Bound to the Past (Starville Series Book 1) (55 page)

BOOK: Bound to the Past (Starville Series Book 1)

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“Are you insane? I canʼt leave town right now! We just launched that huge ad campaign for—”

“Blah blah blah. I donʼt care. Grace, either you take a vacation and leave for a while, or Iʼm breaking our engagement. Period,” he concluded firmly, mocking her words.

“But the business—”

“Thereʼs nice little things called Internet, computers, phones, and fax machines. Iʼm pretty sure you can work from the distance for a few weeks without your business suffering a bit. Besides, your father can take care of everything for a while. Itʼs time for him to start taking his responsibilities, anyway, if you ask me.”

Grace knew Lawrence meant every single word he said. She knew his definite tone when she heard it.

“Think about Jamie,” he added in a softer tone, when she didnʼt respond.

At the mention of her six-year-old son, another long sigh escaped from her. Jamie was everything to her. He was her reason to live. If something happened to her little boy, she would never survive. “Youʼre right. I need to protect Jamie.”

“School is almost out for the summer, anyway. Why donʼt you guys take a nice, long vacation together?”

“But…where?”

“I donʼt know. I would suggest my cottage in Colorado, but itʼs really isolated, and I would have to ask a couple of my bodyguards—”

“No,” she cut him off firmly. “No bodyguards, no police. I donʼt want Jamie to know that something is wrong. If we have to do this trip-thing, he has to think itʼs a real vacation. I want him to have fun.”

“Fair enough. Then weʼll have to come up with some place else. Somewhere secluded enough that nobody would ever think to look for you, but safe enough so that you guys would be protected.”

Graceʼs heart skipped a couple of beats. She knew just the perfect place. A place that was everything Lawrence had just described…and so much more. It was Jamieʼs favorite place in the world, and the only one sheʼd ever felt safe: her ex-husband Carsonʼs ranch in Starville, Texas.

Too bad it was also the last place on Earth she wanted to be.

Think about Jamie
, she reminded herself again with another deep breath, as though trying to summon the courage to speak the words she knew she had to say.

“I know exactly where to go, Lawrence,” she finally stated firmly. “Just give me a couple of days to make a few phone calls and organize everything, then Jamie and I will be ready to leave.”

Acknowledgements

My overwhelming gratitude goes out to you, the readers of Bound To The Past. Without you, this novel would still be my childhood dream. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

All my love and endless thanks go to my husband. I love you so much honey! You never stopped believing in me and kept pushing me forward even when I doubted myself and was ready to give up so many times along the way. Thank you for closing an eye (okay, okay, both) every time our house wasn't clean and the laundry was piling up. Thank you for understanding my moods and always knowing when to pass me that much-needed glass of wine. And most importantly, thank you for the inspiration you give me…because there is so much of you in Jack that sometimes it's scary―in a good way! ;) Thank you for all this and for the other million reasons that make you the love of my life every single day. You know I wouldn't be writing this today if it wasn't for you. You're my everything.

A special thank you to the light of my life, my patient, loving five-year-old son. Thank you for not resenting me for the countless hours I spent in front of the computer instead of playing with you, and for the pride in your voice when people ask you what your mommy does, and you answer: "She writes books." Thank you for that special smile on your face when we pushed the "Publish" button and your first words were, "Finally!"

To my mom, who has introduced me to the romance world and has always encouraged me to be everything I wanted. I love you.

To my sweet little angel, Lilly…itʼs thanks to you that Lance was born. I miss and love you infinitely.

Thank you to my wonderful beta readers, who have encouraged me, supported me, yelled at me, laughed and cried with me during this long journey. You guys are something else, and I would have totally been lost without you. You rock! ;)

If I'm a writer today, I owe it to my writing friends at Romance Writers of America, Facebook, and Twitter, and all the bloggers and reviewers who dedicate their precious time to promoting authors and their books. And Faith, you know you have a very special place in my heart. The continuous support, knowledge, and advice you've given me (and still do!) is whatʼs made this all possible. Thank you so much, you are awesome!

My most heartfelt thanks to Amy Knupp from Blue Otter Editing, for her incredible patience while editing my work and for the constant support she's offered me day after day. I could not have asked for a more dedicated and talented editor.

Thank you to Specially Designed for the gorgeous cover for Bound to the Past. You guys are absolutely incredible, you have given me everything I wanted and so much more! It was a pleasure working with you.

About the Author

Lauryn Michaels is the author of contemporary romance novels edged with mystery and suspense. Her debut novel, "Bound to the Past," is the first book in the Starville Series.
Reading has always been an essential part of Lauryn's life, and she's been an avid reader of romance since the age of thirteen, when she began sneaking her mother's novels. She started writing her first stories that same year―and can now confess that many of them were written in class and even during homework time!
Lauryn currently lives in Italy with her husband, their five-year-old son, and their two canine babies. When she's not reading or writing, she enjoys traveling, cooking, playing the piano, and spending lazy evenings watching movies with her family.
Lauryn loves hearing from her readers, so feel free to drop her an e-mail at
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