{about the book}
On the surface, Lynsey Reznor seems to
have it all. She is beautiful, brilliant, and a successful true-crime
writer who has been living the past decade in Miami. But what Lynsey
lacks is what she needs the most—a family.
After the death of her mother, and yet
another failed relationship, Lynsey makes an impulsive decision to
return to her hometown of Unity. But Unity will present its own
bittersweet memories, most notably, her first love, Nick Lincoln.
Twenty years ago, Nick broke teenager
Lynsey’s heart when he decided to marry another. He had his own
private reasons—reasons he never explained to Lynsey. Now she is
back, along with a chance to reclaim her love. But Lynsey wants
answers from him that he may never be able to give out of duty and
guilt.
Genre: Romance
Blitz Host: Lady Amber's Tours
{excerpt}
When he heard her,
he came to her, took her into his arms, and kissed her. It was a
comfort that he wasn’t regretting their lovemaking. She didn’t
think she could handle being rejected by him twice in her lifetime.
“Do you have
to leave soon?” she asked.
“I’m
sorry. I don’t want to, but I have to.” He went to the stove and
prepared her a cup of coffee. “I think we should start planning our
wedding. We could be married at Christmas.”
She was taken
aback. Is this his proposal ? This was supposed to be so romantic
and memorable, not talk about planning a Christmas wedding while he
stirred a cup of coffee.
“Do you even
want to get married?” She took the coffee mug he offered. “I
mean, it wasn’t that long ago that you told me you weren’t sure
you ever wanted to be married again. You said you didn’t see
fatherhood in your future, and Nick, I want a baby…more than one. I
grew up as an only child and I was so alone. I don’t want my child
to have to experience that.”
“Well, I
didn’t use a condom last night. You could be pregnant right now,”
was his reply.
Heaviness
descended upon her heart. This was so not how she wanted this morning
to be, and certainly not the marriage proposal she had dreamed of.
“I’m on the Pill—I won’t get pregnant if that’s all you’re
worried about.”
“I’m
sorry, that’s not the only reason we should get married.”
“Then why?”
she asked suspiciously.
He let out an
exaggerated sigh. “Lynsey, I don’t have time to get into this
with you right now. What do you want me to say in the five minutes I
have before I leave for work?”
She couldn’t
believe his glib attitude. “How about saying something to me
like…‘I love you, Lynsey, and I made a tremendous mistake by not
marrying you twenty years ago?’ That would take you less than
thirty seconds to say, and you could have easily gotten to your
precious job on time.”
Suddenly his
jaw set and his eyes narrowed. “I didn’t make a mistake by not
marrying you twenty years ago! I let you go to become a success in
life—and you did. I can’t regret that!”
“So, what I
thought all these years was correct. I was nothing to you but a quick
and easy way to shed your virginity.” Just saying the words was
devastating.
“That’s
not it at all,” he vehemently insisted. “You were always so
intelligent. I mean, you were a sixteen-year-old senior in high
school! Just how many grades did you skip over, anyway?”
“Two,” she
answered in a low voice.
“Do you know
what would have happened if I hadn’t married Kelly?” He didn’t
wait for her reply. “I’ll tell you what. You and I would have
been ostracized by everyone in this town! We would have had to be
married right away, and we would have had to live with your mother,
because I had no money.”
“My mother
loved you. She would have been happy to have us live with her,” she
interjected.
“And we were
so naïve, Lynsey. You would have graduated high school with either a
big belly, or a baby in your arms…if you had graduated at all.”
She crossed
her arms over her breasts and looked at the floor. She was too afraid
that if she looked at him she would break down. “Some of the girls
in school were married. A few of them had babies.”
He lifted her
chin and forced her to make eye contact with him. “And you were too
smart to be stuck in this town, and just another housewife. You would
have become bored and resentful.”
“I wouldn’t
have known the difference,” she countered.
“I had
serious doubts then. I still have doubts now,” he admitted.
Her dark
lashes flew upward. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“I believe
that you will become bored and restless in Unity and will want to go
back to Florida or maybe California. I have a job and a family here,
Lynsey. I don’t ever want to give that up. I’m afraid that we’ll
have a child, and you’ll take my baby and leave. I can not allow
that to happen.”
She couldn’t
believe what he was saying. Nothing was further from the truth. “Do
you think I would have sunk so much of my savings into that house
just to abandon it? I would never, ever do what you’re saying. But
if circumstances changed, I would expect you to support what was best
for our family. Couples who are committed make sacrifices for each
other!”
It was
becoming clearer and clearer that things were rapidly falling apart
between them.
“Lynsey,
didn’t what happened between us last night mean anything to you?”
he asked.
She chuckled
unpleasantly. “I suppose that with us living in such close
proximity, last night was inevitable. But don’t worry about it
happening again, Nick. When you get home this evening, I won’t be
here.”
“Where are
you going to be?”
She wanted to
hurt Nick like she was now hurting. “I’m sure that Caleb wouldn’t
mind me bunking down at his house for a week or two.”
“Over my dead
body,” he seethed. “I will drag you away from him kicking and
screaming if it comes to it. I’ll handcuff you to my bed if need
be. Believe me, Lynsey, I’ll do it!” He flopped down into a
kitchen chair and buried his face in his hands.
“I have to
go now, Nick. I’m meeting your sister for breakfast. Listen to me.
You need to pull yourself together. In your line of work, bad things
happen when you lose your concentration.”
When he didn’t
reply, she let out a sigh of resignation and headed for the door. At
the last minute she turned to him. “Thanks for almost making it
happen between us.”
{about the author}
Natalie-Nicole Bates is a book reviewer and author.
Her passions in life include books and hockey along with Victorian and Edwardian era photography and antique poison bottles. Natalie contributes her uncharacteristic love of hockey to being born in Russia.
She currently resides in the UK where she is working on her next book and adding to her collection of 19th century post-mortem photos.
Natalie-Nicole Bates is a book reviewer and author.
Her passions in life include books and hockey along with Victorian and Edwardian era photography and antique poison bottles. Natalie contributes her uncharacteristic love of hockey to being born in Russia.
She currently resides in the UK where she is working on her next book and adding to her collection of 19th century post-mortem photos.
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