The City Girl's Homecoming. Kathy Douglass

Cover

       Back Cover Text

       About the Author

       Booklist

       Title Page

       Copyright

       Introduction

       Dear Reader

       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

       Extract

       About the Publisher

       Chapter One

      Megan Jennings parked her midnight-blue Mercedes sedan on the edge of the driveway of the Whitaker sisters’ house and stared in amazement. Could she actually be seeing what she thought she was seeing? Leaning forward, she peered through the windshield. She blinked several times but the image remained. No, she wasn’t hallucinating. A man really was wrestling with the biggest pig she’d ever seen in her life. Judging by the sweat glistening on the man’s muscular chest, the battle had been going on for some time. From the squealing and fighting the pig was doing, the match wasn’t going to end any time soon.

      The pig shoved the man against the side of the truck. The man grunted and temporarily lost his hold on the pig. Seeing an opportunity, the animal made a break for it. Cursing, the man threw himself on the pig, and the two rolled around on the grass.

      Growing up in New York City, Megan had seen many strange sights in her twenty-eight years. In a few minutes spent walking around Times Square she could see everything from a naked cowboy to people dressed as cartoon characters. Over time, the sights had become humdrum and hadn’t caused her to even take a second look. But this? This was something beyond even her imagination.

      She’d moved to Spring Forest, North Carolina, from Manhattan a couple of months ago. She liked the small town and was adjusting to the slower pace and different lifestyle. And yet, in all that time, she’d never seen anything remotely like this. Or a man built quite so well. And after having lived in a city filled with models and actors whose livelihood was at least in part based upon their good looks, that was saying something.

      Intrigued, she turned off the car and crept closer to the action. She didn’t know much about pigs or the men who wrestled them, so she stepped cautiously, ready to return to the safety of her car if necessary. Her four-inch heels made walking on the gravel driveway a bit of an adventure, but she wouldn’t have dreamed of wearing flats. Even though she now lived in a small town, she still retained some of her big-city habits. She still wore the suits she’d worn while working at a major New York law firm. The professional garments gave her the confidence that had been stripped from her after her family’s unexpected deaths and the years spent in foster care.

      Close up, the pig wrestler was something to behold. Tall, with muscles that clearly came from years of hard work, and a face that could only be described as sexy, he could make a fortune as a model if he ever wanted a career change. Looking at what he was doing now—the enormous pig froze, then threw its entire body at the man—any job would be a step up. Of course, that was all contingent upon his surviving the encounter with the gigantic animal, something that was not assured at the moment.

      The man’s lips were moving, but he was speaking too quietly for her to hear what he was saying. Curiosity got the better of her and Megan came as close as she dared.

      “Keep it up and you’ll be roasting on a spit,” the man threatened under his breath. His voice was deep, and despite the words he was muttering, quite sexy. The pig shoved against the man in response, drawing another grunt. “The sisters like me, so they’ll totally believe me when I say you escaped. Meanwhile you’ll be Sunday dinner and leftovers for the week.”

      The pig didn’t seem to appreciate the comment and in response bucked and jerked, making the man hold on for dear life. It looked like he was riding the pig like a wild horse. Megan wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d tossed his cowboy hat—which had somehow managed to stay on his head during the entire encounter—into the air and yelled yee-haw! Unable to contain herself, Megan giggled at the absurdity of it all.

      Startled by the sound, the man looked up at her and temporarily lost his grip on the pig, who broke free and turned toward the man. The man jumped in front of a ramp leading to the back of the pickup truck. Megan’s breath caught in her throat as the angered animal lowered its head and charged. A strangled cry broke through her lips as the pig drew within inches of the man’s bare torso. At the last second the man stepped gracefully out of the way and the pig ran up the ramp and into the back of the truck. In the blink of an eye, the man removed the ramp and then slammed the tailgate shut.

      Whew. Megan realized she’d begun to perspire and drew a couple of fingers across her damp brow, removing the moisture before the man could notice. Relief that the pig-wrestler was all right mingled with amusement at the spectacle, and she began to laugh. “Oh, my goodness. I have never in my life seen anything like that.”

      The pig-wrangling man glanced over his shoulder at her, a fierce glare twisting his handsome face. At his look, the laughter died in her throat and her smile melted away. Clearly he didn’t find her delight amusing.

      She