Burdens & Blessings — Kathy Zebert

A chocolate cupcake.  A cowboy with a secret.  A young woman who's sworn off men for the rest of her life.Harley is broken.  Convinced that she's not worthy of being loved by a good man, she sets out for Orange Blossom, Texas, hoping to leave the horrors of her past behind and disappear into small-town life.She's smart.  She's independent.  And she will be just fine alone.Jake knew his life in the pro rodeo circuit wouldn't last forever, but he didn't expect a sudden injury to render him unable to ever compete again. A need for a new career and a talent for baking and decorating scrumptuous desserts leads him to reluctantly open a cupcake shop.  But to avoid becoming the punchline of a humiliating joke from his roping buddies and the disapproval of his father, who has always thought of baking as nonsense for a cowboy, he decides to hire a woman to be the face of the business.In order to make his cupcake dreams come true, though, dating is going to have to be off the table.  No romance.  Business only.  There's just no time for that now.  He's taking himself off the market.He's driven.  He's independent.  And he will be just fine alone.When they meet, it's the perfect opportunity for them both. Harley gets to begin her quiet new life, and Jake can do what he secretly loves.The pair couldn't get along better.  But with their insecurities so close to the surface, will they realize they deserve more?