A burned-out ranch. A ticking clock. And one cowboy who just might be her last chance—or her greatest heartbreak.

Stephanie Gilroy never expected to inherit Starling Hollow, especially not just days before Christmas. With the ranch in shambles and a ruthless developer circling like a vulture, she’s running out of time and options. The will is clear—sell by New Year’s Eve or forfeit everything.

Enter Nate Brenner: a rugged, quietly loyal cowboy who’s stayed behind to care for the land, the livestock, and the legacy. He’s everything Stephanie didn’t plan for—gritty, grounded, and far too good at seeing past her defenses.

As winter storms threaten, old family wounds surface, and the pressure to sell mounts, Stephanie must decide what’s worth saving: her future, her heart, or the ranch her uncle built with his bare hands.

But Nate has a secret plan of his own—and it might just be the miracle Stephanie needs.

Titles in the A Cowboy For Christmas Collection include:  The Cowboy’s Christmas Confession ~ The Cowboy’s Christmas Deadline ~ The Cowboy’s Christmas Rescue ~ The Cowboy’s Christmas Miracle ~

This is a clean, sweet romance with either closed doors/fade to black, or only kissing.

Title:  The Cowboy’s Christmas Deadline
Series:  A Cowboy for Christmas Collection #2
Author:  Debra Chapoton
Published:  September 30, 2025
My Rating:  4.5 stars

The Cowboy’s Christmas Deadline is the second title in the A Cowboy for Christmas Collection series, yet each story can easily be read as a standalone, so if you’re not in the mood to commit to a long series, these Christmas Romances would be a perfect fit.

Stephanie has learned of an uncle’s death, a man with whom she lost contact when her family all but imploded years ago, with her parents ending up divorced.  She’s pretty much on her own now since she rarely, if ever, speaks to either parent (or has forgiven them).  She’s successful in her career and doesn’t really want to travel back to her past again, but she has inherited her uncle’s ranch with some provisions, so returning really is a necessity.

Once back on her Uncle Henry’s now rundown ranch, Stephanie will be overrun with memories from a happier time in her life when she and her parents spent so much time here.  The ranch’s manager/sole occupant, Nate, isn’t what she expected.   An awareness of the man, silent and contained but willing to do anything to help her do what’s best for her, will soon bloom into an attraction that neither can deny.  Of course, we have a sleazy villain to loathe… wouldn’t mind seeing him covered in cow dung!  As both Stephanie and Nate, in their own ways, work to put the ranch back together for the needed sale, they’ll soon be working side by side to save the ranch and Stephanie’s inheritance, if at all possible.

The Cowboy’s Christmas Deadline by Debra Chapoton is a lovely romance, set during the Christmas season.  Yet, it’s far more than a faith-filled romance.  It’s a story about coming home, finding home, giving forgiveness, and even finding redemption in some ways.  It’s about mending fences, the personal kind, and finding that right person to love for a lifetime.  I loved everything about this story.  It’s well-written, so emotional, with characters who are believable, even relatable in their choices in life.  If that’s your kind of Christmas romance, then you’ll love this one.

I read this title through my Kindle Unlimited subscription.

This title is available at Amazon (affiliate link)