Two weeks until
Christmas…who’s counting?
Me. So much to do and so
little time. But I shouldn’t complain. At least, I’m not trying to build a
living créche in the little town of Paradise, Montana. That’s my heroine’s
ambitious goal, and it’s going to take a whole lot of prayers—and one amazing
hero—to make it happen.
Sometimes, it takes a village
to create a Montana miracle.
Gage Monroe has given himself until
Christmas Day to wrap up the unpleasant bits and pieces of his old life in
Paradise, Montana, before starting fresh in much warmer climes. And the last
thing a loner like Gage needs is a beautiful, passionate pastor’s misguided
attempt to draw him into her flock. The people of Paradise exiled Gage a
long time ago…with good reason.
Pastor Samantha “Sam” Zabrinski didn’t move
halfway across the country to accept a position in the little town of Paradise
because she lacked gumption. She has no intention of giving up on Gage Monroe–a
man with depth and heart he hides from the world. Besides, Gage just may be the
Christmas miracle Sam’s been praying for…
Here’s a First Kiss snippet
from MONTANA MIRACLE:
"Have dinner with
me."
Sam heard the words, but they sounded so
much like an invitation to go out with him on a date, she was certain her brain
had something mixed up. Men like Gage Monroe--heartthrob handsome, intense,
introverted loner types--didn't date single moms who were also members of the
clergy.
She looked at her watch.
"Isn't it too early to eat?"
He stepped closer. "I
didn't mean this minute. Are you being coy or intentionally obtuse?"
"Neither. I don't get
asked on dates very often. That is what you asked, right? Me. On a date? With
you? Alone? Not me and my daughter or a double-date with Jody and Rob
Barnes?"
The get-real look he gave her
made her cheeks burn. "I haven't double-dated since tenth grade."
"How'd that go for
you?"
"I got to second
base."
"You touched her
boob?"
His grin made her knees wobble.
"Lightly grazed." He ran the backs of his fingers across her jaw, barely
touching her skin. Still, the sensation shot straight to the heart of her
womanly self. "But it felt like a big deal at the time."
"Did you brag about it to
your friends?"
He looked offended. "I
asked her to the school dance. She spent the whole time dancing with a junior.
We never talked again."
"Interesting."
"Clever stall."
"Yes. Well. The thing is I
haven't been on a date since Makayla was eight. My sister, Gretchen, agreed to
babysit. She was fifteen. Very capable. They were watching a movie and decided
to try throwing popcorn in the air to catch it. Makayla got a piece lodged in
her throat and started choking. Gretch called Dad and Liz, my step-mom, and
they took her to the ER to be safe." She walked to the window to check on
Makayla. She hadn't moved from the passenger seat where she sat with headphones
on, eyes on the screen of her phone, and her feet on the dash. "I'd just
made up my mind to have sex when I got the call."
He pointed upward. "You
took that as a sign from Heaven."
"Actually, I chickened
out. The one time I let my base desires take control, I wound up a single mom
with a mixed race baby and a lot of people questioning whether or not I had the
moral caliber to be a minister. This episode reinforced my belief that I wasn't
meant to have a sex life."
His nearly perfect features
screwed up in a look of mystified bafflement. "An accidental pregnancy and
one near-miss date? That's it? Wow. You really do have strong faith. But it's
totally misplaced, in my opinion."
She crossed her arms defensively.
"Oh, really. Who are you to judge?"
He framed her shoulders between
his big, powerful hands and walked her backwards into the bathroom. He flicked
on the switch and closed the door. Grinning, he said, "This is the
cleanest--and most private--room in the house."
Then he closed the gap between
them, forcing her to tilt her head back to look up. "Where were we?"
I was panicking because the man I've been secretly lusting over
suddenly asked me out on a date.
He held up one finger, smiled
and touched it to the tip of her nose. "I remember. You asked who am I to
judge? And I was about to tell you that I'm just a guy who thinks you're cute.
And sexy. I've wanted to kiss you since...about the first minute I saw your incredibly
kissable lips."
Her heart stalled and a prickle
of panic formed under her armpits. "I have incredibly kissable lips?
Really? No way. They're just
lips."
"I disagree."
He put one arm around her back
to draw her snug against his body, then proved his point. So matter-of-factly,
her mouth parted in surprise. He took that as an invitation and deepened the
kiss. His tongue touched hers. And, damn, if her treacherous body didn't react
the way a woman's body was supposed to react when a handsome man kissed her.
Her arms looped around his shoulders and she kissed him back.
Good Lord.
If you enjoyed that, you can
read the first Chapter for FREE at Tule Publishing: Chapter 1,
or you can buy the whole book from the vendor of your choice at Books2Read
here: B2R
Have a festive and
not-too-hectic next few days!
Happy reading,
Deb
Oh, drat, the Books2Read link is broken. Here's the full link: books2read.com/u/3RBZgn
ReplyDeleteSorry.
Deb