What Dreams May Come

Cover image credit line: Woman in Red © Monica Lazar, Arcangel Cover design copyright © 2023 by Covenant Communications, Inc. Published by Covenant Communications, Inc. American Fork, Utah Copyright © 2023 by Dana LeCheminant All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any format or in any medium without the written permission of the publisher, Covenant Communications, Inc., PO Box 416, American Fork, UT 84003. The views expressed within this work are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Covenant Communications, Inc., or any other entity. This is a work of fiction. The characters, names, incidents, places, and dialogue are either products of the author’s imagination, and are not to be construed as real, or are used fictitiously. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Name: Dana LeCheminant Title: What dreams may come / Dana LeCheminant Description: American Fork, UT : Covenant Communications, Inc. [2023] Identifiers: Library of Congress Control Number 2022944922 | ISBN 9781524423094 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022944922 First Printing: May 2023 To my mom: the best unexpected brainstorm buddy I’m starting to think you should write your own book. Praise for Dana LeCheminant What Dreams May Come “What Dreams May Come is a really good historical romance that I truly enjoyed. This book meets all of the requirements for a Regency romance and more. I found myself reading whenever I could, hoping that Lucy would find peace and happiness. It was impossible not to love her and want a happily ever after ending. Dana LeCheminant created wonderful characters, each with a strong personality, and whether to love or hate them is an easy choice. I cannot praise this book enough. I really loved it and hated coming to the end and having to say goodbye to Lucy, Simon, William, and the rest of the Calloway family and friends. If you like good historical romance, this is one you can’t pass up; it is a winner.” —Readers’ Favorite Five-Star Review The Thief and the Noble “A delightful retelling of the Robin Hood tale . . . with some added Regency glitz!” —InD’tale Magazine The Holly and the Ivy “This festive anthology of sweet historical romances overflows with Christmas cheer . . . In LeCheminant’s standout ‘A Twist of Christmas,’ love blooms between Lord Graham Bartlett, future Earl of Greystone, and Lady Elizabeth Spencer, a duke’s daughter, when they respectively swap identities with his brother and her lady’s companion to see what it’s like to live without the burden of their titles . . . All four stories [in this anthology] deliver witty exchanges, personal growth, and holiday goodness in spades. Readers looking for wholesome Christmas reading will be pleased.” —Publishers Weekly “Historical romance is quickly becoming a genre I’m obsessed with, and I loved how heartwarming and wholesome the characters and plot in each story were. Sarah M. Eden, Esther Hatch, Dana LeCheminant, and Anneka R. Walker are very talented writers, and I’m glad I was able to discover them while reading this collection. I would recommend this anthology to readers who may be wanting to get into the historical romance genre but aren’t quite sure where to start. This book has a little bit of everything—banter, love, deep themes of grief and loss, and many other elements that make for a great reading experience, especially around the holidays. I enjoyed it!” —Readers’ Favorite “Dana’s charming characters are real, witty, and oh so lovable! ‘A Twist of Christmas’ will leave you with a huge smile on your face.” —Anneka R. Walker, author of the Matchmaking Mamas series Chapter One Oxfordshire, June 1815 Under the circumstances, Lucy was grateful for the rain and the protection it gave her despite the grumblings of her traveling companions. While it made the roads slick and the air cold, it gave her an odd sense of security knowing only a fool would be out in this weather. Unfortunately for her, Mr. Jonathan Granger was one of the biggest fools she’d ever met. Why else would he be so determined to marry her, a penniless governess? As the public coach moved steadily farther from London, Lucy breathed more and more easily. After spending the last five years dodging her employer’s younger brother and his professions of love, she was more than ready to move on to something new. Now that the Granger girls were too old to need her as their governess, she finally had both the freedom and the recommendation to start over in a quiet country estate, far from Mr. Granger’s searing gaze. Assuming she arrived in one piece, of course. “I don’t like this storm,” Rebecca muttered next to her. The maid, a few years older than Lucy’s twenty-two, had offered to accompany Lucy to her new home under the pretext of visiting family in the area, though Lucy suspected Rebecca had no such family. The young woman had taken Lucy under her wing five years past when Lucy had been forced to take up the governess position, and Rebecca had adamantly refused to let her undertake the journey on her own. Honestly, she wasn’t sure why Rebecca feared the coach so much. Lucy had taken it alone once before, after her father had died, and while the experience hadn’t been pleasant, neither had it been dangerous. This journey was simply another in what she suspected would be a long line of them. With her father gone and no money or prospects to her name, she would likely never find somewhere to truly call home. She would never belong anywhere, and she had come to terms with that fact. “We have only a few hours to go,” Lucy said, though she knew nothing of the sort. The way Rebecca was staring out the window at the utter darkness was making her nervous. “It’s nearly pitch-black out there,” the maid argued. “We’re likely to stop soon.” Not thirty seconds later, the coach slowed until it came to a halt, and the other three