Today as the time approaches for the release of Rescuing Her Heart, I thought it would be fun to interview the main characters. Today, it is rancher Jed Holt. Next post will be his love interest Delilah James.

Welcome Jed, it is great to have you here to share your story on my blog.

I’m happy to oblige.

I know you and your twin came to Kansas after the War Between the States. Can you talk a bit about your life before that?

Sure thing. Zebulon is my identical twin. He goes by Lonnie, and I prefer Jed over Jedidiah. We have always been real close. We have common interests, like ranching and love of family.

We only got each other now. Pa died when we were teens and the war took the rest of my family. The war also made us make a powerful choice. Our Pa encouraged us to never harm others. Never raise our gun to shoot another man. He said once you do, you’re forever changed.

When the South seceded from the Union, Lonnie chose to not serve at all. We lived in Texas and our neighbors weren’t happy with Lonnie. Called him a coward and penned him down and branded his face with a C. He moved to a mountain cabin in Colorado until the war was over.

Me, I joined the Union army as a chaplain. I’d already gone to seminary and was planning on being a preacher before the war broke out. I ‘m opposed to slavery and wanted to make a difference without bearing arms. I spent the first year counseling the soldiers and praying with them. Then a battle didn’t go our way, and the next thing I knew I was a prisoner of the Confederacy.

As a southerner in the Union army, I wasn’t too popular with the confederate guards.  One of my former neighbors, who’d helped brand my brother was a guard at the camp.  He worked at making my life a misery. At the end of the war I was thin and sickly. My brother collected me from an Army hospital, and we headed to Kansas to claim the ranch we’d inherited from our bachelor uncle. It was a new start for us.

Tell me about your sweet sister-in-law. She plays a big part in Rescuing Her Heart.

Genny is a gem. When Lonnie and I found her in our uncle’s cabin, Lonnie was fit to be tied. But she used her nursing skills to heal me, after I took a turn for the worse. Then my brother saw her in a different light. She is such a caring woman. If not for her, I doubt Delilah would have accepted my help. The story of how Genny softened Lonnie’s heart, and the two wed is in your novella, Healing Hearts, part of The Cowboys Collection.

You lived as a carefree bachelor for five years before Delilah came into your life. What did you do during that time?

I run the ranch with Lonnie. We have mighty fine horses and quality cattle. All thanks to Lonnie’s natural abilities. I made a promise to my brother that I would ranch by his side. Genny and the children filled a lonely place in my heart. My ma and two little brothers died during the war. It felt so good to have family again. I spent a part of each day spoiling my nieces.

Pastor Logan asked me to do his visitation rounds to homesteads and ranches outside of town. His arthritis don’t take kindly to hours on a horse. About once a month, I’d spend a couple days traveling around the area. It satisfied my need to serve the Lord without pastoring a church. That desire died after my time in the prison camp. I still have nightmares and day terrors about my time there. I realize God didn’t call me to preach but my exprience made me a good counselor. Lots of men came back from the war with troubled minds.

That’s what drew you to Delilah James?

Yep, she was a skittish filly who had a horrible fright. I was determined to help her find some peace. I had no idea God had more in mind for me, for us.

I should stop here . I could talk  about the beautiful Delilah for hours. I best let  your readers grab a copy of Rescuing Her Heart and learn the whole of our story themselves.

Thank you for visiting with us, Jed. I’m sure Delilah will have some interesting things to share with my readers in the next post too.