A Family-Style Christmas and Yuletide Homecoming Read online

  Two heartwarming holiday novels by Carolyne Aarsen

  A FAMILY-STYLE CHRISTMAS

  A childhood in foster care cost businessman Simon Steele his faith. But when he’s injured in a motorcycle accident, nurse Caitlin Severn challenges him. She believes that returning to God—and reconnecting with his brother—will help him heal. Can he become the man she deserves by Christmas?

  YULETIDE HOMECOMING

  After years of estrangement from her father, Sarah Westerveld is summoned home. When she arrives, the handsome man she loved—and had to give up—demands answers. Logan Carleton is her father’s enemy. But they must put the past to rest for their holiday wishes to come true.

  Praise for Carolyne Aarsen and her novels

  “Carolyne Aarsen writes with tender empathy and a true understanding of the struggles her characters endure in A Family-Style Christmas.”

  —RT Book Reviews

  “In this heartfelt story, Aarsen reminds us

  that life’s challenges can be met and overcome by trusting in one’s faith.”

  —RT Book Reviews on The Cowboy’s Lady

  “A warmhearted story of great sorrow

  and the healing and hope for the future

  God can supply.”

  —RT Book Reviews on The Rancher’s Return

  “An emotional story with a heroine

  who is in danger of making bad decisions

  out of love and a hero who discovers

  God’s plans are always best.”

  —RT Book Reviews on The Baby Promise

  Carolyne Aarsen

  A Family-Style Christmas

  &

  Yuletide Homecoming

  Books by Carolyne Aarsen

  Love Inspired

  †A Family-Style Christmas

  Yuletide Homecoming

  A Bride at Last

  The Cowboy’s Bride

  †A Mother at Heart

  †A Family at Last

  A Hero for Kelsey

  Twin Blessings

  Toward Home

  Love Is Patient

  A Heart’s Refuge

  Brought Together by Baby

  A Silence in the Heart

  Any Man of Mine

  Finally a Family

  A Family for Luke

  The Matchmaking Pact

  Close to Home

  Cattleman’s Courtship

  Cowboy Daddy

  The Baby Promise

  *The Rancher’s Return

  The Cowboy’s Lady

  *Daddy Lessons

  *Healing the Doctor’s Heart

  *Homecoming Reunion

  †Stealing Home

  *Home to Hartley Creek

  CAROLYNE AARSEN

  and her husband, Richard, live on a small ranch in northern Alberta, where they have raised four children and numerous foster children, and are still raising cattle. Carolyne crafts her stories in an office with a large west-facing window through which she can watch the changing seasons while struggling to make her words obey.

  Contents

  A Family-Style Christmas

  Yuletide Homecoming

  A Family-Style Christmas

  As a mother comforts her child,

  so I will comfort you.

  —Isaiah 66:13

  This book is dedicated to all foster parents,

  official and unofficial. May God give you

  the strength and love you need.

  I owe a big thank-you to Anne Canadeo,

  who has been an encouraging and inspiring editor

  on my first four books. I also want to thank

  my new editor, Ann Leslie Tuttle,

  for her enthusiastic help on this series.

  Besides the fact that my sister-in-law and good friend are both nurses, I make no claim to being an expert on nursing care. I had help in that department from Corinne Aarsen, Diane Wierenga and Ruth McNulty. Thank you as well to Steve Kondics, Hera Angelo

  and Heather Toporowsky.

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  “This is a fire-sale price, Simon, and you know it.”

  Simon Steele slipped his hands in the pockets of his leather jacket and lifted one shoulder in a shrug, negating the earnest comment from the real estate agent.

  “Maybe,” he drawled. “We both know the bank wants to dump this property, Blaine. Badly. The building needs major renovations to attract decent renters or owners.” His quick glance took in the stained carpets and marked walls of the lobby before slanting the real estate agent a meaningful look and a smirk. “I’m prepared to offer thirty thousand less than the asking price. Firm.” He ignored his partner, Oscar Delaney, who stood behind Blaine, shaking his head.

  To his credit Blaine Nowicki never batted an eye. “Of course, I’ll have to speak to my client on that and get back to you...”

  “Phone them now and let’s get this deal done,” Simon interrupted, glancing at his watch. He didn’t feel like playing out this fish any longer. He and Oscar had done their homework. They knew the situation at the bank and how long this particular apartment block had been on the market.

  Long enough that Blaine’s clients were willing to settle more quickly than he’d intimated.

  “Simon, you’re enough of a dealer to know that can’t be done this quickly.” Blaine fiddled with his tie as he favored Simon with an overly familiar smile that set Simon’s teeth on edge. “This is a prime piece of property and worth far more than you’re offering.”

  Simon held Blaine’s determined gaze, his own features devoid of emotion. He lifted his hands, still in the pockets of his coat, signaling surrender. “Then, I’m history.” He angled his chin in his partner’s direction, “Let’s go, Oscar. We’ve got a ferry to catch.”

  He turned and started walking away, measuring his tread so he looked like he was going quickly, yet giving Blaine enough time to protest before Simon hit the front doors of the lobby.

  Oscar caught up to him, glancing sidelong at his partner with a frown. Simon gave him a warning shake of his head, then slowed fractionally as they approached the double doors.

  For a moment he wondered if he had underestimated Blaine as he pulled his hand out of his pocket to grab the brass bar when...

  “Wait,” Blaine called out.

  Simon allowed himself a moment of triumph, threw his partner an I-told-you-so glance, then forced the smirk off his face. When he turned to face Blaine, he was all business again.

  “I’ll call them right now,” Blaine said, his cell phone in hand, his jacket flying open as he rushed over. “See what I can do for you.” He punched in the numbers, frowning intently. Simon lifted his eyebrows at Oscar, who grinned back.

  In ten minutes the papers were signed and Oscar and Simon were standing outside the building they had just purchased.

  “I hope you
know what you’re doing,” Oscar said as they stood outside on the pavement, shivering in the damp that had rolled in.

  Simon looked back at the five-story apartment block behind them. The first-story walls were pitted and marked, covered with graffiti. A few of the sliding glass doors were boarded up, but the rest of the building was sound.

  “When you get back from vacation, we’ll get some quotes on renovations,” Simon said, pulling his keys out of his pocket. “It’s got a decent location. I’m sure once we get this thing fixed up, it will be full.” He turned, squinting across the bay toward the hills of Vancouver Island now shrouded by the drizzle that had descended. He swung the keys around his finger. “It has a great view.”

  “When it’s not raining,” Oscar said, pulling his glasses off to clean them.

  Simon grinned at his partner. “You sure you don’t want to head south to the sun instead of camping with your wife’s relatives? Why don’t you come where I’m headed?”

  “Right,” Oscar said dryly, replacing his glasses. “I can see us already. Two overgrown teenagers on motorbikes heading down to the Baja.” He pulled his coat closer, giving another shiver, moisture beading up on his dark blond hair. “Someone’s got to be the mature, responsible one in this partnership.”

  Simon pulled a face. “Please, no bad language,” he said with a laugh.

  Oscar looked back at the apartment block. “You know, one of these days you should buy yourself a house instead of old apartment blocks and new businesses.” He looked back at Simon, his expression serious.

  “And start a family. Why not?” Simon flipped his keys once more, his tone sardonic. “One of those nice cozy groups of people you see on television commercials selling long-distance phone plans.”

  “Being on your own is no picnic,” Oscar said as they headed toward a nearly deserted parking lot.

  Simon stopped beside his bike and zipped up his leather coat with a decisive movement. “It’s a whole lot easier than trying to work around other people’s needs.”

  “Mr. Free Spirit personified,” said Oscar with a rueful shake of his head. “One of these days you’re going to get too old to keep running. Then you’ll be panting and wheezing, wishing you had taken my advice and bought a nice house, found a nice girl and settled down.”

  “There is no such thing as a nice girl.”

  “Oh, c’mon. You just don’t know where to look.”

  Simon pulled his helmet off his motorbike and dropped it on his head. “I suppose I could head out to your church. Scope out the girls there.”

  “Wouldn’t hurt you to go once in a while anyhow.” Oscar shivered again. “I gotta go. I’ve got a few things to do at the office before Angela and I leave town. She told her folks we’d be there before supper.”

  “See what I mean?” Simon said, buckling up his helmet. “Family means schedule, expectations. Watch the clock. Stifling routine.”

  Oscar just looked at him, and Simon felt a flicker of reproach in his partner’s gaze.

  “Family means people who care, too, Simon,” Oscar said quietly. Simon looked away, snapping the top snap of his jacket, pulling on his gloves.

  “Can’t speak from personal experience on that,” he said, forcing a light tone into his voice. He looked up at Oscar and shrugged the comment away. “I’ll see you in a couple of weeks.”

  “Take care of yourself,” Oscar said, hesitating as if he would have liked to say more. Then he got in his vehicle and left.

  Simon watched him go, his shoulders lifting in a sigh. He and Oscar had been partners for three years now. Oscar was a discreet sort of guy. He didn’t pry, didn’t ask a lot of questions and didn’t intrude on Simon’s personal life. Which is just what Simon wanted in a partner.

  Simon liked things to be businesslike and at an arm’s length distance from him. It made things a lot easier that way. The less people knew about you, the less of a hold they had over you. Strict access to information, he reminded himself as he pulled his leather pants over his now-damp jeans. That’s what made his and Oscar’s partnership work so well. Oscar only knew what he needed to know about Simon that pertained to how their partnership worked and vice versa.

  Starting his bike, Simon turned onto the Island Highway and settled into a safe speed. He still had lots of time and would probably beat Oscar to the ferry.

  As he drove his mind went back to his conversation with Oscar. He wished Oscar would lay off the broad hints about settling down. It was like an obsession with him.

  Four years ago he and Oscar had met in a bar, had formed their loosely based partnership on the basis of a shared interest in the stock market and real estate.

  Then Oscar got married, got religion and was now the sickeningly proud father of a little girl. Like a reformed smoker he was on Simon’s case to follow suit.

  Something Simon had no intention of doing. Oscar might look happy now, but people always let you down. That much Simon knew from personal experience.

  And the many foster homes he’d been in after his mother had given him and his brother up for adoption when he was four. As far as he knew he had no other family. For a brief while, they had a loving father, Tom Steele—a widower who adopted them. When he died, he and Jake were moved, then moved again and finally split up.

  Now Simon had no one.

  He cut in front of a car and wove through the traffic, pushing the memories back into the recesses of his mind where they belonged. Living in the past did nothing for the present. And for the present, he was doing quite well, thank you very much. He and Oscar had a good business going. They made enough money that they could both take vacations when it suited them. And he could do pretty much as he pleased.

  Yes, Simon thought as he gave the throttle another twist, he was doing very well indeed.

  Chapter One

  Heartbreak must be a regular occurrence here, Caitlin Severn thought, ignoring the elegantly dressed people in the hotel lobby who were politely ignoring her. She would have liked to walk through the lobby with her head up, but she couldn’t. Her eyes prickled with unshed tears, and her nose was starting to run. It always did when she cried. She gave her eyes a careful wipe, and walked down the few steps toward the entrance.

  When she got there, she stopped.

  Perfect, she thought, staring out at the moisture dripping down the glass door. Her life was becoming more like a bad movie script with each passing moment. This unexpected drizzle was a dramatic touch. All she was missing was a soaring soundtrack.

  She hugged herself, glancing over her shoulder as if hoping that by doing so, Charles would come running up to her, pleading with her to change her mind. But he didn’t.

  The world carried on. Clichéd, but true. Nothing had stopped just because her own world had been rearranged.

  Just ten minutes ago she had broken up with Charles Frost. Again. When Charles had made this date he’d said he had some special news. They’d been dating for three years, and she foolishly thought he was going to propose. Instead he told her about his promotion and subsequent move to Los Angeles.

  In the moment when he lifted his glass of wine to her to toast his success, Caitlin was faced with something she knew she’d been avoiding.

  Charles’s career would always come before her.

  Caitlin knew that this was not how she wanted to live her life.

  So with a few succinct words, she broke up with him.

  Caitlin took a step closer to the front doors and was grateful to see a row of cabs. With a last glance over her shoulder, she stepped out into the early evening drizzle.

  She walked down the sidewalk, her high heels clicking on the wet pavement, moisture beading up on the fine fabric of the short, fitted dress she had chosen so carefully for this date and the “important news” Charles had to tell her.

  Impo
rtant to him, she thought with another sniff.

  She hailed the first cab, then got in. She gave him quick directions to her home, then sat back, shivering with a combination of cold and reaction, thankful she had an escape.

  As the driver pulled away from the front of the restaurant, she felt the first sob climb up her throat. She covered her mouth with her fist, but the hoarse cry slipped past her clenched hand into the quiet confines of the cab. One more got past her guard before Caitlin regained control. The cabbie didn’t even look back.

  She wouldn’t cry, she thought as she defiantly swiped at her cheeks.

  But Caitlin knew it was more than her breakup with Charles she grieved.

  She watched out the window vaguely noting the buildings flowing by. She had lived in Nanaimo in Vancouver Island all her life and had never moved. It seemed as if her life had flowed along the same lines for the past twenty-eight years.

  Twenty-eight and single again. Tonight, after their supper, she and Charles were to have gone to stay with his parents at their cabin on Pender Island for ten days.

  And now...

  Caitlin sighed. She wished she could skip the next few days and head back to work right away. The comforting steadiness of her work at the hospital would have taken her through the week, would have helped her get over the pain she felt. Now she didn’t even have that.

  Thankfully the driver was silent. The tires of the cab hissed over the wet pavement as a lethargy came over her. Reaction, she thought remembering all too easily the sight of Charles’s impassive face as she delivered her ultimatum.

  He just didn’t care.

  The entire evening stretched ahead of her, and she didn’t feel like going home. She knew what would be waiting there. Her dear parents sitting in their usual chairs, drinking tea. Her sister Rachel would be curled up with her husband, Jonathon, on the couch, reading while soft music played on the stereo. Rachel, who had just told their parents she was expecting.

  Caitlin had been jealous.

  Caitlin shook her head at that thought. She was unable to put her finger precisely on why. It had much to do with the malaise she felt before she broke up with Charles. That her life was following the same path without any variation. She had the job she had trained for. She loved her work. But she still wanted someone in her life. Someone who needed her. She wanted to start her own family.