Free A Bramble House Christmas (Carrigans of the Circle C Book 6) by CJ Carmichael

older kids arrived for some fun, and then some younger ones, too, with one or more parents in tow.
    By now Finn had all the pictures he needed. He could have made an excuse and headed off on his own—but when Scout pleaded for hot chocolate, he ended up joining mother and son on their walk toward Main Street and Sage Carrigan’s Copper Mountain Chocolate Shop.
    Sage wasn’t working this morning, but another friendly server was pleased to fill to-go mugs for them. They carried them to River Bend Park, and found a bench in the sun.
    Noticing some friendly glances from others in the park, Finn realized the three of them could easily be mistaken for a family.
    The thought made his gut tighten.
    Finn had never pictured a wife or children as part of his future.
    Having endured the sort of life his parents had shared, marriage, to him, was a terrible trap to avoid.
    His sister Molly’s marriage was somewhat better, but still no ad for wedded bliss. Her husband traveled a lot with his work. Molly seemed to be always alone with the rug rats and vaguely disgruntled.
    Ironically his gaze was drawn to the window display of a bridal store where a beautiful white dress made a deceptive fairy-tale promise.
    Romance didn’t lead to happily-ever-after, but to a lifetime of bills, and crying children and honey-do chores.
    Finn shifted his gaze upward to a small jewelry store above the bridal shop.
    How convenient. First buy the rings, then the dress.
    “J. P. & Sons, Montana Jewelers.”
    Finn started, surprised that Willa was reading aloud the sign that he’d just been looking at.
    “It looks so old and interesting,” she said. “Nothing like the modern chain-store jewelry places you see in every mall.”
    Something clicked in Finn’s brain as he remembered why he was here in Marietta, hanging out with this particular woman and her small, sometimes too serious son. “I wonder if the store dates back to the eighteen hundreds. It looks old enough. Maybe whoever works there might know something about your ring.”
    Willa was quiet for a moment, no doubt recalling that she’d been the one to spout a theory of the same jeweler designing both rings.
    “I suppose it couldn’t hurt to ask.”

    O n their way toward the jewelry shop, they ran into Sage Carrigan, her husband Deputy O’Dell and their two children. Dawson had the baby in one arm, and was holding Sage’s hand with the other. Skipping in front of them was their older daughter. Fairness made Finn acknowledge that in this particular case, marriage seemed to suit all the parties involved. Before hellos had even been exchanged, Savannah was asking Scout if he liked playing with Legos.
    “I’m going to make a Santa’s Village. Want to help me?”
    Willa’s instinctive reaction was to shake her head. But when her son pulled pleadingly on her hand, and Sage seconded her daughter’s invitation with friendly insistence, she relented.
    “You’re sure it isn’t too much trouble?”
    “Savannah’s been so bored since school let out and her best friend is away for the holidays,” Sage explained.
    “You’ll be doing us the favor,” Sage’s husband agreed. “I can bring Scout back to the B&B in a couple hours if that works for you?”
    Though Willa had only met these people a few days ago, Sage’s relationship to Eliza at the Bramble House, and the fact that O’Dell was a local deputy, made the play-date an extremely low-risk proposition. Yet Finn was surprised when the super-protective Willa actually let her son leave with the young family.
    By the tense lines around her mouth and eyes, though, he could tell it wasn’t easy for her.
    What made her so protective? Was it the responsibility of being a single mother...or something more?
    “You think I’m one of those obsessively controlling mothers,” Willa said, obviously picking up on his thoughts.
    “Hey, I don’t have kids. Who am I to judge?”
    “In my experience, few people can resist judging mothers. The