When life hands you lemonsâ¦
You make lemonade. Thatâs what Lynn Duncan believes. A single mother and nurse practitioner, she works at The Lemonade Stand, a unique womenâs shelter supported by various businesses. These include a physiotherapy service, where Grant Bishop, a landscape designer, takes his disabled brother.
When Grant and Lynn first meet theyâre intensely attracted to each otherâbut they donât see a future for themselves. Theyâre too committed to the people they need to protect. For Lynn thatâs three-year-old Kara and the residents at TLS. And Grant will sacrifice anything for his brother. That might have to include a relationship with Lynnâ¦.
âMr. Bishop?â
Turning, Grant recognized the woman approaching him at once. Her long hair was pulled back from her face, but the warm glow in her eyes was just as heâd remembered.
Heâd told himself heâd imagined the womanâs effect on him the last time theyâd metâfour years before. Sheâd had a wedding ring on back then. She didnât now.
âLynn,â he said. She held out her hand. He took it. And didnât want to let go.
âYou donât remember me,â he said, quickly shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans as he faced her in the empty, fluorescent-lit hallway. Heâd heard that The Lemonade Stand was beautiful, a haven, resortlike. The commercial beige tile and white walls didnât give him that impression.
âI do, actually,â she said. âNow that I see you. I recognized your name when you called, but I wasnât sure why. Youâre the one with the brother. Darin, right?â
âIâm impressed.â Grant smiled. âYou were his nurse for one day. Youâve got a good memory.â
âDarin was memorable. So what can I do for you?â Lynn asked, that not-quite-smile heâd remembered curving her lips, and hitting him where a guy only liked to be hit when he could do something about it.
Heâd hoped sheâd remember him, too, and she had. More important, sheâd remembered his brother. With enough affection to pull strings and get Darin into their physiotherapy program?
The Lemonade Stand was the only option he had. This had to work.
Dear Reader,
Welcome to The Lemonade Stand. Life hands all of us challenges; happiness comes through the choices we make in the face of those challenges. And sometimes the choice that brings happiness is the decision to reach out for help.
I know that sometimes life feels as though there are no options left. No hope for true joy.
And then thereâs a place like The Lemonade Stand, a very special shelter for women. More than a shelter. Itâs a place that shows women that they have the right to be happy. Wife by Design is the first of a series called Where Secrets Are Safeâand that refers to both the secrets that some women hide before they come to the Stand and the secrets, the hidden selves, theyâre able to reveal and explore once theyâre there. I am deeply committed to these books. And to the hope that the decent men and women at The Lemonade Stand have to offer. There is true joy and deeply peaceful happiness available to every one of us.
Because, after all, when life hands you lemons, you can choose to make lemonade!
Please let me know what you think of this book. And join me in the fight against domestic violence, which afflicts a shocking number of women in this country and worldwide. You can reach me at www.tarataylorquinn.com.
Tara Taylor Quinn
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
With sixty-five original novels, published in more than twenty languages, Tara Taylor Quinn is a USA TODAY bestselling author. She is a winner of the 2008 National Readersâ Choice Award, four-time finalist for the RWA RITA® Award, a finalist for the Reviewersâ Choice Award, the Booksellersâ Best Award and the Holt Medallion, and she appears regularly on Amazon bestseller lists. Tara Taylor Quinn is a past president of the Romance Writers of America and served for eight years on its board of directors. She is in demand as a public speaker and has appeared on television and radio shows across the country, including CBS Sunday Morning. Tara is a spokesperson for the National Domestic Violence Hotline, and she and her husband, Tim, sponsor an annual in-line skating race in Phoenix to benefit the fight against domestic violence.
When sheâs not at home in Arizona with Tim and their canine owners, Jerry Lee and Taylor Marie, or fulfilling speaking engagements, Tara spends her time traveling and in-line skating.
To the women whose pictures line the wall of my private office at The Lemonade Stand:
Penny Gumser, Phyllis Pawloski, Leeanne Williams, Patricia Potter, Lynn Kerstan, Kim Barney and Paula Eykelhof.
Each of you plays a vital role in my Lemonade recipe.