Home for Christmas (33 page)

“I know you two think I've got a great imagination,” she said, forcing the words out through her tight, constricted throat. “And I do. It got me through a lot of hard times. But I have to tell you that even I could never have imagined happiness like this. I could never have imagined a family as wonderful as the two of you—as the three of us, together,” she corrected herself with a sob catching at her breath.

“Is that a yes?” Owen asked quietly.

Libby gazed down at her own personal hero holding a gold ring with a single diamond up to her, and she let her knees crumple. She knew he would catch her, and he did. “Yes, yes, yes,” she said, laughing and crying at the same time. “My answer is yes. To both of you. To all of it. To the life I always dreamed of—but better, because this is real.”

A small, red-haired object barreled into them from the side, sending all three of them sprawling to the floor in a pile of legs, hay, and laughter. Libby turned her face up to Owen's for a kiss, feeling the intimacy and heat of their connection snap into place as it always did. As she prayed it always would.

Real life was different from dreams. It took work and sacrifice, and there were things she couldn't control—things that weren't perfect. But as Owen helped her up and showed her around the chicken coop, outlining his plans for the future, Libby admired her new ring and thought about what last Christmas had taught her.

Dreams were wonderful. She'd lived on nothing but dreams for a long time. But real life, where there were surprises like a man who loved her and a little girl who needed her and a family slowly knitting itself together—real life was exactly where Libby wanted to spend the rest of her days.

 

About the Author

Lily Everett
grew up in a small town in the foothills of Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. She has loved romance her whole life, and is thrilled to share the world of her beautiful imaginary Sanctuary Island with all her readers. She and her family currently live in Austin, Texas, where she writes full-time. You can sign up for email updates
here
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A
LSO BY
L
ILY
E
VERETT

Sanctuary Island

Shoreline Drive

Homecoming

Heartbreak Cove

A
VAILABLE FROM
S
T.
M
ARTIN'S
P
APERBACKS

 

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Contents

Title Page

Copyright Notice

Dedication

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Epilogue

About the Author

Also by Lily Everett

Copyright

 

 

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously.

 

HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

 

Copyright © 2015 by Lily Everett.

 

Cover design © by Elsie Lyons.

 

Cover photo illustration © by Tom Hallman.

 

All rights reserved.

 

For information address St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

 

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eISBN: 9781466885608

 

St. Martin's Paperbacks edition / October 2015

 

St. Martin's Paperbacks are published by St. Martin's Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.