Healing Beau (The Brothers of Beauford Bend Book 6) (28 page)

Hope was getting near Spectrum. Just to be safe, she’d cross the street and double back to Piece by Piece.

But just as she started to do that, something round and orange in Spectrum’s window caught her eye. Could it be? Her stomach rolled over as she walked toward the window. She knew she ought to run, ought to do it now. But she couldn’t. The memories came hard and fast.

Fall, senior year. They’d been together eight months. Heath had been sweetly amused when he’d discovered her almost giddy love of Halloween, had said he’d given up hope that there was anything beyond a spreadsheet that would excite her—though that wasn’t true. He’d excited her plenty. But he’d made her the jack-o’-lantern sun catcher that now hung in his shop window. Having no place for it in her room at the sorority house, she’d left it at Heath’s off-campus apartment. It had hung in his apartment window even after Halloween passed, and it had still been there that raw, March day when she’d left him for good.

But was it the same one? Or had he smashed it or sold it and made another that was no more than a decoration for his shop? It looked the same. The jack-o’-lantern was wearing a top hat with a bat on top and, with its star-shaped eyes and crooked sweet grin, it looked like it was in love. When she’d told Heath that, he’d given her one of his smiles that was so quick it was almost gone before it appeared, and said he’d tried to put how he felt in the jack-o’-lantern’s expression. It was the most romantic thing he’d ever said to her.

Now she was inches from the window. Yes. Even after all this time, she knew the nuances of the glass—the bubbles, the swirls, the little bead of lead in the corner of the mouth that Heath had said ruined the whole thing.

But she’d laughed and kissed Heath’s mouth in the precise spot that worried him so on the sun catcher. And then she’d settled her mouth on the sweet spot on his neck above his collarbone, and he hadn’t worried about that little imperfection anymore.

She put her hand against the shop window. “My jack-o’-lantern,” she whispered as she caressed the spot that would have been its cheek if the glass of the window had not been there.

“Hello, Hope.” The voice was familiar, beloved, and far from gentle.

She spun around to look into brandy-colored eyes.

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For more from Alicia Hunter Pace, check out:

Forgiving Jackson

Praise for
Forgiving Jackson
:

“This story is about much more than boy meets girl. Crisp dialogue …[and] supportive secondary characters add to the solid story line.” —Library Journal

“…[an] engaging story of healing and discovery.” —Heroes and Heartbreakers

Reforming Gabe

Praise for
Reforming Gabe
:

“Pace's writing is so real that you experience it. There was one argument in the novel when I could actually hear the characters yelling at one another.” —4 stars, Pure Jonel

“A story that will both lighten your heart and pull on it at the same time, this one is well worth your time.” — Eat, Sleep, Read Reviews

Nickolai’s Noel

Praise for
Nicolai’s Noel
:

“Whether you like sports-themed romance, small town settings, family and tradition, or compelling characters, there's something for just about everyone…” — The Romance Reviews

“This novel was a great as addition to the Beauford Bend series or on its own. Pace definitely has a winner with this one.” — Pure Jonel

Redeeming Rafe

Praise for
Redeeming Rafe:

“Pace combines romance and chemistry with family and turbulent pasts in a manner that had me glued to the pages. She weaves a tale that is so much bigger than simply her main characters.” —5 stars, Pure Jonel

Sweet Gone South

Praise for
Sweet Gone South:

“Charming and clever with richly drawn characters and a heartwarming, sigh-worthy happily-ever-after, Alicia Hunter Pace is a natural-born storyteller.”—Rhonda Nelson, National Readers’ Choice Award winner

Scrimmage Gone South

Praise for
Scrimmage Gone South:

“For a sweet and fun romance that will make you laugh and enjoy from beginning to end,
Scrimmage Gone South
by Alicia Hunter Pace is a great choice.” —Harlequin Junkie

Simple Gone South

Praise for
Simple Gone South

“…
a heartwarming, sweet and entertaining read that will keep you laughing and sometimes even have you shed a tear or two.” —Harlequin Junkie

Secrets Gone South

Praise for
Secrets Gone South

“
What a story! Pace has nailed writing emotions into her stories … She definitely had me jumping for joy and bawling like a baby more than once … This was a thoroughly enjoyable read that I couldn’t put down.” —Pure Jonel

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