Willow Valley

Willow Valley had become like home to me and my two boys, Dylan and Noah. Everyone knew everyone in this small town, and they helped us heal from our devastating loss. Once I knew my kids would be okay, I started looking for work. Bluebird Books hired me almost right away. I was to run the new kids program that Trinity was starting. That was where I met Zach and his daughter, Grace. Zach was the new owner of the Willow Valley Inn. He'd come in to return a book his daughter had borrowed from the program. We exchanged pleasantries and that was when the computer had gone down. Zach lost his patience, and that was when our pleasant conversation turned sour. I wasn't worried about it because I figured I'd never see him again. I was wrong. It turns out in a small town, everyone sees everyone almost daily, if not twice a day. At the grocery store, the gas station, the elementary school and as luck would have it, the bookstore. Soon, our conversations turn pleasant again, and without even trying, I find myself drawn to him. Then he asks me out on a date. Despite my reservations, I decided to take a chance on love again. But just when things start to look up, Zach's ex-wife suddenly reappears, causing chaos in his life once more. Which somehow causes chaos in mine when my children begin acting out. Leaning on one another for support, we navigate obstacles that life throws at us. As time passes, I begin to wonder if another chance at love will bring us closer together or make each one of us run the other way?

Thomas was the love of my life, or he was supposed to be. Instead, he became the guy who broke my heart, crushed my spirit, the last guy I ever dated, and the reason I never wanted to date again. All this, I decided at seventeen, right after we graduated, which coincided with the day he left. He had his truck packed. We'd talked about running off together, eloping. Instead, Thomas explained he was leaving, joining the rodeo, and I could come if I wanted. If I wanted! I thought we shared a dream, but it didn't include running off to join the western equivalent of a circus. Not with him. Not with anyone. I knew better. So, he left, and I decided to make a life on my own. I spent the next few months learning all I could about the small bookstore my aunt owned. I gradually took over as she aged, until one morning she woke and announced that she was ready to retire. She had picked a retirement community nearby, she wanted to relax, sleep in and hang out with the old people, like herself. I'd begun to clean up the place, sorting through boxes of books she'd packed away and began setting them out. I'd let people make me an offer since I was short on space. That was when Thomas appeared. His father had passed, and the community was buzzing with rumors that he had returned to sell the property. He'd come in looking for a good read or so he claimed. Instead I shoved a book at him and told him to take it. I hoped I'd never see him again, but I was wrong. He returned, with the book, his note told me to read the book and I'd understand. So, I read it, and I understood nothing. It was Aunt Vi's diary. She too had never stopped pining for a cowboy who left her behind. Maybe he thought he was saving me. Perhaps I missed what I was supposed to understand all together. All I knew was that I didn't want to face him. One look at him told me it would be all to easy to fall into those strong arms again and I knew I still loved him, even if he didn't love me in return.

This year, my favorite magazine, Festive Treasures, is hosting their Countdown to Christmas bake-off event right here in Willow Valley. The last two years I'd entered, I'd come in second place. Everyone tells me that the third time is a charm, so with the whole town routing for me I enter my newest creation cinnamon buns. When I get my acceptance letter, I discover that Tristan Ryan is sitting on the judges panel. We went to culinary school together. We didn't have a good relationship then, especially when he voiced that he didn't think I deserved to be at one of the top culinary schools if all I was going to do was take over my mother's bakery back in my small hometown. I don't let that deter me. Instead, the day of the try-outs I arrive with my buns and a smile. When my name was called, I raised my head high and climbed up the stairs to the stage. That was when it happened, my ankle went rolling, my rolls went flying, and the next thing I know I wake up in the hospital. I wake to see my assistant, and my arch enemy by her side. He immediately claimed the guilt for what happened. He volunteered to take care of me and my badly sprained ankle. He even volunteered to move in and help with the bakery. I don't know what I was thinking when I accepted. Tristan always had a way of testing my patience. I figured it would never last. To my surprise, the criticism seemed to stop, and something else started. I was beginning to like the big dumb jerk. I still wasn't convinced that the trip was just an accident, but, I was convinced he'd decide soon enough there was nothing for him in this little town, including me, so what harm would come from a little fling?