Her eyes flew open, and her breath caught at the intensity of his gaze. He bent his head down, and she felt his breath graze her cheek. “I don’t want to spend another day of my life without you by my side.”
A film of tears blurred her vision, and she blinked them away.
“I want us to go on together as partners in life.” Lowering his hands, he grasped her fingers in his and sank down onto one knee. “Melanie, would you do me the honor—the very great honor—of becoming my wife?”
A joyous laugh escaped her lips while tears spilled over onto her cheeks. Finally, a proposal she wanted to hear! “There is nothing I’d like better in the world.”
With a jubilant smile, Caleb got back to his feet and pulled her into his arms again. Melanie raised her face to meet his kiss, knowing in her heart she had found her home at last.
Author Note
Dear Reader:
It has been a joy to write another story set in the early days of Arizona’s history. With such a rich variety of settings to draw from, I’ve loved being able to focus on a completely different area of my home state this time.
People often ask where the ideas in a book come from. In the case of Trouble in Store, I can trace the inspiration for several scenes back to my ninth summer, when my mother, grandmother, and I set off on a tour of northern Arizona. With its rolling hills and flowing creeks, it was quite a change from the cactus-studded desert where I’d grown up! I’ll never forget my first view of Montezuma Castle, a pueblo built into the side of a limestone cliff by the Sinagua people many centuries ago. The sight of cliffside dwellings sparked my imagination as a child. Who were the people who lived there? What were they like? Those questions lay buried in my mind all through the years, and Melanie pondered them as well during the early part of her stay in Cedar Ridge.
When Melanie arrived in Arizona, she already felt like her life had been turned upside down. Becoming the proprietor of the mercantile she inherited from her cousin wasn’t a turn she’d expected her life to take. Little did she know that God had even more surprises in store! I don’t know about you, but I often feel like Melanie did when life throws me a curve. I’d like to have things planned out well in advance and know exactly where I’m going and how to get there . . . but more often than not, it doesn’t work out that way.
What then? How are we supposed to react when the path we expected to follow turns out to be far different than the one God gives us? We can kick up a fuss, wail, and complain—something I’ll confess I’ve done more than once. But if we want true peace, we’ll find that in trusting the Lord and seeking His perfect will for our lives. No matter how wonderful I think my plans are, His are always so much better. And that’s where our happy ending truly lies—in trusting Him to know what’s best.
Thank you for taking the time to read Trouble in Store. May you find your own happy ending in following God’s best for your life!
Carol
Philippians 4:4
Author of nearly 30 novels and novellas, Carol Cox has an abiding love for history and romance, especially when it’s set in her native Southwest. As a third-generation Arizonan, she takes a keen interest in the Old West and hopes to make it live again in the hearts of her readers. A pastor’s wife, Carol lives with her husband and daughter in northern Arizona, where the deer and the antelope really do play—within view of the family’s front porch.
To learn more about Carol, please visit her at:
Her Web site: www.AuthorCarolCox.com
Her blog: www.AuthorCarolCox.com/journal
Facebook: www.facebook.com/carol.cox
Twitter: www.twitter.com/authorcarolcox
Books by Carol Cox
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Love in Disguise
Trouble in Store
Resources: bethanyhouse.com/AnOpenBook
Website: www.bethanyhouse.com
Facebook: Bethany House
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