Sapphire and Silk

He never wanted to see the woman who broke his heart, but his friend has been kidnapped and he needs help. She doesn't want to look at the handsome cowboy and relive the agonizing memories, but they must set aside their differences to work together. But can they?

Sheriff Jonah Garrison is desperate in his search for the person who kidnapped his friend. Although stolen sapphires are not on his list to find, he never thought his adventure with the woman who had broken his heart would be so dangerous… and so wonderful at the same time.

Paige Whiting sets out to rescue her father, but she runs into the one man she hoped never to see again. It surprises her when she realizes he isn't the inconsiderate mule's backend he was when they first met. Is God giving her a helping hand when it comes to love?

Can absence truly make the heart grow fonder?

After a week of being sheriff, Jonah Garrison was on top of the world… metaphorically speaking, anyway.
Never in his life had he been the man in charge.

Growing up in a family of all boys, with Jonah being the youngest, he rarely found a moment to do things his way. And while he’d been a deputy for three years, he always had to ask the sheriff for direction on what to do.

But now, things were changing. He could feel it in the air, and it wasn’t the cooler weather that ushered in the autumn season, either. Helena, Montana, was a large town and only growing larger. Big towns only meant more trouble. He needed to hire more deputies to help him maintain the citizens in this great place.

Jonah locked up as he left his office and walked to his horse. Mounting the animal, he scanned up the street toward the newspaper building. John Whiting had been running the newspaper for as long as Jonah could remember. He only had a few memories of this place, but those were memories he had wanted erased from his mind, especially those involving John’s only daughter, Paige. That girl was extremely easy on the eyes, but her temperament would frighten even the meanest drunk. She was a woman most men didn’t want to cross, especially when she was mad.

Inwardly, he groaned. Paige hadn’t always been like that. Back when he thought he might have feelings for her, she was a very sweet woman. But the passing of her stepmother had somehow changed Paige, which chased Jonah away. It also made it harder for him to trust women. He didn’t want to give his heart to someone, only to have them stomp on it.

As he arrived at the newspaper office, he peered at the window. There were no lights on inside the building, and the drapes were still closed. Very odd for this time in the morning. Usually, John Whiting had his printing machines going, which made a lot of noise and could be heard down the street. Thankfully, most people in town didn’t complain, only because they enjoyed reading the newspaper.

He dismounted and tied his horse to the hitching post. Cautiously, he walked toward the quiet building.

Although the drapes covered the large picture window, the small window on the door had no covering. He stopped in front of the door and peeked inside.

Immediately, his attention was pulled to the person walking slowly around one of the machines. Holding his breath, he watched Paige, hoping she wouldn’t notice him standing at the door. Not long after the death of her stepmother two years ago, she was sent to live with her aunt and uncle in Silver Bow County.

Seeing Paige again after all this time brought back memories he had wanted to keep buried. Although they had parted as enemies, Jonah thought she was the prettiest woman around. Today, she wore a calico dress. Her brown hair was wound up in a fashionable coil on top of her head as wisps of hair hung around her ears. The woman had come from a wealthy family, and she’d always carried herself like a queen. No other woman had such grace and decorum – and at the same time, no other woman had such a loud, angry voice.

“Sheriff!”

The young boy’s panicked voice startled Jonah, and he swung around, looking for the person calling his name. Matthew Black ran toward him, waving his hands. The ten-year-old was the oldest of the eight Black children. Jonah’s heart went out to the poor boy. His father was a drunkard, and his mother… well, Jonah was just glad he’d never had a mother like that.

He hurried away from the newspaper office and met the out-of-breath boy with a flushed face. “What is it, Matthew?”

“My… my…” The boy tried to catch his breath. “My pa is getting beat. Come quickly.”

Jonah jumped on his horse and then pulled the ten-year-old up to sit behind him. As soon as the boy’s arms wrapped around Jonah, he kicked his heels into the animal and rode fast. In the past eight months, Sheriff Baer or Jonah had been called to Wilbur and Beatrice Black’s little farm on the edge of town at least once a month. Sometimes more.

When Jonah arrived at the Black’s home, seven children sat on the front porch as tears streaked their unwashed faces. From the rundown barn came the yelling and screeching of Wilbur and Bea.