A Western Christmas: Yuletide Lawman / Yuletide Reunion. Renee Ryan

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СКАЧАТЬ have mattered much. Although Thunder Ridge was a regular stop on the Union Pacific rail line, with its no-saloon ordinance and a strong Christian presence, it was also a peaceful community.

      Not that there weren’t concerns that arose on occasion.

      Caleb and Prescott dealt with random cases of vandalism, scuttles that came from high tempers and, of course, the occasional dispute over property lines. But the jail cells remained mostly empty. And now that Caleb’s brothers were scattered all over the West, there was even less trouble in town.

      Most days, his job was boring, exactly the way he liked it. He’d had enough chaos for one lifetime, first from his unpredictable childhood and then from his volatile marriage.

      “Want me to take the ride through town this morning?” Prescott asked, referring to their daily routine check-in with the local businesses.

      “I’ll do it.” Caleb had already performed an initial inspection of the outlying ranches before coming in to work. Once he rode through town and spoke with the shopkeepers individually, he’d take Gideon to the livery for a much needed brushing and rest. “You can go on home, Pres.”

      “Don’t have to tell me twice.” The deputy drained his coffee then set down his empty cup next to the stove.

      With more enthusiasm than usual, he shoved his arms in his coat then jammed his hat on his head. Instead of heading out, he paused at the doorway. “Hey, Sheriff, got a question I’ve been meaning to ask you for a while now.”

      That sounded ominous. “Okay, shoot.”

      “Just how well do you know Ellie Wainwright?” A speculative gleam shone in the deputy’s eyes. “Well enough, say, to make an introduction?”

      Caleb’s blood ran cold at the obvious masculine interest in the question. Prescott was nothing if not predictable. In truth, Caleb wasn’t all that surprised by the deputy’s inquiry, only that it had taken the man an entire two weeks to ferret out information about Ellie Wainwright.

      Still.

      “Don’t go getting any ideas.” A burst of temper spiked his tone to a near guttural growl. “Ellie’s off-limits.”

      The warning only seemed to stir the man’s interest further. “Why? Somebody already courting her?”

      Not if Caleb had anything to say about it. “She’s not available for an introduction and that’s the end of it.”

      “You sure about that?” Prescott scratched a hand across his jaw, his eyes taking on a thoughtful light. “I haven’t seen her with any man since she came home.”

      True. Nevertheless...

      Caleb wasn’t introducing Ellie to Prescott. Or, for that matter, any other unmarried man in town.

      He told himself he was acting on Everett’s behalf. He owed it to his friend to keep an eye on the man’s little sister while he was in prison. This wasn’t personal. It was simply the right thing to do.

      Keep telling yourself that, cowboy.

      “You can’t meet Ellie.”

      “Why not?”

      Caleb ground his teeth together so hard his jaw ached. “She’s a churchgoing woman with a strong set of Christian values and impeccable integrity.”

      Prescott’s eyes narrowed to tiny slits. “You implying I’m not good enough for her?”

      That about covered it. “No one’s good enough for Ellie.”

      Now Prescott smiled, a big toothy grin that set Caleb’s teeth on edge. Clearly he wasn’t getting through to the hardheaded deputy.

      He changed tactics. “She’s too young for you.”

      Which, to be fair, sounded as irrational in his head as it did out loud, especially since Ellie and Prescott were the same age, give or take a few months.

      “Ah, I get it.” The other man let out a low, amused whistle. “You got your eye on the preacher’s daughter.”

      “I don’t have my eye on Ellie.” That would be wrong on so many levels.

      Although...

      Now that Caleb worked the idea around in his head...

      Ellie was sweet and warm, caring, and excellent with children. She was the kind of woman a man made promises to, the kind of woman a man cherished and—

      He cut off the rest of his thoughts.

      Even if Ellie wasn’t Everett’s little sister, she deserved far more than Caleb had to offer a woman.

      Yes, he needed a wife. And, yes, Ellie was available, or so he assumed, but approaching her with the idea of marriage seemed inappropriate because of his history with her family.

      Best to look elsewhere for his future bride, or at least wait a little longer for Mrs. Jenson to find her for him.

      As if to contradict his decision, an image of his daughters crystallized in his mind. They deserved a good, loving mother, a sweet and warm, caring woman who would provide them with a calm, stable home life.

      With few available women left in town that he hadn’t already approached, and less than a month before Christmas, Caleb was getting desperate to find the twins a mother. So desperate, in fact, that he’d even agreed to let Mrs. Jenson contact potential mail-order brides from other parts of the country.

      Now, he wondered if he’d been too hasty with his acquiescence on the matter. Perhaps his future wife was closer to home. Perhaps she was already in Thunder Ridge.

      Perhaps she was right across the street.

      * * *

      Ellie reentered Kate’s shop with a pounding heart and an annoying case of trepidation. Considering her rapid exit, and her subsequent conversation with Caleb out in plain sight, her friend would surely want to know what they’d said to each other. And why she’d approached him this morning, instead of waiting until after her meeting with Kate.

      How was Ellie supposed to explain something she didn’t fully understand herself?

      Her discussion with Caleb had been brief, not much more than a question asked and an answer given. Yet, because of the long looks and inexplicable tension between them, Ellie wasn’t sure what to think.

      What came next?

      Mulling over the question, she stood just inside the store’s threshold, unable to move deeper into the room because she needed every scrap of energy to process the past few minutes she’d spent in Caleb’s company.

      Kate’s eyebrows lifted in silent question, clearly waiting for an explanation.

      Ellie pretended not to notice.

      “Fine.” Kate held up in her hands in a show of mock surrender. “I won’t ask. Never let it be said that Kate Riley doesn’t know how to mind her own business.”

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