In mid-December, the first snow storm hit their town. Cooper did not want to take Lexi out in the cold and risk her getting sick, but the other option of leaving her alone in her condition would never suffice. She barely began to show a few weeks after he moved into the house, but the baby’s upcoming arrival was now quite evident with her ever expanding rounded belly.

She insisting she would be fine on her own. Several months had gone by since Luke and her father’s death without incident. He promised to return before nightfall, but changed his mind and came back through the door a few minutes after he left. She reminded him that her father taught her to shoot a gun in case a situation to defend herself arose.

When Cooper got to town, he stopped to talk to Beatrice Perkins before...

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