A Christmas Wren

By BA Tortuga

Wren is in Colorado to do a last favor for her grandmother when she meets a cowboy she just can't resist, at least for one night. Robin wants to warm Wren up, and he's more than willing to help her with her errand, but she doesn't think she wants to spend Christmas with a stranger, preferring to go home to Texas. When the weather has other plans for Wren, stranding her in the mountains, it's Robin who comes to the rescue, finding a way to keep her out of the storm. Cowboys might just be Wren's weakness, but there's nothing weak about accepting the gifts that Christmas brings.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Turtlehat Creatives
• Release date: Jul 3, 2021
• ISBN: 9781951532413

Book preview

Prologue

Y ou know the story about the Christmas wren, honey? Granny looked down at her, that pretty green sequined sweater just a-sparklin’ in the lights cast from the tree.

Little Wren Rogers shook her head, curled into that lap that had been the center of her universe for as long as she could remember—all six years of it.

Oh, then I gotta tell you. You know how there’s Mr. Robin Red-breast that lives in the back pasture come spring? Well, every year ‘round the baby Jesus’ birthday, he swoops around, hunting and calling, and he finds the Christmas wren and makes her his very own.

She ain’t scairt, Granny?

Granny chuckled, shook her head, those green eyes just like her own shining away. No, baby-girl. That wren knows Mr. Robin is meant for her and she’s made to fly away and be his for Christmas.

Just like you and Grampy. Everybody knew the story of how Grampy went to the big mountains and caught himself a whole Granny and brought her down to be a cowgirl in Texas.

Yeah, sweet girl. Just like me and Grampy. Granny leaned down, touched their noses together once. Granny smelled just like home—sugar cookies and coffee and the perfume from the big pink bottle. You just wait, girl. One day, you’ll go up into them mountains of mine and some mountain man will steal you away and love you and keep you there.

Oh, Granny, I ain’t never leaving Texas.

Granny laughed and rocked her, So you say, but mark my words, honey. One day, it’ll come and I’ll be watching.

Grampy’s laugh rang out about then, his friendly ole cowboy face looking across from the front room. Santa’s up in the air, Wren-honey. They’re showing him on the news, right now. Come and see.

Wren squealed and barreled across the room, Christmas wrens and robins and mountains forgotten.

1

W ren, honey, did you get your good boots?

Yeah, Aunt Nanette. I did.

And your jacket. It’s cold up there.

I know. She pushed her denim jacket in the suitcase with the rest of her jeans and her sweatshirts. Good Lord and butter, Granny was going to be the death of her—wanting to visit the mountains the old gal had grown up on and wanting to do it now. If anybody had a lick of sense…

Like anybody in this family had ever had a lick of sense.

You’re a good girl, doing this for her. Aunt Nanette bustled in, all fiery-red Clairol hair and heavy glasses and nails done by little Janey Wills, who had gone to school with her. You’ve always been her favorite.

Yeah. Wren pushed her own dark hair out of her face, shoving back the tears that threatened. It was almost Christmas, damn it. It wasn’t time to go gallivanting, not even for Granny. I won’t be too long. I won’t dawdle.

No, you get up there, do your business and come back, huh? I’ll make you Christmas cookies.

Sure, Auntie. Sure. I’ll take Granny up and then I’ll be back, come hail or high water.

The little box that held what of Granny’s ashes that weren’t resting with Grampa was pressed into her hands, Aunt Nanette’s eyes all watery. It’s the snow you gotta watch for up there in them mountains, honey.

Yeah, well. Gran ought to have known better than to let herself get tempted by a Texas cowboy. She wouldn’t have spent her life hoeing dust and trying to milk wild cows. Wren’d seen Granny’s eyes when she would talk about the mountains, the sky, the life there. Granny’d missed them her whole life and all she’d asked was that Wren take her home, just as soon as she’d gone. No matter if it was cold. Or Christmas. Or if she could afford to leave her vet tech job at Dr. Gorman’s when everybody and their dog wanted to board critters for the holidays.

It was a giant pain in the butt, but then, it was her Granny and Lord knew there’d been nothing easy there. Ever.

She pulled her backpack onto her shoulder. Uncle Robert? I’m ready to go.

Aunt Nanette started crying when she got to the door, and Wren leaned over, kissed one powdery cheek. I’ll be back in two shakes, honey. I swear. I won’t get myself seduced by Granny’s mountains.

That’s what Momma said you’d say.

Before she could wonder what that meant, Uncle Robert honked and she had to go and catch herself a plane.

2

Robin Naciero considered himself a patient man. He really did. But he was getting growly at the college students that clogged the bar at the Oasis. Sure, he knew that Gunnison, Colorado depended on the Western State students to keep it going during the winter when it was cold enough to freeze the tourists' balls off.

Didn't mean he liked sharing the bar with the drunken little bastards.

He scanned the room, looking for someplace to light and suck back his Coors, but every booth was full of laughing idiots. All but one. That booth held one pretty little girl, all brown hair and sad green eyes, her hands wrapped around a steaming coffee mug. Who could blame her? The thin jacket she wore was no match for a Gunnison evening.

Wandering over, Robin cleared his throat, admiring the shape of her face when she looked up at him.

Hey, there. I hate to ask, but you mind if I sit? It's a little crowded.

Hmm? Sure, honey. Have a seat. Oh, lord, that voice had a drawl thick as honey. I’m prob’ly gonna head out of here in a few anyway.

Oh, now. Don't let me run you off. Texas. She had to be from Texas. He'd