A Montana Christmas Reunion

A Montana Christmas Reunion
Roz Denny Fox

HOLIDAY HOMECOMINGThis isn’t the first time Jewell Hyatt let Saxon Conrad go. When they were teens, she broke up with him so that he could pursue his country music career. Now, pregnant after their unexpected reunion, Jewell must prepare herself to let Saxon go again. Her heart may object, but she refuses to hold him back.Music never completed Saxon the way Jewell did…and still does. He’s ready to settle down, and a baby on the way makes his decision that much easier. The only hard part will be convincing Jewell to give him a chance. All of Saxon’s dreams have come true, except the most important one—a future with the woman he loves.

HOLIDAY HOMECOMING

This isn’t the first time Jewell Hyatt let Saxon Conrad go. When they were teens, she broke up with him so that he could pursue his country music career. Now, pregnant after their unexpected reunion, Jewell must prepare herself to let Saxon go again. Her heart may object, but she refuses to hold him back.

Music never completed Saxon the way Jewell did…and still does. He’s ready to settle down, and a baby on the way makes his decision that much easier. The only hard part will be convincing Jewell to give him a chance. All of Saxon’s dreams have come true, except the most important one—a future with the woman he loves.

“Saxon, what in heaven’s name are you doing?”

Saxon, shirtless, was splitting wood. His back muscles bunched each time he swung the ax, and his skin glistened with sweat. It shocked her to see him doing physical labor. He’d never wanted to help around the ranch. But shock wasn’t all. Desire gnawed at her enough to have her clutching her stomach.

Pausing, he spun, saw her and grinned. “I’m cutting wood. What does it look like I’m doing?”

“Why?” Jewell waved a hand aimlessly, more to cool her face than anything.

“The temperature’s gonna dip, and it might rain. I figured I’d fill the shed near the house with wood. I left you a message earlier.”

“I had a doctor’s appointment.”

“You did? How did that go?” Burying the blade in the stump, he reached for a T-shirt and rubbed it down his chest.

Jewell’s eyes tracked the path of the soft fabric before she blurted, “I’m pregnant. Eight weeks.”

Dear Reader (#u11c9daf7-e6be-593f-b325-313a39360242),

This is the third and final book in the Snowy Owl Ranchers series. Jewell Hyatt, the local veterinarian, was born and raised in the small Montana community. She and Saxon Conrad met when his parents died and he came to live with his bachelor uncle next door. Uncle and nephew had a long-rocky relationship. Jewell, who always had a crush on Saxon, took his part. She facilitated his interest in writing, singing and performing country music. The crush blossomed into love. But there came a time near the end of college when Saxon’s need to go to Nashville and make his mark in the industry conflicted with Jewell’s dream of living forever in her hometown. Of being a vet and saving a refuge for the snowy owls.

Saxon and Jewell split up. They meet again when they’re older and more entrenched in their chosen fields. Fate and friends take a hand in bringing this couple together a third time. But is it enough even in the Christmas season of miracles to allow them to settle their differences and make a life together?

I welcome hearing from readers via mail at 7739 E. Broadway Blvd #101, Tucson, AZ 85710-3941, email at rdfox@cox.net or via my website, korynna.com/rozfox (http://www.korynna.com/RozFox/).

Sincerely,

A Montana Christmas Reunion

Roz Denny Fox

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

ROZ DENNY FOX’s first book was published by Harlequin in 1990. She writes for several Harlequin lines and her books are published worldwide in a number of languages. Roz’s warm home-and-family-focused love stories have been nominated for various industry awards, including the Romance Writers of America’s RITA® Award, the Holt Medallion, the Golden Quill and others. Roz has been a member of the Romance Writers of America since 1987 and is currently a member of Tucson’s Saguaro Romance Writers, where she has received the Barbara Award for outstanding chapter service. In 2013 Roz received her fifty-book pin from Harlequin. Readers can contact her through Facebook or at rdfox@cox.net, or visit her website at korynna.com/rozfox (http://www.korynna.com/RozFox/).

I’d like to dedicate this story to the National Wildlife Federation. An article in one of their magazines sparked my interest in snowy owls that generally live in the frozen tundra. But due to changing weather and an evaporating food source, they’re migrating to Canada and the lower forty-eight. I don’t know if they nest in Montana, but as some are being followed in Michigan, my story-owls settled in cold, snowy northeastern Montana.

I’d also like to dedicate this book to Johanna Raisanen, editor, who inherited this project late in the process. My heartfelt gratitude for all of her help.

Contents

Cover (#u7e755b15-447d-5cf8-b076-2c245bc74adb)

Back Cover Text (#ubb40f345-0da4-5086-ac42-ad4f737293ac)

Introduction (#u289a7f9a-1bea-5f3a-96b7-2b8b91d0fcf9)

Dear Reader (#u4aae80b7-f9f9-5eee-a60c-af3fbb5e2495)

Title Page (#u5687acc1-0cfd-5197-b01d-30668cc12ff8)

About the Author (#u59da9def-5297-53fe-ba49-e1fb2af32212)

Dedication (#u03f0665f-18cc-5d1d-ac45-da75a231a09f)

Chapter One (#u202d71be-5aac-5533-8f6e-3cde537aa581)

Chapter Two (#u811abad8-4e5c-549f-9b9b-083e80a4f7ce)

Chapter Three (#u9fcac8a6-4dfb-5c0e-bb00-6c7371d198c2)

Chapter Four (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Five (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Six (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Seven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eight (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Nine (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Ten (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter Twelve (#litres_trial_promo)

Extract (#litres_trial_promo)

Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)

Chapter One (#u11c9daf7-e6be-593f-b325-313a39360242)

Jewell Hyatt considered herself fearless. But as she emerged from the airplane at Reagan National, for the first time ever setting foot east of the Missouri River, she was overwhelmed by the crush of people. She reminded herself she’d come to Washington, DC, to convince members of the Natural Resources Committee to authorize a refuge for snowy owls. Focusing, she merged with a stream of travelers rushing to the baggage area.

Her good friend Tawana Whitefeather was supposed to come, too, but she had ended up needing emergency gallbladder surgery. Because it’d taken months to secure the meeting, Jewell had to come alone. She was the owls’ biggest advocate—starting at age ten when she’d found a chick with a broken leg who’d blown off course and she’d nursed it back to health.

Oh, boy! If she thought traffic inside the airport was chaotic, driving her rental car in a virtual rabbit warren of whizzing vehicles gave her heartburn.