THE LAWKEEPERS HISTORICAL ROMANCE SERIES · BOOK 2
Lawfully Given — eBook
A false betrothal, a missing brother, and a holiday season filled with danger.
She arrived with a wedding dress. He greeted her with a gun. Neither expected a holiday miracle.
Sheriff Jack Garrison just wants a nap. Instead, he wakes up to find a petite firebrand standing in his office, claiming to be his future wife. Grace Belle has traveled all the way from Philadelphia with a train ticket and a letter from her brother sealing the deal. The problem? Jack never proposed, he doesn’t know Grace, and he is already courting the town’s beautiful Pinkerton detective, Sarah Jones.
Grace didn’t come to the wild New Mexico Territory for romance; she came to find her missing brother, Calvin. But when she discovers Calvin has vanished and threats from his past are closing in, she is left with no protection but the reluctant sheriff. As Jack works to unravel the mystery of Calvin’s disappearance—and whether his own outlaw brother is involved—he finds himself torn between the woman he’s courting and the “fiancée” he never asked for.
Explore the full Lawkeepers series — six lawmen, six stories of faith, danger, and second chances.
Tropes
Arranged Betrothal, Fish Out of Water, Lawman Romance, Christmas Romance, Protective Hero
Tone
Inspirational, Festive, Romantic, Suspenseful, Humorous
Setting
1880s, Cimarron, New Mexico Territory
Comparable Titles
The Marshal's Christmas Bride by Sherri Shackelford, A Ranger for the Holidays by Allie Pleiter, The Lawman's Yuletide Baby by Ruth Logan Herne
Main Characters
Sheriff Jack Garrison
MMC
Grace Belle
MFC
Sarah Jones
Secondary
Order Lawfully Given — eBook
Description
She arrived with a wedding dress. He greeted her with a gun. Neither expected a holiday miracle.
Sheriff Jack Garrison just wants a nap. Instead, he wakes up to find a petite firebrand standing in his office, claiming to be his future wife. Grace Belle has traveled all the way from Philadelphia with a train ticket and a letter from her brother sealing the deal. The problem? Jack never proposed, he doesn’t know Grace, and he is already courting the town’s beautiful Pinkerton detective, Sarah Jones.
Grace didn’t come to the wild New Mexico Territory for romance; she came to find her missing brother, Calvin. But when she discovers Calvin has vanished and threats from his past are closing in, she is left with no protection but the reluctant sheriff. As Jack works to unravel the mystery of Calvin’s disappearance—and whether his own outlaw brother is involved—he finds himself torn between the woman he’s courting and the “fiancée” he never asked for.
Explore the full Lawkeepers series — six lawmen, six stories of faith, danger, and second chances.
Director’s Commentary
The conflict here drives from a misunderstanding created by a third party (Grace's brother) rather than a scheme between the protagonists. Jack is actively courting someone else (Sarah) when Grace arrives, which subverts the usual 'fake fiancée' trope by making the engagement an unwanted obstacle they both have to navigate while solving the mystery of the missing brother.