-gut feeling he’d got with Rosy’s Please come. Buck needs to see you, and it turned out that he didn’t have to explain it.

“Here’s Shelby, thank God,” Judd grumbled before Callen had to come up with anything. “She’ll answer any questions you have about the wedding. It’s Callen,” he said to Shelby. “Just leave my phone on the porch when you’re done.”

“No!” Callen couldn’t say it fast enough. “That’s all right. I was just—”

“Callen,” Shelby greeted him.

Apparently, his unplanned hard-ons weren’t a thing of the past after all. Even though Shelby was definitely a woman now, she could still purr his name.

He got a flash image of her face. Okay, of her body, too. All willowy and soft with that tumble of blond hair and clear green eyes. And her mouth. Oh man. That mouth had always had his number.

“I didn’t expect you to be at Judd’s,” he said, not actually fishing for information. But he was. He was also trying to fight back what appeared to be jealousy. It was something he didn’t feel very often.

“Oh, I’m not. I was over here at Dad’s, taking care of a few things while he’s at an appointment. He got some new foster kids in, and when I heard the discussion about eggs, I came outside. That’s when Judd handed me his phone and said I had to talk to you. You got the wedding invitation?” she asked.

“I did.” He left it at that, hoping she’d fill in the blanks of the questions he wasn’t sure how to ask.

“We couldn’t change Rosy’s mind about using that picture of Billy in the veil. Trust me, we tried.”

Callen found himself smiling. A bad combination when mixed with arousal. Still, he could push it aside, and he did that by glancing around his office. He had every nonsexual thing he wanted here, and if he wanted sex, there were far less complicated ways than going after Shelby. Buck probably still owned at least one good castrating knife.

“I called Rosy, but she didn’t answer,” Callen explained.

“She’s in town but should be back soon. She doesn’t answer her phone if she’s driving.”

Callen couldn’t decide if that was a good or bad thing on a personal level for him. If Rosy had answered, then he wouldn’t be talking to Shelby right now. He wouldn’t feel the need for a cold shower or an explanation.

“Rosy should be back any minute now. You want me to have her call you?” Shelby asked.

“No. I just wanted to tell them best wishes for the wedding. I’ll send a gift and a card.” And he’d write a personal note to Buck.

“You’re not coming?” Shelby said.

Best to do this fast and efficient. “No. I have plans. Business plans. A trip. I’ll be out of the state.” And he cursed himself for having to justify himself to a woman who could lead to castration.

“Oh.”

That was it. Two letters of the alphabet. One word. But it was practically drowning in emotion. Exactly what specific emotion, Callen didn’t know, but that gut-punch feeling went at him again hard and fast.

“Shelby?” someone called out. It sounded like the whiny girl. “Never mind. Here comes Miss Rosy.”

“I guess it’s an important business trip?” Shelby continued, her voice a whisper now.

“Yes, longtime clients. I do this trip with them every year—”

“Callen, you need to come,” Shelby interrupted. “Soon,” she added. “It’s bad news.”

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About the Author

USA Today bestselling author, Delores Fossen, has sold over 70 novels with millions of copies of her books in print worldwide. She’s received the Booksellers’ Best Award, the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award and was a finalist for the prestigious Rita ®. In addition, she’s had nearly a hundred short stories and articles published in national magazines.

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