title: Leigh's Story
author: A Valentine Joseph
description: Author of Jan's Mysterious Adventure and Sandy, Allison Valentine Joseph was born and educated in Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband and two children.
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  ![Cover image](image/9780369703194.jpg)
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  **“Thank you for your kindness to my sister,” Joseph told her softly. “I have
  never seen her so happy.”**
  
  
  Nugget broke free and skipped ahead. Annabelle didn’t have the heart to stop
  her.
  
  
  “I’m glad to have given her something to be happy about.” She smiled. Joseph
  wasn’t too bad. Cleaned up the way he was, it was almost easy to pretend he
  was just a normal man.
  
  
  Annabelle stumbled slightly. Joseph wasn’t a normal man. And it wouldn’t do
  for her to entertain feelings when she knew she couldn’t count on a miner to
  stick around. Not that she had any intention of entertaining feelings about
  any man.
  
  
  At least not here in Leadville. The town was full of shiftless drifters, and
  the one time she’d let her guard down to trust in someone, he’d betrayed her.
  Something she’d do well to remember in the presence of this man.
  
  
  Especially with the way Joseph’s sparkling smile made her tingle all the way
  down to her toes.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  