You didn’t have to say it. It’s written all over your face. You think more of that oversized iron-bender than you do of me.

I know enough,” Caleb shifted his gaze to Rosalind, but she wouldn’t meet his eyes. She had dropped her head and rounded her shoulders. So he moved in front of her and took her hands in his. “I know that we all make mistakes and shouldn’t cast stones. I know that I love her with all of my heart and want to build a life with her if she’ll have me.

The best way to take our minds off our own troubles is to help someone else with theirs.

Charlotte dropped her gaze to her feet. You’re the most heroic man I’ve ever met, Stone Hammond. Slowly she lifted her face. I owe you everything.

How had he managed to hitch himself to the one woman in all of creation who not only understood his past but stood ready to fight for his future? The miracle of it made his head spin. All he could do was thank God for antiquated laws and prejudiced council members.

A man protected his woman, after all. And Lord willing, one day Eden would be his.

I’m not going anywhere, dear heart. I have a happy ending to write with you.” Addie stiffened. “You heard that?” she muttered against his chest. Gideon chuckled, his joy too large to contain. He pulled back just enough to see her face. “Yes, I did, my little dreamer. And I plan to fulfill that duty to the best of my ability.

The silence he’d thought a blessing had become a curse. It ate at him. Rubbed him raw. He wanted to return to the easy camaraderie they’d shared before the storm, but she wouldn’t let him. She avoided him. Why? How could she tell him she loved him then immediately start acting as if she didn’t? At.

Something flickered in her belly. Not attraction, surely. She despised arrogant military types. but the man before her didn’t look arrogant at the moment. Or even all that militaristic. He simply looked like a man who loved his horse.

Dan bit back a growl. No smooth-talking, barely-shaving stripling was going to charm her away. She needed a mature man, one with the skills and experience to protect her, provide for her. Hands balled into fists, Dan inhaled through his nose in an effort to stem the rising tide of jealousy that nearly had him shouting at her again. Maybe he shouldn’t be in such a hurry to send her back to Richland. Where younger men named Clarence waited in the wings.