Always and Forever
Love
By
Lynn Crandall
Release
date Dec 16th, 2013
Blurb
The
presence of a ghost in her life doesn't alarm Lacy Aegar, in fact it makes her
happy. Two and a half years ago when her dead husband Nicholas reappeared in
her life as a full-bodied spirit, she questioned her sanity. But with Nicholas'
explanation that there are things about life that are not as she's always believed,
she settled into a pleasant routine of working with her sister at their private
investigation business and enjoying home life with her now 10-year-old son –
with Nicholas never very far away.
Lacey's
complacency and sense of stability is sent topsy-turvy when she runs into
Jackson Carter, the son of powerful and influential business tycoon, William
Carter. Typical of the Carter reputation, Jackson's slick new private
investigating business is siphoning off clients from the Aegar sisters'
business, creating financial difficulty. It's a recurring nightmare for Lacey,
who has already seen damage done by the Carter family, and when she encounters
Jackson, she wants nothing to do with him.
But
things are not what they seem when it comes to Jackson Carter, either.
Unbeknownst to Lacey and her sister, Jackson is fighting a battle to preserve
his business, too, and his integrity. For him, it's a fight for his soul, and
he enlists Lacey's help because of her unique investigative skills and open
heart. When she uncovers a mole in his business, she also discovers that one of
his clients' drug trials has been given the green light to go to the next phase
based on falsified data. As they work together to save both their businesses,
Jackson and Lacey not only face death, they must come to grips with their
feelings about love and life.
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Excerpt
She
couldn’t imagine what he wanted. He seemed completely composed, except for the
indications that he wasn’t. She decided to dive in. “So, Jackson, what’s on
your mind? Is this a meeting? Are you still going to offer me a job?”
He
fumbled with his napkin, his eyes still downcast and his voice soft. “To be
honest, asking you to stay with me came out kind of spur-of-the-moment.” His
gaze lifted, and he
continued,
almost hesitantly. “I want you to know, Lacey, that though I don’t like your
opinion of me, I understand. But unlike you, I have been thinking about you.”
Parts
of her drew down to complete absorption with the moment between them. It was
mesmerizing to listen to his words and feel his sincere need to convey the
right message. She didn’t speak, feeling if she did, something inside him would
break.
Which
was silly. Jackson Carter was anything but fragile. Or so she believed. The
idea that she believed she knew him from his father’s works made her shoulders
tighten. His gaze flicked around the room, but landed back on her face.
“I’m
not going to bore you with details about my past and my family. I think what I
want you to know is that I am not my father. I have things to amend for, if
only because of my blindness. But the truth is, I woke up about four years ago.
I chose another path, and I did it simply because I didn’t belong on the path I
was on. It didn’t fit. My father is a liar and a cruel person. There’s only so
far I could go with him before I had to say enough is enough.”
Lacey
felt like there was no one else in the room. His words carried weight and she knew
the moment was sacred. He bared his soul, with no expectation of anything but
the hope of understanding. She had to ask. “Why are you telling me this?”
He
chuckled. “Good question. Nothing like laying it all out there when we hardly
know each other.”
She
let the moment hang, waiting for a sincere answer, not knowing if he had it in
him.
There
is a lot of regret in me. I feel the weight of my legacy. My values have not so
much changed, as I’ve come to grips with reality. That’s a hard truth that not
many people can appreciate.” He sipped his coffee and again shifted his gaze
around the room, but she knew he didn’t see it. “You see things. You see things
people miss. I just want you to know that I know much goes before me. It sounds
clichéd, but I am different. Maybe you can see that and give me a second
chance.”
It
was easy to pick up that he carried deep feelings, some of them tender and
painful. Lacey understood how devastating—as well as completely life
changing—awareness of awful truths could be. Still, she knew firsthand of the
shattering that could occur at the hands of the Carter family. She couldn’t
forget that.
“Speechless,
huh?” He tried to shrug off the intensity of his admission, dipping his head
and suddenly busying with the saltshaker. “What do you say to something like
that? I’m sorry I put you in that position.”
Again
with the defenses? “Jackson. Stop. Can I say something now?” She ducked her
head to catch his gaze. “I see that you’re sincere. Thank you for that. And
you’re right. I know all about what your family has done to people in this town
and out in the world. Your father is a very powerful and influential man. He could
have done much good, but he didn’t. He’s put people out of work, destroyed
their reputations, ruined lives of people I care about. How do I get beyond
that? Why would I want to? Your family is dangerous.” She trembled with
memories of the ills caused by William Carter. How could Jackson ask anything
of her?
He
squared her with his eyes again. “I need your help with finding out why my
business is running into so many problems…"
Author Info
Lynn Crandall lives in the Midwest and writes in
the company of her two cats. She has been a reader and a writer all her life.
Her background is in journalism, but whether writing a magazine or newspaper
story or creating a romance, she loves the power stories hold to transport,
inspire, and uplift. In her romances, she focuses on vulnerable, embraceable
characters who don't back down. She hopes that readers discover, over and over,
stories of ordinary people who face ordinary life challenges and are
transformed by extraordinary love.
Author Links
@lynncrandall246
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Yes I do believe:)
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