A Hero from Her Past
If Kathleen O’Bryan were capable of trusting any man, it might be someone like Luke Patterson. She never expected to be reunited with the man that rescued her last summer. But when she arrives at Mrs. Heaton’s boardinghouse, seeking refuge, it’s the handsome writer who greets her at the door.
Something about the lovely Irish immigrant stirs Luke’s protective instincts. Life in New York’s harsh tenements hasn’t dimmed Kathleen’s tender spirit. Day by day, Luke feels the walls around his heart crumble. But it will take faith on Kathleen’s side, too, and the heart’s power to recognize a real home at last….
Luke could see the wariness in Kathleen’s eyes, and something else that pulled him nearer.
His fingers grazed her cheek. “You are the strongest woman I’ve ever met, Kate. Clancy is gone. He’ll never hurt you again.”
“Never again.” She closed her eyes and nodded. She reached up and covered his hand with hers. “Thank you, Luke.”
“You’re welcome.” He turned his hand over and captured hers. He’d never wanted to kiss anyone more, and it was all he could do to keep from pulling her into his arms. But the wariness lingered in her eyes and he leaned his forehead against hers. “If onlys” whirled through his mind… If only she could trust again. If only he could, too.
He cleared his throat. “We’d better go in before—”
“Someone wonders where we are?”
No. Before he threw caution to the wind, pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
JANET LEE BARTON
was born in New Mexico and has lived all over the South, in Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas. She loves researching and writing heartwarming stories about faith, family, friends and love. Janet loves being able to share her faith and love of the Lord through her writing. She’s very happy that the kind of romances the Lord has called her to write can be read and shared with women of all ages.
Janet and her husband now live in Oklahoma, and are part of what they laughingly call their “Generational Living Experiment” with their daughter and her husband, two wonderful granddaughters and a shih tzu called Bella. The experiment has turned into quite an adventure and so far, they think it’s working out just fine. When Janet isn’t writing or reading, she loves to travel, cook, work in the garden and sew.
You can visit Janet at www.janetleebarton.com.
A Place of Refuge
Janet Lee Barton
MILLS & BOON
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Cause me to hear thy loving kindness in the morning;
For in thee do I trust: Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; For I lift up my soul unto thee.
—Psalms 143:8
To the family I was born into, and the one the Lord has given me, for always giving me their love and support.
And most of all, to my Lord and Savior, for showing me the way.
Contents
Chapter One
New York City
February 1896
A knock on the door this time of evening was never a good sign. Luke Patterson paused at the staircase and frowned, looking around for Mrs. Heaton, the owner of his boardinghouse. Neither she nor Gretchen, the maid, were anywhere to be seen and everyone else had scattered after dinner. The knock sounded once more and he took it on himself to answer the door.
“Sir, I’ve a young woman in my hack and was told to bring her to this address.” The man at the door handed Luke a familiar-looking card. It was one of Mrs. Heaton’s, embellished simply with only Heaton House,