Paradise County
Paradise County
Robards, Karen
Atria Books (2001)
Acclaim for KAREN ROBARDS and her bestselling fiction
“One of the most popular voices in women’s fiction.” —
Newsweek
“Not to be missed.” —
The Philadelphia Inquirer
“It is Robards’ singular skill of combining intrigue with ecstasy that gives her romances their edge.” —
Lexington Herald-Leader
(KY)
B
estselling author Karen Robards delivers an unforgettable tale of romantic suspense, as she uncovers the long-buried secrets and dangerous passions of
Paradise
County
The rolling fields of Shelby County are home to some of the finest horseflesh and bluest blood in Kentucky. With its rural beauty and tranquil lifestyle, it is easy to see why the locals call it Paradise County. But beneath the serene exterior lies a dark underside, and an evil that threatens everyone who touches it.
Alexandra Haywood and her younger sister, Neely, have always loved Whistledown, the family’s magnificent Shelby County horse farm. After their billionaire father’s sudden and tragic death, the devastated Alex returns to Whistledown to try to make peace with her memories—and to oversee the selling of their gorgeous home. For the family fortune is now a shambles and, like almost everything else the Haywoods own, Whistledown has to go. But Joe Welch, the sexy, handsome farm manager, refuses to cooperate. When Alex fires him, he tells her he has an unbreakable contract and can’t be let go.
For years Joe has worked to make Whistledown’s stables flourish while he struggled to keep his own dreams alive, and no rich rhymes-with-witch is going to threaten his livelihood—or his family life. Ever since his wife betrayed him years ago, Joe has raised his three kids alone and did it damn well. Now, his always dependable sixteen-year-old son Eli has become hopelessly infatuated with teenage wild child Neely. Joe refuses to let his boy get caught up with Neely—a nose stud and penchant for illegal substances among her less desirable traits—and he tells Alex in no uncertain terms.
Sparks of rage give way to a fiery attraction when Joe and Alex meet head-on. But just as a volatile passion begins flaring between them, the discovery of a shocking murder with ties to the past rocks the county—and cuts frighteningly close to home when Neely and Eli disappear.
Alex and Joe have only each other to rely on as they search frantically for their loved ones. What they don’t know is that they are racing against time, too. Because the evil that lurks beneath the bucolic surface of Paradise County has once again raised its gruesome head—and now Alex is targeted as the next victim.
KAREN ROBARDS is the national bestselling author of more than twenty novels, including
Ghost Moon
and
The Midnight Hour.
She lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with her husband, Doug, and their three sons.
A Literary Guild Selection
A Doubleday Book Club Selection
A Rhapsody Book Club Selection
Also Available from Simon & Schuster Audio
Author photo by Brian Velenchenko
Copyright © 2000 Pocket Books
Paradise
County
Other titles by Karen Robards
Ghost Moon
The Midnight Hour
The Senator’s Wife
Walking After Midnight
Heartbreaker
Hunter’s Moon
Dark of the Moon
This Side of Heaven
Maggy’s Child
One Summer
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
POCKET BOOKS, a division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
Copyright © 2000 by Karen Robards
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address Pocket Books, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
ISBN: 0-671-78645-8
eBook ISBN: 978-0-7434-2455-4
First Pocket Books hardcover printing November 2000
POCKET and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
This book is dedicated with love to my husband Doug, and our three boys, Peter, Christopher, and Jack.
It is also dedicated to Caroline Tolley and her new son, John Andrew Malabre, Jr.; Lauren McKenna, who was patient; and Steve Axelrod and Damaris Rowland, who believed.
Contents
Paradise
County