Michelle Major - Fortune's Fresh Start

He’s determined to create a legacy…

There’s a new breed of Fortune in town…

In the small Texas burg of Rambling Rose, real estate investor Callum Fortune is making a big splash. The last thing he needs is any personal complications slowing his pace—least of all nurse Becky Averill, a beautiful widow with twin baby girls. Callum’s past has convinced him he’s not cut out for commitment. Yet, drawn to Becky in ways he can’t understand, Callum is torn between moving on…and moving in!

MICHELLE MAJORgrew up in Ohio but dreamed of living in the mountains. Soon after graduating with a degree in journalism, she pointed her car west and settled in Colorado. Her life and house are filled with one great husband, two beautiful kids, a few furry pets and several well-behaved reptiles. She’s grateful to have found her passion writing stories with happy endings. Michelle loves to hear from her readers at michellemajor.com.

Also by Michelle Major

Falling for the Wrong Brother

Second Chance in Stonecreek

A Stonecreek Christmas Reunion

Anything for His Baby

A Baby and a Betrothal

Always the Best Man

Christmas on Crimson Mountain

Romancing the Wallflower

Sleigh Bells in Crimson

Coming Home to Crimson

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk.

Fortune’s Fresh Start

Michelle Major

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-0-008-90312-1

FORTUNE’S FRESH START

© 2019 Harlequin Books S.A.

Published in Great Britain 2019

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.

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www.millsandboon.co.uk

Version: 2020-03-02

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To Jennie. Thanks for all the fun times

and morning chats. I treasure our friendship

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

About the Author

Booklist

Title Page

Copyright

Note to Readers

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

Epilogue

Extract

About the Publisher

Chapter One

“You’re going to be late to your own party.”

Callum Fortune turned at the sound of his sister’s teasing voice. “It’s a ribbon-cutting ceremony, Squeak. Not a cocktail gala.”

Stephanie Fortune, younger than Callum by three years but the oldest of David and Marci Fortune’s four daughters, approached Callum’s shiny silver truck. Her pale red hair was pulled back in a braid and she wore dark jeans and a gray sweater that could have benefited from a lint roller. As a vet tech and all-around animal lover, Stephanie was often covered in dog and cat fur. Or whatever breed of animal she was caring for that day. Her heart was as big as her personality and one of the things Callum loved most about her.

“It’s past time you stop calling me that,” she told him with an exaggerated eye roll. “What if someone in Rambling Rose hears you and the nickname catches on? I’d be mortified.”

“It’s our secret,” he promised with a wink. “But you’ll always be my Pipsqueak no matter where life takes either of us.”

“I’m home,” Stephanie said, her tone definitive. “There’s no other place I’d rather be.”

“Then I’m glad you came along on this adventure.”

Callum agreed there was something special about Rambling Rose, Texas. The small town sat equidistant between the larger metropolitan areas of Houston and Austin. Callum had first learned about it through a documentary, The Faded Rose , he’d watched late one night when he’d had trouble sleeping. Shortly after, he’d traveled to Paseo, Texas, with his father for the wedding of David’s brother, Gerald Robinson—or Jerome Fortune as he was once known. On a whim, Callum had driven to Rambling Rose and within a week he’d made offers on a ranch in a gated community outside town as well as a half-dozen commercial properties.

Real estate development was Callum’s passion, and he’d made a name for himself in his home state of Florida and a good portion of the Southeast as someone who could revitalize small-town communities by working together with residents, local businesses and government agencies. He loved the challenge of breathing new life into spaces that had seen better days.

From that perspective, Rambling Rose was a perfect next step in Callum’s career. The town had a long history in Texas but was sorely in need of a face-lift and someone to invest in the local economy. Callum’s father, David, had his doubts. The entire Fortune family, both new and established members, had been shaken by the kidnapping that had almost ruined Gerald’s wedding to his first love, Deborah, six months ago. David was a huge success in his own right thanks to his wildly profitable video game empire and had reservations about claiming his place in the extended Fortune brood even before that shocking turn of events. Even though the day had turned out happily in the end, David’s protective instincts had kicked into high gear. He’d encouraged his eight children to stay far removed from any sort of involvement with the Texas Fortunes.