Summer on Kendall Farm
Homes, and families, aren't restored overnight Jason Kendall grew up being treated like the poor relation he was. And after a devastating betrayal, he fled under a cloud of scandal. Now he needs a place to raise his four-year-old adopted son, and Kendall Farm is the only home he's ever known. The problem is, his old homestead has a new owner. Kelly Ashton sank every last cent into restoring the Maryland horse farm. Hiring the handsome engineer would be a huge mistake. But after five years away, Jace, the prodigal son, is back. To fight for his little boy's future. And Kelly could lose the home she loves…unless she and the single father can create a new one together.
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Homes, and families, arenât restored overnight
Jason Kendall grew up being treated like the poor relation he was. And after a devastating betrayal, he fled under a cloud of scandal. Now he needs a place to raise his four-year-old adopted son, and Kendall Farm is the only home heâs ever known. The problem is, his old homestead has a new owner.
Kelly Ashton sank every last cent into restoring the Maryland horse farm. Hiring the handsome engineer would be a huge mistake. But after five years away, Jace, the prodigal son, is back. To fight for his little boyâs future. And Kelly could lose the home she loves...unless she and the single father can create a new one together.
âWeâve been here before,â Kelly said.
Jace stepped back and reached down to help her. âYes, we have.â
As she stood, her hands went to his shoulders and his caught her around the waist. Jace didnât release her immediately. Kelly looked up at him, her hands still on his shoulders.
âAnd we decided you wouldnât confuse me.â
âNot we,â he said. âYou decided.â
Jace drew her closer to him. His head dipped and he kissed her. She didnât try to stop him. His mouth was sweet on hers. It had been a long time since someone had held her like this. In his arms, Kelly felt safe. She let herself relax.
She would let herself enjoy the special moment, for now.
Kendall Farm is close to my heart. The place is fictitious, but in my mind itâs as real as my own home. Like our heroine, Kelly, I know every inch of the farm and the grounds. Jaceâs family has owned it for generations. He popped into my consciousness, riding on horseback, and insisted that I tell his story. He hasnât had a wonderful life, but now he has an adopted son, Ari, and heâs willing to sacrifice everything for the child.
Coming home to Kendall Farm, and discovering the place has been sold and the new owner is refusing to return it to the family, Jace can think of nothing except running. But not this time. This time he finds something worth staying for.
Happy endings,
Shirley Hailstock
SHIRLEY HAILSTOCK began her writing life as a lover of reading. She likes nothing better than to find a quiet corner where she can get lost in a book, explore new worlds and visit places she never expected to see. As an author, she can not only visit those places, but she can be the heroine of her own stories. The author of over thirty novels and novellas, including her electronic editions, Shirley has received numerous awards, including the Waldenbooks Bestselling Romance Award and the RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award. Shirleyâs books have appeared on BlackBoard, Essence and Library Journal bestseller lists. She is a past president of Romance Writers of America.
Visit the Author Profile page at www.millsandboon.co.uk for more titles
To my sister Marilyn, forever in my heart.
Contents
SWEAT TRICKLED DOWN Jason Kendallâs neck. It had been years since heâd fled this same road, the wind behind his Corvette creating a small hurricane as he vowed to never set foot on his familyâs property again. Coming back to Windsor Heights, a town forty miles west of Baltimore, wasnât easy and the closer he got to the farm, the harder it was to hold the memories at bay.
Rain pelted the car windows like large splats of paint falling from the sky. Wiper blades flipped back and forth, clearing the windscreen a second at a time, giving Jace a glimpse of a road that appeared smaller than he remembered. It was a long tree-lined ribbon without lights that led to the house at Kendall Farm. Jace had thought of it as the big house when he lived there. The Kendall, as it was known by the locals, was a world unto itself, but it was a world that was stuck in time. His half brother, Sheldon, made sure of that.
Thinking of Sheldon, Jace almost laughed. Wouldnât he be surprised to find the familyâs black sheep on his doorstep?
Jason Kendall had grown up here. Maybe grown up was too strong a term for what had happened to him. He supposed he could say it was the place that made him into the man he was today. He was proud, resourceful, cynical and steadfast. Although maturity had curbed his urge to throw a punch as a solution to an argument, he was always ready to stand his ground.
The Kendall was what the farm had been called since the end of the Civil War when Jameson Kendall returned from the conflict to find himself the lone survivor of his family, the others having succumbed to disease or died on the battlefield. It took him five years of hard work to bring it back to a profitable enterprise. As it passed from generation to generation, it had been well maintained but virtually unchanged.
