To Win Her Heart Quotes
"Funny, though. The shame of the convict stripes still clung to him, as if tattooed horizontally across his skin."
"The Bible and recommendation letter in his knapsack fueled his hope, but his past dragged behind him like the lead ball that used to be shackled to his leg."
"The truth will come out eventually, though, and it would be better for it to come from you than somewhere else."
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus."
"Violence only begot more violence, and she couldn’t imagine aligning herself with a man who had blood on his hands—even if he stood on the right side of the law."
"The path that led her here might not have been of her choosing, but as he promised, God had worked it out for good."
"We are called to be sowers, ladies. It is not our business to decide which soils are most likely to give success, for the Lord rarely confines himself to areas dictated by human wisdom. We are to scatter seed. God will give the increase."
"Treat the people here fairly. Keep yourself on the right side of the law, and you and me will get along fine. Mess with my town, and I’ll bury you."
"Read. Everything you can get your hands on. Read until words become your friends. Then when you need to find one, they will jump into your mind, waving their hands for you to pick them. And you can select whichever you like, just like a captain choosing a stickball team."
"The only unfortunate consequence of this strategy was that it led him to pause and stumble while searching for replacement words. But he preferred to run the risk of people thinking him simple rather than degrade his manhood with infantile diction."
"Books on cattle, farming, and animal husbandry filled the first bookcase, along with an extensive assortment of horticultural guides. Levi ran his finger along a spine decorated with a bouquet of roses and chuckled quietly to himself. The woman did love her flowers."
"She had just begun to close her book when the children began clamoring for another chapter. A featherlight laugh floated out from her as she opened the cover once again, her finger still holding their place as if she’d known all along she would read more."
"The combination left her with the odd urge to reassure him. And that scared her."
"The Lord was offering Levi a choice—distance himself from his past by declining to help or fight for the souls of men he’d roamed the yard with."
"His eyes had gone so hard she almost didn’t recognize him."
"Grief is a hard land to dwell in, but pouring liquor down your throat only makes it harder to find the path out."
"I’m fine. A bad memory caught up to me for a minute, but it left."
"You’re one of the few men I’ve met who has found a way to keep his life free of aggression, even when provoked."
"It gave him purpose and even a bit of pride when a customer nodded approval to a job well done."
"I reckon you’re wise enough to take a gander at what lies beneath the surface before makin’ a judgment on a fella’s character. You never were one to make the same mistake twice."
"Her slender fingers trembled against his palm as he gently pressed her hand against the paper."
"Everything inside him went still. She was sitting in his chair. His chair."
"He couldn’t just walk away if there was a chance of making a life with her. The possibility was too sweet to forfeit without at least trying to cultivate it."
"Perhaps, like the roses, he was only meant to admire her from afar."
"What would you have me do, Lord? My head tells me one thing. My heart another. Which voice is yours?"
"I’ll find a way to protect Eden from Pratt and—if the Lord is merciful—from myself, as well."
"Lord, I’m sorry. I’m weak, God. So weak. I don’t deserve your forgiveness, but I ask for it anyway. Change my heart. Make me new."
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; being justified freely by his grace."
"A man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ."
"For I will be merciful... and their iniquities will I remember no more."
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful... to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
"But you don’t want me to earn it, do you? I can’t earn it. I only accept it. Your gift."
"You got something to say to her, you do it my way. And make it convincing."
"You can’t control what people think, Eden. You can only control how you live."
"The Lord was at work. First through Levi and now through her. What was there to worry about?"
"Why won’t you help me? Levi’s heart railed at God."
"Eden’s breath hitched as she inhaled, the pain in her chest marking the death of her dream."
"I’m here, darlin’," he crooned, caressing her hair and laying a kiss atop her head. "I’m here."
"Jesus’ love led him to a cross. What had I sacrificed for him in return?"
"You humbled me first." The irony made her smile. "The Lord knows I needed it."
"I’ve always thought so." Her focus shifted from his face back to the ground, but the shy smile that lingered on her lips did odd things to his insides.
"It wouldn’t be anything as grand as my father’s house in town," Eden said. "Just a cozy little cabin where I could escape every now and again."
"People in God’s house ain’t supposed to throw stones, you know."
"All these months, I had wondered." He gazed into her face. " 'Tis a bonny name. For a bonny lass."
"You are a gentle, kind man of faith. You work hard and are more generous with your earnings than anyone I know."
"Great to find Chloe here. I knew you would be good for her."
"But once in a while, I run into the honorable type. They’re so rare, they stand out like a stallion in a barn overrun with vermin."
"All this time you had me fooled. I never took you for a rock-toter."
"Levi was a man who took in abused dogs, rescued girls from saloon alleys, and donated most of a week’s income toward the purchase of prison Bibles."
"I failed to seek your will, didn’t I? I let fear cast out love instead of trusting your perfect love to cast out my fear."
"God reminded me today that you are no longer the man you described in that letter. You are a man redeemed."
"He rescued you, Chloe. It’s only natural for you to feel the need to defend him, but he told me things—dreadful things that he has done, worse than you could ever imagine, worse than—"
"You didn’t come all the way out here to bring me water. What do you want?"
"How could I love a prizefighter, a felon, a man who had taken the life of another?"
"Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and you weep alone."
"God got him out, Chloe. He merely borrowed my arms to do the heavy work."
"Sometimes waiting is what God wants us to do. To give him time to work."
"I’m praying, Chloe. For all four of the trapped men, but especially for Mr. McPherson. And for you."
"A man’s character didn’t reside in a bank account or fine coat."
"If I’m not back by noon, boy, you might have to fetch the cavalry."
"You may be a decent blacksmith and handy to have around in an emergency, but what makes you think you are worthy of courting my daughter?"
"Keep him strong, Lord. And help him find Duncan. Alive."
"I’ve never admired a woman more than I admire your daughter. Her warm heart, her quick mind and love of literature, her nurturing nature, her devotion to the Lord."
"While I broke rock there, though, God broke me."
"I repented and turned back to the faith my mother and father had brought me up on."
"The man lucky enough to marry Eden will be rich beyond imagination. And it will have nothing to do with her bank account."
"Perhaps she could resume her story hours in the library one day. Or even have children of her own to read to."
"The past is just that—the past. What matters is the man he is now."
"You’re not exactly the best judge of a man’s character, now, are you?"
"I made a vow, Pratt. A vow before God that I would never again fight for man or money. I will not break that vow."
"Levi might have promised the Lord not to fight, but she’d made no such vow."
"Pounding fists into a man’s flesh doesn’t make anything right. All it does is make an old wrong worse."
"It’s gone far enough. The man’s beaten, Conrad. Call a stop to the fight."
"I won’t break my vow, Eden. Not even for you."