Mystic Montana Sky (The Montana Sky Series Book 6) (29 page)

“They did such fine work. I wish my grandparents were here to see this.” Slowly, Maggie turned, taking in everything, her heart swelling with each loving detail she noticed.

On the kitchen counter sat a small, enameled box. Maggie picked it up and looked inside. “Oh, my,” she said at the sight of her earrings, the gold looking shiny and new.

“No more hiding who you are, Magdalena Petra.”

She picked up an earring and tried to put it on. Her hands trembled, so it was a moment before she could hook it into her earlobe. The second was just as difficult. Once she had both in, she swung her head, feeling the hoops move—a sensation she’d missed in the last few weeks.

“Caleb,” she whispered to herself. “You’re so
very
kind.” Remembering her grandmother’s silk dress, she gasped and hurried to the bed, attempting to fold back the mattress, but the new one was stiff and didn’t bend like the old one had. She struggled to lift it.

“What are you doing?” Caleb grabbed the edge of the bed.

“There’s storage underneath. Can you please hold it for me?”

He picked up one side of the mattress and held it in place. “Go ahead.”

Maggie leaned underneath and was relieved to see the familiar cedar box. She hefted it out. “You can put the mattress down.”

Once he lowered the mattress, she set the box on top and lifted the lid. At the sight of the folded pink silk, Maggie was so pleased that she placed a hand to her chest and let out a sigh. She glanced up at Caleb. “This was my grandmother’s.” She touched the fabric, blinking quickly. “The gown is very special to me.” She closed the lid and motioned for him to lift the mattress again while she replaced the box underneath. “This is a dream come true! No, more than a dream. For I couldn’t even imagine the
vardo
looking so grand. Caleb, thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

He grinned. “My pleasure, darling.”

She whirled, spinning so quickly her skirt belled. “Come,” she demanded. This time, she was the one who held out a hand.

Caleb allowed her to pull him toward her before taking her into his arms and kissing her.

Maggie stood on tiptoe and answered his kiss with a deeper, hungrier one of her own. The kiss ended, and she placed a hand on his chest. “I love my
vardo
. Before, I thought I wanted to live in here more than
anything
.” She patted his chest right over his heart. “But I’ve found my home is here, in your arms.
This
is where I find shelter and contentment.
You
are my sanctuary.”

He tenderly brushed her cheek with the back of his hand. “And you are mine, my love.”

Maggie took his hand and towed him toward the bed. She reached up and clasped her hands around his neck, leaning backward. Giggling, she toppled them back together onto the mattress.

He braced himself to land with his hands propped so as not to squash her.

Maggie wiggled sideways to make room for him.

Caleb sprawled on his back, encircling her waist with his arms. He lifted her on top of him. “Now that you’re compromising me, you’ll have to make an honest man of me, Magdalena Petra soon-to-be-Livingston.”

Maggie laughed. “And so I will, Caleb Charles Victor Livingston. But I want a
two
-week honeymoon. For we’ll need plenty of time for this.” She pressed her lips to his in a passionate kiss.

My Gypsy bride.
Caleb’s arms tightened around her, and he deepened their kiss.
Forever.

Dear Reader

Thank you for reading
Mystic Montana Sky
. I know a lot of you have waited many years for Caleb Livingston to fall in love. But you haven’t waited as long as I have, for the opening scene came to me in 2004. I’m so glad the time was finally right to bring Caleb’s story to life and give him the exact opposite wife from the kind he wanted, but who was really the one he needed.

Charlotte was a bonus. I based the baby on my niece Christine Holland, who is now old enough to be my assistant. As an infant, she and I shared a bonding look, and I also watched her do that same exchange with my grandmother—her great-grandmother. I experienced that rare and mystical moment when a little old soul peeked out and connected, only to slide away, and once again, she was only a newborn.

Like all my books
, Mystic Montana Sky
is a stand-alone story, but familiar characters from other books weave throughout—Joshua Norton and Delia Bellaire in
Glorious Montana Sky
; Erik and Antonia Muth in
Healing Montana Sky
; Ant and Harriet Gordon in
Stormy Montana Sky
; Wyatt and Samantha Thompson and their children in
Starry Montana Sky
; Gideon and Darcy Walker in
Mail-Order Brides of the West: Darcy
; Michael and Prudence Morgan in
Mail-Order Brides of the West: Prudence
; Sophia Maxwell and Kael Kelley in the upcoming
Singing Montana Sky
;
Peter Rockwell, Blythe Robbins, and the Salter family in
Sweetwater Springs Christmas
; Howie Brungar and Bertha Bucholtz in
Mail-Order Brides of the West: Bertha.

This was my third book in a row with childbirth scenes, but the first one from the point of view of the woman giving birth. Katharine West, a labor and delivery nurse, generously read those scenes and gave me so much new material that it took me a week to incorporate it all into the scenes. Look up “baby crawl” (which I’d never heard of) to see the natural movement newborns make when placed on their mother’s chests directly after birth. Katharine and I figured Maggie might have some Gypsy knowledge of this practice, and I incorporated it into the story.

Katharine is also very knowledgeable about musical history and helped with the wedding and reception scenes. Did you know Bach’s “Ode to Joy” was considered secular until the 1960s and “Pachelbel’s Canon” was lost to history until rediscovery in 1929, and then reintroduced by the Boston Pops in 1940s? Me, neither.

Still to come is Sheriff K.C. Granger’s story in
Montana Sky Justice
. If you have read all of my Montana Sky series books, which include the Mail-Order Brides of the West stories, and want more of my characters while you’re waiting for my next one, go to my Montana Sky Kindle World,
http://debraholland.com/kindle-worlds.html
, to read fan fiction Montana Sky stories written by other authors. I’m sure you’ll enjoy their books as much as I have.

Keep in touch by joining my newsletter list,
http://debraholland.com
, and receive access to a secret page on my website. Also, please follow me on Facebook and Twitter.

Debra Holland

Acknowledgments

In gratitude to:

Louella Nelson—editor, teacher, and friend—with many thanks for the love and support, as well as the days of welcoming me to her house, while I wrote and edited
Mystic Montana Sky.

To my readers, who love the Montana Sky series and who’ve been asking for Caleb Livingston’s story for years! With many thanks for your reviews, e-mails, and social media posts about my books. Every day, you inspire me.

My Montlake Romance editor, Maria Gomez, whose support throughout the process of writing
Mystic Montana Sky
has been so important to me.

My editors—Linda Carroll-Bradd and Adela Brito—who always make my stories better.

To Delle Jacobs, who designs such beautiful covers for my books, and her brother John Mitchell, who also contributes. We went back and forth for days before finding the right images—especially the sky—for
Mystic Montana Sky
. But we ended up with exactly what I wanted.

My mother, Honey Holland, and Hedy and Larry Codner (my aunt and uncle) for being my beta readers.

Katharine West, labor and delivery nurse, for help with the childbirth scenes.

To my Facebook friends for suggestions and research help.

To all my friends at Pioneer Hearts, a Facebook group for the authors and readers of Historical Western Romance, for answering my questions, making suggestions when I asked for help, and for their eagerness to read more Montana Sky stories. I’m truly blessed to “know” you!

About the Author

Photo © 2013 Randall Hill

Debra Holland is the
New York Times
and
USA Today
bestselling author of the Montana Sky series, a collection of heartwarming historical Western romances. In 2013, Amazon selected
Starry Montana Sky
as one of its Top 50 Greatest Love Stories. Debra has received the Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart Award and has been a three-time finalist for the award as well. She is also the author of the Gods’ Dream trilogy, a fantasy romance series, and
The Essential Guide to Grief and Grieving
, a nonfiction book. In addition, she is a contributing author to
The Naked Truth about Self-Publishing
. She resides in Southern California with her dog and two cats.

You can contact Debra through her website at
www.debraholland.com
, on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/pages/Debra-Holland-395355780562473
and
www.facebook.com/debra.holland.731
, and on Twitter
@drdebraholland
.