BOOK SUMMARY
For the first time in print, New York Times and USA Today bestseller Samantha Chase’s debut novel is a heartwarming story of second chances
WILL ONE SUMMER TOGETHER
All Jordan Manning wants is a quiet summer on the Virginia coast with her sons to recover from a near-fatal accident and an abusive relationship. Her plans to find a new direction for her future are turned upside down when she runs into the first man who ever broke her heart…and he’s determined to win it back.
BE ENOUGH TO HEAL OLD WOUNDS?
Rob Tyler thought he’d moved on, but when fate drops a second chance with his first love right in his path, his feelings rush back stronger than ever. Rob is determined to give Jordan the future they should have had years ago, but making up for past mistakes isn’t easy…
TBR/BUY LINKS
CAT'S REVIEW
"Jordan's Return" by Samantha Chase. Ms. Chase is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors. Her stories are heartfelt and elicit emotions from sadness and longing to happiness and belonging. This story tells the tale of Jordan, a woman recovering from some tragedy in her life. She meets up with her old flame, Rob. These two were perfect together. I adored both of them. They both have issues that they need to deal with before either of them can move forward - either alone or together. Ms. Chase superbly writes the path towards healing and love for this pair. They need to work hard to get to that happy place and, as the reader, we follow along feeling all the emotions that go along with that journey. This is a contemporary story that, while a feel good tale, also shows the hard emotions that come with broken and hurting hearts. (received copy for honest review)
★★★★
AUTHOR INFO
About Samantha Chase:
Samantha Chase, a creative writing teacher, released her debut novel, Jordan’s Return, in November 2011. Since then, she has published seventeen more titles and has become a New York Times and USA Todaybestselling author. She lives with her husband of twenty-four years and their two sons in Wake Forest, North Carolina.
EXCERPT
Without looking up, she heard Rob murmur something to the boys and
then heard the sound of footsteps heading down the hallway to their bedroom and
the door closing. He came and sat next to Jordan and took both of her hands in
his.
“I’m sorry, Jordan. I’m afraid that was my fault,” he confessed as
he ran his thumbs over her knuckles. “We were talking while out on the boat
today and they mentioned wanting to go to the park. I told them how great it
was and I got them all wound up about it. I really had no idea this was a topic
you and the boys had already discussed. I wasn’t thinking. I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault, Rob. You’d think living close to the park that
we’d go, but there never seemed to be the time.” She smiled weakly at him,
reveling in the feel of his strong hands wrapped around hers. She wanted to
draw on that strength, have it fill her and take all her pain away.
That thought nearly stopped her breath; if just having him touch her
hands gave her such a strong reaction, how was she ever going to come to grips
with just being friends? Who was she kidding—now that she knew Kelly wasn’t a
threat, the thought of being just friends with Rob was completely unappealing.
She looked at his face and saw he was waiting for her to continue.
“The thing is, I get tired so easily still and I just can’t do all the things
they want me to. Believe it or not, up until about six weeks ago, I was still
using a cane to get around.”
Rob dropped her hands and kicked the chair out from under him. He
paced the length of the kitchen with a scowl on his face. Jordan eyed him
hesitantly. She had never in all her life seen Rob when he was angry. She
remembered Eric’s anger well. He had directed it at her often enough during
their marriage and even well into their divorce. She silently prayed what she
was about to witness wouldn’t be anything like what she’d experienced in the
past.
“Jordan,” he snapped but then caught himself. He took a moment to
breathe and calm himself down before beginning again. “Jordan, I am just sick
inside when I think about what you and the boys have gone through. I know I
can’t erase any of it, but dammit, it breaks my heart to see them look at you
that way!”
Jordan finally let the tears she was fighting back fall. She knew
exactly what he meant. “It’s not easy for me either, Rob,” she sobbed. “I have
to live with the bad decisions I’ve made every day, and unfortunately, my
children have to pay the price for them. A normal woman would have taken her
children someplace fun for a vacation, but because of what I am now, we have to
take quiet vacations where they have to look after me!” As her tears freely
flowed, Rob stopped his pacing and came to kneel down beside her.
“Look,” he said as he reached up and wiped the tears from her face
with his thumbs. “Let me do this for them. Please.”
“Do what?” She sniffled.
“I want to take us all away for the weekend.” He stopped and waited
for her refusal. When she stared at him with wide eyes and a wet grin, he went
on. “We’ll leave on Friday night and drive up. We’ll get a hotel room or a
suite someplace, and we’ll spend all day Saturday at Kings Dominion and then
spend part of the day Sunday relaxing around the hotel before coming home.”
Home. Oh, how he would love to have a home with Jordan and the boys
that they all could come back to and live together.
Calm
down there, Romeo. You’re going all soft and emotional and way ahead of
yourself. Get a grip!
“Rob,” she began, “I can’t. I—”
“Shh. You can go at your own pace. I’ll do all the running around.
You can take as many breaks as you like—sit down in the shade and enjoy the
view, have a snack, whatever you want. The boys will get to enjoy the rides and
you can sit back knowing they are having a good time.”
Rob let that scenario play through Jordan’s mind for a moment before
asking, “What do you think?”
“That’s far too much, Rob,” she said and reached up to touch his
face. The fact that this man wanted to do something nice for her and the boys
touched her more than anything else in the world could have. It had been so
long since she’d known this type of kindness, no, tenderness from someone, and
she wasn’t sure how to respond.
“It’s not too much, Jordan. I want to do this for you
and the boys. Trust me. It’ll be fun. Come on. What do you say?” His eyes were
sweet and pleading, and Jordan would have given him anything in that moment.
Staring deeply into his eyes, she knew she was lost.
“I say you are the sweetest man I’ve ever known.” She leaned in and
kissed him briefly on the lips, only meaning to express gratitude, but at the
initial contact, she realized it wasn’t enough.
Rob still held her face in his hands and Jordan reached up to do the
same to his as they tasted and teased each other’s lips with shy remembrance.
They nipped at each other, both painfully holding back.
Jordan sighed and leaned in to him, and all Rob’s restraint left.
He slanted his mouth over hers again and again, and when he gently
probed at her soft lips with his tongue, she willingly opened for him and let
out a soft cry of pleasure.
And then found herself alone. Rob stood and released her while he
caught his breath. She feared she had disappointed him in some way. Maybe she
had misread the signals but she thought he wanted her as much as she wanted
him. Placing her face in her hands, she cringed with embarrassment. And then he
was back at her side.
“Jordan? I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to get so carried away. I…I
promise I won’t let that happen again. I’m not expecting anything from you in
return for this weekend, that’s not why I asked, so please relax. I promise to
keep my hands to myself.” There was a trace of desperation in his voice that
caused Jordan’s head to snap up. Her eyes were full of questions.
“I don’t think I understand.”
Looking down at the ground because he couldn’t bring himself to look
her in the eye, he spoke. “I know you’ve just been through a hellish few months
and you’re here to recover, and I go and practically attack you. I’m so sorry.
I don’t want you to worry about me pouncing. I promise to control myself and…” He
stopped speaking at the sound of her soft laughter. “What’s so funny?”
“Pouncing?” she laughed. “I think we’d have to admit that we both
pounced. You have nothing to be sorry for. I just thought you were regretting
kissing me because…well…”
“What, Jordan?”
“Because you didn’t enjoy it,” she admitted in a quiet voice.
She couldn’t bring herself to look at him either, but he left her no
choice. Using his index finger, Rob lifted her chin so she was forced to meet
his gaze.
“Oh, I enjoyed it,” he said softly as he inched closer to her. “I
enjoyed it very much.” His lips touched hers briefly. “In fact, I’ll probably
dream about it for a very long time.”
Unfortunately, they couldn’t let it go any further than that. Noises
were drifting down the hallway from the boys’ room and they both knew this
would lead them nowhere for right now.
Resting her forehead on his, she asked, “Are you sure you really
want to do this? An entire weekend with my children has been known to take down
many brave adults.”
Rob stood and took her in his arms and held her close. She felt so
good, and he just absorbed the sensations before speaking. “I’ll make all the
arrangements,” he stated. “Besides,” he added playfully, “it isn’t fair for
them to get stuck going to a theme park with a girl who
doesn’t fully appreciate all the scary rides.” He winked at her and stepped
away.
“Oh, I see. So this isn’t really about helping me out, this is to
spare Joseph and Jake the embarrassment of having a chicken for a mom, is that
it? The fact that you are just a big kid who enjoys thrill rides is just a
bonus, right?”
“Absolutely,” he said as he headed down the hall to talk to the
boys, leaving Jordan standing in the kitchen, smiling at his retreating form.
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