Read A Christmas to Believe In Online

Authors: Claire Ashgrove

A Christmas to Believe In

BOOK: A Christmas to Believe In
11.64Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

The Wild Rose Press

www.thewildrosepress.com

Copyright ©2010

First published in 2010

NOTICE: This eBook is licensed to the original purchaser

only. Duplication or distribution to any person via email,

floppy disk, network, print out, or any other means is a

violation of International copyright law and subjects the

violator to severe fines and/or imprisonment. This notice

overrides the Adobe Reader permissions which are

erroneous. This eBook cannot be legally lent or given to

others.

This eBook is displayed using 100% recycled electrons.

2

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

CONTENTS

Other Titles Available by Claire Ashgrove

Dedication

Acknowledgements

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Three

3

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter Thirty-Four

Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-Six

A word about the author...

Turn the page

Chapter One

Want more of the King brothers?

Chapter One

Thank you for purchasing

* * * *

4

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

Ethan tossed his controller in front of him, his interest in

the game lost. Jesse braced herself for the inevitable,

knowing full well whatever came out of his mouth next, would

hurt.

"Give it up, would you? I don't want to know him. I don't

have to like your friends."

"But Ethan—"

He scooted away like she'd cracked a whip in his face.

"Enough! Don't you get it? I don't give a damn about him."

"Ethan Scott!"

"What? Too crude for you, Jesse?"

She flinched, drew in a deep breath and held it.
Jesse
. He

hadn't called her by her first name for over a year. Exhaling

slowly, she set her controller down and slid off his bed.

Though she knew in her heart, too many years of pain drove

his emotions, the barb stung. On the same hand, she'd

pushed. Ethan couldn't tolerate pushing. He had to come to

things on his own time.

Foregoing the lecture, she crossed to the door.

"Goodnight, Ethan."

He said nothing. Merely picked up his controller and set

the options back to one-player.

On a heavy sigh, Jesse left his room.

Inside hers, she clicked on the lamp by her bedside and

reclined against her pillows. Tears brimmed in her eyes. She

closed them to keep the salty flow at bay and curled her

fingers into the sheets. In a thousand years, she never would

have imagined that the only man she'd ever truly wanted

5

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

would be Clint. In his arms, she felt safe. Protected.

Undefeatable. He lit her up in ways she had only begun to

comprehend, and it seemed as if fate determined to work

against her.

If she weren't careful, she'd lose Ethan. Every agonizing

step she'd made would crumble under the weight of his fears.

6

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

Other Titles Available by Claire Ashgrove

Seduction's Stakes

All I Want for Christmas... Is Big Blue Eyes

Timeless Valentine

Waiting for Yes

"
Timeless Valentine
is a story romantics are sure to enjoy.

Author Claire Ashgrove has created a heartwarming, yet

sometimes heartbreaking, story with compelling characters a

reader can't help but fall in love with."

~Long and Short Reviews

All I Want for Christmas... Is Big Blue Eyes:

"Claire Ashgrove proves yet again what an amazing

storyteller she is with her wonderful new Holiday tale. She

gives us unforgettable characters and not only our hero and

heroine but a cast of truly memorable supporting characters

as well."

~Long and Short Reviews,

"Claire Ashgrove wins a Triple Crown with
Seduction's

Stakes
, a wonderful story, unforgettable characters, and an

amazing love story."

~Long and Short Reviews—2009 Book Of The Year

Nominee

7

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

"Claire Ashgrove has written a book I found impossible to

put down. Her book,
A Christmas to Believe In
, reminds me of

Linda Lael Miller's wonderful Western family series. Ms

Ashgrove, I commend you for your talent and for taking the

time to write a story, that proves Christmas is the time when

dreams are fulfilled. Jesse, Clint, and Ethan, found those

dreams and tackled the obstacles. This book is a Christmas

gift for all of us, romance reading at it's best."

~Mary M. Rickson, author of
Tripping Through Time

[Back to Table of Contents]

8

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

A Christmas

to

Believe In

The Three Kings, Book III

by

Claire Ashgrove

[Back to Table of Contents]

9

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and

incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or

are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons

living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is

entirely coincidental.

A Christmas to Believe In: The Three Kings, Book

Three

COPYRIGHT (C) 2010 by Claire Ashgrove

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or

reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written

permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press except in the

case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or

reviews.

Contact Information: [email protected]

Cover Art by
Rae Monet

The Wild Rose Press

PO Box 708

Adams Basin, NY 14410-0706

Visit us at www.thewildrosepress.com

Publishing History

First Champagne Rose Edition, 2010

Print ISBN 1-60154-789-7

Published in the United States of America

[Back to Table of Contents]

10

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

Dedication

To Alicia Dean and Dyann Love Barr,

without whom this would never have transpired.

[Back to Table of Contents]

11

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

Acknowledgements

Thank you to the Dreamweaver ladies, Dyann Love Barr,

Melissa Lattin, Kimberly Baskett McEnany, Trisha Huntsman,

and to the ladies of WCW, Linda Kage, Leigh Stites. You gals

are awesome. Thank you to my best friend, Erin Huttig, for

always listening to my endless babble and helping me through

the rough spots. Midwest Romance Writers, Mid-America

Romance Writers, and Heartland Romance Writers—you've

taught me so much. I'm grateful I found you and for the time

I've spent learning craft. Mary Belk, as always, thank you for

your belief, motivation and friendship. Cindy Davis, for your

enthusiasm and the nitty-gritty.

Alfie Thompson, you've been a mentor from day one. It

occurred to me, I never mentioned that aloud. So here it is—

without you, I'd have quit a long, long time ago.

Thank you, Mom. Without your support and patience with

the grandkids, none of this would ever come together.

[Back to Table of Contents]

12

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

Chapter One

Snow crunched beneath the Chevy pickup's tires as Clint

King navigated around a turn. In the silent dark, his blinker

clicked a steady beat that tempered his nerves. In the rear-

view mirror, he checked that the two-horse trailer on his

bumper didn't slip in the light sheen of ice. The last thing he

needed was a wreck.

As if today wasn't bad enough.

He mumbled as he glanced down at the gas gauge. A few

more miles and the warning light would come on. Thank God

Mom's house lurked just around the next bend. He could

finally get off the snow-covered highways between

Brandenburg, Kentucky and the Kansas City Northlands. Eight

hours of treacherous roads was enough strain to turn a saint

into a sinner.

Then again, if his mother hadn't dosed out a heavy round

of guilt, he'd be happily tucked into his couch, watching the

latest DVD release. Even a saint couldn't stand up to Mom's

masterful manipulation. He could still hear her heavy sigh.

The carefully chosen words echoed in his head.
But Clint, you

missed your father's last Christmas.

He had. Certainly not intentionally, but he'd missed it all

the same. None of them had foreseen their father would die

the following summer. This last summer. When Clint had been

too busy prepping for the track to come home for the Fourth

of July.

13

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

Guilt rose up to curdle his stomach and compressed his

chest. He tightened his hands on the wheel. Damn, he didn't

want to do this. Coming back here stirred up all kinds of

memories. Each mile he crossed brought pictures of the past.

Dad taking him and his brothers sledding. Dad holding the

camera as they all opened gifts. Even the last Christmas Clint

had spent with his family his father had maintained the

specific role of photographer. Who would take the pictures

this year—Alex?

Clint shook his head. No,
he
was the eldest. That should be

his responsibility. Alex had other things on his mind. More

important things like a long-lost sister none of them had

known about until a few weeks ago. Alex also had new triplet

daughters to worry about. News Clint would have loved to see

Alex's high and mighty fiancee hear. That ought to be quite

the twist to Alex's Christmas Eve wedding.

Heath would be too caught up in the festivities. Hell, for

that matter, Heath probably hadn't even thought to bring a

camera. Even if Dad's sat in the closet, Heath would be

goofing off. He'd always gotten away with it too. As the

peacemaker of the family, he'd never been on the receiving

ends of Mom's down-the-nose looks, or Dad's stern, "I

expected more from you" frowns. No, Heath fixed everything

with an innocent expression and humor.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Clint steered around a slow left

hand curve. Up the hillside, pale blue lights dangled from high

gables. White strands wound around the porch beams. Even

from this distance, the deep red glow of his mother's

Christmas wreath shone from the front door.

14

A Christmas to Believe In

by Claire Ashgrove

Home. Five years later, and he was home.

Further off in the distance, he observed the festive red and

green bulbs that always decorated Jesse Saurs' folks' barn.

Some things never changed. Odd though, Mom had

BOOK: A Christmas to Believe In
11.64Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

Other books

White Doves at Morning by James Lee Burke
Emma Holly by Strange Attractions
The Skin Gods by Richard Montanari
The Man in the Woods by Rosemary Wells
Truth or Dare by Mira Lyn Kelly
Mortal Fear by Greg Iles
Never Say Die by Tess Gerritsen
City of Masks by Kevin Harkness
Steel by Carrie Vaughn