My Darling Christmas (Willow Valley) Small Town Romance by S.L. Sterling

Darling Ranch. It was a family name in this town, a family business and a family way of life.

Over the past year, the place hadn’t felt like family, or home, and I was barely staying in business.

My wife had died from an aneurysm while pregnant with our first child. It happened one morning while I was out in the field tending to the animals. The doctors told me it wouldn’t have mattered had I been by her side, the outcome would have been the same. Still, I beat myself up. My best friend and neighbor, Gabe Bentley knew this. He let me mourn my own way, but now he’s pushing me harder than ever.

“What’s the rush?” I asked him one morning.