'A beautiful story of loss and new love, set in a snow-capped mountain ski resort town.'
Celia Batista waited a long time for all three of her sons to be together for Christmas. But after one of her identical twins disappears without a trace, Celia must rely on Police Captain Luke Veldkamp for help. Despite Luke’s accusations that her other twin son is involved with organized crime, she falls for the handsome, Stetson wearing cop.
Luke Veldkamp is facing his first Christmas after the loss of his wife, working nonstop to avoid the holidays and his grief. His daughter, who’d moved home to care for her mom before her passing, pushes him to face his pain. Luke pushes back, telling her to return to college and regain her own life. If his own strife isn’t enough, the mission to locate the missing son of his beautiful neighbor grows more personal than any other case.
While Luke and Celia fight to keep their families from falling apart, they find comfort and strength in one another. And when love blooms between their children, Luke and Celia’s own relationship takes root and grows. But Celia is used to living on her own terms, and loving a man who has isolated his heart is a risk too great. Now, Luke must either confront his emotions or face a life without the woman he’s come to love.
Out of the
corner of his eye, he admired her beautiful face. Only a few fine lines were
displayed on her otherwise smooth skin. She had striking cheekbones, and the
rosy color filling the area below them gave her a youthful glow. Her good looks
were well-developed—like a photograph, crisp and vivacious. “This might be a
rude question, but how old were you when you had Alex and Marco? You don’t look
old enough to have sons that age.”
Her cheeks
flushed crimson. “That’s not rude when you frame it like that. I was twenty.
Too young. But Luis and I made a life together and a family. If I could go back
in time, I wouldn’t do anything different.”
“Maggie and
I were twenty-one when we got married.” His chest squeezed as he said her name.
“Kenna was an unplanned blessing.”
“And a
blessing she is.” Celia held onto her mug with both hands and lifted it to her
lips.
“We both
were very lucky to have an early start with our spouses.” Swallowing hard, he
pushed down his emotions.
“When my
husband died, I was so unprepared. I had three boys who were still fairly young
and needed discipline. I started working full-time because of a delay in the
insurance settlement from his accident.” Sniffling, she stared straight ahead
through the windshield. “I know you must think I’ve acted unreasonable about
Marco and aggressive at pushing to find Alex, but Luke, those boys are my
life.”
“I
understand.” He fought the urge to touch and comfort her. After their almost
kiss, he didn’t trust himself not to give in to temptation. One taste, and he’d
be lost. A risk he couldn’t take. Not now, when his soul was as transparent as
a ghost.
About the Author
Tour Giveaway
One winner will receive a Loqi Reusable Shopping Bag with birds design, Soy Wax Candle - Snowflake and a $25 Amazon gift card (US only)
1 comment:
nice cover
Post a Comment