But he was finding it a poor painkiller.Tyler Collens has seen grief and loss in his years of experience as a paramedic—but he never expected it to touch his life in such a personal way. The death of his wife eighteen months ago shook his steady world and changed him in more ways than he can count. Time and routine have steadied his feet, and he looks toward the future as he raises his infant daughter—but the past has a tighter grip on him than he knows. Alyvia Emmerson has never been certain of who she is or where she belongs. Her dad’s abandonment as a teen broke a fragile piece of her heart, but ten years later, she has moved on. Living on her own, she at last has a project to devote herself to: revitalizing a shabby bookstore. But she didn’t count on her dream job revealing the shattered pieces of herself she thought mended long ago.In this sophomore novel featuring beloved characters from Live Without You, Sarah Grace Grzy explores themes of grief, hope, and second chances in a story that touches both the heart and spirit.

    They were bright red, standing out like a forgotten apple on an autumn tree. He whistled, long and low. “Red boots!”A pair of shiny red boots bring unexpected Christmas joy to a shopkeeper and a little girl.A very short story. (Approximately 8 minutes reading time.)

    After one week of leaving his ranch in the hands of his foreman to take care of the grieving, needy children, he has to admit the task is beyond him and he needs help. But hired help won't suffice: those children need a mother's hand. Cole needs a wife.This novella is a supplementary short story which has slight connections to Amazing Grace (Hymns of the West, #3).

    Even though I do not know you…The correspondence between Carrie Allsop and David Mayer reveals, piece by piece, the painful details of a devastating affair between their spouses. With each commiserating scratch of the pen, they confess their fears and bare their souls. They share the bewilderment over how things went so wrong and come to wonder where to go from here.Told entirely through the letters of two comforting strangers and those of two illicit lovers, Evidence of the Affair explores the complex nature of the heart. And ultimately, for one woman, how liberating it can be when it’s broken.

    Not just any bridge—but a special one because it has always been known as The Lucky Bridge. In olden days it was said that to walk over it during a marriage ceremony, or at the beginning of the New Year would bring the traveler good luck. Because of its reputation, over the years it has also become a popular place for young mothers to abandon their children. What to some may seem cruel is in reality their final gift to their offspring—one last chance to send them off to their new destinies with luck on their side. Jing, an old woman, is the unofficial and often reluctant guardian of the bridge. When no one else will, Jing steps in to prevent the children from frostbite, abuse and hunger, and then she delivers them safely to the orphanage. This has been her routine for many years, but what does Jing do when the latest child, a blind boy, burrows deep into her heart? Read ‘The Bridge’ to see how Fei Fei’s life is changed by the love of a lonely old woman. The Bridge is a short story of 17,000 words, approximately 72 pages. Fei Fei’s character is based on a real orphaned boy that Kay Bratt met during her time in China. Don't miss these other great books by Kay Bratt! Full length books currently available on Kindle "Silent Tears; A Journey of Hope in a Chinese Orphanage” and “Chasing China; A Daughter’s Quest for Truth”.

    She plans to start the new year off as a full-time career woman.What she doesn’t expect is for her brother’s friend, Kyle, to show up and steal her heart. But, after a bad breakup, can she ever trust another man with her heart?Kyle is charming, mature and well-mannered, too good to be true. Will her shattered heart find healing or does she risk having it shattered again?

    Whentheir plan takes them south to Roseland's Plantation, Laylie meets fifteen-year-old Millie Keith, a strong abolitionist who helps Laylie understand a freedom more precious than any other. With this new discovery, Laylie's life of faith begins as she and Luke make their way north, against impossible odds, to New York City and to true freedom.MISSION CITY PRESS is a Christian publishing company dedicated to teaching kids to live a life of faith with passionate devotion to Jesus Christ.

    Each story is unique, yet universal.In this book, the impact of wildfire, a wayward priest, or a mysterious disappearance ricochet across communities, threading through stories. Here, ordinary actions such as ice skating or going to church reveal hidden truths. One choice threatens a lifelong friendship. Siblings save each other. Rescue and second chances are possible, and so is revenge.On the surface, it seems that nothing ever happens in these towns. But Bonnie-Sue Hitchcock shows that underneath that surface, teenagers' lives blaze with fury, with secrets, and with love so strong it burns a path to the future.

    In this, his second work of fiction about Vietnam, O'Brien's unique artistic vision is again clearly demonstrated. Neither a novel nor a short story collection, it is an arc of fictional episodes, taking place in the childhoods of its characters, in the jungles of Vietnam and back home in America two decades later.

     Florist Marianne has the best first date of her life. And then she finds out her oh-so-charming beau Cliff is none other than the player who frequently orders multiple bouquets—for different women!—from Marianne’s flower shop. Marianne decides to teach Cliff a lesson. But the closer they get, the more her emotions get tangled… Linda Goodnight is a New York Times and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author of more than 3 million books sold. Enjoy this short story now. You may also like: The Calypso County, Texas series: Twins for the Cowboy A Baby for the Cowboy A Bride for the Cowboy Christmas for the Cowboy Dallas and the Cowboy Ten Rules for Marrying a Cowboy Three Ways to Catch a Cowgirl

    When she begins to notice words jumping off the page, she's determined not to spend the rest of her life in the lab. Everything goes awry when her plan to intentionally fail her test backfires —badly. Can she make her escape with only her wits and her newfound reading skills? And will she make it in the big world outside the lab's walls? This is a short story prequel to The Kitten Files mystery series, and takes place several weeks before "The Case of the Tabloid Tattler." Average read time is approximately 20 minutes.

    Now that she's been evicted, she finds herself sleeping in a barn, never dreaming that tomorrow could bring kindness of a life-changing magnitude. The Martins aren't a typical family—even for rural Kansas. With more kids than can be counted on one hand and a full-time farm, Gemma must make a lot of adjustments to fit in. But despite their many differences, Gemma finds herself drawn to this family and their radical Christian faith. When Gemma's past collides with her yet again, she must begin revealing her colorful history. With every detail Gemma concedes, she fears she will lose the Martins' trust and the stable environment she desires for herself and her unborn child. Just how far can the Martins' love and God's forgiveness go?

    He set my body and teenage hormones on fire for three years. THREE LONG YEARS. In that time he became a cop- Officer Sexy as I liked to call him- and every time I pushed, he retreated. But I knew he felt it, I saw it in the way he looked at me. So one night I set my plan in motion and upped my game. I finally reeled the sexy bastard in, and he didn’t know what hit him.COOPER~ She tempted me with her smart mouth and tight body for three painful years. I took an oath to uphold the law and honor it, which she made almost impossible not to break. But when the day finally came, I made her pay, every beautiful inch of her. She might drive me crazy and be the biggest pain in the ass, but she’s my pain in the ass. And I’ll spend everyday for the rest of my life making sure she never forgets who she belongs to.***You asked for our story and now we are going to give it to you. Cooper and I are not only going to share our special day with you, but we are going to take you back to a time that was frustrating, sexy, explosive and downright beautiful. Here is our story, from beginning to… forever.This is a Novella with an HEA and is told in dual POV. It is the last book to the Men Of Honor Series. Although you don’t have to read every book in the series, I strongly recommend that the first book, Fighting Temptation, should be read prior to Kayla and Cooper’s story in order to understand many aspects of this book.WARNING~ Due to mature subject matter, such as explicit sexual situations and coarse language, this story is not suitable for anyone under the age of eighteen.

    He’d much rather live in the online world of computer games where he can explore the galaxy and no one has to know he’s deaf. Ursula Franks designs websites during the day and spends her evenings battling alien races online where relationships are easy and uncomplicated. When she agrees to design a website for the local Community Supported Bakery, she has no idea that Malachi is the real man behind her online persona’s best friend and her own secret crush. As the two work together on the website, they uncover an attraction, but will they be able to put aside past hurt and insecurity to find love? Welcome to Arcadia Valley, Idaho, where a foodie culture and romance grow hand-in-hand. Join my friends and me as we release a book every month set in Arcadia Valley. You’ll enjoy meeting old friends and making new ones as each of the six authors’ books intertwine with the previous stories in this Christian romance series. Get started with Romance Grows in Arcadia Valley and follow along at Arcadia Valley Romance dot com to make sure you don’t miss any installments! Muffins & Moonbeams is the first full-length novel in the Baxter Family Bakery series set in Arcadia Valley. It follows the novella, Loaves & Wishes, that was introduced in Arcadia Valley Book 1, Romance Grows in Arcadia Valley. Get your copy today to spend more time baking with the Baxter family.

    Interwoven with themes of brutality and faith, guilt and fear, helplessness and survival, the characters in these stories struggle to make meaning out of chaos. In "Redeployment", a soldier who has had to shoot dogs because they were eating human corpses must learn what it is like to return to domestic life in suburbia, surrounded by people "who have no idea where Fallujah is, where three members of your platoon died." In "After Action Report", a Lance Corporal seeks expiation for a killing he didn't commit, in order that his best friend will be unburdened. A Morturary Affairs Marine tells about his experiences collecting remains - of U.S. and Iraqi soldiers both. A chaplain sees his understanding of Christianity, and his ability to provide solace through religion, tested by the actions of a ferocious Colonel. And in the darkly comic "Money as a Weapons System", a young Foreign Service Officer is given the absurd task of helping Iraqis improve their lives by teaching them to play baseball. These stories reveal the intricate combination of monotony, bureaucracy, comradeship and violence that make up a soldier's daily life at war, and the isolation, remorse, and despair that can accompany a soldier's homecoming. Redeployment is poised to become a classic in the tradition of war writing. Across nations and continents, Klay sets in devastating relief the two worlds a soldier inhabits: one of extremes and one of loss. Written with a hard-eyed realism and stunning emotional depth, this work marks Phil Klay as one of the most talented new voices of his generation.