Rocky Mountain Dreams
HIS SURPRISE SISTERThe last thing Joseph Stone expects to discover upon arriving in Leadville, Colorado, is a newfound little sister. Hoping to find his late father's silver mine and hopefully keep his siblings back home out of an orphanage, Joseph needs an ally. The preacher's lovely daughter agrees to care for the little girl. She's just not as willing to trust the prospector….Annabelle Lassiter has seen what men do in pursuit of riches. Yet for all the hardship he's known, Joseph still shows tenderness and warmth. Annabelle's plan has long been to leave Leadville far behind. But Joseph's quest for silver could cost them a more precious dream–one of family, love and new beginnings….
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HIS SURPRISE SISTER
The last thing Joseph Stone expects to discover upon arriving in Leadville, Colorado, is a newfound little sister. Hoping to find his late fatherâs silver mine and hopefully keep his siblings back home out of an orphanage, Joseph needs an ally. The preacherâs lovely daughter agrees to care for the little girl. Sheâs just not as willing to trust the prospectorâ¦.
Annabelle Lassiter has seen what men do in pursuit of riches. Yet for all the hardship heâs known, Joseph still shows tenderness and warmth. Annabelleâs plan has long been to leave Leadville far behind. But Josephâs quest for silver could cost them a more precious dreamâone of family, love and new beginningsâ¦.
âThank you for your kindness to my sister,â Joseph told her softly. âI have never seen her so happy.â
Nugget broke free and skipped ahead. Annabelle didnât have the heart to stop her.
âIâm glad to have given her something to be happy about.â She smiled. Joseph wasnât too bad. Cleaned up the way he was, it was almost easy to pretend he was just a normal man.
Annabelle stumbled slightly. Joseph wasnât a normal man. And it wouldnât do for her to entertain feelings when she knew she couldnât count on a miner to stick around. Not that she had any intention of entertaining feelings about any man.
At least not here in Leadville. The town was full of shiftless drifters, and the one time sheâd let her guard down to trust in someone, heâd betrayed her. Something sheâd do well to remember in the presence of this man.
Especially the way Josephâs sparkling smile made her tingle all the way down to her toes.
DANICA FAVORITE
has spent her life in love with good books. Her job doing online promotion for a major publisher has given her the opportunity to meet many of the authors who inspired her growing up. Never did she imagine that the people who took her to faraway places would someday be the same folks she called friends. Sheâd say that work isnât really work for her, but in case her boss ever reads this, she works very hard.
Danica graduated with a B.A. in history and political science from Regis University. While her degree doesnât qualify her for anything resembling a real job, it gave her imagination room to soar and more fodder for her writing.
Having spent most of her life in Colorado, she loves the mountains. She lives in the Denver area with her husband, Randy, who inspires her to chase after her dreams. Together they have four children and a dog who thinks heâs also one of the kids.
Put it all together and you find an adventurous writer who likes to explore what it means to be human and follow people on the journey to happily ever after. Though the journey is often bumpy, those bumps are what refine imperfect characters as they live the life God created them for.
You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
âGenesis 50:20
An authorâs first book often comes from years of support from friends and family. This book is no different.
It would take an entire book to thank all those whoâve supported me through the years, so here is my general thank-you to all those who deserve it. You know who you are. Thank you.
For those who didnât get to see this dream come true before their passingâTheresa and Pat, you guys get the first nod. Your love and support meant a lot, and I wish you could have seen this come true.
Randy, Army Girl, Accountant, Cowgirl and Princess, thanks for putting up with crazy writer mommy.
Chip, I guess you told me so. Thanks.
Everyone else, Iâll catch you on future books.
Much love to all,
Danica
Contents
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The soft breeze floating off the Mosquito Range made the air feel more like midsummer than early June in Leadville. Which meant Annabelle Lassiter could almost declare mud season officially over. Though todayâs walk to the post office hadnât resulted in a letter from her aunt Celeste, surely she could escape this town and its painful reminders soon.
She paused as the parsonage came into view. A man waited on the porch. Annabelle sighed. Her fatherâs mission to care for the miners in Leadville was wonderful, but these days, they had more hungry people showing up on their doorstep than she knew what to do with. They had food aplenty, but Annabelleâs heart didnât have the strength to keep working when it seemed like every day held a new heartbreak.
Annabelle pasted a smile on her face as she walked up the steps of the parsonage to greet the man so covered in grime she couldnât make out his features. Probably a younger man, considering his hair was still dark. This place had a way of aging a person so that appearances could be deceiving. Two white eyes blinked at her.
