The Love Series Complete Box Set (104 page)

Before a good book can become an exceptional one, it needs a great editor. I am so thrilled that I’ve found one in Becky Johnson at Hot Tree Editing. Thank you for working over my manuscripts with scrutiny and precision. I don’t know how I found you, but I’m so glad I did.

I really don’t know where to begin with thanking my family. I have to admit that when my mom told me that she read
Let Love In
and she asked for a copy of
Let Love Stay,
I blushed quite a bit. But, just knowing that she has taken an interest in my writing has helped me feel more confident in sharing it with everyone else. So, thank you Mom for reading and supporting my work. Thank you for being the first person who ever made me feel like I deserved to be loved.

I might very well be the luckiest woman on the planet to have a husband who loves and supports her as much as mine does. So many of the words that Bryan tells Melanie are echoes of the words that he has told me more than once before. Forever my cheerleader and my number one tech-guy, I love you with all of my heart. Thank you so much for helping me see just how beautiful I am.

To my sons, I apologize in advance for any torment that my romance novels cause you when you’re teenagers. I have a good feeling that you might never read these words, but on the off chance that you do (sometime way down the road in the distant future) please know that every time you’ve held one of my books and said it was pretty, or pointed to the computer screen and said “That’s your book, Mommy.,” you’ve made my heart swell with pride.

Let Love Shine Table of Contents

Master Table of Contents

Let Love In

Let Love Stay

Let Love Heal

Let Love Shine

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Epilogue

Bonus Scenes

Acknowledgements

Let Love Be

Let Love Live

Acknowledgements

Other Works

Social Media Links

Dedication

For those who find simple moments of beauty in their otherwise chaotic lives.

Just a heads up—the Let Love Shine novella is followed by about 11K words of bonus materials from Let Love In and Let Love Stay. This means you will think there is more of the novella left than there actually is. As a reader, I tend to get annoyed (yeah, we’ll go with that) when it says there is 25% remaining and it’s a bunch of “other” stuff. The epilogue is the last chapter of Let Love Shine.

Prologue

Summer August 2013

“Okay, sweetie. It looks like you’re all set to go.” The nurse smiles warmly at me as she hands me my discharge papers. Looking over at Reid, she asks, “Why don’t you bring the car seat up to the room and pull your car up front. It’ll be easier to load the little guy in his seat in here than it will be in the car.” She tips her chin to the bassinette in the corner where Braden is napping.

Reid nods politely, but I see the scared-shitless look on his face. I’m sure there’s a similar one on my face too. We’re going home with our baby today. That’ll scare the crap out of anyone.

As he walks past me, he kisses my forehead. “I’ll be right back up.” The nurse walks out with him telling him where to park the car so it won’t be towed, and explaining how to remove the seat.

I remember a few weeks ago when we tried to install the car seat ourselves. Standing in the sweltering summer heat, trying to tell Reid the instructions as he was all contorted and twisted in the back of the Jeep was
so
not fun. In the end, we got too frustrated and concerned that we were going to mess something up, we ended up driving to the local fire station where they installed it for us.

That sucker is good to go, now.

I scoot off the bed and wince only slightly as I stand. Luckily, everything about my delivery went smoothly and I was only required to stay in the hospital for two nights. But, a smooth delivery does not mean a pain-free one, so I can’t help but wince slightly as I pad over to where Braden lies sleeping.

Lightly grazing my fingers over his head makes him squirm slightly. Blinking his big, blue eyes as he wakes, I feel my heart swell with love. “Hey, baby boy. Did you have a good nap?” He stretches his arms out of his swaddled blanket and yawns. Sliding my hands under his arched back, I lift him and hold him so his head rests under my chin. Inhaling the sweet, baby-fresh smell of his hair, I kiss him and whisper, “I love you, little man.”

Easing us down into the chair causes me to wince once more, but with Braden in my arms, nuzzling against my chest, I barely notice the pain. As he falls back asleep against my chest, I feel complete.

I know this is my purpose in life.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted nothing more than a family of my own. Now, I have it. There’s nothing else in this world that could make me happier. There will always be a part of me that wishes my parents could be here to share this part of my life with them. But, in the last year or so, I’ve learned how to make peace with their passing. It wasn’t easy and I wish I hadn’t spent so many years in the dark over it, but with Reid and now Braden lighting my days, the pain of them no longer being with me has lessened drastically.

“Now, there’s something I’ll never get tired of seeing.” Reid’s voice rouses me from my day-dreaming. He walks into the room and places the car seat on the bed. Squatting on the floor in front of us, he brushes my hair back out of my eyes and tucks it behind my ear. Nuzzling into his hand, I kiss his palm.

“Thank you for taking care of me last night.” He shoots me an ‘are you kidding?’ look.

“Maddy, I live to take care of you. And now, I live to take care of him too.” Reid stands in front of me and opens his arms for me to hand him Braden.

After he buckles Braden into his car seat, Reid turns back around and helps me get out of the chair. “Yeah, but taking care of me doesn’t usually involve brushing my hair.”

“Maddy, you had just given birth to our son and your hair was all over the place. You wanted it taken care of, so I took care of it. It’s that simple.” I wrap my arms around his waist and press my cheek up against his solid chest. Inhaling the scent that is so uniquely Reid, I know he is my knight in shining armor. “I don’t know what I did to ever deserve you,” I mumble against his T-shirt.

Pressing his lips to my forehead, I feel his smile. “Yeah, you did get pretty lucky, huh.”

“You know, you didn’t make out half bad either.” I arch an eyebrow at him as I lean back from our embrace slightly.

Reid scans my face as if he’s searching for the lost city of Atlantis or something like that. “Yeah, I guess I’ll keep you.” The dopey, lopsided grin plastered to his face makes me laugh, which of course, is still a bit painful. As I wrap my arm around my still more-than-slightly-rounded belly, a small hiss of pain slips past my lips.

Concern replaces his smile. “Shit, I’m sorry, babe. Are you okay?”

When the flash of pain passes, I wipe a bead of sweat from my brow. “Yeah, I’m good. Just still a little sore.” The muscles in my belly are still crazy sore from pushing and I’ve got a handful of stitches in places I never thought to have them. “Just no more laughing, okay?”

“You got it. I promise. I will never make you laugh again.” His cheeky response earns him an eye roll and a small, but much less painful, laugh. “Come on. Let’s break this kid out of here and go home.” Reid clicks the car seat handle in place just as the nurse walks into the room with my wheelchair.

“Are you guys all ready?” She folds down the legs and pats the seat for me to sit in.

“Yep, we’re all set.” Reid’s words are filled with so much happiness and pride; it makes a face-splitting smile pull at the corners of my lips.

I have this distinct memory of the first time I ever rode in Reid’s new Jeep. I envisioned him driving home from the hospital, with me and the baby next to each other in the backseat. I pull the seat belt across my lap, and rest my hand across Braden’s chest. This is the most perfect moment of my life.