The Secret of Santa

by Liz Isaacson

  The Secret of Santa

  Shiloh Ridge Ranch in Three Rivers, Book 4

  Liz Isaacson

  Contents

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  The Glover Family

  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

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Sneak Peek! The Harmony of Holly Chapter One:

  Sneak Peek! The Harmony of Holly Chapter Two:

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  The Glover Family

  Welcome to Shiloh Ridge Ranch! The Glover family is BIG, and sometimes it can be hard to keep track of everyone.

  There is a more detailed graphic here, on my website. (But it has spoilers! I made it as the family started to get really big, which happens fairly quickly, actually. It has all the couples (some you won’t see for many more books), as well as a lot of the children they have or will have, through about Book 6. It might be easier for you to visualize, though.)

  Here’s how things are right now:

  Lois & Stone (deceased) Glover, 7 children, in age-order:

  1. Bear (Sammy, wife / Lincoln (9), step-son, Stetson (newborn), son)

  2. Cactus (Allison, ex-wife / Bryce, son (deceased))

  3. Judge

  4. Preacher

  5. Arizona (dating Duke Rhinehart)

  6. Mister

  7. Bishop (Montana, fiancée / Aurora (16), step-daughter once they marry)

  Dawna & Bull (deceased) Glover, 5 children, in age-order:

  1. Ranger (Oakley, wife)

  2. Ward

  3. Ace

  4. Etta

  5. Ida (dating Brady Burton)

  Bull and Stone Glover were brothers, so their children are cousins. Ranger and Bear, for example, are cousins, and each the oldest sibling in their families.

  The Glovers know and interact with the Walkers of Seven Sons Ranch. There’s a lot of them too! Here’s a little cheat sheet for you for the Walkers.

  Momma & Daddy: Penny and Gideon Walker

  1. Rhett & Evelyn Walker

  Son: Conrad

  Triplets: Austin, Elaine, and Easton

  2. Jeremiah & Whitney Walker

  Son: Jonah Jeremiah (JJ)

  Daughter: Clara Jean

  Son: Jason

  3. Liam & Callie Walker

  Daughter: Denise

  Daughter: Ginger

  4. Tripp & Ivory Walker

  Son: Oliver

  Son: Isaac

  5. Wyatt & Marcy Walker

  Son: Warren

  Son: Cole

  Son: Harrison

  6. Skyler & Mallery Walker

  Daughter: Camila

  7. Micah & Simone Walker

  Son: Travis (Trap)

  The Glovers know and interact with the several of the cowboys and their families at Three Rivers Ranch too… There’s a lot going on in Three Rivers!

  You’ll see:

  1. Squire and Kelly Ackerman

  Mother / Father: Heidi (owns Ackermans bakery) / Frank

  Son: Finn

  Daughter: Libby

  Son: Michael

  Son: Samuel

  2. Pete and Chelsea Marshall (Chelsea is Squire’s sister)

  4 sons: Paul, Henry, John, Rich

  3. Reese and Carly Sanders: They’re the admins for Courage Reins, Pete and Chelsea’s equine therapy unit at Three Rivers Ranch

  Chapter One

  Ace Glover ignored the knock on the front door of his house, though he sat in the office only a few paces away. He knew who it was, and he didn’t want to talk to Bishop. Besides his brothers, his cousin was his best friend, but Ace didn’t want to explain anything.

  “I’m not going away,” Bishop called through the front door. “I know this thing isn’t locked, and I’m coming in if you don’t come open the door.”

  Ace sighed and pressed pause on the video he’d watched four times already. He should’ve known he couldn’t just leave the family party without someone noticing. Truth be told, there were a ton of people at the homestead, and he’d hoped and prayed that maybe, just maybe, he would be overlooked this one time.

  “Just another prayer the Lord didn’t answer,” he muttered to himself. Louder, he called, “Come in then,” and Bishop wasted no time entering the house. Three steps later, he appeared in the doorway of the office.

  “What’s going on?”

  “Nothing,” Ace said. “I just don’t want to be there.”

  “You missed dinner.”

  That was saying something too, as Ace could barely boil water. His brother, whom he lived with, was a good cook, though, and there was always something to eat next door anyway.

  Ace swiveled in the office chair he’d spent entirely too much money on. But he needed it for the computer gaming he participated in with Preacher, though they hadn’t played in a couple of weeks now.

  He smashed his cowboy hat further onto his head and avoided Bishop’s eye. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Holly Ann didn’t show up.” Bishop entered the office and sat in the chair across from Ace. “Why not?”

  “Did you not hear what I just said?” Ace growled. The more time he spent with Cactus, the more he thought the man had the right idea about everything. Live far away from the epicenter of the ranch. Give short, curt answers. Never smile. Eventually, everyone would leave him alone.

  The problem was, Ace loved to laugh, and he loved living right at the heart of Shiloh Ridge Ranch. He usually liked talking, and he definitely enjoyed big family meals, movie and game nights, and horseback riding on Sunday afternoons with anyone who wanted to saddle up and go.

  “It’s just me,” Bishop said. “You tell me everything.”

  “Not everything,” Ace said, though Bishop was ninety-nine percent right. He sighed, his stomach growling loudly.

  “Just come eat,” Bishop said. “Or I’ll bring you something.”

  He was missing the angel tree decorating too, and Ace loved that family tradition more than any other. “Bring me something,” Ace said, and Bishop got to his feet without hesitation.

  “Be right back.” His cousin walked out, and Ace frowned at the laptop in front of him. Part of him wanted to pick it up and hurl it through the front windows. The other part wanted to watch the video again.

  He leaned forward and pressed play, the image of his beautiful Holly Ann coming up on the screen. “She’s not yours,” he practically growled as a smile lit her face and she surveyed the crowd he couldn’t see.

  She spoke into the microphone about how “delighted”
she was to be named this year’s Christmas Festival chairperson, and that she pledged to do her best to make this holiday season the best one Three Rivers had ever seen.

  She’d texted him an hour ago, when she should’ve almost been to the ranch. They’d held a family meeting before dinner, and while he was serious about Holly Ann, he didn’t think they were quite to the point where he involved her in the business decisions of the ranch.

  Bishop had had his girlfriend there, and of course, Bear and Ranger had their wives. Cactus had not invited his girlfriend, but Ida had her boyfriend there with her.

  Ace picked up his phone, which he’d silenced after Holly Ann’s first text, and found at least a dozen more.

  Ida had sent the most messages, and that didn’t surprise him one bit. He was close with the twins, and while they were identical, Ida was far more approachable than Etta. She was also worried about him.

  I’m okay, he typed out. Bishop is getting me something to eat, and I’m just going to hole up here for a while. I’m really fine. Hang one of the cowboy boots for Daddy for me, okay?

  If Ace was a betting man, he’d put ten bucks down that Ida had already hung the boot, and that she’d call within the hour.

  Got the boot for you already, her next text said. I’ll call you on the way home, okay?

  Ace grinned at the predictability of his sister. His heart expanded too, because he knew she cared about him. Genuinely cared about him.

  Just like Bishop did. He walked right into the house, no knocking or doorbell ringing, only a few minutes later, a plate laden with more food than both of them could eat.

  “Here you go,” he said, putting the plate in front of Ace. “What’s playing?”

  Ace hastened to pause the video again, but Bishop had already come around the desk to see.

  “Holly Ann,” he said. “She’s the new chairperson. No wonder she couldn’t come.” He looked at Ace, their eyes meeting for a long moment. A lot was said there, and Ace should’ve known he wouldn’t have to explain. He’d just have to look at Bishop, show him the video, and sigh.

  Ace picked up the fork Bishop had brought. “She texted to say she’d been nominated and voted in as this year’s chairperson, and I should go watch the press release.” He looked at the plate of food, noticing the extra tall pile of shredded brisket. Bishop knew him so well.

  “So I ducked out to the porch to do that, and there she was, live. Live. Not on her way here. Not pulling in.” He stabbed his fork into a roll and split it open, then stacked meat onto that. “What’s so important in Three Rivers that we need a live press release?” He shook his head and swiped his utensil through the barbecue sauce Ida spent hours perfecting. With that slathered on his meat, he folded his roll over and took a bite of his sandwich.

  Ace liked nothing more than smoked meat sandwiches. Fine, maybe Holly Ann. Maybe even Christmas. She loved the holidays as much as he did, and they both volunteered at the town’s six-week Christmas Festival. Ace had been looking forward to it with everything inside him.

  “Can I see it?” Bishop asked.

  Ace pulled the indicator back to the beginning of the video and hit play. He turned the laptop around, because he’d seen it enough to have some of it memorized already.

  “This is Winn Clark with Channel Three in Three Rivers. We’re live outside the City Council chambers, where we’re expecting to hear who the chairperson for this year’s Christmas Festival will be.”

  Ace rolled his eyes at the exuberance in the man’s voice. Did he honestly think this was news? Was he seriously so excited about this announcement?

  “Here we go,” he said a few seconds later. “It looks like Mayor Hall is going to make the announcement.”

  Pause, shuffle, mic feedback.

  Ace added a fork full of pea salad to his next bite of brisket sandwich, the bright pop of the peas and the addition of mayo to the meat and barbecue sauce was a match made in heaven.

  “I’m pleased to announce that long-time volunteer and small-business owner, Holly Ann Broadbent, has been appointed as this year’s Christmas Festival chairperson,” the mayor said, his voice deep and rich and rolling with plenty of Southern accent. “She recently started Three Cakes Catering, which quickly shot to the top of the review charts online, as well as our own Three Rivers Two Cents app.”

  “That’s not what it’s called,” Bishop said, which was exactly Ace’s reaction. Ace had yelled some different choice words about how he had been the one to recommend Holly Ann and Three Cakes to literally everyone, in every online forum, on Two Cents itself, and to anyone who even got close to mentioning a party or get-together.

  He’d gotten her all that business. He’d put her at the top of those charts, where organic visibility took over after that.

  Ace wasn’t an idiot. He’d earned a business degree with an emphasis in marketing, thank you very much. He knew what it took to get a business off the ground, and the power of word-of-mouth should never be overlooked.

  He’d been that mouth.

  She’d still be baking in her momma’s kitchen without him.

  Surprised at his bitterness, he shoved the rest of his sandwich in his mouth, already looking at the plate for the next thing to soothe his bruised ego. His heart had already been cracked by this woman, and he felt it starting to flake off piece by piece.

  “She specializes in desserts, I’ve heard,” the mayor continued, chuckling. “And she comes with the greatest endorsement of all—that of long-time chairperson and founder of the Christmas Festival, Ruth Deerfield. Ruth?”

  “This part is stupid,” Ace said. “She drones on and on about the festival, as if we don’t know what it is, and then says Holly Ann is literally the only person she trusts the festival to.”

  “So I can skip ahead?”

  “Yeah.”

  Bishop did that while Ace loaded a ridged potato chip with his mother’s famous frog eye salad. The salty chip only added to the cool salad, which also had a fruity tang to it.

  “Oh, she’s on now.” Bishop sat back down. “She looks good, Ace.”

  “She always looks good,” Ace said. That was true. Holly Ann knew how to put on the exact right shade of eye shadow to convey a message. She never wore too much lipstick, and her eyelashes always looked a mile long.

  Her nearly black hair fell in soft waves over her shoulders, and Ace knew exactly what it felt like between his fingers as he kissed her. He shoved another potato chip in his mouth so he wouldn’t grind his teeth together.

  She wore professional clothes tonight, almost like she’d known—she’d known—she’d get selected as chairperson. He scoffed but ignored Bishop’s curious look.

  “Hello, Three Rivers,” she said, her voice bright. It wasn’t the same one she used when she was alone with Ace. When she wanted him to kiss her, she spoke in a low, throaty tone that made his blood burn like fire. When she was excited to see him, her voice pitched up as she laughed and squealed.

  This was such a fake, fake voice, and Ace hated it. He kept his head ducked as he shook it, hating the sound of her presentation voice.

  “Who’s ready for an amazing holiday season?” he asked with her, waving his fork as the crowd cheered.

  “Wow, you’re really bitter,” Bishop said.

  “Yes,” Ace said, deciding to own the feeling. “Read this.” He used his fork to push his phone closer to Bishop.

  His cousin picked it up, and it didn’t take long to read Holly Ann’s few texts. The one where she said she’d been appointed as the chairperson.

  The one that said she wouldn’t make it for dinner and the angel tree decorating.

  The last one where she’d said she was so, so sorry, but she’d be so busy for the next few months, and maybe they should take a break.

  “Take a break?” Bishop asked. “Why?”

  “Did you read my mind?” Ace asked.

  “You didn’t ask her.”

  “I don’t need to ask her,” Ace said. “She gave me this
exact same excuse when she started Three Cakes. It’s like, she’s…I don’t know. She can’t walk and chew gum at the same time. She can’t have a boyfriend and do anything else, it seems.”

  “That’s just ridiculous,” Bishop said.

  “You’re telling me.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Eat another brisket sandwich,” he said, looking over the lid of the laptop. “What can I do?”

  Bishop closed the laptop, and he hadn’t even gotten to the part where she laughed like a hyena about the addition of a children’s bike parade this year. A fake hyena.

  “You like this woman, right?”

  “Of course I like this woman.” Ace glared at Bishop. “She’s dominated my life for almost a year now. Even when I want to walk away, I can’t. She’s….” He shook his head. For him, Holly Ann was who he wanted. When they were together, she sure did act like he was who she wanted.

  She’d said those words right out loud. To his face.

  Then she sent texts about “taking a break.”

  “You don’t need to explain,” Bishop said quietly. “I understand.” He took a long, deep breath. “Here’s what I think, and it’s going to go against what we always do.”