More Than Neighbors. Janice Johnson Kay
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Temptation is so close!
To protect her son, Mark, Ciara Malloy has moved to this rural area in Washington. The new beginning is off to a rocky start, however, when Mark gets too familiar with Gabe Tennert’s horses. It’s obvious their next-door neighbor prefers his solitude. Even so, he shows incredible patience with Mark. And when Gabe turns that intense gaze Ciara’s way…how can she resist such a good, sexy man?
But crossing the line between friends and something more is riskier than Ciara expects. As Gabe pushes for a commitment, she fears revealing the secret truths that could turn him away forever.
“You’re a good man, Gabe Tennert.”
Ciara met his gaze directly so he’d know how sincere her words were. “But that doesn’t mean you owe us anything. If you ever want to back off—”
She’d have sworn a hint of color touched his cheeks above the close-cropped beard. “I’ll tell you.” He nodded and started down the steps.
Before Ciara reached the kitchen, she heard the ripping sound of the first porch board being pulled up.
She wondered what Gabe would have done if she’d gone up on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. And whether his beard would be stiff and scratchy or more silky under her lips.
And, oh God, what would have happened if he’d turned his head at that precise moment, and her kiss fell on his lips instead?
She hadn’t felt this kind of honeyed warmth low in her belly in longer than she could remember.
It was foolish beyond words to let herself develop some kind of crush on her reclusive next-door neighbor, who would probably be appalled if he knew.
A friend of mine who was a school counselor said once, “There’s a leper in every classroom.” I knew immediately what she meant. There is always at least one child who is shunned, teased, even bullied. He may be overweight. She might come to school wearing dirty clothes and smelling because of her home situation. He could be hyperactive, she could be an easy victim because she cries instead of returning taunt for taunt. A girl may physically mature much earlier than the others, while boys are at risk if they mature too slowly. Any behavior that is even slightly “off” serves like a red cape to a bull. It’s a painful phenomenon that says much about human nature. Fortunately, many of the children who go along with the taunting grow into good people.
Many of the victims mature and learn to fit in—or find the niche in life where they can belong. As a fiercely protective mother myself, I’ve wondered what I would have done if one of my daughters had been that victim. Confronted with her helplessness to change the school dynamics, my heroine in More Than Neighbors decides to move far away from their previous school district, and to homeschool. She believes she can shield her son from all of life’s slings and arrows—which, of course, is impossible. Her new next-door neighbor is at the top of the list of people most unlikely to get involved in any way.
Fortunately, they’re both facing some big surprises! And, hey, who doesn’t love the gruff, quiet man suppressing a world of pain who is still incapable of being unkind? Trust me, Gabe’s a keeper!
Hope you enjoy getting to know this set of neighbors!
Janice Kay Johnson
More Than Neighbors
Janice Kay Johnson
An author of more than eighty books for children and adults, USA TODAY bestselling author JANICE KAY JOHNSON is especially well-known for her Mills & Boon Superromance novels about love and family—about the way generations connect and the power our earliest experiences have on us throughout life. Her 2007 novel Snowbound won a RITA® Award from Romance Writers of America for Best Contemporary Series Romance. A former librarian, Janice raised two daughters in a small rural town north of Seattle, Washington. She loves to read and is an active volunteer and board member for Purrfect Pals, a no-kill cat shelter. Visit her online at janicekayjohnson.com.
Contents
Dear Reader
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
A FLASH OF movement over at the old Walker place caught Gabriel Tennert’s eye the moment he hopped out of the box truck he’d just backed up to the open doorway to his barn workshop.
He owned thirty acres himself, and the neighboring place was of similar size. The Walker house and land had been posted for sale a good three, four years now, with no taker. An occasional looker, that’s all. Gabe hadn’t minded Ephraim Walker as a neighbor, given that they’d spoken only when Gabe went over to check on the old man. Not being sociable, Gabe had been happy once Ephraim was gone to have the house sitting empty.
But, now that he was looking, he couldn’t miss the candy-apple-red van parked in front. Even squinting, though, he didn’t see a soul to go with the vehicle. Whoever had arrived in it must have gone in the house.
Lookers, he reassured himself. Or a new real-estate agent, checking out the property. One or the other came along now and again. Far as he knew, nobody ever made an offer. This small town north of Spokane, Washington, didn’t have much to draw newcomers. Once viable, farms like his and Ephraim Walker’s were good these days mainly for running a few head of cattle or keeping some horses, like he did. The hour drive to Spokane was fine for delivering finished cabinetry, but would be pushing it for a daily commute, and there weren’t many jobs in an almost entirely rural county. Winters were harsh in this northeast corner of the state, the landscape pretty but not spectacular enough to attract much in the way of tourism. The town of Goodwater