Stay for Christmas A Place to Belong a Son Is Given Angels in the Snow

Colorado1887 She was going to hell. Maybe. Maggie Hudson hurried along the boardwalk feeling the winter chill on her cheeks, the knot of worry in her stomach--and the weight of the knowledge that she might very well go to hell. Could a woman's soul be condemned to everlasting damnation for simply thinking unkind thoughts? Maggie wasn't sure--hoped it wasn't so. Because if it were, all the unsavory, unchristian, unladylike notions racing through her mind right now would surely condemn her to an eternity of fire and brimstone. She picked up her pace. Around her the folks of Crystal Springs went about their business beneath the gloomy afternoon sky. Men in suits, miners with long beards, cowboys with guns on their hips. Women--some in calico and gingham, others in fine Eastern fashions--shepherded along their children, who were too young for school. Horses, wagons and carriages moved though the damp dirt of Main Street. Maggie blended in with the other young women in town, in her gingham dress and the bonnet that covered her dark hair. Yet a woman her age--twenty--should have been trailing a child, or at the very least, walking with her husband. Maggie was quite certain no one on the streets of Crystal Springs was surprised to see her alone. Nor was she surprised to endure the looks of the towns-folk and feel the familiar sting of judgment, condemnation...pity. She knew what they were thinking. Maggie forced the tension from her face, putting in place the neutral expression that had served her well these past months. The last thing she needed was to draw attention to herself. Especially now, when she'd finally been given the opportunity to redeem herself in the eyes of the town. And she had so much to redeem herself for. Maggie paused on the boardwalk, her gaze riveted on the jailhouse down the block. Sheriff Jack Crawford. New in town, he'd been hired by the mayor only a few weeks ago. Maggie had never met him but she'd seen him around town. He'd been in Hudson's Mercantile, the general store her father owned, but Maggie had hidden in the stockroom each time she'd seen him approach; there was only so much even Maggie could take. But there would be no hiding today. Jack Crawford stood in her way of finally making the long climb back toward self-respect. And Maggie wasn't about to let him do that. She pulled in a big breath, lifted her chin and went inside the jailhouse. Maggie was anxious to be out of the chilly breeze, yet it seemed no warmer in here. The few furnishings--desk, stove, gun racks--gave the room a cold, hard look. The stove in the corner put out little heat. The place smelled of gun oil and burned coffee. Off to the left, Maggie caught sight of the hallway that, she supposed, led to the cells. The sheriff sat behind his desk across the room, feet propped up, reading the newspaper. His gaze came up quickly, pinning Maggie in place. His feet hit the floor and he shot up from his chair so quickly it gave her a start. She gasped and froze. He froze, too. For a long moment the two of them just stood there, still as statues, staring at each other. Finally, he took a single step forward. "Afternoon," he said. "What can I do for you?" Maggie kept staring. She knew that her mouth had sagged open but she couldn't seem to close it. Nor could she stop her knees from shaking or her mind from racing. This was Sheriff Jack Crawford? She'd only seen him from a distance when, thanks to the cold, he'd had his jacket collar turned up and his hat pulled low. She hadn't realized he was...handsome. Tall with wide straight shoulders, a head full of dark brown, slightly wavy hair and piercing blue eyes that were, quite possibly, responsible for the hammering of her heart. Why had she not known how handsome he was? Why had she not realized it? And why had she hidden in the stockroom every time he'd come to her father's meStacy, Judith is the author of 'Stay for Christmas A Place to Belong a Son Is Given Angels in the Snow', published 2006 under ISBN 9780373294190 and ISBN 0373294190.