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Sincerely,
Janette Foreman
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea.
—Psalm 46:1–2
To James, for your constant love.
To my own sweet twins…what a blessing you are!
To the Lord, for being my refuge and strength every time the mountains are carried into the midst of the sea.
Contents
Note to Readers
That familiar Ford pickup rumbling up the long drive could only mean one thing.
Grant Young had arrived.
Lifting her hands from the sudsy dishwater, Kallie Shore braced herself against the kitchen counter as the rusty blue truck came closer and closer. Was she ready for this? Nearly two years ago, she had stood in this exact spot, watching through the flowery curtains as this pickup’s taillights left her South Dakota farm for what she thought had been the last time.
Now he’d returned. Not because he wanted to—she was certain of that. But because he was summoned by the tragedy that would change both of their lives forever.
Wiping her hands on a towel, she dropped her gaze to the envelope on the counter. At their last meeting, the attorney had given it to her while they had discussed the contents of Dad’s will. Inside the envelope was a typed note, composed at the end of Dad’s life when he had lost the use of his hands. It was his final wish to her, his only child, and it made her ache for him every time she recalled it. I love you, Kallie Bug. Carry on a better family legacy for the kids than I left behind for you.
His opinion of himself was skewed, of course. Frank Shore had left her a wonderful legacy. He had been a gentle and hardworking man, who’d loved his farm and had loved his bird dogs. And most important, he had loved her and her thirteen-month-old twins, Ainsley and Peter.
She would do her very best to leave behind a legacy for her kids that Dad would’ve been proud of—caring for this spread of land until her dying days, then leaving it to the kids. It’s what he would have wanted.
A low growl sounded beside her. “Shh, it’s okay, Ruby.” Kallie reached down to rub her hand over her Llewellin’s silky orange ears. “It’s only Grant.”
Except he wasn’t only Grant. He was her ex-fiancé. Dad’s best former employee. Father to her children.
And unfortunately for Kallie, Dad had willed him half of Bitter Creek Farm.
“He is not coming for us, Ruby. The sooner we remember that, the better,” Kallie whispered. “He’s only here to make arrangements for his half of our stuff.” Whatever he had meant by arrangements over the phone, she didn’t know. “Hopefully this meeting is quick and painless.”
Ruby regarded Kallie with her coppery-brown eyes as if she didn’t believe a word Kallie said.
“Truth be told, girl, I don’t believe me, either. Now that he’s here, we have way
