Series:

Willow's Haven

Excerpt from book:

Dear Titus, hurting you was the last thing I ever intended to do.

Isabella Gray drove beneath the wooded canopy leading to the future home of Willow's Haven, trepidation shimmying down her spine. An orphanage. The man she'd promised to see had to be building an orphanage. Oh, they might call it something different, a "child home," but Isabella wasn't fooled by the tender name.

She pushed aside memories of the past—dark rooms and muffled cries, a hungry stomach and filthy sheets—and focused on what she planned to do. She'd talk to Titus Jameson. Once that was done, she'd never set foot near another orphanage—or child home—again. Then she'd leave Claremont, Alabama, and go…

Isabella had no idea where to go. Certainly not back to Atlanta. But after she talked to this man, she'd start her new life. New location. She'd dreamed about living in a small town, a place where everyone knew everyone's name and cared about each other. She'd read about those tiny towns, but Richard hadn't thought them worthy of a visit. Throughout their ten years of marriage, Isabella asked repeatedly if they could take a trip to one, but Richard never understood her desire or the point. What would his colleagues think if he vacationed in some Podunk hole-in-the-wall town? He had an image to maintain, and he wouldn't taint it trying to satisfy her whimsical idealization of small-town America.

But now that he had a new wife to help him preserve his image, Isabella could finally do those things she dreamed of. She'd get a job. She had a degree, after all. Surely she could find some form of employment, even if she'd never worked a day in her life.

The thickness of the woods shrouding the long, gravel driveway gave the impression that the trees were closing in, and the unwanted yet familiar trickle of claustrophobia seeped through Isabella's veins.

The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

She breathed in, absorbed each word of the verse that had seen her through the scariest years of her childhood and continued down the darkened driveway. Ten minutes ago, she'd admired the brilliant sunshine of the June afternoon, the expanses of cotton, soy and corn fields bordering the road leading to Claremont like a patchwork quilt welcoming her in her quest to do the right thing. But now, as the trees closed in, she didn't feel welcomed. She felt warned. And she considered turning the car around and leaving without sharing information with a man she'd never met.

But she didn't want to break her promise to the woman who had provided Isabella with the dearest friendship she'd ever known.

She'd expected to find a construction crew working on-site, but there was no sign of anyone except a guy riding a bulldozer on the opposite side of the property. A trailer sat on its own to the right. She assumed that was the makeshift office. She parked beside a navy pickup with a Jameson Construction Company magnet stuck to the driver's door.

Time to see Nan's ex-husband. Her heart thudding loudly in her chest, Isabella climbed out and made her way toward the trailer, but a man in a baseball uniform opened the door before she had a chance to knock.

"Oh, hello, I'm Brodie Evans." He waved her inside. "You must be here about the ad in the paper. Savvy said she got a couple of calls from people wanting to interview. Come on in. I'm heading out, but she's on her way down from our place. She'll talk to you about the job." He motioned to the tiny living area. "Have a seat."

Isabella sat on the sofa, not so much because she wanted to but becA Place to Call Home 

Isabella Gray has always longed for a small town to call home. Newly arrived in Claremont, Alabama, she might finally have the chance to find that—and more. Handsome Titus Jameson and his daughter, Savannah, immediately capture Isabella's attention. The motherless child reminds Isabella of herself growing up, and she's determined to help bring the little girl out of her shell. But Isabella has been keeping a secret from the man she's fallen for—and she's torn. She knows telling him the real reason she came to Claremont is the right thing to do—but revealing the truth could break everyone's hearts.