Blast to the Past: Robyn A Christmas Bride

Time for another BLAST TO THE PAST and an oldie-but-goodie, previously-released (just last Christmas) book and excerpt. Here’s Robyn: A Christmas Bride, my second book set in Noelle, Colorado. She's a free-spirited wagon driver. He's a workaholic Denver freight man—who needs the gift of true love.

Writing a historical romance Christmas story with the themes of a my-fair-lady transformation, selfless acts of love, and friends becoming soulmates is...a juggling act. It's so easy to drop at least one ball. How did I do?

“Jacqui has hit a home run with this one” - Peggy C, Amazon review.

Thank you, Peggy! Your words are the best reward an author can receive ❤️ 

But now, back to my heroine's my-fair-lady transformation. Say hello to my feisty wagon driver...

Blurb ~ Robyn: A Christmas Bride 

Who’s the perfect match for a flame-haired Welsh tomboy who loves driving wagons?

Raised by three free-spirited older brothers, Robyn Llewellyn has learned to fight for what she wants—and now she wants to transform her boss and best friend, Max Peregrine, into a lifelong partner. Determined to become the image of what a marriage-minded man wants, Robyn trades her trousers for a dress and heads to Max’s hometown of Noelle, Colorado. But changing who she is with the help of the now happily-married Brides of Noelle puts her friendship with Max at risk.

Who’s the perfect match for a work-addicted Denver business owner who loves his independence?



Defying his brother and grandpa’s wishes for him to stay with them in Noelle, Max Peregrine has created his dream job—leading a highly successful branch of Peregrines’ Post and Freight while working beside Robyn, the only person who makes him smile every day. But when she leaves without a word, Max follows her to Noelle where the choices they both must face could make it impossible for them to stay together beyond Christmas day.

Excerpt ~ Robyn: A Christmas Bride 

Noelle, Colorado—December 21, 1877

Max stood, astounded. Not by how much Noelle had changed, but by how little he had. Hovering inside Nacho’s front door with so many unenthused faces staring at him, he still felt like an outsider, a fraud, a square post in a round hole. Every success he’d earned since leaving Noelle seemed insignificant or even worse, like none of it had happened. 


He considered turning tail and heading back to Denver. As fast as he could. Then Grandpa Gus shouted his name, and he saw him, Jack, Birdie and— 


He shook his head in disbelief. 


Was that Robyn? Wearing a dress? Surrounded by a roomful of men? Men who dismissed him and pinned their gazes on her. With too much enthusiasm. 


He made a beeline for her. His brother leapt from his seat and intercepted him. Max held out his hand for a welcoming handshake, but Jack yanked him in for a fierce hug.


“You’re back.” Jack squeezed him even tighter. 


“And you’re cracking my ribs.”


The instant Jack released him, Gus hugged him just as intensely. Birdie did as well. When he was finally free, he still struggled to breathe. Their exuberant greeting overwhelmed him.

He coughed and said, “It’s good to be here with you.” He meant it even more when he saw Robyn smiling at him. 


“And what brings you here, Red Beard?” The familiar spark in her eyes when she said her special name for him, made it even harder to draw in air. Unexpectedly, her eyes darkened and her voice wavered as she said, “I hope…everything is well in Denver.” 


“Your brothers are good.” As good as he could imagine them ever being. “I’m here for you.” He forgot to breathe entirely when her eyes shone brighter than he’d ever seen. “You’re needed in Denver, Red Bird.”

~ * ~  

To hear more about Robyn and Max's story (read the opening scene, view my Pinterest inspiration board, and more) head to Robyn: A Christmas Bride's book page on my website.

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas and get to relax and do whatever you want today!
 
Jacqui ❤️

~ * ~ 

Want to find out what happens when Welsh meets West in Colorado 1878? Read an excerpt from my September release, A Bride for Brynmor, on my website. 

Fall in love with a new Old West...where the men are steadfast & the women are adventurous. 

Website: JacquiNelson.com

Amazon: www.amazon.com/author/jacquinelson

BookBub: www.bookbub.com/authors/jacqui-nelson

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/JacquiNelson

Join my newsletter & receive Rescuing Raven (Raven and Charlie's story in Deadwood 1876) for free: JacquiNelson.com/download-my-free-read 

Blast to the Past: The Calling Birds

It's less than a week until Christmas, so it seems the perfect time to BLAST TO THE PAST with the first Christmas story I wrote. It's also my first mail-order bride tale. The Calling Birds is Birdie and Jack's romance in Noelle, Colorado. She's a seamstress on the run. He's a steadfast freight man who's never run from anything or anyone.

“Jack and Birdie's story is a suspenseful, romantic, sweet story of family, trust, love and survival. I couldn't put this story down!”
- CarterandConnersMom, Amazon review.

“This was a great read. Likable, fully developed characters with some mystery, danger and intrigue tossed [in] along the way to the HEA.”
- FluffersMom, Amazon review

I hope everyone enjoys Birdie and Jack's story as much as I enjoyed giving them their happily-ever-after with...a little bit of mystery and a whole lot of suspense 😊

Blurb ~ The Calling Birds 

A wanted woman’s flight, a man in pursuit of honesty, not stolen gold…

Many years have passed since Bernadette Bellamy fled the Cariboo Gold Rush and her reputation as the sister of a French-Canadian gang of thieves. Armed with only an honest talent for sewing and a willingness to lead a solitary life on the run, she stays one step ahead of everyone seeking her brothers’ last—and now lost—heist. Until a craving to settle down makes her reinvent herself as Birdie Bell, a dress shop owner. The arrival of an old foe combined with her desire to hold onto her treasure trove of fabrics has Birdie joining a wagonload of brides bound for a remote town.

After losing his leg and his wife, Jack Peregrine buries his pain under a mountain-high pile of work. He only agrees to sign up for a mail-order bride to save the town of Noelle, keep his freighting business, and care for his absentminded grandfather. But Jack’s request for a sturdy bride who won’t crumble under his burdens brings him a woman as tiny as she is troubled.

Can two mismatched people band together to become the perfect match?

Excerpt ~ The Calling Birds 

Noelle, Colorado—December 1876

The door flew open and Jack filled the doorway, once again looking wild-haired but better than any man had a right to—especially at this early hour. His frown turned to wide-eyed astonishment when he saw her. “You came back.” He glanced at Gus and heaved a sigh. “And you found him.”


Gus snorted. “I found her because I went looking for her.”


“I asked you to wait here until I—”


“You were moving too slow.”


“I was preparing breakfast. A task you insisted upon in case anyone”—his gaze cut briefly to her—“showed up unexpectedly. Then you slipped out unexpectedly and alone and—”


“Time alone can help with perspective,” Birdie said, recalling her night at La Maison away from Jack, and other memories as well. “During the winter of my eleventh year, I walked two miles to school every day with only a pair of snowshoes for company.”


Jack’s lips parted in surprise as he stared at her.


She bit the inside of her mouth to keep from sighing or grimacing. It was a challenge not to do both. Speaking without thinking came from pondering the past too much while loitering outside shop windows. 


A slow smile curved Jack’s mouth as he propped his arm on the doorjamb and studied her. “Did you walk uphill both ways as well?”


Was he teasing her? “That doesn’t seem likely.”


“What if your home and your school were on hills with a valley separating them?”


She narrowed her gaze on him. “How often does that happen?” 


He leaned even closer to her. “For other people, probably not often. But it was my walk to school when I was a boy in Kentucky.”


She blinked in surprise. He’d shared a snippet of his past with her and his tone still sounded teasing and light-hearted and— Could he be flirting with her? She held her breath, waiting for him to say more.


“Can we continue this inside?” Gus grumbled. “It’s cold out here. Not to mention Birdie would like her breakfast ’n I need my coffee.”


She was only hungry for what Jack might say next.

~ * ~  

To read the scene where Jack & Birdie first meet or to view their story's Pinterest inspiration board, head to The Calling Bird's book page on my website.

Wishing you a very happy holiday season! May peace, prosperity, and love follow you this Christmas and for all your days. 

Jacqui ❤️

~ * ~ 

Want to find out what happens when Welsh meets West in Colorado 1878? Read an excerpt from my September release, A Bride for Brynmor, on my website. 

Fall in love with a new Old West...where the men are steadfast & the women are adventurous. 

Website: JacquiNelson.com

Amazon: www.amazon.com/author/jacquinelson

BookBub: www.bookbub.com/authors/jacqui-nelson

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/JacquiNelson

Join my newsletter & receive Rescuing Raven (Raven and Charlie's story in Deadwood 1876) for free: JacquiNelson.com/download-my-free-read 

C.H.'s Recipe Share: Blueberry Pandowdy

Welcome to my Recipe Share! 

Today would have been my Dad's 87th birthday 

Although he's been gone for 20 years, I still miss him. In honor of his birthday, I'm sharing one of my Dad's favorites ~ Mom's Blueberry Pandowdy.

Growing up, we were blessed because of our Dad's fondness for baked goods, which included anything sweet. During the Summer, Mom's Blueberry Pandowdy was always baking. It was one of the recipes I copied down before I got married.

I have recipes everywhere...or at least I did until I gathered the 3 x 5 cards, notebook pages, print-outs, etc. and put them in a binder--make that two binders. That got rid of the crumbling file folders I'd rubberbanded together all those years ago. LOL.

Here's a picture of the recipe card from my binder. You can see from the stains that it's been well used. Over the years, I've adapted it to include any berry or fruit. If you have it, use it ;)

We had some gorgeous blueberries the other day, so I got up early, followed Mom's recipe and here's what it looked like...now I'm not certain that's what it should look like since I never actually saw a picture of it. LOL!

I love using my grandmother's Limoges cake plate...makes me feel closer to her. ;)

~ ~ ~

If I had raspberries--it became Raspberry Pandowdy. I made up recipe postcards, which I brought with me to many booksignings over the years. Love the simplicity of these double-sided cards, using our oldest son's advice to take a picture so people can see what it's supposed to look like. I'd like to add, that's what it looks like when I bake it -- not a guarantee of what it should look like. LOL!

~ ~ ~

Here's Mom's recipe:

Blueberry Pandowdy

My mom used to bake this when blueberries were in season. There is nothing like the taste of blueberry pandowdy fresh out of the oven with a cup of coffee or tea for breakfast.

Note: I’ve only made this recipe with fresh berries, but you can substitute frozen or canned blueberries, or whichever berry or fruit you prefer (*see alternate below)—but I can’t guarantee that it will be as delicious as it does with fresh berries.

2 cups washed fresh blueberries (substitute drained, thawed frozen or canned blueberries)

1/3 cup sugar

Juice of ½ lemon (or lemon juice)

Cake batter (see recipe below)

Cream, Hard Sauce, or Vanilla Ice Cream for topping

*I've made this recipe with apples, too--our oldest son loves it*

6 Granny Smith Apples (peeled and sliced thin)

1 & 1/2 cups of sugar 

2 tsps. cinnamon

splash of lemon

Cook in medium saucepan until soft, add to greased baking dish (or casserole) top with cake batter.

Combine berries (or fruit,) sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes. Pour into a greased (I used margarine) baking dish (9x9x2) if you have it, or if not, I’ve used a casserole dish.

Spread with cake batter (recipe follows) and bake in a preheated moderate oven 375 degrees F for about 20 minutes. Spoon out servings hot or cold and serve with cream (whipped if preferred)

Makes 6 servings.

Pandowdy Cake Batter

½ cup butter (or margarine)

½ cup sugar

1 egg

1 ½ cup sifted flour (I only used Heckers Unbleached)

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

½ cup milk

Cream butter until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar. Stir in egg. Sift dry ingredients and add alternately with milk. Beating until smooth. Spread over hot berries…see above berry recipe.

Do you have a favorite sweet recipe that you love? Leave a comment, I love swapping recipes!

~ ~ ~

Today was supposed to be the day my Sweet Christmas Novella: Christmas Comes to Apple Grove would be available for Pre-Order...

Well it would have been if I'd known that you could only set the Pub date...not the Pre-order date. *sigh* 

So it's been available for pre-order since August 28th when I set everything up. I only seem to learn things the hard way, but I always get back up, brush myself off and put one foot in front of the other. 

So although I didn't manage to have the pre-order date today, on what would have been my Dad's birthday. In his memory, I'm still thinking of him, thanking him for the gift of life, words and song. Celebrating by giving away a signed print--or e-book--copy of my new Sweet Christmas Novella: 

Christmas Comes to Apple Grove

Happy Baking...Happy Reading!!

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E.E. Burke's Best of the West: The Devil and Miss Julia Jackson by Cheryl Pierson

A woman with no home…

Purchase Today for only 99 cents!

Beautiful Southern belle Julia Jackson has just been informed she and her niece must find a new home immediately—or else. With no family to turn to in Georgia, Julia takes a mighty gamble and answers an advertisement for a nursemaid in wild Indian Territory—for the child of a man she knows nothing about. Together, she and five-year-old Lauralee waste no time as they flee to the safety of the new position Julia has accepted. She can only hope this move will be the start of a bright future for them away from Lauralee’s dangerous much older half-brother.

A rancher with no heart…

The death of Devlin Campbell’s young daughter has ripped the light from his life. Though the birth of his son, little Jamie, should have been a source of happiness, the subsequent loss of his wife forces Dev to ignore his emotions and trudge through life’s joyless responsibilities. But all that changes with the arrival of Miss Julia Jackson from Atlanta! Not at all what Dev is expecting in response to his ad, his resentment boils over at her failure to mention her tag-along niece—a painful reminder of the loss of his own little girl just two years earlier. Yet, how can he deny the sunshine Julie brings into his drab existence with her very presence?

Can love find a way?

In the depths of Dev’s boundless sorrow and his accompanying anger, is there room in his life for anyone else as Christmas approaches? Can Julie convince him that love is the cure for a broken heart, and hope is the only recipe for a new beginning between THE DEVIL AND MISS JULIA JACKSON…

Here's an excerpt...

The door banged open behind the three, a gust of icy wind howling in before the tall man who’d entered could get it shut. 

Lauralee hugged herself and shivered, then ran to the blazing hearth to the warmth. She eyed the man warily as she crouched before the fireplace.

Julia turned the baby away from the cold, until she heard the door shut behind her.

“What the devil—” the man bit out savagely.

When Julia’s gaze shot to his, her heart sank. This must be Mr. Campbell, her employer. And he was bending the fiercest glare she’d ever seen on Lauralee, who cowered by the fireplace.

Julia quickly gathered herself. Over the past few years, she’d had more than her fair share of life-changing surprises. Her parents had been killed in a runaway carriage accident when she was ten. Her older brother, Jerome, and sister, Helena, had tried to hold onto the family’s holdings, but Jerome’s penchant for gambling had ended up landing them all on the street.

It hadn’t been too much longer before Jerome had been found in an alley with his throat cut—and Helena had had to marry quickly to give herself and Julia a home. Now that Helena was gone, Julia knew she could never be parted from her niece. Helena had provided for Julia when there’d been no one else—now, Julia would keep Lauralee safe from the world—including the likes of the very unpleasant Mr. Devlin Campbell!

“I assume you are Mr. Campbell?” Julia asked uncertainly, as she stepped toward him, extending one hand. She shifted Jamie to her hip. “I’m Miss Julia Jackson,” she continued primly, “up from Savannah way—your new nursemaid for young Jamie, here. And this—” she stepped to the side as Dev took her hand— “is Miss Lauralee Redmond.”

Lauralee, it seemed, had recovered, as well. She had risen to her feet, and stood glaring at the man, her hands on her hips. 

He glared right back at her, barely sparing Julia a glance.

“We’re not the Debbil! You are!” Lauralee said, pointing at him with an accusatory finger.

Oh, Dear Heavenly Father… Julia’s throat constricted as she stepped forward. They were going to be tossed out into this blizzard for sure!

Meet Cheryl

Cheryl was born in Duncan, Oklahoma, and grew up in Seminole, Oklahoma. She graduated from the University of Oklahoma and holds a B.A. in English.

She has nine published novels, including five western historical romances: Fire Eyes, The Half-Breed's Woman, Gabriel's Law, Time Plains Drifter, and The Devil and Miss Julia Jackson. Her contemporary romantic suspense novels include Sweet Danger, Capture the Night, and Beyond the Fire. Ride the Wild Range is her YA coming-of-age western tale. All are available at Amazon.

Three of Cheryl’s stories have been nominated in the Best Western Short Fiction category of the Western Fictioneers Peacemaker Awards.  Her paranormal western short story "The Keepers of Camelot" was nominated in 2013. In 2014, "It Takes a Man," featuring her characters from the Wolf Creek series, was a finalist. “Hidden Trails” made the list of finalists in 2016.

Cheryl also has contributed heavily to the western "shared world" collaborative effort known as Wolf Creek since it came into existence. Cheryl has also served as the President of the Western Fictioneers, a professional organization for western authors.

In 2013, she and long-time friend Livia Reasoner opened Prairie Rose Publications. PRP now offers five other imprints: Painted Pony Books, Tornado Alley Publications, and Fire Star Press, Prayers and Promises Publications, and Sundown Press.

Cheryl and her husband have lived in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for the past 33 years. You can e-mail Cheryl at: fabkat_edit@yahoo.com

For more information:

PRAIRIE ROSE PUBLICATIONS WEBSITE: http://www.prairierosepublications.com/

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/cheryl.pierson.92

E.E.: Where do you read and how often?

Cheryl: I pretty much read every single day—if I’m not reading for work, I am reading for pleasure or working on my own writing and reading back over it. But as the Editor-in-Chief for Prairie Rose Publications, I am also the acquisitions person, the editor for everything that comes in that we select to publish, and I used to also do free-lance editing. So reading is something that is ongoing and constant. I do read for pleasure when I sit down for lunch, though.

E.E.: What was the first story you remember writing?

Cheryl: The very first story I remember writing was in elementary school. I was always the kid who wrote two pages when the teacher asked for two paragraphs. My mom saved everything—so somewhere in the attic, I have my story I wrote in fourth grade about a girl and her cat!

E.E.:  What’s your favorite movie of all time?

Cheryl: Here I have to cheat a little. My overall favorite movie would probably be TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD because to me, there is no better book, no better story and no better movie—superb storytelling in all forms, and who better for the parts they cast in that movie than those particular people they hired for the parts? But, for another reason, I have to say WEST SIDE STORY was a favorite—I just don’t think I can compare those two—it’s like apples and oranges, right? And for pure entertainment, is there any better film than FIELD OF DREAMS? What a great concept—and what a surprise ending.

E.E.: What is your biggest vice? 

Cheryl: Oh, drinking real Coke is my biggest vice, hands down. I’ve tried to quit for years. I quit while I was pregnant both times. But no matter how many times I actually quit, I always go back to it at some point. I don’t drink it nearly as much as I used to—but it’s like my coffee—I have to have it first thing in the morning—at least one can. Then I might go to the more mellow stuff, like Diet Dr. Pepper.

E.E.: Is writing or story-telling easier for you?

Cheryl: Writing—by far. I stumble over my words when I try to “tell” a story or a joke—I’m the world’s worst joke-teller, for sure. LOL But writing is so much easier for me—it helps me to be able to just slow down, go back and revise what I’m saying on paper and get it right. I write everything longhand before I enter it into the computer.

E.E.: What is your hero’s “kryptonite” – in other words, what will bring him instantly to his knees?  

Cheryl: Oh, great question, because in this story, Devlin Campbell has suffered the loss of his daughter and his wife in a short period of time and he is so hurt by it all—especially his daughter’s death. When Miss Julia Jackson shows up as the nursemaid for his young son, Devlin is none too happy to see she has her young niece in tow—a little girl who is just about the same age as his daughter was when she died. He’s got to face dealing with her every day and get past his grief, but it’s not going to happen overnight.

E.E.: What will always make you smile, even on a bad day? 

Cheryl: My dog and my kids. Even though they’re grown now, my son and my daughter both have a very unique sense of humor and I can’t talk to them without feeling better. My dog…well, just looking into his sweet face makes me smile.

E.E.: What are the next five books on your ‘to be read’ pile?  

Cheryl: Great question! Because I do have a HUGE pile! LOL But I’ll just talk about the ones I will be reading for pleasure/entertainment, and not for work. With it being time for the holidays, I will definitely be reading Christmas stories galore—and I plan to start with THE TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS MAIL ORDER BRIDES stories. It’s been a VERY long time since I’ve been so excited about a series of books—and I just can’t wait to start these.

E.E.: How did you come up with the idea for your book?  

Cheryl: I had started to write this story as a short story for the SWEET TEXAS CHRISTMAS anthology—but it quickly took off and shot past the word count for an anthology-length story! This was definitely one of those tales where the characters “talked” to me and told me things about them I didn’t know—I knew Dev was in pain from the deaths I mentioned earlier, and that Julia was terribly uncertain about everything—but it never had occurred to me how scary that would have been for her to have been responsible for a young child and be at the mercy of the world—a world she had no clue how to get along with, coming from the genteel Southern society she was born and raised in to the rough-and-tumble life of what she ended up with in Indian Territory. I had to make sure the story was told as it should be and that they both got their say!

Elisabeth, thanks so much for having me here at GLIAS! I always love to hop over and visit with you and your readers, and it’s my pleasure to be able to give away these digital copies of these holiday stories for some lucky readers’ enjoyment! Thanks again for having me.

What is one of your favorite Christmas or holiday memories?

Leave a comment and enter the Rafflecopter drawing for a chance to win two copies of THE DEVIL AND MISS JULIA JACKSON and a copy of SWEET TEXAS CHRISTMAS!

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Twelve Days of Christmas Mail-Order Brides: THE GOLD RING

On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me...

Purchase on Amazon
or read it FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Pearl knows she'll only ever be a whore. Her chance to be anything more was snatched away long ago, and the bitterness has eaten at her for years. What keeps her looking to the future is the opportunity to take care of and protect the other working girls at La Maison des Chats... Well that, and one particular customer who holds her heart, even if he would never consider a life with someone like her.

On Christmas Eve, a dozen new brides arrive in Noelle and are forced to take up residence in La Maison. Pearl is happy to be able to offer comfort and support, because the poor things need her help...even if their very presence is a sharp reminder that she can never be one of them.

But when the Reverend's scheme to get the brides married off falls through on only the second day of Christmas, it looks like the town will never be stable enough to entice the railroad spur they all desperately need. So Pearl agrees to a deception that will not only save the town, but bring her what she desperately wants: a marriage--even a pretend one--with the man she loves.

Little do they know just how dangerous this deception will turn out to be... 

Meet Caroline Lee

USA Today Bestseller Caroline Lee has been reading romance for so long that her fourth-grade teacher used to make her cover her books with paper jackets. But it wasn't until she (mostly) grew up that she realized she could WRITE it too. So she did.

Caroline is living her own little Happily Ever After in NC with her husband, sons, and brand-new daughter, Princess Wiggles. And while she doesn't so much "suffer" from Pittakionophobia as think all you people who enjoy touching Band-Aids and stickers are the real weirdos, she does adore rodents, and never met a wine she didn't like. Caroline was named Time Magazine's Person of the Year in 2006 and is really quite funny in person. Promise.

Q&A

E.E.: How did you come up with the idea for this series?

Caroline: Totally in a dream. Sometimes I have dreams that are specifically related to my writing (as opposed to personal), and when I woke up, I KNEW this was a writing dream. Of course, it had been about a sheikh putting together a harem (heh), and I knew THAT wouldn't work for a series...but the more I thought about it, the more I realized the basic premise could work for mail-order brides, and it could be AWESOME if written by twelve different authors. Also: FUN!

E.E.: What has been the most exciting part of writing it?

Caroline: The coolest part of this project has been working with eleven other authors. I really loved seeing how each author incorporated the noun from the song's verse into their titles and into their books. There's been a lot of use of names--like the heroine from book #1 is Felicity Partridge--and then a lot of really wild, creative tie-ins. 

For the most part, the twelve of us meshed really well, which was great because we had to work so closely on this project! Not only are the books in the same series, they take place at the same time! So we had to not only communicate extensively while writing, but read and re-read each other's books and shared scenes, until we knew they meshed well. Even though these books came out in December, they've been a big part of our lives all year!

E.E.: What is the most challenging part of writing a multi-author series?

Caroline: Having to be a leader!! I stink at it; I would MUCH rather lead through democracy, asking everyone's opinion and doing my best to make sure everyone has a say and we can accommodate everyone's view. But with this many people involved, I HAD to make executive decisions, and that was really hard for me. Every time I did it, I cringed a little and wanted to apologize. I like to think those executive decisions have steered us well, but I second- and third-guessed them all! 

E.E.: Why did you pick the 5th day?

Caroline: When I set out to make this series a reality, I contacted Kit Morgan and E.E. Burke to be co-leaders with me. When we met in person to discuss, Kit quickly got assigned the first day (she has experience leading a series like this) and E.E. was the natural choice to tie it all together. Ironically--considering I'd come up with the series--I didn't have a spot I really wanted. Honestly, I liked the seventh day, because I thought it would be neat to incorporate swans... 

But when we decided to put me in the middle, #5 was the natural choice, because hey! Romances and gold rings! Easy peasy! But I had the hardest time figuring out how to incorporate that ring into my book...

My story is about one of the town whores, who has appeared in a lot of the other books. There's a theme in this series of the town whores versus the mail-order brides (as the two groups of women in town), and I LOVED being able to portray one of the whores. I also got to set it up with a false bride and false groom, so it looked like the readers were going to have to read about a really horrible hero and heroine in book #5, but I switch them out at the last minute! That was part of the decision to put me right there in the middle.

E.E.: Do you have a favorite line or scene from The Gold Ring?

Caroline: This is my favorite scene, where Draven proves--with his actions--that he thinks Pearl is so much more than what their relationship had previously been. The book IS sweet (in that there's no sex on the page), but these two have some heat between them.

He stopped in the doorway, his eye raking her from head to toe. She placed one hand on her hip, thrust her breasts against the cotton of her camisole, and gave him the sultry, sensual look she and Jolie had spent hours perfecting in the mirror.

It didn’t work.

“What are you doing?”

His question flustered her. “What does it look like I’m doing?”

He didn’t answer. Instead, he stalked towards her, the heels of his boots echoing on the floorboards beneath them. “I thought you’d be in bed by now, trying to get warm.”

The mound of blankets was appealing, now that the stove’s heat had fizzled out. But she was on a mission, and wasn’t going to let anything get in her way. “I thought of another way to get warm.” 

There, that didn’t sound too silly, and it was true. Just the thought of Draven’s hand on her camisole—and on her skin under it—was enough to make her warm.

She began to untie the ribbon at the neck of the undergarment, but to her surprise, her fingers were shaking too much to make sense of the knot. 

“Pearl.” He stepped up to her, his large hand covering both of hers at her collarbone. “Stop.”

She tried to smile up at him, but wondered why it felt so watery. “I just…”

I have to thank you.

Shaking off his hand, she managed to untie her camisole. The two sides of the material gaped open, offering him a magnificent view of the inner valleys of her breasts. She held her breath as he stared down at her chest for a long moment. A muscle ticked in the unscarred side of his jaw, and she wondered what he was thinking.

Finally, his gaze lifted to hers, and she didn’t see any of the desire she’d hoped for. Here she was, in this man’s home—the reason she’d forced her way in here—and he couldn’t even summon a smidge of desire for her? 

“Pearl,” he repeated, his low and gentle, “what are you doing?”

Oh, God. He looked so fierce and deadly, but when he spoke to her like that—when he treated her like she was something special—her heart always broke from longing.

“I’m thanking you!” she cried, before she could think better of it. “You shared your food with me, you shared your home with me, and you didn’t have to! You didn’t have to do any of this! I just wanted to show you—”

“No.” 

This time his voice was harsher, and she bent her head in shame. She deserved his reproach. 

To her surprise, his hands came to the neckline of her camisole, like they’d done so many times before, but instead of pulling the white material apart, instead of exposing her breasts to the cold air and warming them with his tongue, he…he tied the ribbon closed. 

He protected her modesty.

And then he placed each of his large hands on her shoulders—close enough she could feel the sides of his thumbs, caressing the skin of her neck—and said, “Look at me, Pearl.”

She did. And when she looked into that dark eye of his, she saw something there she couldn’t identify. It wasn’t pity, and it wasn’t hope, and it wasn’t anger. It was a kind of fierceness she’d never seen on a man’s face before. 

“Are you listening?” he snapped.

Mutely, she nodded.

“You are more than a whore, Pearl.” He punctuated each sentence with a little shake. “If you want to thank a man, just thank him. You don’t need to trade your body for—for anything.” He swallowed. “Just say ‘thank you.’ ”

You are more than a whore..

Pearl blinked back tears. “Thank you,” she said thickly, not quite sure anymore what she was thanking him for. 

🎄🎄🎄

Twelve days. Twelve books. Twelve bestselling authors.

Check out the entire series!

Twelve men. Twelve brides. Twelve days to save a town.

Christmas, 1876: Noelle, Colorado is in danger of becoming a ghost town if the railroad decides to bypass the mountaintop mining community. Determined to prove their town is thriving, twelve men commit to ordering brides before the railroad’s deadline six days into the New Year.

Each of the twelve women has her own reason for signing up to become a mail-order bride. But after they arrive in the uncivilized settlement, they aren’t so sure they’ve made the right decision. Neither are the grooms.

Will the marriages happen in time to save Noelle? The countdown starts on Christmas Day.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Mail-Order Brides, written by twelve bestselling authors, put a new twist on an old song in this heartwarming historical romance series.

The Partridge by Kit Morgan - A clever man’s plan becomes a matchmaking disaster…and the countdown begins to save the town of Noelle.

The Dove by Shanna Hatfield - A bewitching gypsy and a beguiled blacksmith tangle over a hidden treasure…with only eleven days left to save the town.

The Hens by Merry Famer - A wandering woman finds exactly who she was looking for, but not who she was expecting...with only ten days left to save the town.

The Calling Birds by Jacqui Nelson - A wanted woman's flight, a man in pursuit of honesty not stolen gold...and only nine days left to save the town.

The Gold Ring by Caroline Lee - A dangerous masquerade and a twist of fate put Noelle’s future at risk…with only eight days left to save the town

The Goose by Peggy Henderson - A woman on the run, a man who doesn't want to be caught—it's one wild goose chase…with only seven days left to save the town.

The Swan by Piper Hugely - A beautiful woman with secrets comes to Noelle to confront a powerful person with the truth...and only six days left to save the town.

The Maid by Rachel Wesson - A convicted murderer, a young maid on the run...and five days left to save the town.

The Dancing Lady by Mimi Milan - A desirous diner owner and a disguised dancer waltz their way to love... with only four days left to save the town.

The Lord by Danica Favorite - An assayer and a ladies maid, each living a lie. Will the truth ruin everything...with only three days left to save the town.

The Piper by Amanda McIntyre - A determined matchmaker, a stubborn mountain man...and only two days left to save the town!

The Drum by E.E. Burke - A bad luck bride, an exploding disaster…can Noelle be saved in just one day?

What is your favorite Christmas or holiday tradition? 🎄🎄🎄

Enter the Rafflecopter for a chance to win a copy of Caroline Lee's book, The Prince's Pea. (This is the first book where you'll meet Draven, the hero in The Gold Ring.) Don't forget to leave a comment!

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