Once and Again. Brenda Harlen

      

      “Your being here is slowly driving me insane.”

      She swallowed. “That certainly isn’t my intention.”

      “Of course not.” He set his now half-empty bottle beside hers on the counter and took a step closer…gently cupped her face in his hands, started to lower his head.

      Her breath caught in her throat. His intent was obvious, and although a part of her desperately yearned to feel his mouth on hers, another part screamed at her to step away, out of temptation’s reach. She fisted her hands, her nails biting into her palms. “Don’t kiss me, Nick.”

      “Why not?”

      “Because.” She swallowed. “Because it would be a mistake.”

      “Probably,” he agreed, his lips whispering against her cheek. “And it’s a mistake I can’t stop myself from making.”

      Dear Reader,

      Most of us look forward to October for the end-of-the-month treats, but we here at Silhouette Special Edition want you to experience those treats all month long—beginning, this time around, with the next book in our MOST LIKELY TO…series. In The Pregnancy Project by Victoria Pade, a woman who’s used to getting what she wants, wants a baby. And the man she’s earmarked to help her is her arrogant ex-classmate, now a brilliant, if brash, fertility expert.

      Popular author Gina Wilkins brings back her acclaimed FAMILY FOUND series with Adding to the Family, in which a party girl turned single mother of twins needs help—and her handsome accountant (accountant?), a single father himself, is just the one to give it. In She’s Having a Baby, bestselling author Marie Ferrarella continues her miniseries, THE CAMEO, with this story of a vivacious, single, pregnant woman and her devastatingly handsome—if reserved—next-door neighbor. Special Edition welcomes author Brenda Harlen and her poignant novel Once and Again, a heartwarming story of homecoming and second chances. About the Boy by Sharon DeVita is the story of a beautiful single mother, a widowed chief of police…and a matchmaking little boy. And Silhouette is thrilled to have Blindsided by talented author Leslie LaFoy in our lineup. When a woman who’s inherited a hockey team decides that they need the best coach in the business, she applies to a man who thought he’d put his hockey days behind him. But he’s been…blindsided!

      So enjoy, be safe and come back in November for more. This is my favorite time of year (well, the beginning of it, anyway).

      Regards,

      Gail Chasan

       Senior Editor

      Once and Again

      Brenda Harlen

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

      BRENDA HARLEN

      grew up in a small town surrounded by books and imaginary friends. Although she always dreamed of being a writer, she chose to follow a more traditional career path first. After two years of practicing as an attorney (including an appearance in front of the Supreme Court of Canada), she gave up her “real” job to be a mom and to try her hand at writing books. Three years, five manuscripts and another baby later, she sold her first book—an RWA Golden Heart winner—to Silhouette.

      Brenda lives in southern Ontario with her real-life husband/hero, two heroes-in-training and two neurotic dogs. She is still surrounded by books (“too many books,” according to her children) and imaginary friends, but she also enjoys communicating with “real” people. Readers can contact Brenda by e-mail at [email protected] or by snail mail c/o Silhouette Books, 233 Broadway, Suite 1001, New York, NY 10279.

      September 22

      Dear Nick,

      It’s been a year since you walked out of my life without so much as a backward glance. I still don’t know why things ended the way they did, what happened to sever the ties between us so completely. And I’m not sure why I’m writing this letter now, when I probably won’t ever find the courage to send it. But I need you to know that I’m sorry for everything, and I wish we could somehow find a way to bridge the distance that has grown between us, to forgive the pain we’ve caused one another. Maybe that’s too much to ask after everything that’s happened, but I can’t give up hope that someday we might make it happen. That maybe we could even be friends again….

      Contents

      Prologue

      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

      Prologue

      It was a dream come true for any seven-year-old boy.

      In fact, the gleaming red-and-silver bicycle was exactly what Caleb had been dreaming about for weeks. Every time his mom took him downtown, he’d tug on her hand and drag her over to the window of Beckett’s Sporting Goods store to look at it—just one more time.

      Now, thanks to Aunt Jessica, it was his.

      He wrapped his fingers around the black rubber grips, threw one leg over the crossbar, settled his foot on the pedal, pushed off with the other. His friends hovered on the edge of the driveway, watching with a combination of envious excitement and eager anticipation that he might give them each a turn.

      He sailed down the driveway, grinning at the wind in his face, then turned sharply at the bottom and pumped his legs to climb up again. This was so much better than the scratched and dented hand-me-down of Jake’s he used to ride.

      “Are we gonna have cake now, Mom?”

      He threw the question over his shoulder as he zipped past her again.

      “Whenever you’re ready,” she said.

      “Cake,” his friends chanted in unison.

      She smiled and turned toward the house.

      She didn’t actually see what happened next, but she heard it. She would never forget the sounds.

      The squeal of tires.

      The crunch of metal.

      The sickening thud.

      And sudden, deafening silence.

      Then came the screams.

      And finally, the piercing wail of sirens.

      Chapter One

      Eighteen years ago, Jessica Harding couldn’t wait to leave Pinehurst, New York. She’d had plans for her life—plans that were bigger than this small town. Shortly after high school graduation, immediately after Kristin and Brian’s wedding, she’d packed her meager belongings into her rusty secondhand car and headed for New York City.

      Now she was back.

      She paid little attention to the familiar landmarks as she ignored the speed limit on her way toward the hospital. She could think only of her best friend’s youngest child and the birthday celebration that had ended in tragedy.

      Jess had declined the invitation to Caleb’s party, sending her gift along with her regrets that she wouldn’t be able to attend.

      But