A Christmas Surprise
Shawn OâRiley is shocked to find a baby girl abandoned at his church on Christmas Eve. Heâs a pastor and a cowboyânot a daddy! Haunted by family tragedy, heâs not sure he can risk his heart to baby Noelleâor to anyone else. But he needs help. Experienced foster mom Heather Lewis was anticipating a quiet holiday. When Shawn pops up at her door, sheâs happy to show him the ropes of baby careâbut isnât prepared for the way he melts the walls around her heart. Can Shawn and Heather give each other the best Christmas gift of allâfamily and love?
Cowboy Country: Surprise babies lead to unexpected love in Texas
âWhat are we going to do with an abandoned baby on Christmas Eve?â
âI suppose one of us could drive her to San Antonio,â suggested the police officer whoâd come to the scene.
âAnd do what with her once you get there?â Heather asked.
Shawn thought he detected an edge of panic in her voice and discreetly narrowed his eyes on the local foster mother.
Yes, there it was. She was afraid for this baby. So was Shawn.
âI just canât help but feel this baby was sent to us, to our town, to this church,â he said.
To me. He wasnât about to say those words out loud, but he was certainly thinking about them.
âIf weâre not going to take Noelle to San Antonio tonight,â the officer said, âthen what are we going to do with her?â
Shawn took a deep breath and stepped out onto the high wire, knowing there was no net below him. He stared into the stormy blue-eyed gaze of baby Noelle.
âIâll take care of her.â
DEB KASTNER
lives and writes in colorful Colorado with the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains for inspiration. She loves writing for Love Inspired Books, where she can write about her two favorite thingsâfaith and love. Her characters range from upbeat and humorous to (her favorite) dark and broody heroes. Her plots fall anywhere in between, from a playful romp to the deeply emotional. Debâs books have been twice nominated for the RT Reviewersâ Choice Award for Best Book of the Year for Love Inspired. Deb and her husband share their home with their two youngest daughters. Deb is thrilled about the newest member of the familyâher first granddaughter, Isabella. What fun to be a granny! Deb loves to hear from her readers. You can contact her by email at [email protected], or on her MySpace or Facebook pages.
Through the Lordâs mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning, Great is Your faithfulness, âThe Lord is my portion,â says my soul, Therefore I hope in Him.
âLamentations 3:22â24
To Alex and Annie Baer.
May God bless your marriage in every way, and may your love for one another grow stronger every day. Love to you both, and Izzie, too!
Chapter One
Silent night. Holy night.
Pastor Shawn OâRiley pulled in a deep breath, savoring the rich combination of scents. Poinsettias and evergreens.
Christmas.
He relished the deep peace of the now-empty chapel and was grateful for the blessed evening, although he was equally glad it was finished. Christmas Eve for a pastor could be rather stressful, especially for a simple cowboy preacher who worked on the land for a living and pastored the little church part-time. Heâd mended as many literal fences for the neighbors as he had spiritual ones, but he loved every second of itâall of it. Especially, on a night like tonight.
Not many knew of all the behind-the-scenes effort needed to pull the more complicated church services together. The childrenâs nativity pageant had gone off without a hitchâgive or take a few easily distracted preschool-aged angels and a donkey who couldnât stand still long enough to recite his single line. The parents had loved it and the children had enjoyed performing, and that was all that really mattered to Shawn.
Following that had been the Christmas Eve midnight service, which was one of his favorites, starting with beloved carols and ending in the tranquility of candlelight.
All is calm. All is bright.
And it was. The atmosphere couldnât be more silent and serene. So why did he have a niggling deep in his gut that something was wrong?
He scoffed softly and shook his head. It had been a long week, between preparing some of his animals for the big stock sale coming just after the first of the year and organizing the Christmas Eve festivities. He was overtired, it was as simple as that. There wasnât any deeper significance to whatever unease he was feeling. If he had any sense heâd stop standing here straining for sounds that didnât exist and head back to his ranch so he could get himself to bed where he belonged. Settle in for a long winterâs nap, and all that.