Liz Talley - The Sweetest September

A mistake that’s meant to be…

All John Beauchamp wants is a simple life. He’s happy running his Louisiana sugar cane plantation and doesn’t want more than that. Then Shelby Mackey breezes in, announcing that she’s pregnant. Their one crazy night of passion has changed everything.

Except Shelby insists John doesn’t have to be involved—she’ll raise the baby herself. But John can’t let her go that easily. Even without the baby, Shelby is a breath of fresh air. Her call-it-as-she-sees-it attitude intrigues and attracts him. So when Shelby agrees to stay temporarily, John’s determined to make that stay permanent—and as sweet as can be.

“Maybe I want to be alone.”

John didn’t say anything else for a moment and averted his eyes from hers. He cleared his throat. “Do you want me to look for a place for you?”

“Not really,” Shelby said.

He opened his mouth as though to say something but instead snapped it closed, nodded and backed out of the room. “Good night, Shelby.”

“Good night, John.” She stood and shut the door.

Turning, she sank against it, fighting against asking John to come back so she wouldn’t be alone, so she wouldn’t be so conflicted about the decision she’d made to chuck her pseudo-life in Seattle and stay in Magnolia Bend.

A knock at the door made her jump.

She opened it to find John looking determined.

“Did you—” she asked, closing her mouth as he stepped toward her. His arms came around her, hauling her up against the hardness of his chest, as his mouth descended upon hers.

Dear Reader 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 EXTRACT Copyright ,

This book began with a character. Shelby Mackey appeared in The Road to Bayou Bridge (Mills & Boon Superromance, September 2012) as Darby Dufrene’s girlfriend. The premise of that book involves a secret marriage—one neither Darby nor the heroine, Renny, knows about. In the course of the book, Darby falls back in love with Renny and leaves Shelby holding a bag of dreams.

I really hated that for Shelby…mostly because I liked her.

So the more I thought about her, the more I knew she had a story. Shelby always falls for the wrong guy. And even worse—she always falls for married guys.

In this book I gave her a hero who was also married—to the ghost of his wife. And I gave John and Shelby a reason to move forward and find love. I gave them a surprise pregnancy and the question of What if?

This book concerns grief and second chances, but it also deals with the concept of family and finding where one truly belongs. I hope you enjoy the beginning of a new series set in Magnolia Bend, Louisiana, and the story of two lost souls finding love in difficult circumstances.

As always, I love hearing what you think. You can find me at www.liztalleybooks.comor on Facebook at www.facebook.com/liztalleybooks.

Cheers!

Liz Talley

The Sweetest September

Liz Talley

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 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 EXTRACT Copyright

A 2009 Golden Heart Award finalist in Regency romance, Liz Talley has since found a home writing sassy Southern stories. Her book Vegas Two-Step debuted in June 2010 and was quickly followed by four more books in her Oak Stand, Texas series. In her current books, she’s visiting one of her favorite cities—New Orleans. Liz lives in north Louisiana with her hero, two beautiful boys and a passel of animals. She enjoys laundry, paying bills and creating masterful dinners for her family. She also lies in her biography to make herself look like the perfect housewife. What she really likes is new shoes, lemon-drop martinis and fishing off the pier at her camp. You can visit her at www.liztalleybooks.comto learn more about the lies she tells herself, and about her upcoming books.

For my mother-in-law, Eretta, who has endured too much grief in her life. Finding happiness isn’t easy and takes work, but love is always worth the effort. I love you.

Special thanks to Scotty Comegys and Greg Lott for teaching me about trusts, and Sam Irwin for teaching me about the sugarcane industry. All mistakes are mine.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text A mistake that’s meant to be… All John Beauchamp wants is a simple life. He’s happy running his Louisiana sugar cane plantation and doesn’t want more than that. Then Shelby Mackey breezes in, announcing that she’s pregnant. Their one crazy night of passion has changed everything. Except Shelby insists John doesn’t have to be involved—she’ll raise the baby herself. But John can’t let her go that easily. Even without the baby, Shelby is a breath of fresh air. Her call-it-as-she-sees-it attitude intrigues and attracts him. So when Shelby agrees to stay temporarily, John’s determined to make that stay permanent—and as sweet as can be.

Introduction “Maybe I want to be alone.” John didn’t say anything else for a moment and averted his eyes from hers. He cleared his throat. “Do you want me to look for a place for you?” “Not really,” Shelby said. He opened his mouth as though to say something but instead snapped it closed, nodded and backed out of the room. “Good night, Shelby.” “Good night, John.” She stood and shut the door. Turning, she sank against it, fighting against asking John to come back so she wouldn’t be alone, so she wouldn’t be so conflicted about the decision she’d made to chuck her pseudo-life in Seattle and stay in Magnolia Bend. A knock at the door made her jump. She opened it to find John looking determined. “Did you—” she asked, closing her mouth as he stepped toward her. His arms came around her, hauling her up against the hardness of his chest, as his mouth descended upon hers.

Dear Reader Dear Reader 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 EXTRACT Copyright , This book began with a character. Shelby Mackey appeared in The Road to Bayou Bridge (Mills & Boon Superromance, September 2012) as Darby Dufrene’s girlfriend. The premise of that book involves a secret marriage—one neither Darby nor the heroine, Renny, knows about. In the course of the book, Darby falls back in love with Renny and leaves Shelby holding a bag of dreams. I really hated that for Shelby…mostly because I liked her. So the more I thought about her, the more I knew she had a story. Shelby always falls for the wrong guy. And even worse—she always falls for married guys. In this book I gave her a hero who was also married—to the ghost of his wife. And I gave John and Shelby a reason to move forward and find love. I gave them a surprise pregnancy and the question of What if? This book concerns grief and second chances, but it also deals with the concept of family and finding where one truly belongs. I hope you enjoy the beginning of a new series set in Magnolia Bend, Louisiana, and the story of two lost souls finding love in difficult circumstances. As always, I love hearing what you think. You can find me at www.liztalleybooks.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/liztalleybooks . Cheers! Liz Talley