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‘Seems we’ve learnt quite a bit about each other in the past twenty-four hours, haven’t we?’
‘Yes. I suppose so.’
‘And one of the things I’ve learnt about you, Kerry, is that you’re one feisty woman.’
His arm was still around her, holding her against him, and he leant forward and brushed her forehead with his lips. She didn’t draw back. Rather, she allowed herself to imagine the sweetness of his mouth on hers—because wasn’t this secretly what she had been longing for, perhaps even needing?
In the back of her mind a little voice whispered, You ‘re mad—you’ve only known this guy for two days! Whatever Denovan said, they were still almost strangers. She didn’t know his background, or what sadness he referred to in his past, and he’d only brushed his lips across her forehead, but in that moment she realised that she had been attracted to him from the first moment she’d seen him.
She pressed her lips to his cheek, responding to his feather-light kiss with eagerness, giving in to the clamour of her own longing. A kind of dizzy freedom from the sadness and constraints of the past year swept through her, and she couldn’t help her response—an almost compulsive need to make love to this man she’d only known for such a short time.
Dear Reader
The idea for this story came from reading about a family feud and how it affected the other people involved. I wondered how it might impinge on the lives of two people in love if they were caught up in a feud—could it ruin their future? Or would they be able to overcome all obstacles and find future happiness together?
I set the story in the beautiful countryside of the Peak District, although Braxton Falls is an imaginary village. I hope I’ve brought a flavour of the area to the story, and the sense of community that binds a small place together in adversity.
I so enjoyed writing this story—I hope you will find pleasure in reading it.
Best wishes
Judy
About the Author
JUDY CAMPBELL is from Cheshire. As a teenager she spent a great year at high school in Oregon, USA, as an exchange student. She has worked in a variety of jobs, including teaching young children, being a secretary and running a small family business. Her husband comes from a medical family, and one of their three grown-up children is a GP. Any spare time—when she’s not writing romantic fiction—is spent playing golf, especially in the Highlands of Scotland.
Recent titles by the same author:
REUNITED: A MIRACLE MARRIAGE
FROM SINGLE MUM TO LADY HIRED: GP AND WIFE THE GP’S MARRIAGE WISH
These books are also available in eBook format from www.millsandboon.co.uk
Celebrity in
Braxton Falls
Judy Campbell
CHAPTER ONE
‘GOLDEN sands fringed by waving palms, an azure sea and balmy days that you will love …’
The photograph of an idyllic beach scene underneath the caption in the brochure looked impossibly alluring—Kerry Latimer could almost feel the texture of the warm sand between her toes, imagine the limpid water lapping against her body, the sun sparkling on the waves, palm trees rustling in the light wind …
‘Too right I’d love it,’ she muttered wryly, then tore the brochure firmly in two, crushing it into a ball and flinging it sadly into the waste-paper basket. ‘A shame I won’t be going to the golden sands and azure sea after all …’
She looked bleakly through the surgery window, made blurry by the lashing rain, and at the dark sky outside, with the glowering shadows on the hills in the distance. During the past few days there had been a continuous torrential downpour, and the river flowing through the village was ominously high—a world away from dreamy islands in the middle of the Caribbean and their sunny climes. If only Frank had been more careful. If only he’d slowed down a bit, she would be almost there by now.
The horribly expensive pale coral silk dress hanging in its clear plastic cover on the wall of the surgery caught her eye—at this very moment she ought to have been on a plane, tossing back champagne as she winged her way to her cousin’s wedding in Tobago, looking forward to wearing the dress later that week as one of her cousin’s bridesmaids. Now, of course, after what had happened, she was stuck at work in Braxton Falls for the foreseeable future, covering for Frank, any hope of jetting off to beautiful sun-kissed beaches absolutely scuppered.
‘Just my luck that my first holiday after a year’s hard grind should be hijacked.’ Kerry sighed—there was nothing she could do about the situation but grit her teeth and bear it, as her mother used to say.
She picked up the phone on her desk, and stabbed out a number. ‘Hello?’ she said as it was answered. ‘Is that Denovan O’Mara? This is Kerry Latimer. I’m a colleague of your brother’s at The Larches Medical Centre. I’m afraid that I’ve some bad news about him …’ She took a deep breath and said gently, ‘I’m very sorry to tell you that Frank was in a car accident last night and was seriously injured.’
There was a second’s silence—Kerry imagined the shock Denovan would feel as he received the information about his half-brother, and she waited for the appalled intake of breath at the news, the concerned enquiry about his condition.
The reply sounded exasperated rather than anxious. ‘The stupid fool—what the hell was he doing?’
Kerry stared at the phone, rather taken aback—it seemed a callous response to such awful news. ‘We think Frank touched the accelerator instead of the brake—it’s an automatic car—and he went through the garage door and out of the back wall of the garage down a steep incline, hitting a tree.’
A derisive short laugh. ‘I don’t suppose I’m all that surprised—it’s typical of him. I always knew Frank was an accident waiting to happen—he’s impatient and reckless. Were any other people injured?’
‘No,’ she answered coldly. ‘No one else was involved.’
‘Well, that’s a blessing—he’s an awful driver.’ Privately Kerry agreed with Denovan—Frank always seemed to be taking corners too fast and scraping his car, or denting his bumpers when he reversed.
‘So where is he now?’ asked Denovan briskly.
‘He’s in the local hospital at the moment, but will probably be transferred to Derby for further detailed trauma scans. He has serious injuries to his head and a very bruised back. He’s stable but in an induced coma. I thought I should let you know as I believe you’re his only relative.’
‘I see. Well, I suppose I’ll have to come up then, although it’s highly inconvenient. I could really do without this.’
‘Excuse me?’ What was this man like, and how self-centred could you be, weighing inconvenience with seeing a desperately ill brother? Kerry felt a slow burn of anger. If anyone should feel aggrieved, it was she, Kerry Latimer—obliged to cancel her holiday at the last minute, and then having to hold the fort at a two-handed medical practice for the foreseeable future.
Denovan’s voice sounded tetchy. ‘I’m in negotiations for a new contract and it could be rather tricky to leave at the moment.’ Then he added unenthusiastically, ‘But I will come up, of course.’
‘If you think you can spare the time,’ said Kerry sarcastically. ‘He is very poorly, you know.’
‘I’m