Christmas at Bravo Ridge. Christine Rimmer

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      About the Author

      CHRISTINE RIMMER came to her profession the long way around. Before settling down to write about the magic of romance, she’d been everything from an actress to a salesclerk to a waitress. Now that she’s finally found work that suits her perfectly, she insists she never had a problem keeping a job—she was merely gaining “life experience” for her future as a novelist. Christine is grateful not only for the joy she finds in writing, but for what waits when the day’s work is through: a man she loves, who loves her right back, and the privilege of watching their children grow and change day to day. She lives with her family in Oklahoma. Visit Christine at www.christinerimmer.com.

      For my mother, whose loving spirit uplifts and inspires.

      Merry Christmas, Mom.

      Chapter One

      The doorbell rang at nine o’clock. Corrine knew it would be Matt, bringing Kira home from her regular weekend visit with him. He was right on time, as always.

      “Come on in,” Corrine called.

      She heard his key turn in the lock. The front door opened and shut with a soft click. And then silence, except for the creak of a loose floorboard under his feet. The lack of happy chatter, of “Mommy, we’re home!” told her that Kira must be asleep.

      Matt stuck his head around the wall that marked off the entry, his straight brows drawing briefly together at the sight of Corrine on the couch, knees drawn up under her chin, ten half-full wine bottles arrayed on the coffee table in front of her. “She’s conked out,” he whispered.

      Their daughter was draped over his shoulder, her legs, in her favorite pair of pink footed pajamas, dangling loose. At Matt’s whisper, Kira lifted her blond head, yawned hugely and then turned her face the other way, nuzzling against his neck with a contented little sigh.

      “Carry her on up?” Corrine mouthed the words, gesturing at the stairway behind him.

      Matt turned and went up. Corrine watched him go. Kira’s little feet swayed gently with each step. Once he disappeared from sight, she settled her chin on her knees again and stared at the mess she really should start clearing up.

      She was still sitting there, in the same position, when Matt came back down the stairs a few minutes later. He went straight to the fireplace and turned his back to the flames.

      “Cold out there?” She gave him a lazy smile.

      “Oh, yeah.” It was supposed to get below freezing that night, rare for San Antonio in early November.

      “Kira wake up when you put her to bed?”

      “She didn’t even open her eyes.”

      “Busy weekend?”

      “The usual. Lessons on Saturday.” Kira took tap and ballet, karate and modern dance. She went to kindergarten and day care at the best Montessori school in SA. These were just a few of the many benefits that came from having a rich, hardworking daddy and a mom who ran a successful business of her own. “We went to a movie Saturday night,” he added. “Today, I took her out to the ranch.” Bravo Ridge, his family’s ranch, was a short ride north of SA, on the southwestern edge of the Hill Country.

      Corrine lowered her knees to the side and tucked them in close. “Your mom still at the ranch?”

      “Oh, yeah.”

      “How СКАЧАТЬ