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Informationen zum Autor The daughter of a town marshal, Linda Lael Miller is a #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of more than one hundred historical and contemporary novels, most of which reflect her love of the West. Raised in Northport, Washington, Linda pursued her wanderlust, living in London and Arizona and traveling the world before returning to the state of her birth to settle down on a horse property outside Spokane. Published since 1983, Linda was awarded the prestigious Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007 by the Romance Writers of America. She was recently inducted into the Wild West Heritage Foundation's Walk of Fame for her dedication to preserving the heritage of the Wild West. When not writing, Linda loves to focus her creativity on a wide variety of art projects. Visit her online at LindaLaelMiller.com and Facebook.com/OfficialLindaLaelMiller. Klappentext Come home to the heart of a frontier town....Linda Lael Miller created magic in five novels set in Springwater, Montana -- and in the delightful characters whose lives and hearts entwine in each of her enchanting tales. Now, come back to Springwater for an unforgettable holiday -- and join in the tears and the smiles when a prodigal son returns to find love at long last.When Jack McLaughlin drifted into Springwater, he carried little more with him than his bitter memories of the Civil War and the shattering secret of a promise betrayed in the heat of battle. Wounded soul-deep, and fearing the wrath of his own parents, Jack has hidden his identity and come to Springwater to see his mother and father from afar, even if he can't bear to face them. Taking odd jobs and keeping a low profile, Jack finds a safe haven at the town's new rooming house.Olivia Darling had never done anything impulsive -- until she left the east and opened a boarding house in Springwater. But still an outsider at heart, and struggling to make a success of her business, Olivia finds herself turning to the other newcomer in town, the rough-hewn and embittered man she's taken in. As the Christmas season brings them together, Olivia finds in Jack's arms a passionate sweetness she never knew existed. And with the stunning revelation of Jack's true identity, all of Springwater witnesses a heartwarming reunion that will change their lives forever. Leseprobe Chapter One Springwater, Montana Territory, Fall of 1882 The distant hills were skirted in every shade of crimson, yellow, and brown, the sky a blue so deep that it caused something to twist softly in the depths of Olivia Wilcott Darling's spinsterly heart, the air crisp with the promise of an early frost, perhaps even of snow. Olivia, busy throughout that October morning burning dry branches pruned a month earlier from the trees, shrubs, and lilac bushes growing in her yard, stopped to touch the back of one hand to her brow. The acrid, autumny scent of woodsmoke roused within her an odd but familiar feeling of sorrowful festivity. Though she mourned the summer, vibrant early on with peonies and lilacs and sleepy bees, and then later with roses, the fall was still her favorite time of year. She loved its vivid colors and strange, chilly promise and, at moments like this one, with the fragrant fire crackling cheerfully nearby, with her fine, spotless white house rising behind her, solid and very nearly grand, she felt expectant, as if something were about to happen. Something out of the ordinary, something wonderful. A friendly female voice interrupted her revery. "Olivia? Aren't you planning to join us at Rachel's for the quilting bee?" She managed a smile for Savannah Parrish, who lived with her husband and several children across the road, then approached the neatly painted fence. She'd hired young Toby McCaffrey to whitewash the pickets in the spring, and he'd done a fine job. Savannah, a lovely woman ...
