Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 98345 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98345 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Months after his mother’s death, old love letters have given Beck Dahlstrom the courage to seek out the Shaws, the family of the long-deceased father he never knew. He can’t believe his luck when the most gorgeous creature he’s ever seen sits beside him on the plane. When he discovers she’s not only heading to the same small Montana town, but she’s close to his father’s family, it’s more like fate. There are several reasons why Avery should be off limits—she’s considerably younger; they’re from different worlds; her father might kill him just for looking at her—but every glimpse into her stunning turquoise eyes just makes him fall deeper.
Montana, the Shaw family, Avery…all of them soon have Beck enchanted enough to consider big changes. But his life in Dallas also has considerable pull, including a person…or two…unwilling to give up Beck so easily.
Each book in the Love in Montana series can be read as a stand alone. The author highly suggests for a better reading experience you read the books in order.
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Prologue
BECK
Lifting the beer to my mouth, I took a long drink. In front of me lie everything left of my mother, my best friend, the only person who had ever loved me completely. I cleaned out her house and donated everything else to a women’s shelter. The only things that remained were those that she had personally boxed up and put in the attic, the things that meant the most to her.
I closed my eyes and fought the burning sensation of tears. Six months she’d been gone, and every day I missed her more and more. If one more person told me time heals, I would hit them.
I took another long sip of beer and set it on the small table beside me. Letting out my breath, I pulled the first box closer. My hand shook slightly as I lifted the lid off and stared inside the box.
“The very first box, Mom,” I said as I glanced up. “You always were a planner.”
Looking back at the box, I reached in and pulled out a stack of letters. They were from him—my father. The man my mother had only told me bits and pieces about.
I closed my eyes as a memory hit. I was six years old, and had been afraid of a storm…
“Shh, don’t be afraid of the storm, Beck.”
“I can’t help it, Mommy. The thunder scares me.”
She rocked me slightly. “Don’t let the thunder scare you. Do you know what it is?”
Shaking my head, I asked, “What is it?”
My mother placed a kiss on top of my head. “It’s the sound from when the lightning hits something.”
“How come it doesn’t make it at the same time as the light?”
She laughed softly. “Maybe we should wait until you’re a little older before I explain that. Your daddy used to love thunderstorms so much. He wasn’t afraid of them at all.”
“How did he die?”
I felt her let out a gust of breath. “He was a soldier, a Marine. So brave and smart, just like you. He was on a secret mission, and something went wrong. He died before he ever got to meet you.”
“Do you think he would have liked me?”
Moving so she could look me in the face, she cupped my cheeks and smiled. “Oh, Beck, he would have loved you fiercely. That was the type of man he was. He loved me, and I loved him. And with that love, we made you together. I know he would have worshipped the ground you walked on.”
I felt hot tears on my cheeks. “I wish he wouldn’t have died.”
She slowly nodded and wiped her tears away. “Me too, sweetheart. Me too.”
I was jolted from the memory when I heard the floorboard creak behind me.
“Did you want any help?” Mateo asked.
I shouldn’t have been surprised he was here. He always had my back, from the first moment we met on the playground in first grade. A kid was making fun of me for my haircut, and Mateo told him to stop. Then he looked at Mateo and said something that, at the time, I hadn’t realized was derogatory. Mateo had, though. Even at that young age, he was already hearing it.
The next thing I knew, Mateo punched the kid, and he and I both ended up in trouble. From that point on, we were the best of friends. And his mom and my mother had become close as well. Both single moms raising unruly boys.
“I appreciate it, but I think I need to do this part on my own.”
He placed his hand on my shoulder and squeezed it. “You know I’m here,” he said.
All I could do was nod. Emotions clogged my throat. He turned, and the sound of the door clicking nearly made me jump.
I took the rubber band off the letters and felt a strange sensation in my chest as I read the return address. Sergeant Beck Shaw. My mother had never told me my father’s last name. Only that I was named after him.
My hands shook as I turned the letters over and started reading them. In the first few, it was clear they had just started dating. Sergeant Beck Shaw had been in the Marine Forces Special Operations Command and was often gone for weeks, or months, at a time. He could never tell my mother where he was going or how long he’d be gone. The letters were sweet and tender, and the deeper I got into the pile, the more their love for one another became apparent.
In one letter, Beck replied to my mother about her news that her father disapproved of their relationship. He said that he’d never want to come between her and her family, but that he loved her and wasn’t about to walk away. The next letter talked about how much he enjoyed spending time with her. That their time in the beach house, in particular, was something he’d never forget.