Danica Favorite - For The Sake Of The Children

The Nanny Agreement

Widower Silas Jones needs a mother for his daughter, and marriage could help his former sweetheart repair her tattered reputation. Yet he can’t blame Rose Stone when she refuses a marriage of convenience after he once broke her heart, marrying another woman to save his family’s farm. He’s blessed Rose agrees to be his nanny. If only she’d look at him again with the warmth she shows little Milly...

Rose’s tarnished past hasn’t quelled her spirit. She’s building a good life in Colorado with her infant son—and the glimmer of a future with Silas. But when his in-laws try to claim Milly, Rose must decide if the makeshift family she and Silas have forged can reopen her heart to love.

“I haven’t taken time to be a good friend to you.”

There it was again. The goodness in her that she failed to see.

“I can’t think of a greater friend than someone who, despite how I broke your heart, would do as much for Milly and me as you have. None of my friends in Ohio would even give me a job.”

Silas looked over at her, but Rose’s gaze remained focused on the ground. “I did so very grudgingly.”

“I know. But you did, which is far more than anyone else.”

The moonlight cast shadows over her face, framed by the tendrils that had fallen out of her bun. He let the silence hang between them, and her thoughts, whatever they may be, work through whatever she needed. For the first time since he’d come to Leadville, sitting alone with Rose felt almost comfortable. If only he didn’t remember the evenings when they’d sat in the moonlight, laughing, kissing and planning a future that was never to be.

Dear Reader,

Some books are easier to write than others, and I’m going to go on record as saying this was one of the hardest. Bringing redemption to Rose was the easy part; the difficulty was realizing that the lesson about forgiveness was more than just her forgiving Silas for breaking her heart. Forgiveness seems to be an easy task, but as anyone who has struggled with forgiveness can tell you, it sometimes takes a lot more than saying, “I forgive you.” Writing Rose’s story forced me to look at places in my own heart where I’d been struggling to forgive, and I knew I couldn’t do her story justice unless I was willing to take a journey through my own unforgivingness.

If you’re like me, and there are things in your life that you’ve struggled to let go of, don’t lose heart! I’ve learned that the regions of the heart where forgiveness needs to permeate resemble the layers of the earth. Some are thin, porous, and water has no trouble finding its way to the deeper layers. Other areas are thick, dense rock, seemingly impenetrable. But nothing is impossible with God’s love, and ultimately, even the hardest of hearts can experience forgiveness at the very core.

Obviously, though I’ve poured my heart into this book, and shared a little about God’s work in me in this letter, there is so much more I can say. If you’d like additional resources on forgiveness, please visit my website at danicafavorite.comand look for the section on forgiveness.

I always love hearing from my readers, so feel free to connect with me at the following places:

Website: danicafavorite.com.

Twitter: Twitter.com/danicafavorite.

Instagram: Instagram.com/danicafavorite.

Facebook: Facebook.com/danicafavoriteauthor.

Abundant blessings to you and yours,

Danica Favorite

DANICA FAVORITE loves the adventure of living a creative life. She loves to explore the depths of human nature and follow people on the journey to happily-ever-after. Though the journey is often bumpy, those bumps refine imperfect characters as they live the life God created them for. Oops, that just spoiled the ending of Danica’s stories. Then again, getting there is all the fun. Find her at danicafavorite.com.

For the Sake of the Children

Danica Favorite

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”

—Matthew 18:21–22

For my precious Linnie,

As president of your fan club, I’m so grateful for being allowed glimpses into your life. As a writer, I’m really glad your mommy was willing to answer all my questions that began with “What would Linnie say?” I can’t wait to see what an incredible woman you’re going to grow up into. Thanks, Kristen, for sharing Linnie with me.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

About the Author

Title Page

Bible Verse

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Epilogue

Extract

Copyright

Chapter One

Leadville, Colorado, 1882

The cheerful yellow house didn’t look all that imposing as Silas Jones stood in front of its fence for the fourth time that day. Yet he paused at the gate, as he’d done on each of his previous trips, unable to bring himself to open the latch and walk the few steps to the porch and knock on the door.

He turned to walk back toward Harrison Avenue, then over to the boardinghouse he’d been staying in for the past couple of days. Maybe coming to Leadville had been a fool’s errand, but he’d had no place else to go. At least not where he could keep his daughter safe from the Garretts.

Smiling down at the little girl in his arms, he gave her a squeeze. “It’s going to be all right, Milly. Papa’s going to find a way.”

Barely two years old, she was too young to understand his anxiety. Or just how much was at stake. Silas took a breath to calm the thundering in his chest. He had no reason to expect that Rose wouldn’t hear him out, other than the fact that the last time he’d seen her, three years ago, she was tossing daggers at him with her eyes in church.

He’d deserved those daggers. Actually, he’d deserved far worse, and he knew it. But he’d like to think that deep inside Rose Stone was a compassionate woman who’d understand that he’d had no choice but to break her heart.

Silas shook his head. Who was he kidding? Of course Rose wouldn’t understand. He’d jilted her. Not so much in the eyes of the world, since theirs had been a secret engagement, but he’d jilted her all the same. Married the woman his family had picked out for him instead of following his heart and marrying Rose.

She had to hate him.

Which was why he had no idea why he’d come all the way from Ohio to Leadville, Colorado, to beg for her help in saving him.

No, not him.