The Soldier's Redemption

by Lee Tobin McClain

  Kayla couldn’t breathe.

  “So I know it might take you a little time, but for me, I’m more sure about this than I’ve ever been about anything in my life. I love you, Kayla. I want to marry you. I want to make a family with you and Leo. And if you say yes—even if you say you’ll consider it—I promise to protect you and care for you for the rest of my life.”

  It was more words than she had heard from Finn, all at once, since she’d met him. Warmth, even a banked fire, shone in his eyes. He was holding her hands so gently.

  She felt tongue-tied.

  “At least look at the ring?”

  “Oh!” She looked down and saw a simple square diamond on a white gold band. She reached out and touched it with one finger, and the sharp hardness of it made her realize that this wasn’t a dream, that this was real. The most real thing she’d ever experienced, and the best.

  And yes, she should wait and think and make sure. But no way. “Nothing would make me happier than to marry you. And Leo, well, I know he’d be completely thrilled to have you as a dad.”

  He clasped her to him and held her, and the swelling emotion in her chest made her dizzy. “I want to be a dad to him,” he said. “But if he needs to stay in touch with Mitch, I understand that and I will help to make that happen.”

  Her heart melted at his words. She suspected that Finn could be jealous and possessive, but he was willing to work with Mitch to make things good for Leo. That was selflessness.

  He touched her chin, and when she looked up at him, his face was framed by stars. “Did you really say yes?”

  She smiled. “Yes! Yes, I said yes!”

  He let out a quiet exclamation and lowered his lips to hers.

  As he kissed her with a restrained intensity that warmed her all the way to her toes, she felt like her shoulders were loosening, her chest was opening, and she was free. Free of that feeling of being unwanted. Free of having other people think she was a mistake.

  He lifted his head and smiled at her. From the ground, she heard the sound of cheering.

  “Do people know what you’re doing?” Suddenly it all came together for her. “Did you plan this? Did you tell the attendant?”

  A sheepish expression came onto his face. “I’m sorry, but I did have to get a few people involved. Carson knows. That’s why he brought the twins by, to help get Leo out of the way.”

  From below, she heard a shout. “Mom! Did you say yes?”

  “Leo knows?”

  Finn rolled his eyes and shook his head. “He wasn’t supposed to. But I guess Carson let it slip to the girls. That or the ride attendant or the jeweler spilled the news. It’s a small town.” Then he leaned over the edge of the cart and waved. “Hey, Leo. She said yes. That okay with you?”

  Kayla might have been the only one who heard the uncertainty in his voice.

  “Yes! Yay!” Leo cheered, and others were talking and laughing and cheering, too. The Ferris wheel slowly rotated their car to the ground and stopped, and there were all the people she cared about: Penny, and Long John and Willie, and Carson and the twins. And of course, Leo. When the attendant opened the bar, Leo ran to them. She opened her arms, and Finn opened his, and Leo leaped into them.

  “Want to go for a quick spin as a family?” the ride attendant asked, his eyes crinkling at the corners.

  “Yeah!” Leo yelled.

  And as they both hugged him, then tucked him carefully in between them, talking and laughing—and in Kayla’s case, crying—the warmth and rightness of it overwhelmed her. She looked up at the sky, and the stars seemed a canvas on which God had written His plan. “Thank You,” she murmured. “Oh, Father God, thank You.”

  Epilogue

  Four months later

  Finn stood at the front of the little church, and even though his fancy tie was half choking him, he couldn’t be happier.

  “I can’t stand weddings,” Finn’s veterinarian friend Jack DeMoise said from his position behind Finn.

  “That’s no way to talk, young man,” Willie said. It had been a toss-up for Finn which of the two older men should be his best man, but Long John had insisted he didn’t want the honor; he had other plans for the wedding. Plans, as it turned out, to walk Kayla down the aisle.

  So it was Willie and Jack who stood up with Finn, and Carson who was doing the ceremony. Finn knew what it was to have a band of brothers, but this group wasn’t bonded just by fighting; they were bonded by life. They were family.

  The changes that being with Kayla and Leo were already working in him felt like a gift from God. He’d been closed in, hurting, before, such that joy couldn’t gain a foothold. Now he felt joy every day.

  Kayla, too, was changing and growing. She and Leo had been seeing a counselor, trying to deal with Mitch and what he’d done. Both of them seemed to stand taller, as if burdens they’d been carrying had been lifted from their shoulders.

  The music changed, and he looked down the church’s short aisle. There was Leo, a cute little man in a suit and new cowboy boots, standing straight and serious with his responsibility of carrying the rings. He walked forward slowly, biting his lip, and then he looked up at Finn. Finn gave him an encouraging nod and smile, and Leo started to speed up. Soon, he was running full speed, clutching the satin ring pillow in his fist.

  What could Finn do but kneel down and open his arms to the little boy who already seemed like his own son?

  He got Leo straightened out and standing in the right place, and looked up in time to see Penny, already halfway down the aisle. Her dress was simple, her hair loose, and behind him, he heard Willie suck in a breath.

  Poor Willie. If only everyone in the world could be as happy as Finn was.

  Next came Kayla’s friend Janice from back in Arkansas. She’d come for the wedding and basically fallen in love with the place, and Finn wouldn’t be surprised if she moved out here sometime soon.

  And then he lost focus on everything else because there was Kayla. Her classic wedding dress, sleeveless and ivory and fitted, looked incredible. Rather than a veil, she wore a wreath of flowers.

  She had a lightness in her steps, a lift to her face that was completely different from when she had arrived at Redemption Ranch. She was radiant, and it wasn’t just a figure of speech. She glowed.

  She held Long John’s arm and Finn wasn’t sure who was supporting whom, but they both looked happy.

  Kayla caught his eye as she got closer, and love shone out from her eyes, as deep blue as a Colorado sky. This time, he was the one who sucked in a breath.

  “You’re a blessed man,” Carson said, and Finn looked sharply at him.

  “It’s the simple truth,” Jack said from behind him. “You know me and Carson wish you all the happiness in the world.” There was a hunger in his voice. Neither Carson nor Jack thought they could have this kind of happiness. They had talked about it a lot in the men’s Bible study.

  Of course, a year ago, Finn would have never guessed he could have this kind of happiness, either.

  As the music swelled, Long John delivered Kayla to Finn. He was taking his fatherly role seriously. “You better be good to this woman,” he said to Finn, his voice stern.

  “I intend to.” Finn watched as Long John sat down and then centered his full attention to Kayla.

  Kayla, soon to be his wife.

  His heart soared as the pastor began the simple ceremony. Against all his expectations, he’d been given a second chance. With a woman so well suited that they seemed to have been made for each other.

  They had both had their share of grief and tribulation. But maybe that just made this happy time all the sweeter.

  “I love you,” he said to his bride, keeping his voice low.

  But not low enough. “You’re getting ahead of yourself,” Carson said, and the congregation laughed.

  “I’
m okay with that,” Kayla said. “I love him, too.”

  “Then can we be done and go have cake?” Leo asked.

  “Just a few minutes, buddy,” Finn said, rubbing Leo’s hair.

  So Carson made quick work of the ceremony. And then came the cake and congratulations, toasts and dancing. It felt good to be surrounded by their friends, old and new.

  But after a couple of hours, Finn pulled Kayla aside. “You had enough of all this?” he asked.

  She nodded up at him, her eyes shining. “I can’t wait until we’re alone together.”

  He put a hand on either side of her face, leaned down and kissed her lightly. “We’re the bride and groom, so we don’t have to wait,” he said. “What do you say we take off?”

  Her eyebrows shot up. “Can we?” she asked. “Without saying goodbye?”

  “We have to go through the hall to do it. Should we try?”

  Of course, they didn’t make it, because Carson and Jack had their eyes open for just such a move. While Finn and Kayla found Leo and said goodbye to him—he was staying with Penny, but had plans for daily visits with Carson and the twins—the news that they were leaving spread through the crowd.

  When they made a run for the borrowed old Cadillac they were taking to their brief mountain honeymoon, they were pelted with birdseed. And sometime while the reception had been going on, the car had been decorated with signs, tin cans and shaving cream.

  But that was all fitting, because they were starting their lives together as part of a community. A nosy, interfering community, but one that wanted the best for every member, where neighbors were quick to extend a hand.

  Once in the car, Finn leaned over and gave Kayla the thorough kiss he’d been longing to give all evening, earning catcalls and cheers. He looked into her eyes. “Are you ready?” he asked.

  She nodded, her eyes locked with his. “I’m so ready,” she said. “Let’s go.”

  * * * * *

  If you enjoyed this story, try these books in

  Lee Tobin McClain’s RESCUE RIVER miniseries:

  ENGAGED TO THE SINGLE MOM

  HIS SECRET CHILD

  SMALL-TOWN NANNY

  THE SOLDIER AND THE SINGLE MOM

  THE SOLDIER’S SECRET CHILD

  A FAMILY FOR EASTER

  Available now from Love Inspired!

  Find more great reads at www.LoveInspired.com

  Keep reading for an excerpt from FALLING FOR THE COWGIRL by Tina Radcliffe.

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  Dear Reader,

  Thank you for visiting Redemption Ranch! I’m very excited about this brand-new series, where troubled veterans and abandoned senior dogs heal together...and where romance has the wide-open space to grow. Finn, Kayla and young Leo have plenty of challenges to overcome, but with God’s help they learn to love one another, becoming the happy family God intended them to be.

  One reason I love writing Christian romance is that I can delve into big problematic issues. That’s partly because the pages that aren’t taken up by love scenes can be devoted to character development. But mostly, it’s because the difficult problems people face can be best solved by turning to God. Faith and faith communities are the healing forces that let Christian romances dive deep, and still come back for an uplifting, happy ending.

  May your summer be filled with faith, love and good books,

  Lee

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  Falling for the Cowgirl

  by Tina Radcliffe

  Chapter One

  “I like Zeb Turner for the assistant ranch foreman position.” Travis Maxwell looked across the conference table at his sisters, Lucy and Emma, hoping for confirmation, and then shoved another cinnamon roll into his mouth.

  “Hey, you ate the last one,” Emma said, grabbing the tin for the crumbs.

  “I’m a growing boy.” Travis patted his flat abdomen. He glanced at his older sister, who continued to scribble notes on a pad. “What do you say, Lucy?”

  “Turner isn’t even in my top three,” she returned.

  “What are you talking about? He passed the background check and the fingerprint check, and his résumé is top-notch,” Travis said.

  “That’s true for all of the final candidates, Travis,” Lucy stated.

  “The point is that Zeb and I go way back. I can work with this guy and get the program off the ground and file for that grant. We’d meet the ninety-day deadline for that state funding faster than a bronc out of the chute.”

  Emma groaned. “Spare us the hyperbole, please.”

  “I’m telling you, my gut feeling is no to Zeb,” Lucy said. “Now stop annoying me. I’m not feeling well.”

  “Lucy, are you all right?” Emma asked.

  “Something I ate, I imagine.”

  “Excuse me, but with all due respect, Madam Ranch Director, I’m pretty sure the Fair Hiring Practices and Job Discrimination laws do not include your gut in the guidelines.”

  “Perhaps they should,” Lucy shot back. “I asked you not to hire Rusty Parnell, remember?”

  “I’ve written Rusty up and he is aware he’s one boot away from being let go.”

  “Travis,” Lucy said, “you and Rusty have known each other since high school and he’s taking advantage of your friendship. Please, let’s not make the same mistake by hiring Turner.”

  Emma clapped her hands to end the discussion. “Pardon me, but we have another candidate to interview before we proceed to decision making.”

  “Leave it to the Big Heart Ranch children’s director to be the voice of reason,” Lucy said.

  “AJ Rowe.” Travis glanced at his watch. “It’s bad enough Mr. Rowe went to the University of Oklahoma. He’s also late.”

  “Now, Travis. Not everyone can be an OSU Cowboy,” Lucy said with a laugh. “Let’s not let our college rivalries blind us to a potential employee.”

  Heads turned when Lucy’s assistant, Iris, stepped into the doorway. “Ms. Rowe is here.”

  Ms. Rowe? Travis mouthed the words to his sisters as he scrambled to search the candidate’s résumé for a hint as to how he’d missed that particular bit of information.

  He looked up in time to see AJ Rowe enter the room.

  In a gray business suit with black heels, the woman looked every inch the professional. AJ Rowe had twisted her honey-blond hair into some sort of knot at the back of her head. She carried a black leather briefcase in her hand as she entered the conference room.

  Travis did a double take. With those big blue eyes and that golden skin,
the woman bore more than a passing resemblance to Travis’s former fiancée. A woman who’d left him face down in the dust and had walked over him with her boots on.

  His heart continued a crazy gallop as he carefully picked his jaw up, hoping no one had heard it slam into the ground.

  Nope. This was not going to work. He was looking for a combination rancher and bouncer. Someone to keep everyone in line, so he could get something done on occasion. The last thing he needed was a beautiful woman distracting him and his ranch hands.

  “Ms. Rowe. We’re delighted to meet you,” Lucy said. His sister continued the introductions.

  When Lucy came to him, Travis offered AJ a handshake, though he declined to meet her gaze, and he also declined to notice how soft her hand was.

  “The Travis Maxwell?” the woman murmured with dawning recognition in her voice.

  His head jerked up at the questioning tone and he connected with clear blue eyes.

  “Have you two met?” Lucy asked.

  “No. I recognize Mr. Maxwell from the cover of Tulsa Now magazine.”

  Travis bit back a groan. He’d been labeled Bachelor of the Year.

  Lucy’s idea, and he’d been paying for that particular bright idea in spades ever since the story ran last month. Women were still sending him emails, letters and had even showed up in person to let him know they would be happy to help him change his bachelor status to something long-term. The irony being that he had zero interest in relationships let alone matrimony. No. Been there and almost done that.

  “Publicity for the ranch,” Travis mumbled. He shot Lucy a death stare.

  “He’s only a part-time cover model,” Emma said with a chuckle. “The rest of the time he’s the ranch foreman.”

  Travis shook his head. Laughingstock of the ranch was more like it.

  Once they were all seated, Lucy began a round of the same questions she’d asked the last five applicants.

  Travis fiddled with his pen, glancing outside at the redbud trees waving in the breeze of an Oklahoma spring. The deep purple buds were open in an explosion of rosy-pink blooms.