BEYOND THIS MOMENT by Tamera Alexander

This is book 2 in the Timber Ridge Reflections series and I enjoyed it even more than I did book 1. It is a story of learning the hard way that the choices we make can and will effect more than just ourselves. A story of secrets, of prejudices, of love and of forgiveness.
Dr. Molly Whitcomb, a professor at college, finds herself being dismissed from her school because of a bad choice and finding herself taking a position as a teacher in the Colorado Territory at Timber Ridge. She is with child and no husband, so she tries to hide her disgrace by putting a ring on her finger and saying her husband has died. Sheriff James McPherson has a feeling things are not quite as they seem when she first gets to town, but he can't figure out what Molly Whitcomb is hiding. He also can't stop his growing feelings for her. The problem is, when he finds out the truth, what will that do to the love that is building between both of them?
Tamera Alexander does a great job of making the characters seem real and helping you understanding the thoughts and standards of that time for a woman like Dr. Molly Whitcomb. She also had the heart of the story in "A NOTE FROM TAMERA" at the end of her book. She said, "Some decisions, once made, have unavoidable consequences that cannot be removed, much like Molly's. However, even in those darkest of times, when we feel the overwhelming weight of our sin, God is always - always - yearning to forgive. He's not simply willing to forgive, mind you, He's eager to extend pardon."
This is a story well worth reading. You can easily read this as a stand alone, but reading book one first will help you understand the characters that much more.