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About Warming My Winter Heart by Michelle Cornish
Title: Warming My Winter Heart
Author: Michelle Cornish
Series: Seasonal Singles #1
Genre: Romantic Comedy
You can’t run from love forever . . .
When Lexi Blair comes home to Little City from LA for Christmas, she gets the surprise of her life—the ex-fiancé she thought was dead is very much alive and wants her back!
It’s Christmas Eve and Lexi’s seen a ghost. Or . . . she thought he was a ghost until her mom admits to faking his death so Lexi would come home for Christmas.
After a humiliating run-in with her ex—which results in Lexi disowning her mother—she hides out at her best friend’s tree farm, babysitting a nameless puppy while her friend and hubby tend to a family emergency.
But farm life comes with a few perks Lexi isn’t expecting—mainly a hunky farmhand who’s helping Lexi run the place until her friends return.
While Lexi ran from Little City, John ran to it, and she quickly learns he’s healing from past hurts of his own.
Can Lexi and John stop running before it’s too late?
Excerpt from Warming My Winter Heart
© 2021
Michelle Cornish
Who could possibly be here this early? How did they get past the gate? I know I locked it last night. Footsteps echo on the front porch as if the guy out there is moving around to peek in the other windows. Prince William whines as if I’m crushing him. I’m thankful for the distraction. I press my finger to my lips to tell him to be quiet, as if he knows what I mean.
“Lexi?” Okay, that definitely isn’t Dad’s voice. How do they know my name? And what kind of idiot waits until Christmas morning to get their Christmas tree?
“Lexi, it’s John.” My shoulders suddenly slump down as they release all the tension they’ve been holding. Right, of course. Briar mentioned John had his own key. There’s more shuffling on the porch as I stand. “John Johnson,” he says.
My cheeks burn with embarrassment and I hope the blast of cold air I get when I open the door is enough to keep them from turning red.
“Sorry, John. I . . . uh . . .” I have no idea what to say. Here I’m meeting Dax’s cousin for the first time, and I thought he was some sort of axe murderer. A very good-looking axe murderer, mind you. He’s older than I thought, and Dax wasn’t kidding, John could pass for Dax’s brother instead of his cousin. His close-cropped, dark brown hair is lightly sprinkled with grey, unlike Dax’s. He’s old enough I feel like I should not have been thinking of him as good looking, but handsome enough I’m thankful I wiped that drool off my cheek.
After slipping on my shoes and stepping outside, I put Prince William down so he can finish what he started in the house. He sniffs John’s feet then follows a winding scent trail leading him a few feet away from the front steps.
“I didn’t mean to scare you,” John says, noticing Prince William’s pee puddle from last night. “I hope it’s not too early.”
I have no idea what time it is, but it seems a little less dark than it was when I was in the house. Must be near dawn.
“Just thought I should let you know it’s me heading to the barn and not some random stranger.” He gestures past the large greenhouse, but it’s still dark enough the greenhouse is really all I see since it’s lit from the inside. I make a mental note to explore the property with Prince William once it’s light enough. “In case you saw the truck lights,” he adds. “The horses like to be fed at the same time every day.” All right then. So, I guess I can expect an early wake-up call every day.
Then I pause as what he says sinks in. There are horses here. I wrack my brain. Briar never mentioned horses—I’m sure of it.
“Okay,” I say, feeling like the conversation has come to an end but not sure how to excuse myself. I’m such a dork. My t-shirt and sweats aren’t enough layers for this Christmas morning, and I fold my arms into my chest and rub my arms a little.
“I won’t keep you,” he says, extending his right hand and glancing at my sock feet. “It’s nice to meet you. I’ll be back later. There’s always at least one person who’s forgotten a hostess gift on their way to dinner and stops in hoping to grab a poinsettia.” He chuckles. “The horses will be wanting their dinner by then too.”
“Nice to meet you too,” I say, shaking John’s hand. His hand is warmer and softer than I expected. He turns around and heads toward the greenhouse, stopping to scratch Prince William’s ears. He turns back at the last minute.
“Merry Christmas, by the way,” he says and waves as he gets into his cherry red Chev.
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About Michelle Cornish
Michelle Cornish is a recovering CPA with a passion for stories. Writing mostly romance and women’s fiction with strong female heroines, Michelle’s books often include nods to her former life as a CPA. When Michelle’s not writing, she’s hanging out with her two boys and husband in the beautiful Okanagan Valley, BC, Canada.
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