Showing results by author "Cathe Swanson" in All Categories

She's falling apart. He's moving on. Phoebe Schenstrom is capable, smart, and calm in all circumstances – the perfect director of women's and children's ministries at the Unity Plenkiss Community Center. Maintaining that reputation is getting hard, though, and Phoebe is burning out fast. When a clash – or two – with clients leads to her suspension, she needs to prove she's more than just a babysitter. Her brother's adventure camps for city kids might give her a chance to save her job, but he's invited Ben Taylor to help with it, and Phoebe doesn't want to give Ben the wrong idea... ...

She has a second chance at life. Will she embrace a second chance at love, too? Christopher Wright came home from Afghanistan a changed man. He’s found peace as an over-the-road trucker, but he’s never forgotten the woman he grew close to overseas – or the promises they made to each other. But when a newspaper article leads him to the Unity Plenkiss Community Center, the elusive Tally isn’t happy to be found – and she’s definitely not interested in picking up where they left off. After two years on the streets, Tally Zemmer has found a home and begun to heal, building a new life...

Micah Neresen only signed up to fill the pulpit temporarily, but he's become fond of his eccentric congregation at the Blessed Church of the Holy Lamb and Sacred Lion. He can't leave them until they've found a new pastor -- and he's pretty sure their favorite candidate is a con man! Newly arrived from her home in the Congo and armed with a brand-new degree in nonprofit management, Carrie Strough is eager to organize and improve the Unity Plenkiss Community Center. Unfortunately, no one wants to be organized, and only Micah Neresen, the charming and handsome pastor of the local church, is ...

When danger strikes, love and family become the ultimate refuge. Ben Taylor, a 25-year-old widower with four children, is already struggling to balance college, a new job, and fatherhood when he gets caught up in a network of fraud and deception at his workplace. Forced to go undercover to expose the criminals and clear his name, Ben turns to Teresa Cooper, the capable nanny who keeps his world in order, to take his children to the one place where they will be completely safe. Jonah Campbell, a retired soldier-turned-artist living in the remote wilderness of the Upper Peninsula, never ...

Old sins cast long shadows. Mona Vickers is forging a new life, building a safe and loving home for her girls far away from the ghosts of the past. She’ll do whatever it takes to make it work, including sending her girls to the Christian-based after school program despite her own lack of faith. Roy Strough, Director of the Unity Plenkiss Community Center, wants to help the hardworking mother who’s captured his heart, but he’s already offended her pride once. Asking Mona to teach a class at the community center in exchange for tuition seems like the perfect solution. Mona’s growing ...

When Lisa Marsh reluctantly agrees to serve Thanksgiving dinner at the local community center, she’s not prepared for the chaos that ensues. Between the lively teenagers, fiercely independent veterans, eccentric seniors, and one particularly gruff homeless man named Pete, the evening spirals into a disaster. But when her best friend dares her to do more, Lisa accepts the challenge: she’s going to help Pete turn his life around—whether he likes it or not. Her plan? Simple: clean him up (starting with a shave), find him a job, and make him respectable. Pete, however, has no interest in ...

Sylvia Flynn never wanted to leave Golden Valley, Montana, and she never did. Now, as the town’s go-to event planner, she’s pouring her heart into the new Gold Rush-themed conference center that’s supposed to breathe new life into the community. With Christmas around the corner, Sylvia is busy creating magical holiday events that could make or break the town’s future. But when Michael Bishop, her high school sweetheart, shows up unexpectedly, Sylvia’s carefully laid plans are thrown into disarray. Michael’s family moved away in his senior year of high school, and he never ...

Scrap quilts, bridal gowns, and a hidden family heirloom. What more could you want in a Minnesota winter romance? Penny Anderson has a dream. She's going to be an exclusive bridal gown designer, and she won't be held back by her dyslexia, a rural location, or the doubts of others. Brian Michaels has waited seven years for Penny to see him as a man instead of just a childhood friend. Can he work up the courage to speak before the tall, dark and handsome business consultant sweeps her off her feet? Great-aunt Violet chronicles the family history in a series of patchwork quilts. When an ...

All isn’t gold in Golden Valley, but if social media and an over-the-top Wild West wedding can change that this Christmas, she’s #doingthis. Aspiring social media influencer Lindy Sutton didn’t know what she was getting into when her great-aunt convinced her to promote Golden Valley’s new conference center as a wedding venue. The rural Montana town is dying, and if splashing an absurd rodeo princess dream wedding all over the internet will help save it, Lindy will give it a shot. It might be ridiculous, or it might go viral! Sheriff Wyatt West knows they need to bring in money and ...

What's so special about a white Christmas? Julia expected her first job for the family’s charitable foundation to be something more meaningful—and less expensive—than creating a winter wonderland Christmas vacation for snow-deprived southerners. Still, the project would be fun and rewarding if only her grandmother didn’t keep interfering. Tom doesn’t understand why anyone would want to renovate his uncle’s broken-down Wisconsin deer camp, either, but if it will save the old man’s home and business, he’ll help the ambitious city girl put together the most cliché-filled ...

It seemed like such a good idea at the time… Her grandmother’s invitation came at the perfect time to rescue Claire Lucas from the consequences of her good intentions. With no reason to stay in Minnesota, she turns her back on the ice and snow and heads for the Golden Sun Oasis retirement community in Arizona. Jeffrey Koa is at loose ends after finishing college. He hasn’t found a job yet, and his parents are on their way back to their exotic mission fields, so when his great-uncle calls to ask for his help, Jeffrey leaves the sandy beaches of Hawaii and heads for Arizona. It ...

She’s looking for a "Plus One" for her parents' anniversary party. He’s looking for “Happily Ever After.” When a matchmaking agency pairs them up, is it a computer error or a match made in heaven? Eleanor Nielson always wanted to follow in her distinguished parents’ footsteps, becoming a teacher and living a life of selfless community service – until she tried it. Now, she’s run away to find herself and decide what she wants to do with the rest of her life, but she can’t skip her parents’ anniversary party, and she needs a date. Can a matchmaking agency find her a fake ...

The silver screen glitters, but deadly secrets and hidden vices lurk behind the velvet curtain. Chicago, 1926. John Starek's opulent movie palace, the Empire, dazzles patrons with its priceless art and elegant ambiance. For Gayle Wells, one of the country's first female organists, the Empire is a dream come true—a place where she can pursue her musical ambitions and save enough money to buy her very own "Tin Lizzie." But the theater's glamorous facade hides dark secrets. When valuable artworks begin to disappear and a string of murders shakes the theater, Gayle finds herself entangled in ...