ChapterOne
Charming, Texas
Early December1863
Elise Erindelle hummed a light tune as she tended to her hothouse flowers. In a couple months, shewould be hauling her wagon down to the village in the valleybelowwhere she would sell her beautiful blossoms. It was a bit more difficult to keep the delicate blooms from getting frostbitten in the harsh, northern Texas winter, but with patience and care, she always managed to find a way. But then, she’d been on her own since the death of her mother two yearsago. She’d already lost her father several years before that.
Of course,GraneldaCharming, orGrannieas she was affectionately called by the locals, would have loved to see Elisemove away from her cabin in thedense forest atop the mountains. She’d offered her a place at the inn whenever she wished, in order to stay with thetownsfolk all year, but Elisefound it difficult to leave the home that still retained all the fond memories of her childhood.
However, she realized Grannie felt a certain sort of responsibility for her, for she had been good friends with her mother. Not only that, but she had never made it a secret that she wished for Elise to find happiness the way her parents had when they’d foundedCharming. It was afact Grannie was more than happy to tell to whoever passed through their quaint little town.
She smiled, hearing the older lady’s voice in her head even now.
“Princeton Charming tossed a coin in the river and wished for love. After my mother held him at gunpoint and robbed him of all he possessed, he pursued her for a year, where they came back here to settle in 1797. In the hopes that others would find love, he dug that well in the center of town.”
It was these fond stories that Grannie told thatmadeElise sell her flowers right next to that same wishing well.Although, at twenty-three, it appeared the days of courtingwere firmly behind her. Butwhile sometimes she got lonely,it didn’treallybother her to be alone.
When she attended school in Charming, there were always boys that teased her about being the “Ice Queen” who practiced magic, claiming that her mother was a witch, simply because she chose to live in the mountains instead of in the village, whenthatcouldn’t have been further from the truth. Her mother was a healer who practiced with herbs and ointments rather than leeches and bleeding, and that made her eccentric.
Of course, the color of Elise’s hair didn’t help to squelch the rumors; for it was such a light blond it could easily be mistaken as white. Combined with herdirect,dark bluegaze,people were generally kind when she ventured into Charming for supplies, but they gave her a wide berth when she wasn’t carting her wagon full of flowerswith a rented horse from the village livery.
She leaned down and smelled the sweet fragrance of a pink peony. It was one of her favorite flowers, other than the elusive frost flower. But then, they were an anomaly that couldn’t be planted. These delicate ribbons were formed from layers of ice. They created curls of elegant designs that clung to dormant plant stems. In the early morning mist, in shaded areas of the woods, she might be lucky enough to come across one or two, but they were quite rare.
As the light outside began to wane, she realized it would soon be time to make supper. She didn’t have to make a big meal for one, and she always made ample provisions for winter, doing most of her canning in the autumn.Butnowshe was getting low on a few things,and she had promised herself that she would make bread this evening.
A chill chased through her as shereluctantlyexited the warm confines of her hothouse.She looked up through the towering, fragrant pines around her and pulled her cloak more tightly around her. The sky was darkening quickly, a sure sign that a winter storm was about to blow in.
Elise quickened her pace and entered her modest, log cabin. There were only two roomsinside,including her bedroom,but itwasenough for a single woman without a family. She walked over to the fireplace and added another log to the smoldering coals. Before long, the heat enveloped her and she sighed in contentment.
After that, she put a kettle on to boil on a hook above the fire andgrabbed a basket from the table. She walked back outside to the root cellardug into the side of the hill, located next to a neatly stacked woodpile. She opened the door and went down a few crude steps, the smell of cold earth enveloping her as she began to gather a few vegetables, as well as a jug of milk and butter.
She unlaced her boots as she reentered the cabin, setting them to the side of the door as she hung up her cloak and tied her apron around her waist.
It didn’t take her long to cut up the vegetables, and once she’d added them to the iron kettle, the welcoming aroma of stew caused her stomach to grumble. She quickly set about kneading dough for the bread, and then set it near the fire to rise, just as the wind began to pick up outside.
Elise walked over to the window and saw that the snow had arrived, the swirls of white combined with the howling wind making her thankful that she was inside where it was safe and warm.
Once she’d clearedoff the counter from the excess flour and set aside the dirty dishes to be cleaned after she ate, she hummed another light tune as she grabbed a broom and began to sweep the hardwood floor. She eyed the rugin the living area with a critical eye and decided that it could do witha firm beating in the morning, for she had procrastinated on that particular chore long enough.Hopefully, the storm would be over by then.
Elise ladled out a bowl of stewto cool,when there was asuddenknock at the door.Curious, for it wasn’t oftenthat she entertained visitors, especially on a night like this, she grabbed her woolen shawl that had been tossed over her favorite, worn chair and threw it about her shoulders.
Elise opened the door on a sturdy gust of wind. She was temporarily blinded from the snow, but when her vision cleared she gasped when the stark outline of a black bear penetrated her consciousness.
As a scream hovered at the edge of her throat, the bear spoke. It was raspy and soft, but it was enough to tell her that a man was beneath the heavy fur. “Help…me…”
He stumbled toward her.
Chapter Two
Chauncey Cade wavered between consciousness and the dark oblivion that had threatened to claim him at the onset of the vicious Texas storm. It had been ages since he’d been this farwest, and yet, the sight of this magical scenery was still asmagnificentas he remembered.The towering pine trees that nearly blotted out the sun, majestic mountains with their snow-capped peaks, and the rugged valleys below that beckonedhimto tarrywere all familiar.
Some sort of mouth-watering fare reached his nostrils and he almost smiled, a long-forgotten memory tugging at his brain. Just like the delicate curl of smoke that had guided him to this cabin in the midst of an unrelenting winter blizzard.
Unfortunately, while he wanted to explain his situation, any strength that he had was focused on holding himself upright, and even that failed him as he fell forward. He braced for impact as he fell forward, for any good it would do, but the smack to his face never came. Instead, he was caught up in the arms of something soft and decidedly…feminine. He opened his eyes long enough to glimpse a face that surely belonged to that of an angel, before he remembered his faithful companion was still somewhere outside.
His lips were wooden as he tried to speak and he knew thata chillwasstarting to setin. “Beau…”He managed to get out. “Dog…still…out there.”
She nodded, and he sagged in relief, grateful that she understood his nonsensical ramblings. “I’ll look for him, but first, let’s get you settled in front of the fire so you can warm up.” She lowered her voice and muttered, “Why you would dare venture out on a night like this is beyond me.”
