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Home Sweet Home
A Sweet, Texas Novella
A Sweet, Texas Novella
By: Candis Terry
Releasing May 19th, 2015
(Re-Issue with Additional Content)
Avon Impulse
Before Candis Terry’s wild Wilder brothers met their
matches, a soldier gets a homecoming in Sweet, Texas.
HE’S GIVEN UP…
Army Ranger,
Lieutenant Aiden Marshall, fought in some of the most hellish corners on earth
and survived. Those closest to him, did not. When he returns home to Sweet,
Texas, he believes he’s broken and has lost everything-including his soul. The
only fair thing he can do is tell the woman who’s patiently waited for him to
come home-to move on with her life-without him.
BUT SHE NEVER
WILL
Sassy waitress
Paige Walker has no intention of walking away from the man of her dreams. He
gave his all for his country and served with honor. Now it’s time to pull him
from the darkness and give him hope. With a heap of love, the help of the
entire town, and a tail-wagging companion, Paige makes sure her hero knows
there’s no place like home sweet home.
A note from Candis about why she’s donating book sales to charity.
"The inspiration for HOME SWEET HOME came from an article I’d read about a soldier who been forced to leave the pup he’d rescued in Afghanistan because it wasn’t allowed to bring the animal back to the U.S. In writing the story I realized that rescue animals are a huge part of the romances I write. Since I’m prone to rescue four-legged friends in my personal life I thought that maybe I could help in a bigger way. When I started looking into rescue centers I was overwhelmed by not only the number of animals in need but the generosity of the volunteers who often nurse these animals back to health so they can be adopted. The love and loyalty of an animal is unconditional and I’d like to see them have the opportunity to be loved right back. I know I can’t help them all, but I hope these donations will help as many as possible."
“When did you get home?
Why didn’t your brother tell me? How long will you be home? Do you want
something to eat? Of course you do. Dumb question. Scratch that.”
Aiden couldn’t help but
smile as Paige fired off a volley of questions, then finished them off with a
random thought.
Just like old times.
She’d always been that
girl.
The one who had a million
things going on all at once and tried to keep them all in order inside her
head. At times, she came off a bit scrambled even though, for the most part,
she had it more together than anyone he’d ever met. Aiden knew she saw every
day as a gift. She saw life as something priceless that should be hit at full
speed and explored twenty-four hours a day.
When they’d been together,
he’d managed to keep her in bed for several of those hours a day just to show
her that a lot could be accomplished in a prone position too. But even then,
between making love, she’d come up with a list of half a dozen things she
wanted to do that day, next week, or a year down the road. They’d done a hell
of a lot of exploring in those days, and even if he hadn’t been able to keep up
with her eagerness on the calendar, he managed to keep her enthusiasm busy in
other ways.
“A few days ago,” he said,
answering her first question, then followed up with the rest. “Ben didn’t tell
you because he didn’t know. And yes, I’d love a Diablo burger, a double order
of sweet-potato fries, and a marshmallow Snickers milk shake.”
It didn’t take a rocket
scientist to know immediately that she was hurt because he’d taken so long to
come see her. By rights, she should have been first on his list. And she would
have been, but he had obligations to visit Bobby’s and Billy’s folks. And after
those visits, he had barely been able to look at himself in the mirror.
The wounded look in her
eye disappeared, and her smile reappeared. Apparently, she realized too why he
hadn’t come to see her first.
“Awww. Your favorite
foods.” She shifted her weight from one sexy hip to the other. “I’ll bet you’ve
been craving those for a long time.”
He’d been craving her too,
but that kind of thinking had to stop.
“Pretty much since I
boarded the plane for Afghanistan and left American soil.” Funny how the moment
you knew you couldn’t have something, you wanted it even more.
“Well, the wait is over.
You sit right there, and I’ll have Bud put your order on a rail.” Her tennis
shoes squeaked as she turned and rushed off into the kitchen.
With all day in front of
him and nothing to do, Aiden could watch her through the order window, excitedly
gesturing with her hands while she spoke with Bud. Still, he couldn’t help
wonder out loud … “A rail?”
The old man with the bald
head next to him nodded and grinned. “She’s puttin’ the hurry up on
it for you.”
“Oh.”
Guilt wrapped around
Aiden’s throat and gave a hard squeeze. The faster Paige moved, the sooner he’d
have to deliver the news. She looked so damned happy to see him, he hated to
burst her bubble. Hated to hurt her in any way. But it had to be done. No
matter how badly he might think he wanted it to be otherwise.
“For a man who’s got a
pretty woman like that scurrying around to make time to be with him, you sure
got a grim look on your puss.”
The man sitting next to
him, Chester Banks, was well into his eighties. He’d had more ex-wives than
Disneyland had rides. Over the years, his nose had grown, and his eyes had
sunk. He probably weighed all of a hundred pounds soaking wet, was bowlegged,
and wore his Wranglers so starched, his arthritic knees could barely bend. But
Chester had no qualms whatsoever about chasing the ladies who were at least six
decades younger.
“Probably matches what’s
inside my head,” Aiden verified.
“Oh?” A scraggly gray brow
lifted, and a smile broke across Chester’s wrinkled lips. “So you’re saying the
lovely Paige is up for grabs?”
Cute, emotional and sexy quick read! Paige is great the way she doesn't give up on Aiden. Her plan for helping him deal with some of the issues that make him think he is not the right man for her is so sweet. Aiden is dealing with PTSD issues, but luckily for him, Paige is just what he needs to start working through them. As always, Gladys and Arlene add some humor to the story. Can be read as a standalone.
ARC via Edelweiss
Candis
Terry was born and raised near the sunny beaches of Southern California and now
makes her home on an Idaho farm. She’s experienced life in such diverse ways as
working in a Hollywood recording studio to chasing down wayward steers. Only
one thing has remained the same: her passion for writing stories about
relationships, the push and pull in the search for love, and the security one
finds in their own happily ever after.
Thank you for hosting HOME SWEET HOME!!
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