Rochelle Alers - Sweet Southern Nights

An Eaton too hot to deny

The Kentucky clinic where Dr. Levi Eaton is volunteering is worlds away from his wealthy Pennsylvania roots. Still, the South has plenty of attractions—like his colleague’s captivating sister. Angela Chase is sexy, charming and looking for fun, not commitment. That combination suits Levi just fine, until he begins to appreciate what lies beneath her Southern belle facade.

Her fiancé’s betrayal destroyed Angela’s faith in men—and inspired a double life that would surprise her prominent family. Hiding her true self from a man as charismatic as Levi isn’t so easy, and for once, she isn’t sure she wants to try. But without the courage to trust him with her secrets, their sultry Southern nights may soon be just a haunting memory….

Angela’s eyes dropped

before Levi’s steady gaze.

She forced a smile. “You’re right.”

Cradling her face, Levi stared deeply into her eyes. “I can’t begin to presume to know what you’ve gone through, but I’m willing to help you get through this, Angela. I’m not your brothers or your father, so Robert Gaskin will be unprepared to deal with me running interference. Do you trust me?” he asked softly.

The word trust was like gall in Angela’s mouth. She’d trusted Robert and he’d deceived her. She’d trusted Savannah, and she also had deceived her. The only people she trusted were family members and now Levi was asking her to trust him. “Do I have a choice?”

He brushed a kiss over her parted lips. “No, you don’t. What I’m not going to do is lie to you. I like you. You’re pretty, intelligent, and you’re not snobby or uptight even though—”

“I’m an SB.”

“What’s an SB?” he asked.

“Southern belle.”

Smiling, Levi kissed her again, this one very different from the others they’d shared. His kiss was slow, surprisingly gentle and coaxing. It ended seconds later, leaving her mouth burning and wanting more.

ROCHELLE ALERS

has been hailed by readers and booksellers alike as one of today’s most prolific and popular African American authors of romance and women’s fiction.

With more than sixty titles and nearly two million copies of her novels in print, Ms. Alers is a regular on the Waldenbooks, Borders and Essence bestseller lists, regularly chosen by Black Expressions Book Club, and has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the Emma Award, the Vivian Stephens Award for Excellence in Romance Writing, the RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award and the Zora Neale Hurston Literary Award.

She is a member of the Iota Theta Zeta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., and her interests include gourmet cooking and traveling. A full-time writer, Ms. Alers lives in a charming hamlet on Long Island.

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Dear Reader,

Riddle: What do you get when the heroine is secretly a romance novelist?

Answer: Sweet Southern Nights.

There is a very good reason why Angela Chase—aka Angelina Courtland—believes in happily ever after for everyone but herself; however, that’s before she meets Dr. Levi Eaton. The question is, can the sexy pediatrician turn the serial dater into a real-life heroine worthy of her own happy ending?

Kentucky is the setting for Sweet Southern Nights, so put your feet up, grab a mint julep, rub shoulders with folks who think basketball is a religion and consider the first Saturday in May a holiday. Also look out for my next Eaton book, when Crystal Eaton finds herself involved with Joseph Cole-Wilson. This title promises drama and passion as two prominent families plan to add another branch onto their family tree.

Read, live and love romance.

Rochelle Alers

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 1

“Levi, do you have anything planned for Sunday afternoon?”

Leaning back in his chair in the bar of the dimly lit restaurant, Levi Eaton stared at the foam-filled mug of draft beer. It was Friday night in the small Kentucky town less than half an hour from Louisville, and there wasn’t much else to do but hang out with the three men he’d come to regard as friends. He ordered a second round for everyone at the table even though he knew he should’ve gone home after the first.

He was scheduled to see patients the following day and needed to be alert, especially when dealing with infants and toddlers, many of whom needed booster shots and vaccinations. Unfortunately, in the rural community where Levi practiced medicine, insuring a child’s health was secondary to keeping a roof over their heads and food on the table for most families.

It had taken almost four months, but Dr. Duncan Chase had helped Levi make the transition from big-city doctor to small-town practitioner. In fact, the town of Maywood Junction was so small the school was one building connected by breezeways separating the kindergarten from the grade school, and the middle school from the high school.

Duncan Chase, an oncologist, had been involved in a national research study on the effects of the workplace on cancer-related illnesses. The Centers for Disease Control data revealed industrial-related cancers were unusually high in several Kentucky communities like Maywood Junction. And Duncan had received a federal grant to open a clinic there. Additional funding from the state had allowed him to add a staff of part-time doctors, including a pediatrician, an ob-gyn and a dentist. Duncan’s friend Levi had moved from New York to Kentucky to volunteer as the local pediatrician.

“What do you have in mind?” Levi asked.

Duncan Chase sipped the head of foam off his beer, and took a large gulp as he stared at Levi over the rim of his glass. “I’d like you to escort my sister to a family wedding.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the two other men at their table pushed back their chairs and stood up to leave.

“This is where I bid you gentlemen good night,” said Patrick Demorest, the dentist at the Maywood Medical Clinic. He dropped a twenty-dollar bill on the table. “That should cover the tip.”

“Pat’s driving, so I’m outta here, too,” announced his twin brother, Andrew Demorest.

Levi sat up straight, staring as they quickly retreated. “Do they know something I should know?” There was a pause as Duncan stared into his mug. “What’s wrong with your sister?” Levi asked, shouting in order to be heard over the applause once the house band returned to the stage for a second set.

Lines fanned out around Duncan Chase’s large, dark brown eyes when he smiled. “There’s nothing wrong with her.”

Levi’s eyes narrowed. “If that’s the case, then why did Andy and Pat run out of here as if the hounds of hell were after them?”

Duncan glanced up, but didn’t meet Levi Eaton’s questioning gaze. “They have issues when it comes to Angela.”