Charlotte Hughes - A New Attitude

Marilee couldn’t resist teasing.

“I must not be too bad if you’re standing out here in the dark with me.”

He stepped closer, and Marilee froze. His face was only inches from hers. He was too handsome for his own good, and for one wild and insane minute she thought he was going to kiss her. Instead, he reached around and opend her door.

“Good night, Marilee,” he said. “Don’t forget to use the chain on your door until I can fix it.”

She realized she was holding her breath, and when she let it out, hot air gushed from her lungs with such force it made her light-headed. She swayed slightly.

Sam caught her, a look of concern crossing his face. “Are you okay?”

“F-fine,” she said, annoyed that she had been so taken in by his good looks that she’d almost swooned. Swooned, for heaven’s sake! Nobody did that sort of thing anymore.

“You looked mighty nervous there for a moment. You didn’t think I was going to kiss you, did you?” An easy smile played at the corners of his lips.

Charm and sensuality oozed from him. Yes, he was as bad as they came, at least where women were concerned. “You’re still a scoundrel, Sam Brewer.”

Without another word, Marilee hurried inside and closed the door, securing the chain with trembling hands. She heard Sam laugh softly on the other side.

MORE PRAISE FOR THE BOOKS OF CHARLOTTE HUGHES

A New Attitude

“I was howling with laughter at this hilarious book—I highly recommend it.”

—Kathy Boswell, The Best Reviews

“A lighthearted but insightful and entertaining contemporary romance.”

—Romance and Friends

“The funniest book I ever read!”

—Amanda Kilgore, A Romance Review

Hot Shot

“One of the best books of the year…every wonderful character created by Charlotte Hughes is outstanding.”

—Affaire de Coeur (Five Stars)

“A tough-talking, in-your-face heroine…romantic comedy at its best.”

—New York Times bestselling author Janet Evanovich

“A delightful read with very real characters readers can relate to and root for.”

—Romantic Times BOOKclub

And After That, The Dark

“One of those Southern Thrillers that never lets up and makes you unable to put it down. It’s exciting enough to even give terror a good name. Charlotte Hughes is the real thing.”

—New York Times bestselling author Pat Conroy

“Hughes holds her own with the likes of Mary Higgins Clark and Sharon McCrumb….”

—Sun News, Myrtle Beach

Dear Reader,

I am thrilled that HQN Books has decided to reissue A New Attitude! This is truly my all-time favorite book, and from the amount of mail I received—a lot of readers asking for a sequel—I think it struck a chord in them, as well. I laughed and cried while writing this book; and it was very hard to let go of some of the characters when I finished it. Some readers have described the humour as “gut-busting” and “belly-aching!” I hope, as you travel the emotional roller coaster with my character Marilee Abernathy and meet her wacky, sometimes outrageous girlfriends, that you’ll find plenty of reasons to laugh (and maybe cry) as well.

Happy reading,

Charlotte Hughes

Hot Shot

Millionaire Cop & Mom-To-Be

Night Kills

Valley of the Shadow

And After That, The Dark

Also by Charlotte Hughes with New York Times bestselling author Janet Evanovich

Full Bloom

Full Blast

Full Speed

Full Tilt

Full House

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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This book is dedicated to “girlfriends” everywhere.

Behind every successful woman

there’s a girlfriend cheering her on!

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

CHAPTER TWENTY

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

MARILEE ABERNATHY HAD PLANNED HER suicide to the last detail. She’d gotten up at dawn, showered, and made up her face with the Mary Kay samples she’d won playing Tuesday-night bingo at church and saved for special occasions. Then she’d put on the beige linen suit and matching pillbox hat she’d bought at the Style Mart. It wasn’t Saks Fifth Avenue, mind you, but it was the only place in Chickpea, South Carolina, that didn’t have bright orange or lime-green polyester pantsuits hanging from a half-price rack at the back of the store.

She wore her mother’s pearl choker—you simply couldn’t go wrong with pearls—and the smart, two-tone, beige-and-white high heels she’d never even taken out of the box until today. She knew her shoes were inappropriate. Labor Day had come and gone and dark brown spectator pumps would have been more in keeping with the season, but Marilee had chosen style over tradition. When folks came to her funeral, she wanted them to stand back and take notice.

And say what a shame it was that Reverend Grady Abernathy had abandoned wife and church for some slut with implants and big hair.

As for Josh, Marilee couldn’t even think of her son without getting a lump in her throat the size of a turnip, and the absolute last thing she needed to do was start crying again. Someone might think she’d been crying over Grady, and she simply would not have it. Not after he’d turned their fifteen-year-old child against her and moved the boy right smack into the best little whorehouse in Chickpea. That her son had gone so willingly had been the lowest blow, and the closest Marilee had come to having a coronary.

She should have seen it coming. Josh had accused her of smothering him more than once, wanting to know where he was at all times, sticking her nose in his business, just being a regular pain in the butt as far as he was concerned. Marilee had to admit she’d become something of a nag and a worry-wart. As a result, she’d ended up alienating him—which explained why Josh was now living in Tall Pines Trailer Park with his father and a waitress by the name of LaFonda Bonaire.

The scandal had rocked the town and the church where Grady had preached for the past ten years. His dismissal came with a notice to evacuate the house provided by the church. A stunned and humiliated Marilee had packed their belongings in record time and put everything in storage. She’d been hiding out at her poor deceased parents’ house for the past three days, hoping and praying she would wake up and discover it had all been a bad dream. But it was real. One minute she’d had a family and a life, the next minute it was gone. It was as though a giant tornado had come through and sucked up everything she’d ever known and loved.