After all those years, I was certain Jakob Hirsch had
forgotten me. Then came his proposal of marriage. With
more impulse than wisdom, I crossed the ocean to begin a
new life with him in Shadow Creek, Idaho. Little did I
dream of the changes eleven years had brought to the man I
once loved--which included three small children waiting
with him at the station.
I will not marry a stranger who no longer loves me, but I
have agreed to look after Jakob's children until the
harvest is in. A cabin on his property provides me with
respectable living quarters. If only it were as easy to
separate my heart from this family! It will be difficult
to leave when the time comes, for I am falling in love
with these little ones--and, truth be told, with Jakob.
Your loving daughter,
Karola Breit
In Idaho, the land is good but life is hard for a German
émigré whose dreams have turned to dust. Love found and
lost can shatter a man's faith. But it is about to
strengthen that of the woman to whom he turns--and in the
drought of summer, a withered promise springs to life.