Being a running back for the Charleston Pirates and a single father doesn’t allow for much free time. But an invite to spend the Fourth of July weekend in the Hamptons with friends is an offer too good to refuse.
While there, the opportunity for a no-strings hookup with a stunning brunette presents itself and I jump at the chance. At the end of the weekend Leah will return to Boston and we’ll never see each other again.
Now, with the pre-season about to begin, a shoulder injury has me sidelined. I’m sent to work with the team’s new athletic trainer and come face to face with Leah, my Hamptons hookup—and our chemistry is as explosive as ever.
The no-fraternization clause in our contracts should keep us from acting on our mutual attraction, but the close proximity my rehab requires makes her damn near impossible to resist.
My five-year-old son is my priority and I can’t risk losing my job. No matter what, this baller won’t give in to temptation.
Laci V’s star is bright. The up-and-coming singer just released her new single and it’s climbing the country music charts. Her concerts are filling stadiums, and she’s soon to be nominated for a Grammy award. Laci’s quickly becoming a big-time celebrity. But after a storm rolls through one of her outdoor concerts, Laci wakes up in 1855.
Matthew finds a woman from the future in a field near his homestead. He helps her and takes her home with him, and she fascinates him with stories of inventions that haven’t happened yet. Her determination and grit eventually capture his heart. But this rugged, handsome frontiersman isn’t quite sure what to do with this beautiful time traveler.
As Laci gets to know Matthew, she falls in love with his kind and gentle ways, his fierce love for the land, and his indomitable pioneer spirit. While Matthew may be her perfect man, he doesn’t live in the century she wants to live in. Laci longs for the modern conveniences of the time period she came from, for the friends and family she left behind, and for her blossoming career. Matthew realizes that to show his love for Laci, he must let her go back to the time that she came from. Even though it will break his heart.
Will one man’s love span generations? Can love transcend the limits of time, of past and present—turning what seems impossible into something extraordinary?
Book 12 in the Connor Brothers series of small-town, clean, and wholesome romances. You’ll visit Connor’s Grove before it became a town and Minnesota before it became a state.
Matthew We head towards the creek where I found her. When we get there, she turns in the saddle, puts her hand to my cheek, and gazes at me with love in her eyes. Something takes over and I close the space left between us, pressing my mouth to hers. It’s a kiss that promises the beginning of forever. It takes my breath away. I’ve dreamed about kissing her for weeks—wondering if her lips are as soft as they look. They are. Her fingers thread through the hair at my nape and my arms wrap around her, drawing her even closer. She kisses me with a passion that she’s been hiding below the surface. I meet her passion with my full heart—our embrace leaves absolutely no doubt about how we feel about each other. This is my last chance to show her how much that I love her, and I don’t waste the opportunity. The wind swirling violently around us makes the kiss even more reckless and desperate. It’s as if the wind feels my heart shattering into a million pieces. After an eternity, she pulls back with a stunned look on her face. “Wow,” she murmurs as we gaze at each other, my arms still embracing her small body, never wanting to let go. “I wish you would have kissed me sooner.” Her voice wobbles and a lone tear tracks down her cheek. I wipe it off with my thumb. Would she have stayed if I kissed her sooner and let her know how I feel about her? I shake those thoughts from my head. Laci belongs in the twenty-first century, and no matter how much I love her, she won’t be happy here. Another clap of lightning makes us realize that if she’s going to do this, she needs to do it now. “You need to get to the spot where I found you!” The urgency in my voice is evident, but she rubs my cheek one last time as if she’s memorizing my face. I help her dismount near the place where I first saw her. When her feet hit the ground, she turns and looks up at me. “I love you!” she shouts. Her voice cracks and her lips tremble, raindrops roll down her face in a torrent and she tosses the wet hair out of her eyes. “Please come with me, Matthew,” she pleads, her voice rising with emotion. The wind howls and thunder reverberates around us. Rain pelts my skin as if it wants to inflict pain—mimicking the pain I’m going to feel when Laci’s gone. I yell to be heard over the roar, “I can’t go, Laci. My place is here.” She closes her eyes tightly for a few seconds and nods, then takes a few steps away from Sarge and me. My heart aches as I watch her—a tiny figure standing all alone in the vast field, just like when I found her. Laci’s long brown hair swirls around her, and tears stream down her face. She looks beautiful and fierce—a look of determination lights her eyes. My pioneer woman. A flash of lightning splits the sky. Sarge whinnies and takes a few nervous steps sideways. “Whoa, whoa,” I say as I pat his neck, calming him down. Laci is still standing in the field, that bolt of lightning not striking close enough yet to do any damage. She pulls something out of her pocket and tosses it to me. I lean over, stretching my arm out, and barely catch it between my fingertips. “That’s something to always remember me by,” she shouts. I turn over the delicate locket in my work-roughened hand, then tuck it into my pocket. “I’ll never forget you, Laci. Just like your song—I’ll love you forever.” Laci puts her hand over her heart. “I’ll love you forever too.” “Sing me your song, one more time.” A powerful urgency to listen to her beautiful voice and that haunting song one last time hits me. The need to hear her sing is as strong as the need to breathe. Though the winds still whirl furiously around us, the sound seems to dampen, as if even the storm itself wants to hear her song. Laci locks her eyes with mine, biting her lip, then starts singing. The words come out wobbly at first, but her voice gains strength as she lifts her voice above the storm and belts out the chorus. “Take me to Forever, With you . . .” The touching words of the refrain nearly get obliterated as thunder roars full force around us, I feel its vibration shake the ground. Suddenly, a bright flash overtakes my vision, accompanied by a deafening crack! I’m momentarily blinded and Sarge shifts nervously under me. I hold tightly to the reins so he doesn’t bolt. When my eyes adjust and I can make out the field again, Laci’s gone. . .
Leah Busboom wanted to become an author since the day she learned how to read! She specializes in the romance genre because she loves a great story with a happy ending. Her books are known for their heart warming stories, intriguing characters and hilarious real life situations that make you want to laugh out loud.
Leah currently lives in Colorado with her wonderful husband, her “Blue Bomber” bicycle and a hundred bunny rabbits that roam free in the neighborhood.
Leah has published several full length romance novel series: Chance on Love series (3 books) and Unlikely Catches series (3 books), which also includes her two holiday novellas – Unwrapping Sam’s Heart and Melting Nick’s Heart. She just published The Connor Brother series – a new Clean & Wholesome small town romance series. Books 1-12 are now available.
Veterinarian Neal Rodgers is in Wander Canyon seeking the truth about his past—not to rescue a litter of kittens under his next-door neighbor’s porch. But persistent single-mom Tessa Kennedy is impossible to ignore—especially when she uncovers a family secret of her own. Discovering the hidden facts of their histories could be the key to unlocking everything in this small town.
“Um…hello?” the man said with an irritated yawn, running a hand through his dark hair. It ought to be illegal that a man could look like that straight off the pillow. Tessa needed at least twenty minutes—and two cups of coffee—to look human. That meant she probably was a rather shocking sight, but emergencies were emergencies. “Can I help you?”
“I’m your neighbor. I live right here.” She tilted her head back toward the house, alarmed to find a tuft of grass fall out of her hair from her trek under the porch.
“Hello,” he said again, clearly trying to make sense of why Wander Canyon residents roused their new neighbors at unreasonable hours.
“I think I have a veterinary emergency under my deck, and Valerie mentioned you.” Suddenly she was embarrassed to know such facts about the man, but Valerie had given her a quick heads-up on the man who would be her neighbor for the next month. “Could you…um…? Do you think you could come take a look?”
“Was she really hearing desperate little mews behind her, or just imagining them? “Wander Canyon doesn’t have a vet who’s answering his phone at the moment, no.”
An avid knitter, coffee junkie and firm believer that “pie makes everything better,” Allie Pleiter writes both fiction and non-fiction working on as many as four novels at a time. The bestselling author of over fifty books, Allie has enjoyed a twenty-year career with over 1.5 million books sold. In addition to writing, Allie maintains an active writing productivity coaching practice and speaks regularly on the creative process, publishing, and her very favorite topic—The Chunky Method of time management for writers. Visit her website at www.alliepleiter.com to learn more.
One winner will receive a signed True Large Print copy of Secrets of Their Past by Allie Pleiter, a wool shawl hand-knit by the author, and a 3oz bottle of Apple Harvest body lotion (US only) One winner will receive an ebook of Secrets of Their Past by Allie Pleiter (International)
