Elizabeth Lane - Hometown Wedding

Cover Page

Excerpt “Haven’t you ever wondered what might have happened if you’d come back home years ago?” Travis asked. “No. No, absolutely not.” Eden shook her head vigorously. “I know what would have happened here—nothing! My life in Manhattan is no party, but at least it got me away from Edna Rae. She never bothers me there. It’s only when I’m in Utah that she comes back to haunt me.” “That’s funny,” Travis said with the quirk of an eyebrow. “I don’t see her anywhere.” “Then look harder, Travis. Edna Rae is right in front of you. Shy and awkward and scared to death.” “Scared? Of me?” Travis grabbed Eden’s hand. “Look at me, Eden. The last time we were together, I kissed you. And you kissed me back. I don’t know what was going through your head at the time, but judging from your reaction, it sure as blazes wasn’t fear!”

Dear Reader Dear Reader, What better way for Silhouette Romance to celebrate the holiday season than to celebrate the meaning of family…. You’ll love the way a confirmed bachelor becomes a FABULOUS FATHER just in time for the holidays in Susan Meier’s Merry Christmas, Daddy. And in Mistletoe Bride, Linda Varner’s HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS miniseries merrily continues. The ugly duckling who becomes a beautiful swan will touch your heart in Hometown Wedding by Elizabeth Lane. Doreen Roberts’s A Mom for Christmas tells the tale of a little girl’s holiday wish, and in Patti Standard’s Family of the Year, one man, one woman and a bunch of adorable kids form an unexpected family. And finally, Christmas in July by Leanna Wilson is what a sexy cowboy offers the struggling single mom he wants for his own. Silhouette Romance novels make the perfect stocking stuffers—or special treats just for yourself. So enjoy all six irresistible books, and most of all, have a very happy holiday season and a very happy New Year! Melissa Senate Melissa Senate Senior Editor Silhouette Romance Please address questions and book requests to: Silhouette Reader Service U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269 Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

Title Page Hometown Wedding Elizabeth Lane www.millsandboon.co.uk

Dedication For My Parents Author’s Note This story is set in the town where I grew up, and many of the locations are real. The story and characters, however, are entirely fictional. No resemblance to actual persons or events is intended.

About the Author ELIZABETH LANE has traveled extensively in Latin America, Europe and China, and enjoys bringing these exotic locales to life on the printed page, but she also finds her home state of Utah and other areas of the American West to be fascinating sources for romance, historical and contemporary. Elizabeth loves such diverse activities as hiking and playing the piano, not to mention her latest hobby—belly dancing.

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Epilogue

Copyright

“No. No, absolutely not.” Eden shook her head vigorously. “I know what would have happened here—nothing! My life in Manhattan is no party, but at least it got me away from Edna Rae. She never bothers me there. It’s only when I’m in Utah that she comes back to haunt me.”

“That’s funny,” Travis said with the quirk of an eyebrow. “I don’t see her anywhere.”

“Then look harder, Travis. Edna Rae is right in front of you. Shy and awkward and scared to death.”

“Scared? Of me?” Travis grabbed Eden’s hand. “Look at me, Eden. The last time we were together, I kissed you. And you kissed me back. I don’t know what was going through your head at the time, but judging from your reaction, it sure as blazes wasn’t fear!”

Dear Reader,

What better way for Silhouette Romance to celebrate the holiday season than to celebrate the meaning of family….

You’ll love the way a confirmed bachelor becomes a FABULOUS FATHER just in time for the holidays in Susan Meier’s Merry Christmas, Daddy. And in Mistletoe Bride, Linda Varner’s HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS miniseries merrily continues. The ugly duckling who becomes a beautiful swan will touch your heart in Hometown Wedding by Elizabeth Lane. Doreen Roberts’s A Mom for Christmas tells the tale of a little girl’s holiday wish, and in Patti Standard’s Family of the Year, one man, one woman and a bunch of adorable kids form an unexpected family. And finally, Christmas in July by Leanna Wilson is what a sexy cowboy offers the struggling single mom he wants for his own.

Silhouette Romance novels make the perfect stocking stuffers—or special treats just for yourself. So enjoy all six irresistible books, and most of all, have a very happy holiday season and a very happy New Year! Melissa Senate

Melissa Senate

Senior Editor

Silhouette Romance

Please address questions and book requests to:

Silhouette Reader Service

U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269

Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

www.millsandboon.co.uk

For My Parents

Author’s Note

This story is set in the town where I grew up, and many of the locations are real. The story and characters, however, are entirely fictional. No resemblance to actual persons or events is intended.

has traveled extensively in Latin America, Europe and China, and enjoys bringing these exotic locales to life on the printed page, but she also finds her home state of Utah and other areas of the American West to be fascinating sources for romance, historical and contemporary. Elizabeth loves such diverse activities as hiking and playing the piano, not to mention her latest hobby—belly dancing.

He was standing next to the water fountain, one bluejeaned hip cocked outward as his dark-eyed gaze swept the bustling Salt Lake City air terminal. One hand dangled a dusty Stetson. The other clutched a dog-eared paperback. His long fingers toyed with the book, crushing it, curling it, ruffling its edges in restless impatience.

Eden Harper saw him before he saw her. She had come barreling out of the jetway, intent on making a swift dash across the concourse to the ladies’ room, but the sight of him stopped her like a collision with a brick wall.

Travis Conroy.

And he was directly in her path.

Clutching her heavy briefcase, Eden hesitated. She could feel her veneer of Manhattan-bred confidence wilting like a plucked begonia in the midsummer sun. Even after sixteen years, the prospect of bumping into him was enough to make her want to crawl back onto the plane and fly wherever it would take her.

She might have been tempted to do just that. Except that for the moment, her feet seemed to be stuck in cement.

She stood gaping like a schoolgirl, her eyes taking in the lanky grace of his six-foot-two-inch height, the crisp, coffee brown curls, the face she had once giddily compared to a sculpted Rodin bronze.

He was older than she remembered—leaner and sharper, the creases sun-bronzed into permanence at the corners of his eyes. But aside from that he looked the same as he had in high school; and as the old humiliation burned through the locked doors of her memory, Eden realized that time had done nothing to heal its caustic sting.