Married by mistakeâ¦or by design?
As a wild teenager, Darby Dufrene tore up the roads around Bayou Bridge. However, years of serving in the navy have reformed him. Now that heâs discharged, heâs ready to settle downâ¦just not here in Louisiana. But his âquickâ visit becomes the opposite when he discovers that a long-ago, impulsive wedding he had with Renny Latioles was not annulled.
Fine. He and Renny are in perfect agreementâan uncontested divorce and heâll be on his way. Too bad the crazy attraction that pulled them together before is just as strong, and it isnât listening to logic. Spending time with her makes him crave more. It could be theyâre still married for a reason.â¦
âSomething about you here in my kitchen, in my space, freaks me out.â
Darby wiped his mouth and contemplated Renny. âIâm not real comfortable being here myself, but itâs got to be done.â
She cocked her head. âWhy? Itâs been years and weâre both different people. Is there really a need to drag up old feelings? Canât we let it be what it wasâtwo crazy kids looking to thumb their noses at authority then learning they werenât as smart as they thought they were? We were both to blame for what happened, so we donât need apologies.â
âItâs not about apologies, though I do think I owe you one. I had no idea you were injured so severely in the accident.â
âYou wouldnât have because you never bothered to come see me.â
âWhat are you talking about? You refused to see me.â Truth was evident in his gaze. He wasnât jerking her chain. The surprise in his reaction was honest.
âI never refused you anything. Ever.â Renny sighed. âThat was the problem.â
Dear Reader,
Homecoming stories are a particularly satisfying read; in fact, they are my favorite type of story. Thereâs something fulfilling about watching two people fall in love a second time around, so I couldnât wait to get my fingers on the keyboard to write Renny and Darbyâs story. After all, Iâd been thinking about them from the very beginning of The Boys of Bayou Bridge series. I knew them and their past, so writing their story would be a snap, right?
Wrong. Like the Louisiana weather, Renny and Darby werenât easy to figure out, and as each chapter unfolded, they evolved into complex creatures who kept me guessing. See? Sometimes even an author is surprised by her own story.
And what a story it isâmanipulative parents, a surprise marriage and whooping cranes. Yes, whooping cranes. Not to mention a little voodoo.
So grab a mint julep, or a mint tea, and give me your best Cajun accent. Itâs time to go back to Beau Soleil with its shadowed past and eccentric matriarch. Itâs time for gators, fishing and a piece of Lucilleâs pieâ¦and most importantly, itâs time for Darby Dufrene to walk the road back to Bayou Bridge.
I hope you enjoy this last book in The Boys of Bayou Bridge series. I love hearing from my readersâyou can drop me a line at www.liztalleybooks.com or write to me at P.O. Box 5418, Bossier City, LA 71171.
Happy reading!
Liz Talley
P.S. Look for my next book coming in December 2012!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
From devouring the Harlequin Superromance novels on the shelf of her auntâs used bookstore to swiping her grandmotherâs medical romances, Liz Talley has always loved a good romance. So it was no surprise to anyone when she started writing a book one day while her infant napped. She soon found writing more exciting than scrubbing hardened cereal off the love seat. Underneath Lizâs baby-food-stained clothes, a dream stirred. She followed that dream, and after a foray into historical romance and a Golden Heart final, she started her first contemporary romance on the same day she met her editor. Coincidence? She prefers to call it fate.
Currently Liz lives in north Louisiana with her high-school sweetheart, two beautiful children and a passel of animals. Liz loves watching her boys play baseball, shopping for bargains and going out for lunch. When not writing contemporary romances for the Harlequin Superromance line, she can be found doing laundry, feeding kids or playing on Facebook.
For my grandmother Grace,
with her French temper, bayou roots and love of a good bargain. No doubt youâd find kinship with Bevâ¦though youâd never admit to it.
You were a strong woman even if you
never filled up your own gas tank.
I miss you.
CHAPTER ONE
August 2012
Naval Station, Rota, Spain
THE PAPER ACTUALLY SHOOK in Darby Dufreneâs handâthatâs how shocked he was by the document heâd discovered in a box of old papers. Heâd been looking for the grief book heâd made as a small child and instead had found something that made his gut lurch against his ribs.