Janet Tronstad - Stranded With Santa

Jenny shivered

all the way down her spine.

She told herself it was because of the cold wind that blew into the kitchen in the quick second before Zach turned to close the door. But it wasn’t.

The cold had turned the man into someone who looked as if he belonged on one of those calendars. He was Mr. December.

Just look at him, she thought in dismay. She wasn’t supposed to meet a man like Zach, whose face would make a nun shiver. But there he stood against the black of the night like some mountain man, covered with snow.

Dear Reader,

Grab a front-row seat on the roller-coaster ride of falling in love. This month, Silhouette Romance offers heart-spinning thrills, including the latest must-read from THE COLTONS saga, a new enchanting SOULMATES title and even a sexy Santa!

Become a fan—if you aren’t hooked already!—of THE COLTONS with the newest addition to the legendary family saga, Teresa Southwick’s Sky Full of Promise (#1624), about a stone-hearted doctor in search of a temporary fiancée. And single men don’t stay so for long in Jodi O’Donnell’s BRIDGEWATER BACHELORS series. The next rugged Texan loses his solo status in His Best Friend’s Bride (#1625).

Love is magical, and it’s especially true in our wonderful SOULMATES series, which brings couples together in extraordinary ways. In DeAnna Talcott’s Her Last Chance (#1628), virgin heiress Mallory Chevalle travels thousands of miles in search of a mythical horse—and finds her destiny in the arms of a stubborn, but irresistible rancher. And a case of amnesia reunites past lovers—but the heroine’s painful secret could destroy her second chance at happiness, in Valerie Parv’s The Baron & the Bodyguard, the latest exciting installment in THE CARRAMER LEGACY.

To get into the holiday spirit, enjoy Janet Tronstad’s Stranded with Santa (#1626), a fun-loving romp about a rodeo megastar who gets stormbound with a beautiful young widow. Then, discover how to melt a Scrooge’s heart in Moyra Tarling’s Christmas Due Date (#1629)

I hope you enjoy these stories, and please keep in touch!

Mary-Theresa Hussey

Senior Editor

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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This book is dedicated to my good friend,

Darlene Hanson,

and her mother,

Pearl Hanson

Silhouette Romance

Stranded with Santa #1626

Steeple Hill Love Inspired

* An Angel for Dry Creek #81

* A Gentleman for Dry Creek #110

* A Bride for Dry Creek #138

* A Rich Man for Dry Creek #176

grew up on a small farm in central Montana. One of her favorite things to do was to visit her grandfather’s bookshelves, where he had a large collection of Zane Grey novels. She’s always loved a good story.

Today, Janet lives in Pasadena, California, where she works in the research department of a medical organization. In addition to writing novels, she researches and writes nonfiction magazine articles.

Dear Santa,

I’ve been a good boy all year.

The reason I’m writing is to let you know we moved after my dad died. We’re in Montana now. Me and my sister like it here. There’s bugs all over and rabbits and snakes. My mom is scared of the snakes.

That’s why I need a cowboy outfit for Christmas, like the kind Zach “Lightning” Lucas wears. If I had one, I could rope some rabbits and shoot the snakes so my mom wouldn’t be scared.

I know about money and how there’s not much around, so if a cowboy outfit is too expensive maybe you could send a real cowboy instead. Then my mom wouldn’t be scared of nothing.

Thanks,

Andy Collins

P.S. My sister wants one of those princess crowns with jewels on it.

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Epilogue

Zach Lucas stood on a weathered old porch in the small town of Deep Gulch, Montana, and scowled as the gray sky darkened even further. “It’s going to snow.”

Dr. Norris, the only vet in Deep Gulch, Montana, shrugged as he cheerfully slipped another handful of candy canes into the mail bag Zach had slung over his shoulder. “Don’t worry about the snow. The postal truck always makes it through. You’ll do fine.”

The doctor had made a bargain with Zach. It was Saturday, December 23, and Zach was to deliver the mail along the rural route outside of Deep Gulch so that the doctor, who had promised he would do his sister’s mail route in her absence, could tend to Zach’s sick horse instead.

It was a perfect bargain except for one small thing. Zach hated it.

If he wasn’t so worried about his horse, Zach would never have agreed. It wasn’t that he had anything against delivering the mail. That was no problem. What was a problem was delivering it the way the doctor’s sister wanted it done. She wanted it to look like Santa himself was out there delivering the letters this close to Christmas.

Zach pushed his Stetson hat lower on his head. He didn’t know anyone in this crazy one-stop town, but he still hoped no one saw him as he stood on the doctor’s porch. He was Zach “Lightning” Lucas and he had a reputation to uphold—a reputation that didn’t include a fuzzy red fat-suit and a plastic black belt. It was bad enough that the four-wheel-drive postal truck had a fake set of reindeer horns tied to the grill and a ball of mistletoe swinging from the antenna. He didn’t need Christmas fuzz all over him, too.

Zach grimaced as red and green flashes met his eyes. The lightbulbs hanging from the reindeer horns were on a timer. When he first saw them, he’d hoped they were merely ornamental. No such luck.

Zach didn’t know how much holiday nonsense he could take. After all, he was Zach “Lightning” Lucas. He had more gold-plated champion belt buckles than most men had ties. He had fans who knew his name—lots of fans since he’d endorsed that Ranger breakfast cereal. People recognized him in grocery stores and in laundromats. He was famous, for Pete’s sake. He was entitled to some dignity.

Unfortunately, the doctor did not care about Zach’s dignity.

And it was all because of Christmas. Not that Zach should be surprised. Christmas had been giving him trouble for years. It always depressed him with all that family stuff. Not that Zach had anything against families—it’s just that that family stuff wasn’t for a man like him.

That’s why, this year, he had made a plan.

Zach and Thunder were only passing through Montana, heading over to Interstate 15 for the long stretch down to Las Vegas. Once there, Thunder would board at a ranch some miles outside of Vegas while Zach hit the Strip. The neon lights and showgirls—well, if her return message was to be believed, one showgirl in particular—would make him forget the holidays were even here.