Amy Vastine - The Hardest Fight

There’s no backing down this time

Lucy Everhart expected her opposing counsel to be a slick, soulless corporate lawyer. Who else would represent developers intent on turning Chicago’s Safe Haven women’s shelter into condos? But she never imagined it would be Dylan Hunt. Clearly, he’s no longer the idealistic young man she fell for in law school. This is Dylan 2.0. The man who let her go without a fight five years ago—along with his passion for social justice, apparently. He may have compromised what he believed in, but Lucy hasn’t. Dylan has no idea what kind of fight he’s in for. But then again, neither does she.

Lucy was halfway out the door when someone gripped her by the arm.

“Hang on a second,” Dylan said, letting her go the moment she stopped moving. “I just want to be clear about something.” His jaw was tense but his eyes were soft. “I don’t know why you dislike me so much, but this isn’t about us.”

The way he said us made Lucy’s stomach flip. There hadn’t been an “us” in a very long time. There would never be an “us” again.

“I know. It’s about Open Arms and Safe Haven. Two things I care about. Two things that I won’t give up.”

He leaned in close and seemed to be trying hard to keep his voice calm as he said, “Well, I want you to know that I’m not giving up, either. Maybe it’s your turn to find out what it’s like to lose something you care about.”

Dear Reader,

It was bittersweet to write the final book in the Chicago Sisters series. When you write characters for three books, you become more attached than I thought possible. At the same time, it seemed perfect to go out with Lucy’s story in The Hardest Fight.

Lucy is the oldest sister in the Everhart clan. She feels responsible for changing the world for the better. She also feels as if she has to do it quickly because her time on this earth is limited, more limited than most. Lucy has battled breast cancer once but can’t stop thinking about the very real possibility she could get it again. That’s why she shut the door on Dylan Hunt five years ago. He was the only man she ever loved, and Lucy was sure it was best for both of them to let him go without telling him she was sick.

Lucy reminds us that even the bravest people are still afraid. For Lucy, it’s the fear that helps her keep fighting. But she needs to learn that there’s no weakness in asking for help or letting others be there to support her. Lucy is excellent at being there for everyone else but not so good at letting people take care of her.

I love a happy ending, and as the Chicago Sisters series comes to an end, I hope you are glad you came along for the ride! Feel free to visit me on Facebook ( AmyVastineAuthor), on Twitter ( @vastine7), or on my website, amyvastine.com. I love hearing from you.

xoxo,

Amy Vastine

The Hardest Fight

Amy Vastine

www.millsandboon.co.uk

AMY VASTINE has been plotting stories in her head for as long as she can remember. An eternal optimist, she studied social work, hoping to teach others how to find their silver lining. Now she enjoys creating happily-ever-afters for all to read. Amy lives outside Chicago with her high-school sweetheart turned husband, three fun-loving children and their sweet but mischievous puppy. Visit her at amyvastine.com.

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To my uncle, Tom Kuhn.

Sometimes we don’t know how strong we are

until we have no choice but to be strong.

Be strong and know we are here beside you.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

Dear Reader

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

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

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Copyright

CHAPTER ONE

“YOU’RE NOT GOING to believe this.” Paige Clayton tossed an innocuous-looking envelope on top of the piles of paper on her cluttered desk. As the executive director of Open Arms Women’s Advocacy Center, she had more on her plate than all the overpaid CEOs in the Windy City.

An unwelcomed feeling of dread hit Lucy Everhart as she reached for the letter.

“We’ve had an anonymous donor offer to pay all our bills and pledge an extra million dollars to our cause?” She knew better, but a girl could dream. As Paige’s second in command, Lucy wore many hats. Her official title was Director of Legal Affairs, but Lucy also worked as one of the counselors at Safe Haven, Open Arms’s temporary shelter for women and their children. She gave much of her time to outreach and fund-raising as well, which was most likely why Paige had called her in today.

Paige let out a heavy sigh. “I wish.”

Times were tough, and Open Arms was suffering the consequences of the country’s economic downturn. Government funding had been cut drastically over the past couple of years, and private donations were at their lowest in the center’s history. Less money came in while more women knocked down the door. It wasn’t surprising that abuse increased as a result of rising unemployment rates. Money troubles triggered tempers like nothing else.

Lucy slid the letter out of the envelope. It didn’t take long for her face to flush red with anger. “Are they serious?”

“These people want to meet to discuss our ‘bottom line.’”

This was all part of a conspiracy to run Open Arms out of the up-and-coming Logan Square neighborhood, where Safe Haven was located. The gentrification of that area had pushed out many who had lived there. Older places were being torn down in favor of fancy new condominiums and expensive single family homes. The new neighbors weren’t happy about having a women’s shelter on their block. Someone had bent the ear of a certain alderman; Lucy was sure of it.

Two months ago, the City of Chicago cut its funding to Open Arms. That money had been going to pay the mortgage on the seven-bedroom house they had acquired before the neighborhood had become such a hot spot. Lucy had projected that they’d have to give up the house or make some drastic cuts elsewhere if they didn’t get more money soon.

“We can convince the board that we’ll be able to cover the mortgage through the winter for sure. We’ll need to get creative around March.” Lucy began to pace. She thought better—clearer—when she was on the move. “We’ll promote the heck out of this year’s Hope and Healing fund-raiser.”

“We know what to expect from the Hope and Healing fund-raiser. It won’t be enough,” Paige lamented.

“We’ll come up with ways to make it bigger and better. Plus, the holidays always bring in lots of donations. People feel the most charitable between Thanksgiving and Christmas.”

“Most of those donations aren’t monetary. We get blankets and shampoo. People clean out their closets and give us their clothes and toys.”