Healing the Cowboy's Heart

A blizzard strands a sunshine-hearted traveler with a gruff single father who’s sworn off love.

Savannah Mercer never expected her trip home for the holidays to leave her trapped in a small Oklahoma town—or under the roof of a rugged cowboy who clearly prefers solitude. Her warmth, optimism, and steady faith clash with Luke Maverick’s guarded nature from the moment they meet.

After losing his wife, Luke built his life around raising his young son and protecting his heart from further loss. He keeps his world small, quiet, and carefully controlled—until Savannah’s bright spirit begins to challenge the walls he’s built.

Forced together by circumstance, her kindness stirs emotions he buried long ago. As grief, healing, and growing affection draw them closer, both must decide whether a guarded heart can open again and whether love can grow from loss.

Clenching the wheel, Savannah Mercer fought to control her car against the snowstorm. Her heart pounded in sync with the rhythm of the windshield wipers, each thump a reminder of her racing pulse.

Doubt gnawed at her mind, intertwining with the cold tendrils of fear as she wondered if she’d make it through. She leaned close to the windshield, desperate to see beyond the mere ten inches of visibility the storm allowed.

Thick snow flurries swallowed the road she traveled. A shiver ran down her spine as the frigid air seeped into the car. She desperately wanted to try again to fiddle with the heater to get it to work, but her concentration stayed with the road ahead. Would she be able to get through the night without incident?

“Please, God, let me make it safely.” Savannah’s words came out in soft trembles. She started wondering if she should pull over—at least for the night. No cars were around, and if she stalled or crashed, she wasn’t sure how long it’d be until she was found.

She should have listened to her friend. Charlotte had begged her to stay a little while longer until the predictions of the storm passed by. But Savannah was eager to get home. After three weeks visiting with her friend, she was ready to get home to Georgia for the holidays and snuggle into her own bed.

She continued to drive at a snail’s pace, hoping an armadillo, a raccoon, or a jolly snowman with a corn cob pipe wouldn’t waddle into her path. The absurdity of the thought almost made her smile, but it quickly faded as the gravity of her situation sank back in. A Frosty the Snowman strolling down a snowy highway would be a strange sight, but right now, she couldn’t afford any distractions.

Unable to take the cold any longer, she reached for the knob to fiddle with the temperature, keeping her eyes on the road.

On the dashboard, her phone’s screen lit up and began to trill as a call came through, but Savannah didn’t answer it. She made it a habit to not talk on the phone when she was driving, and doing so now would be all kinds of stupid. Whoever it was that was trying to call, she’d get back with them when she could.

A yawn escaped her as she passed a sign welcoming her to Whispering Willow, Oklahoma, a town that according to the sign’s motto, she’d never forget.

As she pulled onto the main road, her car sputtered, and the persistent check engine light flared bright orange. “Why now?” she muttered. Ignoring the oil changes and her brother’s warnings had caught up with her, and as the car jerked to a stop, she realized she was about to become stranded.

“No!” She slapped the steering wheel with a groan. The engine sputtered feebly with each turn of the key. Her palms pressed harder against the wheel as if she could will the car to obey her command.

Savannah looked around the snowy landscape. A dark outline of mountains stood as a backdrop against the snowstorm, its ominous shadows matching the mood of her surroundings. Inside the car, it was deadly silent. Outside the car, she heard the howl of the wind. No one was around.

Savannah grabbed her cell phone from the dashboard. Who would she call? Charlotte was the closest to her, but even her best friend was two hours away. Should she call 9-1-1? But where would she say she was?

Looking around, she tried to find a sign, but against the thick flurries still falling, the white words against the green borders blurred. She could still call Charlotte. Her friend might have an idea of what to do.